ISAIAH
The Gospel To Israel
Book 3

LESSON  TWENTY  SEVEN
Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12

Isaiah 52:13-53:12
Fifth Prophecy
Golgotha and Sheblimini
or the Exaltation of the Servant of Jehovah out of Deep Degradation

In every case,  thus far,  in which another than Jehovah has spoken,  it has been the one  "Servant of Jehovah"  who was the centre of the circle,  the heart and head of the body of Israel.  And after having heard Him speaking Himself in Isa 50:4-9; 49:1-6; 48:16 b,  and Jehovah speaking concerning him in Isa 50:10-11; 39:7-9; 42:1-7 ,  it does not come upon us at all unexpectedly,  that Jehovah begins to speak of him again here.

Nor does it surprise us that the prophet should pass in so abrupt a manner,  from the exaltation of the church to the exaltation of the servant of Jehovah.  If we look back,  we find that he has not omitted anything that could preclude the possibility of our confounding this servant of Jehovah with Israel itself.

"Christian scholars,"  says Abravanel,  "interpret this prophecy as referring to that man who was crucified in Jerusalem about the end of the second temple,  and who,  according to their view,  was the Son of God,  who became man in the womb of the Virgin.  But Jonathan ben Uzziel explains it as relating to the Messiah who has yet to come;  and this is the opinion of the ancients in many of their Midrashim."

How many are there whose eyes have been opened when reading this  "golden passional of the
Old Testament evangelist,"  as Polycarp the Lysian calls it!   In how many an Israelite has it melted the crust of his heart!

And yet it does not belie its Old Testament origin.

A passage taken from the closing remarks on Drechsler (iii. 376):

This section settles the controversy if Messiah be the person meant.
The correspondence with the life and death of Jesus Christ is so minute that

Isaiah 52:13 – 53:12    Messiah’s Propitiatory Work

As coming to fulfill the LAW which was in His heart (Psalm 40:6-8).

Isaiah 52:13

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (13)  “Indeed, My servant shall prosper, be exalted and raised to great heights. Behold, my servant shall understand, and be exalted, and glorified exceedingly. Behold, my servant, the Anointed One, shall prosper; he shall be exalted, and increase, and be very strong. From the NKJV (13)  Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently;  He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high.

Behold   The Figure of Speech here is Asterismos, to emphasize what is to follow.

The word 'behold' indicates here that a new object is pointed out to view,  and that it is one that claims attention on account of its importance.  It is designed to direct the mind to the Messiah.  The point of view which is here taken, is between his

In this sense there follows here,  immediately after the cry.  "Go ye out from Babylon,"  an index pointing from the suffering of the Servant to His reward in glory.
Even apart from Isa 42:1, hinneeh (heen) (behold) is a favorite commencement with Isaiah;  and this very first verse contains,  according to Isaiah's custom,  a brief,  condensed explanation of the theme.

The exaltation of the Servant of Jehovah is the theme of the prophecy which follows.

Shall deal prudently - hisªkiyl (OT: 7919) by itself means simply to gain, prove, or act with intelligence;  and then,  since intelligent action,  as a rule,  is also effective,  it is used as synonymous with hitsªliyach - to succeed, prosper (OT: 6743),  hikªshiyr,  to act with result, i.e., so as to be successful.

Hence it is only by way of sequence that the idea of  "prosperously"  is connected with that of  "prudently".   The word is never applied to such prosperity as a man enjoys without any effort of his own,  but only to such as he attains by successful action,  i.e.,  by such action as is appropriate to the desired and desirable result.

But here,  where the exaltation is derived from yskyl (OT: 7919) as the immediate consequence,  without any intervening `l-kn,  there is naturally associated with the idea of wise action,  i.e.,  of action suited to the great object of his call,  that of effective execution or abundant success,  which has as its natural sequel an
ever-increasing exaltation.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

My Servant.  Exalted…extolled…be very high.  This Figure of Speech is Anabasis,  for great emphasis
(compare Phil. 2:9-11).

