The Suffering Servant

Last week I wrote about the efforts to undermine the writings of the prophet Isaiah, and now I want to highlight what I think Isaiah’s critics ultimately want to do away with. In chapters 52-53 the prophet wrote of the suffering servant, a passage that any unbiased reader would have to conclude is a perfect description of the work of Jesus on the cross. For 1,700 years after Isaiah wrote, rabbis believed this passage to be a prophecy of the Messiah, but today many Jews ignore this passage altogether.

Isaiah wrote that the servant would be “despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” Many today have trouble with the death of Jesus, believing God would never allow the Messiah to be killed in that way, and that the people would welcome Him with open arms; Isaiah, however, portrays Messiah as one who is rejected and despised by His own people, something we clearly see happen to Jesus. The prophet continued: “Surely he has born our griefs and carried our sorrows, yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.” God didn’t just allow the crucifixion, He is foretold it.

It gets even better. Isaiah noted, “He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed…the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Jesus was pierced on the cross by three nails and a soldier’s spear, and striped by the cat-o-nine-tails. This wasn’t some accident God could not stop, nor a heretic getting what he deserved; God knew our peace with Him could only come by crushing His own Son. That is why Isaiah could say, “Yet it pleased the Lord to crush him,” for “It was the outcome that pleased Him, not the pain[1].” Isaiah said he would die with the wicked and be buried with the rich (Jesus died between criminals and was put in a rich man’s tomb); he would make many people righteous (who else has done that?); and most notably, he would divide the spoil with the strong because he died (in other words, after death he would celebrate victory, a clear picture of the Resurrection).

Please take the time to read these two chapters on your own, for space does not permit me to comment on each line.

When we remember that Micah predicted the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem (5:2) and Daniel said He would come before the temple was destroyed (9:26; this happened in AD 70), we are left with a clear picture of Jesus. He was rejected and humiliated, only to bear the sins of many, and make peace between God and all who trust in Jesus. If you are looking for a Savior, Isaiah points Him out to you.  

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[1] MacArthur, John, The Gospel According to God, Crossway, p.141

Three Isaiahs?

In recent years some liberal scholars have sought to remove the idea that one man named Isaiah wrote the Old Testament book that bears his name. Some have suggested there were two authors, while some have gone so far as to suggest there were three. Their reasoning for suggesting multiple Isaiahs is the degree of accuracy in the book: Isaiah prophesied about things hundreds of years in advance, and his imagery was spot on. These critics have suggested a later Isaiah wrote after the fact, writing history and calling it prophecy.

For example, Isaiah prophesied (ch.13) that the Medes would defeat Babylon, and that Babylon would remain uninhabited forever. At the time of his writing Babylon was the world’s superpower, and the Medes were but a blip on the radar. However, just as was predicted, Darius the Mede supplanted the Babylonian Empire, and it has remained uninhabited ever since (an area about 50 miles from Baghdad).  

This is what scoffers like to do. Whenever something in Scripture can only be explained by the miraculous, they cry foul. Instead of accepting that “all Scripture is God-breathed,” they invent Second and Third Isaiah. This exposes the real motivation. If they can establish that Isaiah was altered centuries after the real prophet spoke, then they can discredit parts with which they disagree. The ultimate goal is to remove Isaiah 53, a chapter that so clearly presents Jesus as the Messiah that “even the inclusion of His name could add but little more to the extent of its disclosure of Him[1],” but more on that next time.

Is there a way to prove that Isaiah has not been tampered with? Aside from the fact that there is no evidence to suggest that there were multiple Isaiahs, we have New Testament attestation to a single author. In Matthew’s Gospel he quotes Isaiah 6, 9, 29, 40, 42, and 53; in each occurrence Matthew and Jesus attribute the quotes to Isaiah. Similarly, John quotes from chapters 6 and 53, saying “the prophet Isaiah” spoke both passages. This destroys any notion that later authors went back and added to the original book.

Isaiah’s amazing fulfilled prophecies add to the Bible’s reliability. We can trust that the prophecies yet unfulfilled will come to pass—such as the return of Christ, the judgments, and the events recorded in Revelation. Don’t pay any attention to scoffers who try to dismiss the miraculous; instead, embrace God’s Word as the inerrant, infallible instruction book for life.     

