The Redeemer Described by Himself
(No. 2827)
A SERMON INTENDED FOR READING ON LORD'S-DAY, APRIL 19, 1903.
DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON,
AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON, ON LORD'S-DAY EVENING, JULY
1, 1877.
"Why, when I came, was there no man? Why, when I called, was there none
to answer? Is My hand shortened at all, that it cannot redeem? Or have
I no power to deliver? Behold, at My rebuke I dry up the sea, I make
the rivers a wilderness: their fish stink because there is no water,
and die for thirst. I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make
sackcloth their covering. The Lord GOD has given Me the tongue of the
learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that
is weary: He wakens Me morning by morning, he wakens My ears to hear as
the learned. The Lord GOD has opened My ears, and I was not rebellious,
nor did I turn away. I gave My back to the smiters, and My cheeks to
them that plucked off the hair: I hid not My face from shame and
spitting." Isaiah 50:2-6.
WE spent this morning at the foot of the Cross. [Sermon #1362, Volume
23–MOURNING FOR CHRIST] I hope that some of us, at least, were helped
by the Spirit of Grace and of Supplication to look unto Him whom we
have pierced by our sins, and to "mourn for Him, as one mourns for his
only son." I thought that as we then found it so good to be there, we
would go there, again, the more especially as we are afterwards to
gather around the Communion Table where we shall again be reminded of
the sacrificial death which the sacred Supper so clearly symbolizes.
Let us come, then, under the guidance of God's Holy Spirit, very near
to our Lord Jesus Christ. I pray that the Spirit of Christ may aid our
meditations while I try, once more, to speak about His glorious and
matchless Person, and the wondrous condescension which made Him
undertake such gracious offices on our behalf and bear for us such
awful and shameful griefs.
I shall need no further preface to my discourse except to say that in
my opinion these verses run on without any break, so that you are not
to separate them and ascribe one to the Prophet, another to the
Messiah, and another to Jehovah, Himself, but you must take the whole
as the utterance of one Divine Person. That Jehovah-Jesus is the One
who is speaking here is very clear from the last verse of the previous
chapter–"I the Lord" ("I, Jehovah," it is,) "am your Savior and your
Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob." It is Jehovah, as the Savior and
Redeemer of His people, who is here manifesting Himself to us–and we
must take the whole chapter as being uttered by Him.
I. So, then, to begin with, let us BEHOLD THE MESSIAH AS GOD–"I clothe
the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering."
I ask you again to link this 3rd verse with the 6th -"I clothe the
heavens with blackness and I make sackcloth their covering…! gave My
back to the smiters, and My cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I
hid not My face from shame and spitting." He, then, who suffered thus
and whom we regard as redeeming us by His death, and as saving us by
His life, is no less than the Almighty God who clothes the heavens with
blackness, at whose rebuke the sea is dried up and the rivers become a
wilderness!
I think the first reference in these words is to the miracles which
were worked by the plagues in Egypt. It was Jehovah-Jesus who was then
plaguing His adversaries. It was He who stood by the border of the Red
Sea and dried it up. In a later chapter Isaiah says that "the Angel of
His Presence saved them." And who is that great "Angel of His Presence"
but the Angel of the Covenant in whom we delight, even Jesus Christ our
Lord and Savior? It was He who struck the rivers of Egypt till they
began to stink and the fish died from thirst. It was He who called for
an unusual darkness–even darkness which might be felt–and which
lasted three days and nights–a supernatural darkness such as had never
before been known. Think of the greatness of that God who can darken
the great orb of day! The strongest eyes of man cannot bear to gaze
upon the sun, for fear of producing blindness, yet Jehovah-Jesus does
not only look the sun in the face, but He lifts His hand and shuts the
light of the sun from off the face of the earth! And He bids the
sun–"which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoices
as a strong man to run a race"–to take off his bridal attire and to
put on the garments of mourning, for thus said the Lord, "I clothe the
heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering." This
mighty miracle, which was worked of old, was worked by that same Jesus
who, in the days of His flesh, was despised and rejected of men! Learn
this lesson and adore the Lord who is so great in power and as gracious
as He is great.