The word 'servant' refers to the Messiah. Compare the notes at Isaiah 49:5, where the word 'servant' is applied also to the Messiah.  It means that he would be employed in doing the will of God,  and that he would submit to him as a servant does to the law of his master.
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

God's spirit,  jealous for the honor of His Son,  which might seem to be lowered by His humiliation,  prefaces it with the assertion of His glory,  which is its inseparable issue and result (1 Peter 1:11).
The Midrasha, Tanhuma says on this passage, "This is King Messiah, who shall be higher than Abraham, more elevated than Moses, and exalted above the ministering angels."
(from Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

1 Peter 1:10-11
Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you,  searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.     (NKJV)

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 52:14 & 15

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (14)  Just as the many were appalled at him  – so marred was his appearance, unlike that of man, His form, beyond human semblance – As many shall be amazed at thee, so shall thy face be without glory from men, and thy glory shall not be honored by the sons of men. As the house of Israel hoped for him many days, for his appearance was wretched among the nations, and his countenance beyond that of the sons of men:  (15)  just so he startled many nations. Kings shall be silenced because of him, for they shall see what has not been told them, shall behold what they never have heard. Thus shall many nations wonder at him; and kings shall keep their mouths shut: for they to whom no report was brought concerning him shall see; and they who have not heard, shall consider. So shall he scatter many nations; kings shall be silent because of him; they shall set their hands upon their mouths: for the things which had not been told them have they seen, and that which they had not heard have they perceived. From the NKJV (14)  Just as there were many who were appalled at him — his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness —    (15)    so will he sprinkle many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of him.  For what they were not told, they will see, and what they have not heard, they will understand.

In His sufferings the Messiah was so bruised, beaten, and mutilated that His outward appearance was horrendous. He suffered so much that even wicked, hardhearted men were shocked at His treatment. He became so disfigured that men were disgusted at what they saw.
(Dake's Annotated Reverence Bible, Finis Jennings Dake, Dake Publishing, Lawrenceville, GA)

Note:
The church before the time of Constantine

Sprinkle
To this it may be replied,  that the usual,  the universal signification of the word naazaah (OT:5137) in the Old Testament is to sprinkle.
It is properly applicable to the act of sprinkling blood,  or water;  and then comes to be used in the sense of:

Hebrews 10:23
Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus,  by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh,  and having a High Priest over the house of God,  let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.      (NKJV)

The antithesis follows in verse 15:   the state of glory in which this form of wretchedness has passed away.
As a parallel to the "many" in verse 14,  we have here "many nations," indicating the excess of the glory by the greater fullness of the expression; and as a parallel to "were astonished at thee," "he shall make to tremble" (yazzeh).
In other words,  the effect which He produces by what He does
to the effect produced by what He suffers.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

Vitringa,  Hengstenberg,  and others,  accordingly follow the Syriac and Vulgate in adopting the rendering adsperget (he will sprinkle).  This explanation also commends itself from a reference to naaguwa` (OT:5060) in Isa 53:4, and nega` (OT:5061) in Isa 53:8 (words which are generally used of leprosy,  and on account of which the suffering Messiah is called in b. Sanhedrin 98 b by an emblematical name adopted from the old synagogue, "the leper of Rabbi's school"),  since it yields the significant antithesis,  that he who was himself regarded as unclean,  even as a second Job,  would sprinkle and sanctify whole nations,  and thus abolish the wall of partition between Israel and the heathen,  and gather together into one holy church with Israel those who had hitherto been pronounced  "unclean" (Isa 52:1).
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

Were astonished
The reference is to their leaping up in amazement (LXX thauma'sontai);  and the verb denotes less an external than an internal movement.
They will tremble with astonishment within themselves, being electrified,  as it were,  by the surprising change that has taken place in the servant of Jehovah.

Kings will shut their mouths at Him
The reason why kings  "shut their mouths at him" is expressly stated - what was never related they see,  and what was never heard of they perceive -

Romans 15:21
But as it is written, To whom he was not spoken of, they shall see: and they that have not heard shall understand.    (KJV)

Romans 16:25-27
Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began but now made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith — to God, alone wise, be glory through Jesus Christ forever.  Amen.    (NKJV)

The first turn in the prophecy closes here:
The servant of Jehovah, whose inhuman sufferings excite such astonishment,  is exalted on high;  so that from utter amazement the nations tremble,  and their kings are struck dumb.

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 53:1-3

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (1)  Who can believe what we have heard? Upon whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? O Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? Who hath believed these our tidings? And to whom hath the power of the mighty arm of the Lord been so revealed? (2)  For he has grown, by His favor, like a tree crown, like a tree trunk out of arid ground. He had no form or beauty, that we should look at him: No charm, that we should find him pleasing. We brought a report as of a child before him; he is as a root in a thirsty land: he has no form nor comeliness; and we saw him, but he had no form nor beauty. And the righteous shall grow up before him even as budding shoots; and as a tree that sendeth forth its roots by streams of water, so shall the holy generations increase in the land that was in need of him: his appearance shall not be that of a common man, nor the fear of him that of an ordinary man; but his countenance shall be a holy countenance, so that all who see him shall regard him earnestly. (3)  He was despised, shunned by men, a man of suffering, familiar with disease.  As one who hid his face from us, He was despised, we held him of no account. But his form was ignoble, and inferior to that of the children of men; he was a man in suffering, and acquainted with the bearing of sickness, for his face is turned from us: he was dishonored, and not esteemed. Then shall the glory of all the kingdoms be despised and come to an end; they shall be infirm and sick even as a man of sorrows and as one destined for sicknesses, and as when the presence of the Shekinah was withdrawn from us, they shall be despised and of no account. From the NKJV (1)  Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?    (2)    For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground.  He has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him.   (3)    He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.  And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