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[1] Grogan, Geoffrey W., “Isaiah,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Frank E. Gaebelein, ed., Zondervan, 1986, 6:305

Jesus is my Rock

I often hear people use the expression that “Jesus is my rock.” Please allow me to point out a few ways from Scripture where we see Jesus as our rock.

First, we are safe behind the rock. In Psalm 18 David says, “The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my strength in whom I will trust (v.2).” In verse 31 he asks, “Who is a rock, but God?” And in verse 46 he says, “The Lord lives! Blessed be the rock, and let the God of my salvation be exalted!”

David wrote these poetic words after God delivered the future king from the current king who was trying to kill him. With Saul hot on his trail, David hid in a cave, which was an opening in the side of a mountain. That was the image David had in mind when he called the Lord his rock, his fortress, and his strength. David was safe behind the rock, and we can find refuge from God in times of trouble.

Second, we are satisfied by the rock. In 1 Corinthians 10:4 Paul wrote of the Israelites in the wilderness that they “all drank from that spiritual rock, and that rock was Christ.” Paul was referring to the rock Moses struck in order to provide water when there was nothing to drink. Paul saw that rock as a picture of Jesus who satisfies us when the things of this world leave us unfulfilled. The concept of drinking from Christ also reminds us of the words spoken by Jesus in the Upper Room: “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. As often as you drink of it, do this in remembrance of me (1 Corinthians 11:25).” There is nothing we can do to satisfy the wrath of God apart from drinking from Jesus, the rock.  

Finally, we stand on top of the rock. In a familiar passage, Jesus said to the disciples, “Upon this rock I will build my church (Matthew 16:18).” Some say the rock to which He referred was Peter, but the original Greek language does not allow for that. Jesus was either pointing to Himself or was referencing Peter’s statement that Jesus was the Christ sent from God. Either way, Jesus said the church is built upon the rock of His Messiahship.

Jesus concluded the Sermon on the Mount by speaking of the wise and foolish builders; the wise man builds his house on the rock, which gives it a firm foundation. When we base our lives on the foundation of Jesus Christ we build lives that can withstand any storm. If your life is not what it should be, try building it upon the Rock of Jesus.

Is God Safe?

One of my favorite literary dialogues comes from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. During dinner at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, Lucy, Susan, and Peter are inquiring about Aslan, the lion who is rumored to be coming to destroy the White Witch and end the eternal winter. Mr. Beaver shares an old proverb about the coming of Aslan:

Wrong will be right when Aslan comes in sight,

At the sound of his roar sorrows will be no more,

For when he bares his teeth, winter meets its death,

And when he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again. 

This prompts Susan to ask, “Is he—quite safe?” Mrs. Beaver answers: “If there’s anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they’re either braver than most or just plain silly.”

“Then he isn’t safe?”

“Safe?” said Mr. Beaver. “Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the king, I tell you.”

In this allegory Aslan is a picture of Jesus; just as we have been awaiting the return of the Lord to defeat the evil one, the people of Narnia were anticipating the coming of the lion they had never seen. Believing that “Aslan is on the move,” the people were preparing for his appearing. I’ve always appreciated Mr. and Mrs. Beaver’s honest depiction of Aslan; yes, his coming is a good thing, but no, he isn’t safe. He is a lion, after all. But he’s good.

We would do well to learn to balance the attributes of God the way Lewis’ beavers did. It seems the church has made an effort to market God in the most palatable way, boasting of God’s love, mercy, and forgiveness, while ignoring God’s wrath, holiness, and justice. Like Paul, we need to present “the goodness and severity of God (Romans 11:22).” Those who are His children have no reason to fear, but God is severe to those who are rejecting Him. Sinners need to know that it is still a terrible thing to fall into the hands of a living God (Hebrews 10:31).

To the unsaved, there is nothing safe about God, but we can rest assured that He is good. He is the King, I tell you. And if He is Lord of your life there is nothing to fear. If He is not your Lord, I am begging you to repent before it is too late.