But we must not restrict the text to that which happened in the land of
Egypt, for it has a far wider reference than that. All the great
wonders of Nature are to be ascribed to Him upon whom we build all our
hopes for time and for eternity. There are channels of great rivers to
be found that are now perfectly dry. Travelers tell us of vast lakes
and riverbeds that have become mere pans of salt. How came they to be
dried up? "By the action of the laws of nature," some people say. But
laws have no power to act by themselves–they need force at the back of
them to make them operate. And whose force is that? It is the energy of
God–and that same energy dwells in the adorable Person of our Lord and
Savior, Jesus Christ. When the storm clouds come hurrying up, driven by
the winds, and the crash of Heaven's dread artillery is heard, and the
dashes of forked lightning follow each other in rapid succession, we
tremble at the power of the Lord who thus makes the earth to quiver
before Him. But who is He that is thus driving in His conquering car?
It is Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior! All the elements of Nature are
under His control and He rules all things according to the good
pleasure of His own will. He sits at the right hand of God, even the
Father, being Himself very God of very God!
The last miracle recorded here, namely that of covering the heavens
with sackcloth, was performed by our Lord even when He was in His death
agony. We read that at high noon the sun was veiled and there was
darkness over all the land for three black hours. Wonder of wonders! He
who hung bleeding there had worked that mighty marvel! The sun had
looked upon Him hanging on the Cross and, as if in horror, had covered
its face and traveled on in tenfold night. The tears of Jesus quenched
the light of the sun! Had He been wrathful, He might have put out its
light forever, but His love not only restored that light, but it has
given to us a light a thousand times more precious, even the Light of
God–the light of everlasting life and joy!
I cannot preach worthily upon so sublime a doctrine as this, so it is
no use for me to attempt to do so. I always feel, when I begin to speak
of the Deity of our blessed Lord and Master, as if my heart were too
full for me to give utterance to my deepest feelings and convictions.
My heart is indeed inditing a good matter when I am speaking thus
concerning the King, but I cannot say that my tongue is as the pen of a
ready writer when it has so vast a theme to dwell upon. What I want to
bring before your minds most clearly is the blessed Truth of God that
you are not depending for your salvation upon a mere man. He is
Man–certainly Man–Man of the substance of His mother. But He is just
as truly Divine. In trusting Him, you are resting your souls upon One
who is Infinite and Almighty. Nothing can be too difficult for Him to
do. It is He who asks these questions in the second verse–"Is My hand
shortened at all, that it cannot redeem? Or have I no power to
deliver?" You may depend upon it that you are absolutely safe in His
hands! What you commit to Him, He will securely keep, rest assured of
that. Even when you draw nearest to Him in the familiar union which He
graciously permits to those whom He loves, never think of Him as being
less than the Eternal God. So worship Him, trust Him and rejoice in
Him!
II. Now let us turn to the next verse of our text and BEHOLD THE
MESSIAH AS THE INSTRUCTED TEACHER–"The Lord God has given Me the
tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season
to him that is weary: He wakens Me morning by morning, He wakens My
ears to hear as the learned."
Our Lord veiled His Godhead in the robe of Manhood and He came and
dwelt here, among men, that He might proclaim liberty to the captives
and the opening of the prison to them that were bound. He came in fact
as it was foretold concerning Him, that He might save His people from
their sins. But before He began to teach, it was necessary that, as
Man, He should be prepared for His work. I call your special attention
to the condescension of our Lord in coming here on purpose to care for
the weak–to speak consoling and sustaining words to them and also to
the fact that before He performed that service, He learned the sacred
art from His Father. It seems, according to this verse, that His chief
work was
to speak words in season to the weary ones. How sweetly He has learned
that blessed lesson and how graciously He has turned it to practical
account! Have not many of you found His words to be exceedingly
seasonable to you when you have been weary? When you have been most
depressed, have not the consolations of Christ been more precious to
you than at any other time? Have you not, often, in seasons of sorrow,
wiped away your tears at the sound of His cheering voice? As for you
who have beat upon your breasts in deep contrition of heart because of
the burden of your sin, has not Jesus removed your load from you when
you have heard Him speak? We do well to treasure up every sentence that
He has uttered, for there is not ever a word that has fallen from His
dear lips, by way of promise and encouragement, but exactly suits our
experience at some time or other! Whatever our distress or difficulty
may be, He knows how to speak a word in season to everyone who is
weary. To us He says, as He said to His disciples, "Let not your heart
be troubled: you believe in God, believe also in Me." He knows, even to
perfection, the blessed art of consoling the sad and sorrowful.