Although it is Israel that speaks even in verse 1, this  is representative of mankind at large.  The nation,  which acknowledges with penitence how shamefully it has mistaken its own Savior,  laments that it has put no faith in the tidings of the lofty and glorious calling of the Servant of God.

The heathen receive with faith tidings of things which had never been heard of before;  whereas Israel has to lament that it put no faith in the tidings which it had heard long,  long before,  not only with reference to the person and work of the Servant of God,  but with regard to His lowly origin and glorious end.

And it is the remnant which had eventually come to its senses,  that here inquires,  who hath believed our preaching,  i.e.,  the preaching that was common among us?  The substance of the preaching,  which had not been believed,  was the exaltation of the servant of God from a state of deep degradation.  This is a work performed by the  "arm of Jehovah,"  namely,  His holy arm that has been made bare,  and that now effects the salvation of His people,  and of the nations generally,  according to His own counsel (Isa 52:10; 51:5).
This arm works down from on high,  exalted far above all created things;  men have it above them,  and it is made manifest to those who recognize it in what is passing around them.

John 12:37-38
But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him,  that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke:

Romans 10:16-20
But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says,

He shall grow up before Him
The word rendered 'he shall grow up'  waya`al (OT:5927), means properly, "to go up, to ascend.

The phrase 'before him' lªpaanaayw (OT:6440), refers to Yahweh.

In this verse,  the prophet describes the humble appearance of the Messiah -

He is despised and rejected
The chief men of His nation who towered above the multitude,  the great men of this world,  withdrew their hands from Him,  drew back from Him:  He had none of the men of any distinction at His side.
Moreover, He was makª'obowt (OT: 4341) 'iysh (OT: 376),  a man of sorrow of heart in all its forms,  i.e.,  a man whose chief distinction was,  that His life was one of constant painful endurance.

The meaning is not,  that He had by nature a sickly body,  falling out of one disease into another;  but that the wrath instigated by sin,  and the zeal of self-sacrifice (Ps 69:10),  burnt like the fire of a fever in His soul and body.

Psalms 69:10
When I wept and humbled myself with fasting, I was jeered at and humiliated.     (AMP)

This phrase is full of meaning,  and in three words states the whole history of man in regard to his treatment of the Redeemer.  The name 'The Rejected of Men,'  will express all the melancholy history;

The low condition he submitted to, and how he abased and emptied himself.
The entry he made into the world, and the character he wore in it, were no way agreeable to the ideas which the Jews had formed of the Messiah and their expectations concerning him, but quite the reverse.

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 53:4

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (4)  Yet it was our sickness that he was bearing, our suffering that he endured. We accounted him plagued, smitten and afflicted by God He bears our sins, and is pained for us: yet we accounted him to be in trouble, and in suffering, and in affliction. Then he shall pray on behalf of our transgressions and our iniquities shall be pardoned for his sake, though we were accounted smitten, stricken from before the Lord, and afflicted. From the NKJV (4)  Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.

Borne
nasa (OT:5375),  to lift;  bear;  carry away;  cast away;  ease;  erase;  take away.
The idea is that of one person taking the burden of another and placing it on himself,  as carrying an infant (Psalm 103:12; Matthew 8:16-17; 1 John 3:5).
If Christ bore our griefs (choliy (OT:2483) malady, anxiety, calamity, sickness, disease),  then they were taken away in the same sense sins are taken away,  or borne,  as in Isaiah 53:11. This was not only done for people who lived during the few years of Christ's ministry on earth, but it was accomplished for all men of all ages.

Psalms 103:12
As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.    (NKJV)

Matthew 8:16-17
When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick.  This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:   "He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases."    (NIV)

1 John 3:5
You know that He appeared in visible form and became Man to take away [upon Himself] sins.   (AMP)

2 Corinthians 5:21
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.     (NIV)

Those who formerly mistook and despised the Servant of Jehovah on account of His miserable condition,  now confess that His sufferings were altogether of a different character from what they had supposed.

Even the fact that the relief which Jesus afforded to all kinds of bodily diseases is regarded as a fulfillment of what is here affirmed of the Servant of Jehovah,  is an exegetical index worth noticing. In verse 4a it is not really sin that is spoken of,  but the evil which is consequent upon human sin.

