53:3
“He was despised and rejected by mankind”. This was clearly true of Jesus. We know that the religious leaders of the Jews rejected Him, considering Him to be a threat to them and their position. The Roman authorities rejected Him, being prepared to have Him crucified for purely expedient reasons. The ordinary folk rejected Him as well. He was mocked on the cross, no one came to His aid. Man rejected God. He was crucified, one the most painful deaths ever invented by man. He was truly familiar with pain and suffering. He was despised. Crucifixion was devised with the express intention of humiliating the victims, it was designed to be a warning to others. Jesus was not esteemed by the people. There were times during His ministry when the ordinary people did esteem Him, but at the cross He was abandoned by all.
53:4
Why did He suffer? He took up our pain and bore our suffering. It is this verse which is quoted in Matt 8:17 in the context of healing, where it quotes from the Greek version of the Old Testament, which was commonly used: “He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases”. I always find it rather strange that so many people (especially in Charismatic circles) quote the next verse in the context of physical healing. This is a misuse of Scripture, use the verse that the Bible quotes in the context of physical healing! Jesus took up our pain, yet we considered Him stricken, we thought He was receiving God’s judgement for His own sins, when He was bearing our guilt and infirmities.
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