The most condescending part of this Truth of God is that He received
from His Father the power to deliver such words of consolation. He
says, "The Lord God has given Me the tongue of the learned, that I
should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary." He
became a disciple, sitting at His Father's feet. For 30 years, He was
learning much in Joseph's carpenter's shop. Little do we know how much
He learned there, but this much we do know, for Luke records the fact,
"Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man."
And afterwards, when He entered upon His public work among men, He
spoke with the tongue of the learned, saying to His disciples, "All
things that I have heard of My Father I have made known unto you." All
through His time of teaching, He was still listening and learning.
Notice the words in the 4th verse–"He wakens Me morning by morning, He
wakens My ears to hear as the learned."
The Lord Jesus was often up early in the morning–even when He had not
been all night in prayer–that seemed to be the special season in which
He communed with His Father. He first went and enjoyed most intimate
fellowship with the Lord, refreshing Himself by talking of heavenly
things and receiving new strength for service. And then, with the dew
of Heaven fresh upon Him, He came forth and taught the people. They,
very likely, were still sound asleep, but He was awake early, receiving
renewed Inspiration in prayer and fellowship. And then He came forth,
fragrant with the savor of His union with His Father and the sweet odor
of His consecration was shed abroad among the sons of men through the
blessed Truths of God that flowed from His lips! I ask you again to
think of this wonderful condescension, that He who clothes the heavens
with blackness and makes sackcloth their covering, should, for our
sake, stoop to learn in His Father's school. "Though He were a Son, yet
learned He obedience." And though He was "over all, God blessed
forever," yet did He increase in wisdom and stature, as a Boy and as a
Man, and He condescended to be a Learner that He might speak as the
learned and know how to utter words that would be in season to us when
we are weary.
III. Now I want you to go down a step lower, to the next verse, in
which we BEHOLD JESUS CHRIST AS THE SERVANT OF THE LORD–"The Lord God
has opened My ears, and I was not rebellious, nor did I turn away." He
stood upon earth, not like a prince but as the Servant of God! He was
made to be under the Law and in all things to be subservient to the
Father's will.
Notice that first of all, He speaks of Himself as being prepared by
Grace, for He says, "The Lord God has opened My ears," as if there had
been a work worked upon Him to fit and prepare Him for His service.
Yes, and so it was–and the same Spirit which rested upon Christ must
also open our ears. It often amazes me that our Lord should have been
willing to be baptized in Jordan even though that Baptism was attended
by the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Him, for, albeit that He was
truly Human, we know that He was also just as truly Divine. Being found
in fashion as a Man, He received of God the Holy Spirit the same
anointing which is now bestowed upon His people. God forbid that our
tongue should ever speak a word concerning Him that should confound His
Deity and His Humanity, but, still, we do assert that He did need that
the Spirit should rest upon Him, for, otherwise, the Spirit would not
have come, for He never does anything unnecessarily. This is matchless
condescension on His part–that He should, voluntarily, put Himself
into such a condition of necessity for our sake!
Being thus prepared by Grace, He was consecrated in due form s o that
He could say of Himself, "The Lord God has opened My ears." Brothers
and Sisters, there was never such an ear as Christ had! He heard the
faint whispers of His Father's voice. He never neglected the will of
God, nor needed to be reminded of it, or to be pressed and persuaded to
do it. See how different it is with us. Our ears are dull of hearing,
or, if the precept is plain to our apprehension, we often do
not yield obedience to it. There are some professors who know their
duty–they have been wakened to know it morning by morning, but,
nevertheless, they pretend not to be aware as to what is required of
them. The sound of God's voice has only reached their outward ear–it
has never penetrated as far as the inward ear–their heart has not
perceived its Divine force and power. But it was never so with our
blessed Lord. Whatever His Father willed, He at once rejoiced to do. He
could always say, "I always do the things that please Him."