When construed with the accusative of the sin,  it signifies to take the debt of sin upon one's self,

But when one person takes upon himself suffering which another would have had to bear,  and therefore not only endures it with him,  but in his stead,  this is called substitution or representation - an idea which,  however unintelligible to the understanding,  belongs to the actual substance of the common consciousness of man,  and the realities of the divine government of the world as brought within the range of our experience,  and one which has continued even down to the present time to have much greater vigor in the Jewish nation,  where it has found it true expression in sacrifice and the kindred institutions,  than in any other,  at least so far as its nationality has not been entirely annulled.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 53:5

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (5)  But he was wounded because of our sins, crushed because of our iniquities. He bore the chastisement that made us whole, and by his bruises we were healed. But he was wounded on account of our sins, and was bruised because of our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and by his bruises we were healed. But he shall build the sanctuary that was polluted because of our transgressions and given up because of our iniquities; and by his teaching shall his peace be multiplied upon us, and by our devotion to his words our transgressions shall be forgiven us. From the NKJV (5)  But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.

Wounded

mªcholaal

(OT:2491)

pierced (especially to death);    figuratively, polluted

Literally pierced; minutely appropriate to Messiah, whose hands, feet, and side were pierced (Psalms 22:16).
(from Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

Transfixed or pierced, a term quite appropriate to crucifixion.
(from The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright © 1962 by Moody Press. All rights reserved.)

For our Transgressions

mipªshaa`eenuw

(OT:6588)

on account of - because of a revolt  (national, moral or religious)

Sin against lawful authority.  Often rendered transgression.

The reason why he suffered was that we were transgressors.
All along the prophet keeps up the idea that it was not on account of any sin of which he was guilty that he thus suffered, but it was for the sins of others
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

Bruised

daka'

(OT:1792)

to crumble;  broken to pieces;  to bruise (literally or figuratively):

By the use of the word here,  the most severe inward and outward sufferings are designated.
He was under such a weight of sorrows on account of our sins, that he was, as it were, crushed to the earth.
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

For our Iniquities

mee`ªwonoteeynuw

(OT:5771)

perversity,  i.e. (moral) evil

From the root word to be bent,  or crooked.

Perversity, depravity, iniquity, guilt or punishment of iniquity

But since the Messiah had no quilt or depravity in Himself,

There were no stronger expressions to be found in the language,  to denote a violent and painful death.  As min,  with the passive,  does not answer to the Greek hupo' (NT:5259),  but to apo' (NT:575),  the meaning is not that it was our sins and iniquities that had pierced Him through like swords,  and crushed Him like heavy burdens,

Chastisement

muwcar

(OT:4148)

chastisement;  figuratively, reproof, warning or instruction;  also restraint:

Literally, the correction inflicted by a parent on children for their good.
Not punishment strictly,  so far as He individually was concerned;  for this can take place only where there is guilt,  which He did not have;  but,  He took on Himself  the chastisement whereby the peace (reconciliation with our Father) was to be effected.
(from Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

Our Peace

shªlowmeenuw

(OT:7965)

shalowm

well, happy; also health, prosperity, peace

Peace - our peace with God;  reconciliation with our Creator.

The phrase 'upon him,'  means that the burden by which the peace of people was effected was laid upon him, and that he bore it.  It is parallel with the expressions which speak of his bearing it,  carrying it, etc.  And the sense of the whole is,  that he endured the sorrows,  whatever they were,  which were needful to secure our peace with God.
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

With His Stripes

Uwbachaburaatow

(OT:2250)

bound (with stripes), i.e. a weal (or black-and-blue mark itself)

The word used here in Hebrew chabuwraah means properly stripe, weal, bruise, that is, the mark or print of blows on the skin.  The proper idea is the weal or wound made by bruising; the mark designated by us when we speak of its being 'black and blue.'   How literally this was applicable to the Lord Jesus,  it is unnecessary to attempt to prove (see Matt. 27:26 ).

We are healed

rapha'

(OT:7495)

To mend (by stitching),  i.e. (figuratively) to cure

Literally,  it is healed to us;  or healing has happened to us.

