Isaiah 53:10
The Bible says in Isaiah 53:10, Yet it
pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt 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.
In this verse the Holy Spirit is beginning to tell us about the wonderful
benefits that resulted for mankind from Jesus suffering and death on the cross of
The seed of Christ
mentioned here in Isaiah 53:10 is all of the people who become saved through
faith in Jesus. To prolong his days refers to the resurrection of Christ. Jesus
died, but He was raised from the dead. What appeared to be a terrible, terrible
tragedy turned into the greatest of all blessings. God is like that. He can
turn the tables. He can take a disaster and make it a blessing, once everything
has come full-circle. The death followed by the resurrection of Jesus is the
best example of the truth of Romans 8:28 that says, And we know
that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are
the called according to his purpose.
The Bible says in Isaiah 53:11, He shall see
of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my
righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
It is very interesting that it says, by his
knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many. Jesus is righteous. He is the righteous servant. Jesus will justify
many. To justify means to declare righteous. This is grace: the only One who
ever lived a righteous life will justify those who have not lived righteous
lives. Notice that this justification comes through knowledge. In other
words it comes through knowing Jesus Christ. Everyone who comes to know Christ
in a personal way becomes justified. Jesus can be known in a personal way
because He is alive. He visits men and women, and boys and girls. You can open
your heart to Him. Jesus said in Revelation 3:20, Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear
my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and
he with me.
The Bible says in Isaiah 53:12, Therefore
will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with
the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered
with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for
the transgressors. There is suffering at times if you serve God, but there
is also great reward, and the reward eventually far outweighs the suffering.
That is because the rewards last through eternity, but the sufferings are only
for this life. The Apostle Paul looked forward to the rewards for serving
Christ. Paul wrote in Second Timothy 4:8, I
have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the
Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but
unto all them also that love his appearing.
Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords. Jesus is the Judge of the whole
earth, and He will return with a sword to bring retribution and judgment to the
wicked of the earth. Jesus is the Almighty God. Even so, somehow by suffering
and dying on the cross, honor and praise and glory will be added to Him
throughout all eternity. If you have not yet been saved, you also can learn to
honor Christ for salvation. Just bow before Jesus and ask Him to save you from
your sins.
Sometimes it appears that things are
going to turn out one way that is not so good, but then things change, and it
actually turns out much better then one would have thought. That is because God
is in control. He decides what happens in the end. People do not know what the
future holds. People cannot look at the current circumstances and know what the
outcome will be. But God does know the future because He decides the future. He
holds the future in His hands. Also, God seems to enjoy turning the tables. When
people think that one thing is going to happen, sometimes God makes an entirely
different thing to happen. That seems to be the case in what is stated in
Isaiah 54:1. It says, Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into
singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are
the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the
LORD. Having children was very important in the days of the Old
Testament, perhaps for practical reasons. Almost all work was based on manual
labor. Having another pair of hands in the household to share in the work was a
great blessing. Of course, even in our day some people feel greatly saddened if
they do not have children. Others are not so saddened, knowing the terrible
things that can happen to children in this life. It is important to notice that
the Lord tells those that are without children that He is going to give them
even more children than women who get married and then have their own sons and daughters. It is most likely that in
Isaiah 54:1 the Lord is speaking
of having spiritual children. Of course, God is concerned about the family of
God. There are those who walk with God who have learned that Christian friends
are often much closer than family members. That is because two Christians who
walk in fellowship with the Lord are of the same spirit, and thus have the
closest of spiritual bonds that is possible in this life. This kind of
closeness will definitely exist among Christians in heaven, and it could be
that way now for everyone who truly walks in the Spirit and not in the flesh. Because Jesus died for
our sins, God promises in Isaiah 54:1, Sing,
O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud,
thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the
desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD.
The rest of Isaiah chapter 54
continues on the theme of the great prosperity and victory that will be given
to believers because of what Jesus accomplished for them on the cross. It says
in Isaiah 54:2-3, Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the
curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen
thy stakes; For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and
thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be
inhabited. This promise has not yet been completely fulfilled.
Notice the expanse of this promise. To say that thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles
refers to the entire world because the Old Testament presents the world as
being occupied by Jews and Gentiles. The Jews are symbolic of the believers,
and the Gentiles are symbolic of the unbelievers. The Gentiles may appear to
have the upper-hand over the believers, but the unbelievers are going to lose
it all, and those who trust Jesus are going to gain everything. Jesus was
referring to this same promise in Matthew 5:5 when He said, Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
The Bible says in Isaiah 54:4, Fear not;
for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not
be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not
remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more. God promises a
bright future. Many people fear the future. Many people fear the uncertainties
of life and what trouble a new day might bring.
But God says, Fear not. Referring to our past, and our failures, and the results
of our failures that may still linger, God says to us, thou shalt not be ashamed.
That is how great is the forgiveness of sins given by Jesus Christ. Jesus paid
it all. His death on the cross accomplished eternal benefits to the saved. The
love of God is showered upon us even though we do not deserve it. Looking
forward, Gods blessings and Gods help will be there for us, not because of
ourselves, but because of Jesus and what He did for us in paying the price for
our sins. Isaiah 54:4 refers to the closest of family relationships: marriage or
the lack thereof, and children or the lack thereof. But no matter how badly
some of these human relationships may have turned out for us at this point in
life, God can still fix things. Even if those failed relationships were all our
own fault because our own sinfulness or poor decisions, God is promising that
He is going to change everything and make it better. He is going to set
everything right, and give a happy ending to everything. Of course, all of this
is possible because of what Jesus did for us on the cross of
The Bible says in Isaiah 54:5-8, For thy
Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the
Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called. For the LORD
hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of
youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God. For a small moment have I
forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. In a little wrath I
hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have
mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer. We can establish the
fact that Jesus is the Judge of the whole earth, and as Judge He must punish
sin and He does punish sin. But His capacity for mercy and forgiveness far
over-shadows the punishments or chastisements that He sometimes gives. For
example, in these verses He does not identify Himself as Judge or Punisher. He
identifies Himself as Redeemer. In Isaiah 54:7 the Lord calls His judgments and
chastisements against
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Copyright; 2009 by Charles
F. (Rick) Creech
All Rights Reserved