We Didn’t Know Who You Were July 20, 2014 Read: Isaiah 52:13–53:3 He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. (53:3) Isaiah 53 contains the fourth and last of the Servant Songs. Three previous Servant Songs—in chapters 42, 49, and 50—speak of the tenderness, sympathy, and understanding of the Servant, of how he was to be a “light to the Gentiles,” and of how his face should be set “like a flint,” since it was the Lord God who was his strength. There is a close connection between the return of the Lord’s people from the exile in Babylon and the promised release from the world’s slavery to sin. If you will glance back at the previous verses of chapter 52, those that speak of the feet of the messengers on the mountains, you will see how the deliverance from Babylon leads into our verses for today, verses that tell how the Servant offers his life in an atoning death for sinners from “many nations.” The Lord seems to anticipate the rejection of his Servant by “Israel according to the flesh.” They would not know who he was, since his humiliation would make him undesirable to them. The cross would be a scandal to Israel. It is a scandal to those today who expect from Christ a guarantee of success and prosperity for themselves or for their church. “We didn’t know who you were,” says the prophet. Has the Lord opened our eyes to the meaning of Calvary? (originally published June 1, 1967) Prayer: Lord, thank you for dying on the cross. Please help us to follow your ways. Amen. Author: Joseph Holbrook Jr.
Posted on: Sun, 20 Jul 2014 19:21:13 +0000