Sin is not only a crime,  for which we were condemned to die and for which Christ purchased for us the pardon,

We were sick unto death because of our sins;  but He,  the sinless one,  took upon Himself a suffering unto death,  which was,  as it were,  the concentration and essence of the woes that we had deserved;  and this voluntary endurance,  this submission to the justice of the Holy One,  in accordance with the counsels of divine love,  became the source of our healing.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

Colossians 1:19-20
For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,  and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself,  by Him,  whether things on earth or things in heaven,  having made peace through the blood of His cross.     (NKJV)

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 53:6

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (6)  We all went astray like sheep, each going his own way; and the Lord visited upon him the guilt of all of us. All we as sheep have gone astray; every one has gone astray in his way; and the Lord gave him up for our sins. All we like sheep had been scattered; we had wondered off each on his own way; but it was the Lord’s good pleasure to forgive the transgressions of us all for his sake. From the NKJV (6)  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

All…all.  Note the Figure of Speech called Epanadiplosis,  by which the statement is emphasized as containing the essence of the whole chapter.

Thus does the whole body of the restored Israel confess with penitence,  that it has so long mistaken Him whom Jehovah,  as is now distinctly affirmed,  had made a curse for their good,  when they had gone astray to their own ruin.

It is the state of exile,  upon which the penitent Israel is here looking back;  but exile as being,  in the prophet's view,  the final state of punishment before the final deliverance.  Israel in its exile resembled a scattered flock without a shepherd;  it had lost the way of Jehovah,  and every one had turned to his own way,  in utter selfishness and estrangement from God.

Now it is indeed perfectly true,  that the Servant of God cannot become the object of punishment,  either as a servant of God or as an atoning Savior;  for

How could He have made expiation for sin,  if He had simply subjected Himself to its cosmical effects,

The punishment is but one element in the expiation,

All this great multitude of sins,  and mass of guilt,  and weight of punishment,  came upon the Servant of Jehovah according to the appointment of the God of salvation,  who is gracious in holiness. 
It was our sins that He bore, and for our salvation that God caused Him to suffer on our account.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

Acts 8:26-35
(26)  But an angel of the Lord said to Philip, Rise and proceed southward or at midday on the road that runs from Jerusalem down to Gaza. This is the desert [route].
(27)  So he got up and went. And behold, an Ethiopian, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure, had come to Jerusalem to worship.
(28)  And he was [now] returning, and sitting in his chariot he was reading the book of the prophet Isaiah.
(29)  Then the [Holy] Spirit said to Philip, Go forward and join yourself to this chariot.
(30)  Accordingly Philip, running up to him, heard [the man] reading the prophet Isaiah and asked, Do you really understand what you are reading?
(31)  And he said, How is it possible for me to do so unless someone explains it to me and guides me [in the right way]? And he earnestly requested Philip to come up and sit beside him.
(32)  Now this was the passage of Scripture which he was reading: Like a sheep He was led to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is dumb, so He opens not His mouth.
(33)  In His humiliation He was taken away by distressing and oppressive judgment and justice was denied Him [caused to cease]. Who can describe or relate in full the wickedness of His contemporaries (generation)? For His life is taken from the earth and a bloody death inflicted upon Him. [Isa 53:7, 8.]
(34)  And the eunuch said to Philip, I beg of you; tell me about who does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?
(35)  Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this portion of Scripture he announced to him the glad tidings (Gospel) of Jesus and about Him.     (AMP)

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 53:7

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (7)  He was maltreated, yet he was submissive, He did not open his mouth; like a sheep being led to slaughter, like a ewe, dumb before those who shear her, He did not open his mouth. And he, because of his affliction, opens not his mouth: he was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is dumb, so he opens not his mouth. He was praying, and he was answered, and before he opened his mouth he was accepted; the mighty ones of the peoples shall he deliver up like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a ewe that before her shearers is dumb, and there shall no none before him opening his mouth or speaking a word. From the NKJV (7)  He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth.

The third person stands first in a passive sense:

"He was ill treated, whilst He bowed Himself (= suffered voluntarily),  and opened not His mouth"  (the regular leap from the participle to the finite).

How strikingly and literally was this fulfilled in the life of the Lord Jesus!  It would seem almost as if it had been written after he lived,  and was history rather than prophecy.  In no other instance was there ever so striking an example of perfect patience.
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

1 Peter 2:22-23
(22)  He was guilty of no sin, neither was deceit (guile) ever found on His lips. [Isa 53:9.]
(23)  When He was reviled and insulted, He did not revile or offer insult in return; [when] He was abused and suffered, He made no threats [of vengeance]; but he trusted [Himself and everything] to Him Who judges fairly.     (AMP)

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 53:8

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (8)  By oppressive judgment he was taken away, Who could describe his abode?  For he was cut off from the land of the living through the sin of my people, who deserved the punishment. In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: who shall declare his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth: because of the iniquities of my people he was led to death. Out of chastisements and out of punishment shall he bring our exiles near and the wondrous things that shall be wrought for us in his days who shall be able to recount?  For he shall take away the dominion of the peoples from the land of Israel,  and the sins which my people sinned shall he transfer unto them. From the NKJV (8)  He was taken from prison and from judgment, and who will declare His generation?  For He was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of My people He was stricken.

