Isaiah 40-66; Phil 2:5-11; Matt. 20:28; Mark 10:45; 2 Cor 5:21; Gal 3:13-15.
Lent has provided us with a rich feast, in the prophecies of the great servant of God, Isaiah. The first two sections (chapters 1-39) which we have considered mostly targeted the years 742-687 BC, from the calling of the prophet, when King Uzziah died, to the time of Hezekiah, when the Assyrian threat was removed from Judea, but the Babylonian threat was on the horizon. Chapters 40-66 concern the years that immediately follow Hezekiah’s reign, next when the great Babylonian empire finally over-runs Judea in 587 BC, and then when Cyrus King of Persia takes over from that great empire in 539 BC and allows the exiles to return. Finally we move further into a future paradise, similar to that seen in more detail by the New Testament seer, John.
While the first two main sections of Isaiah present a picture of scourging and wrath, punctuated by a scenes of shining hope, the last section, chapters 40-66, are much more positive, and no doubt have been instrumental in giving Isaiah’s book the honorary title of “the fifth gospel.” (Some scholars make two divisions, from 40-54, and then 55-66, but this is not necessary to understand the book.) Especially luminous are the great passages concerning God’s “Suffering Servant,” who stands in solidarity with God’s people, and who is willing to suffer on their behalf. Indeed, when we read the gospels, we see clearly how Jesus identified Himself by conjoining these passages of the Servant (Isaiah 42:1-9; 49:1-13; 50:4-11; 52:13-53:12) with the visionary Son of Man, whom the Father glorifies as a representative of God’s saints (Daniel 7:13-14; 26-27), as well as with the divine Shepherd of Ezekiel 34-37 who seeks and saves the lost. We can think of Jesus’ compassionate and startling statement, “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, andto give his life as a ransom for many” (Matt. 20:28; Mark 10:45). We can think of His promise to seek out the lost sheep in John 10. We can think of His use of the term “Son of Man” to describe both His humble humanity and His glorious coming again.
Chapter 40 begins with the strong assurance of God’s comfort to the stricken people of God, even while the prophet recognizes that the people themselves are not innocent, and have brought the punishment of Assyria and then Babylon upon themselves, because they relied on pagan human beings rather than on God. God’s remedy for their faithlessness is to bring Righteousness and Faithfulness to them, in person, through the heartbreaking ministrations of the Servant. God’s glory is obvious; but it is found in its most tender and hidden aspect in the humility of that One who will come to be deeply among His people, calling both to Israel/Judah, and to the world as a whole! In the first song of the Servant, God calls to us, through the prophet, to look upon the One whom he has chosen to bring a tender righteousness to the entire earth:
Behold my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my Spirit upon him;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street.
A bruised reed he will not break,
and a faintly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
He will not grow faint or be discouraged
till he has established justice in the earth,
and the coastlands wait for his law. (Isaiah 42:1-4)
Here is the One who is both truthful and loving, who brings forth justice in all humility, not calling out in a raucous manner, but acting in such a gentle way that a “bruised reed” or a “glowing wick” are not damaged, but become what they are meant to be. Israel in particular, and human beings, in general, are wounded, and even participate in evil—but this one will never be discouraged until everything is as it should be. Not only will the Servant revive God’s creation and bring out the prisoners who are in darkness, but he will bring forth “new things” (40:9).
Back in Isaiah 6 we heard about those who were deaf, blind, and hard of heart—but now, everyone is called to see and hear, because of what the Servant will do, “that you may know and believe and understand that I am He” (43:7-10). God will “do new things” and “blot out the lawlessness” of His people (43:19, 25)! In the chapters following the first Song, we hear about the promised “Spirit of God” (44:3), the fact that God is not only Creator but Redeemer (44:24), His sovereign ability to use even pagan rulers like Cyrus the Persian to bring peace to the world, and the uniqueness of this God whose name is “I Am,” the “Existing One” (45:18-25). The apostle Paul was surely influenced by these chapters, especially 45:21-25, in his own great song about the humble one who suffers! There, as in Isaiah, we hear about knees bowing and tongues confessing God as unique: in Isaiah, it is the mysterious LORD confessed by knees and tongues, and in Philippians 2:5-11, it is the LORD Jesus, the God-Man, who will be glorified and who will bring healing. The extent of God’s healing and new creation comes gradually into focus with the next three songs.