From prison and from judgment, = by constraint and by sentence He was taken away.
Thus the climax of this prophecy is reached:

The description of the closing portion of the life of the Servant of Jehovah is continued in verse 8.   The principal emphasis is not laid upon the fact that He was taken away from suffering,  but that it was out of the midst of suffering that He was carried off.

The idea that is most prominent in luqqâch (he was taken)  is not that of being translated  (as in the accounts of Enoch and Elijah),  but of being snatched or hurried away.  The parallel is for which by itself is supposed to be used in the sense of carried away  (i.e., out of the sphere of the living into that of the dead).

`otser (OT:6115) - from prison - is a violent constraint;  it signifies a persecuting treatment which restrains by outward force,  such as that of prison or bonds;  and mishpât  (from judgment)  refers to the judicial proceedings,  in which He was put upon His trial,  accused and convicted as worthy of death - in other words,  to His unjust judgment.

We can understand why the address,  which has been carried on thus far in such general terms,  assumes all at once an individual form.  It cannot be denied,  indeed,  that we obtain a suitable object for the missing consideration,  if we adopt this rendering:   "He was torn away out of the land of the living,  through the wicked conduct of my people (in bringing Him to death),  to their own punishment;  i.e.,  none of the men of His age (like mii in v. 1, no one = only a very few)  discerned what had befallen them on account of their sin,  in ridding themselves of Him by a violent death."
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 53:9

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (9)  And his grave was set among the wicked, and with the rich, in his death – though he had done no injustice and had spoken no falsehood. And I will give the wicked for his burial, and the rich for his death; for he practiced no iniquity, nor craft with his mouth. And he shall deliver the wicked unto Gehinnom, and those that are rich in possessions which they have obtained by violence unto the death of destruction, that those who commit sin may not be established, nor speak deceits with their mouth. From the NKJV (9)  And they made His grave with the wicked — but with the rich at His death, because He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth.

After this description in verse 7 of the patience with which He suffered,  and in verse 8 of the manner in which He died,  there follows a retrospective glance at His burial.

They made His grave

We see an agreement at once between the gospel history and the prophetic words,  which could only be the work of the God of both the prophecy and its fulfillment,  inasmuch as no suspicion could possibly arise of there having been any human design of bringing the former into conformity with the latter.

F. Philippi observes: "The honorable burial, granted to one who had been ignominiously put to death, showed that there must be something very remarkable about Him.  It was the beginning of the glorification which commenced with His death."

There can be no doubt in our minds,  the reason why the Servant of God received such honorable treatment immediately after His ignominious martyrdom,  was to be found in His freedom from sin, in the fact that He had done no wrong,  and there was no deceit in His mouth.  His actions were invariably prompted by pure love,  and His speech consisted of unclouded sincerity and truth.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

He had done no violence ... neither any deceit
Even Pilate acknowledged the innocence of Jesus:

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 53:10

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (10)  But the Lord chose to crush him by disease, that, if he made himself an offering for guilt, he might see offspring and have long life and that through him the Lord’s purpose might prosper. The Lord also is pleased to purge him from his stroke. If ye can give an offering for sin, your soul shall see a long – lived seed: And it was the Lord’s good pleasure to refine and to purify the remnant of his people, in order to cleanse their soul from sin: they shall look upon the kingdom of their Anointed One, they shall multiply sons and daughters, they shall prolong days, and they that perform the Law of the Lord shall prosper in his good pleasure. From the NKJV (10)  Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him;  He has put Him to grief.  When You make His soul an offering for sin,  He shall see His seed,  He shall prolong His days,  and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.

This introduces the break in the Dispensations, which is the subject of the rest of the chapter:

We are told,  in 1 Peter 1:10-12,  that the prophets of old searched

This “time” refers to the “unsearchable riches of Christ.” They could not then be traced. Even angels desire to look into these things (1 Peter 1:12).
“Now,”  all is revealed.  It is ministered unto us,  in the Scriptures of truth,  on earth;  and God is making known,  by means of the Church,  something of His manifold wisdom to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places (Ephesians 3:9, 10).

Angels and prophets saw the “sufferings”  like the tops of a distant mountain range – while beyond it a farther range was seen in a distant haze of glory.  But what lay between they could neither see nor know.

In the Old Testament the suffering and the glory are each frequently dwelt upon together:  but we find that,  while the glory is often mentioned and enlarged upon by itself,  without any reference to the sufferings,  we never find the sufferings mentioned without the glory being referred to immediately after.  Sometimes the change is quite sudden.

It was men who inflicted upon the Servant of God such crushing suffering,  such deep sorrow;  but the supreme causa efficiens in the whole was God,  who made the sin of men subservient to His pleasure,  His will,  and predetermined counsel.

The reference here is to the new  "seed of Israel,

Why God Was Pleased with the Death of Christ

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 53:11

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (11)  Out of his anguish he shall see it;  He shall enjoy it to the full through his devotion.  My righteous servant makes the many righteous, it is their punishment that he bears; The Lord also is pleased to take away from the travail of his soul, to shew him light and to form him with understanding; to justify the just one who serves many well; and he shall bear their sins. From the subjection of the peoples shall he deliver their soul; they shall look upon the punishment of them that hate them; they shall be satisfied with the spoil of their kings: by his wisdom shall he justify the just, in order to subject many to the law; and for their transgressions shall he make intercession. From the NKJV (11)  He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities.

Satisfied - Not disappointed.
We have not an impotent Father, or a disappointed Messiah (Jesus);

This great work of salvation lies as the great object of His calling in the hand of the deceased and yet eternally living One,  and goes on victoriously through His mediation.  He now reaps the fruit of His self-sacrifice in a continuous priestly course.

The prophecy now leaves the standpoint of Israel's retrospective acknowledgment of the long rejected Servant of God,  and becomes once more the prophetic organ of God Himself,  who acknowledges the servant as His own.

The min of mee`amal (OT:5999) - the labor -

The Righteous One makes others partakers of righteousness,  through their knowledge of Him,  His person,  and His work,  and  (as the biblical yaada` (OT: 3045),  which has reference not only to the understanding,  but to personal experience also,  clearly signifies)  through their entrance into living fellowship with Him.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

We need only recall to mind the words of the Lord in Matt 11:27,  which are not only recorded both by the Synoptists [Matthew, Mark, Luke] and by John,  but supported by testimony outside the Gospels also: "No one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  Let us remember also, that the Servant of Jehovah, whose priestly mediatorial work is unfolded before us here in chapter 53,  upon the ground of which He rises to more than regal glory  (Isa 52:15),   is no other than He to whom His God has given the tongue of the learned,  "to know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary"  (Isa 50:4).

He knows God,  with whom He stands in loving fellowship;

The primary reference is to the righteousness of faith,  which is the consequence of justification on the ground of His atoning work,  when this is believingly appropriated;  but the expression also includes that righteousness of life,  which springs by an inward necessity out of those sanctifying powers,  that are bound up with the atoning work which we have made our own.

Because our righteousness has its roots in the forgiveness of sins,  as an absolutely unmerited gift of grace without works,  the prophecy returns once more from the justifying work of the Servant of God to His sin-expunging work as the basis of all righteousness: "He shall bear their iniquities."
This yisbool (He shall bear),  which stands along with futures,  and therefore,  being also future itself,  refers to something to be done after the completion of the work to which He is called in this life,  through His own active mediation.

His continued lading of our trespasses upon Himself is merely the constant presence and presentation of His atonement,  which has been offered once for all.

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 53:12

From the Tanakh From the  LXX From the Targum (12)  Assuredly, I will give him the many as his portion; He shall receive the multitude as his spoil. For he exposed himself to death and was numbered among the sinners, whereas he bore the guilt of the many and made intercession for sinners. Therefore he shall inherit many, and he shall divide the spoils of the mighty; because his soul was delivered to death: and he was numbered among the transgressors; and he bore the sins of many, and was delivered because of their iniquities. Then will I divide unto him the spoil of many peoples and the riches of strong cities; he shall divide the booty, because he delivered his soul unto death, and subjected the rebellious to the law; and he shall make intercession for many transgressions, and the rebellious shall be forgiven for his sake. From the NKJV (12)  Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong, because He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

The promise takes its stand between humiliation and exaltation,  and rests partly upon the working of the exalted One,  and partly upon the doing and suffering of One who was so ready to sacrifice Himself.
Luther follows the LXX and Vulgate,  and adopts the rendering, "Therefore will I give Him a great multitude for booty;"  and Hävernick,  Stier,  and others adopt essentially the same rendering, "Therefore will I apportion to Him the many."

What is meant by "giving a portion bârabbiim,"  is clearly seen from such passages as Isa 52:15; 49:7, according to which the great ones of the earth will be brought to do homage to Him, or at all events to submit to Him. The second clause is rendered by Luther, "and He shall have the strong for a prey."