The second Song, 49:1-13, speaks specifically about the Servant as God’s chosen, as formed in the womb, and as bringing light not only to God’s historic people, but to the Gentiles: “It is a great think for You to be called My Servant, to establish the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the dispersion of Israel. Behold I give you as the covenant of a race and as the light of the Gentiles, that you should be the salvation of the earth” (49:6). The elder Symeon, too, recalls this promise when he speaks to the Theotokos of the mighty new things that Jesus will do—not just restoration or bringing back to life God’s chosen people, but enlightening also those who sit in darkness, the Gentiles. All this amounts to a newly formed world, where there is pasture along the roads, where there are fountains of waters, where there is no hunger, thirst, or burning heat, and where those who seek the LORD will come from afar. “Be glad, O heavens, and rejoice exceedingly, O earth!” (49:13). This hope is the same as that of the angels at Jesus’ birth, who cried out, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, among men!”
The third Song, 50:4-11, moves to the dark side of God’s promises. Here the Servant, instructed by the Father, knows when to speak, and has “opened” ears so that He can model obedience. We have heard this description of Jesus both in the letter to the Hebrews, where we are told that He is the perfectly obedient Servant, and also in the hymns of Holy Week. But this obedience is hard. It involves giving His back to whips, His cheek to be hit, and His face to be covered with spit. Despite all this suffering, the Servant remains steadfast and is not “harmed” (verse 9), because the Father is with Him. This heart-breaking humility and faith of the Servant serves as an encouragement for all, to “listen to the voice” of God’s Servant, and to rely on God’s light, even in times of trial. After the third song comes the ups and downs of chapters 51-52, in which we hear the clarion call, “Awake, awake, O Jerusalem!” (51:9; 17; 52:1), that we might understand both God’s judgement and His salvation: “For the Lord will go before you, and the Lord God of Israel shall gather you” (52:12).
Then comes the final servant Song, at the end of chapter 52 (52:13-53:12). This is the most extensive, the most explicit, and the most illumining. We behold the utter humility of the One who took on our frail humility in a barren and damaged creation, who bore illness, suffering, and pain, and who willingly was delivered for our sins. We think of the apostle’s teaching that “the one who knew no sin was made sin for us” (2 Cor 5:21), or that He actually became “a curse” for our sake: “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us…He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit” (Gal 3:13-14). As Isaiah’s song puts it, “All we like sheep have gone astray, Man has gone astray in his way, and the LORD delivered Him over for our sins” (Is 53:6). This is a substitution for us, then, for He is the true Man, our true representative. And it is certainly punitive—He is chastised and struck where we should have been. But it is not the same kind of Substitutionary Atonement that we hear preached in certain circles today, for the Father and the Son act together in full harmony, not on opposing sides, and God does all this for love of His creation, not out of vengeance or sheer blind justice. The Father does not delight in the suffering, but “wishes to take away the pain of His soul, to show Him light, to form Him with understanding, and to pronounce righteous the Righteous One who serves many well” (53:11). In all this, God’s mercy and justice come together.” When we gaze upon the Servant, we see a Lamb, but also the Shepherd of the sheep. We see the crucified One, but also the Creator of the universe!
Today He is suspended on a Tree who suspended the earth over the waters.
A crown of thorns was placed on the head of the King of angels.
He who wore a false purple robe covered the heavens with clouds.
He was smitten who, in the Jordan, delivered Adam.
The Groom of the Church was fastened with nails, and the Son of the Virgin was pierced with a spear.
Thy sufferings we adore, O Christ.
Thy sufferings we adore, O Christ.
Thy sufferings we adore, O Christ,
Make us to behold thy glorious Resurrection.
And as we move from the Suffering Servant songs to the end of Isaiah (chapters 55-66), it is the theme of resurrection and new creation that dominate. The thirsty and hungry are invited to partake, the foreigner and eunuch are invited to join the people of God, the Spirit of the Lord is described as going forth, the light and glory of God is seen, and we hear the cry “Shine, shine, O Jerusalem!” (60:1) All this is possible because the Spirit of the Lord is upon his Son, to proclaim good news, heal, and liberate. This is a new “acceptable day” of the Lord, seen by the prophet (61:1-2). The stance of mourning which the prophet takes in the first part of his book is replaced with “the garment of salvation and the tunic of gladness” (61:10), and the whole earth now greens up, and bears flowers. The last few chapters of Isaiah remain realistic about human sin and faithlessness, but present the victory of the one who has dealt with sin and death, and triumphed. God’s glory is now seen to the ends of the earth, and many gather to the light, becoming part of this “new heaven and new earth” (66:22).
All this simply scratches the surface of this rich and profound prophecy. It is a book that bears reading and re-reading, and not only during Great Lent. Its words, images, and promises, as well as its warnings, resound in the pages of our gospels and letters, and are amplified in the great book of Revelation, where we see the New Jerusalem in even more glory. Those who read and are strengthened by Isaiah will never ask “Is the Lord’s hand unable to save?” Instead, we will find joy in the prophet’s word “Like someone a mother comforts, so also will I comfort you, and you shall be comforted” (66:13).
Edith M. Humphrey 