With this victorious sway is He rewarded,  because He has poured out His soul unto death,  having not only exposed His life to death,  but "poured out"  (he'erâh, to strip or empty,  or pour clean out,  even to the very last remnant)  His life-blood into death,  and also because He has suffered Himself to be reckoned with transgressors,  i.e.,  numbered among them,  namely,  in the judgment of His countrymen,  and in the unjust judgment by which He was delivered up to death as a wicked apostate and transgressor of the law.

Mark 15:27-28
With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.  So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."    (NKJV)

Every word stands here as if written beneath the cross on Golgotha.
And this is the case with the clause before us,  which was fulfilled  (though not exclusively)  in the prayer of the crucified Savior:  "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34).

The Messianic idea,  which was hidden in the general idea of the nation regarded as "the servant of Jehovah,"  has gradually risen up in the most magnificent metamorphosis from the depths in which it was thus concealed.

And this fusion has generated what was hitherto altogether strange to the figure of the Messiah.
Hitherto Israel has appeared simply as the nation governed by the Messiah,  the army which He conducted into battle,  the commonwealth ordered by Him.
But now,  in the person of the Servant of Jehovah,  we see Israel itself in personal self-manifestation:  the idea of Israel is fully realized,  and the true nature of Israel shines forth in all its brilliancy.

Israel is the body,  and He the head,  towering above it.
Another element,  with which we found the Messianic idea enriched even before ch. 53.  As early as chapters 7-12 the figure of the Messiah stood forth as the figure of a King;

But the Servant of Jehovah goes

The curtain of the most holy is lifted higher and higher.
The blood of the typical sacrifice,  which has been hitherto dumb , begins to speak.
Faith,  which penetrates to the true meaning of the prophecy,  hopes on not only for the Lion of the tribe of Judah,  but also for the Lamb of God,  which bears the sin of the world.
And in prophecy itself we see the after-effect of this gigantic advance.
(From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

From The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible

Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12  -  from the Amplified Version

52:13      Behold, My Servant shall deal wisely and shall prosper; He shall be exalted and extolled and shall stand very high.
(14) [For many the Servant of God became an object of horror; many were astonished at Him.] His face and His whole appearance were marred more than any man's, and His form beyond that of the sons of men — but just as many were astonished at Him,
(15)  So shall He startle and sprinkle many nations, and kings shall shut their mouths because of Him; for that which has not been told them shall they see, and that which they have not heard shall they consider and understand. [Romans 15:21.]

53:1      WHO HAS believed (trusted in, relied upon, and clung to) our message [of that which was revealed to us]? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been disclosed? [John 12:38-41; Romans 10:16.]
(2)    For [the Servant of God] grew up before Him like a tender plant, and like a root out of dry ground; He has no form or comeliness [royal, kingly pomp], that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him.
(3)    He was despised and rejected and forsaken by men, a Man of sorrows and pains, and acquainted with grief and sickness; and like One from Whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we did not appreciate His worth or have any esteem for Him.
(4)    Surely He has borne our griefs (sicknesses, weaknesses, and distresses) and carried our sorrows and pains [of punishment], yet we [ignorantly] considered Him stricken, smitten, and afflicted by God [as if with leprosy]. [Matthew 8:17.]
(5)    But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole.
(6)    All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has made to light upon Him the guilt and iniquity of us all. [1 Peter 2:24,25.]
(7)    He was oppressed, [yet when] He was afflicted, He was submissive and opened not His mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He opened not His mouth.
(8)    By oppression and judgment He was taken away; and as for His generation, who among them considered that He was cut off out of the land of the living [stricken to His death] for the transgression of my [Isaiah's] people, to whom the stroke was due?
(9)    And they assigned Him a grave with the wicked, and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence, neither was any deceit in His mouth. [Matthew 27:57-60; 1 Peter 2:22,23.]
(10)  Yet it was the will of the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief and made Him sick. When You and He make His life an offering for sin [and He has risen from the dead, in time to come], He shall see His [spiritual] offspring, He shall prolong His days, and the will and pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.
(11)  He shall see [the fruit] of the travail of His soul and be satisfied; by His knowledge of Himself [which He possesses and imparts to others] shall My [uncompromisingly] righteous One, My Servant, justify many and make many righteous (upright and in right standing with God), for He shall bear their iniquities and their guilt [with the consequences, says the Lord].
(12)  Therefore will I divide Him a portion with the great [kings and rulers], and He shall divide the spoil with the mighty, because He poured out His life unto death, and [He let Himself] be regarded as a criminal and be numbered with the transgressors; yet He bore [and took away] the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors (the rebellious). [Luke 22:37.]
 

(End of  Lesson 27)

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