That is the next point, for He not only heard His Father's voice, but
He was obedient to it in all things. He says, "I was not rebellious." I
cannot find anything in the life of Christ that even looks like
rebellion. From the day when, as a Child, He said to His parents, "Know
you not that I must be about My Father's business?" till the hour when,
on the Cross, He cried, "It is finished!" He was always obedient to the
will of God. "Being found in fashion as a Man, He humbled Himself and
became obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross." His obedience
was absolutely perfect in all things. Think of this and remember that
this is the same Divine Being who clothes the heavens with blackness
and makes sackcloth their covering when it so pleases Him!
In that obedience, He was persevering through all trials. He says that
He did not turn away. Having commenced the work of saving men, He went
through with it. He steadfastly set His face to go up to Jerusalem,
though He knew that He was going to His death. He asked not that He
might be delivered from completing the work that He had undertaken.
There was a time when, in the horror of His spirit, He cried, "If it is
possible, let this cup pass from Me," yet He never flinched from any
suffering that was necessary to our redemption. It was Human weakness
that spoke for a moment, but His inmost soul was fully set upon the
work of redeeming His people unto Himself. He set His face like a flint
and He would not turn back. Even in His direst agonies, His thoughts
were all for others. He saved others–Himself He could not save–for it
was impossible for Him to draw back from the work which He had once
undertaken.
You know all this, Beloved. I do but remind you of what has been
familiar to you ever since you have believed in Jesus, but I pray you
to think of it again and again, for it must have been a matter of the
utmost amazement to the angels to see their Lord acting as a
Servant–to see Him, without whom was not anything made that was made,
here below, dressed in a peasant's garb and, as a humble, way-worn Son
of Poverty, sitting on a well to talk to a poor sinful woman about the
Water of Life. You know what lowly service He rendered, even to the
washing of His disciples' feet. There was nothing too menial for Him to
perform, yet, all the while, He was truly Divine. Oh, this is a Truth
that needs to be meditated upon by the hour, together, and to be
considered again and yet again! This is one of the things which angels
desire to look into and we may try to look into it as long as we will,
for, beyond and above all controversy, great is this mystery of
godliness–Godmanifest in the flesh!
IV. The last step in this wondrous ladder is revealed to us in the next
verse–"I gave My back to the smiters, and My cheeks to them that
plucked off the hair: I hid not My face from shame and spitting."
BEHOLD THE MESSIAH AS THE PEERLESS SUFFERER. And this Sufferer, on whom
men spat, was the Eternal God!
Scripture sometimes speaks concerning Christ in such a way that
fastidious critics seek to correct it. There is a hymn, by Dr. Watts,
in which there is this verse–
"Well might the sun in darkness hide, And shut his glories in, When
God, the mighty Maker, died For man, the creature's sin."
It has been asked, "Did God really die?" No, for God cannot die, yet He
who died was God. So, if there is confusion in your mind, it is the
confusion of Holy Scripture, itself, for we read, "Feed the Church of
GOD, which He has purchased with His own blood." He who purchased the
Church with His own blood was, indeed, God. There are clever men who
could draw up this particular Truth of God as clearly as Athanasius
drew up his Creed, and finish it up with a curse as loud as his, yet
those men, nevertheless, might make a great blunder, while another, who
might not speak exactly according to logic, would nevertheless hit the
mark which they missed. How are we to speak upon such a wondrous theme
as this? How can we speak upon it? It belongs not to mortal man to
comprehend Deity–and if Deity complicates its own incomprehensibility
by taking into alliance with Itself, our humanity, who is he that may
not be made an offender for many and many a word, and yet, for all
that, may not have offended against the Truth of God?
He who was a prisoner in Pilate's Hall, accused of sedition, was the
King of kings–He who was taken from that Hall and covered with an old
red cloak, and set up in a chair as on a mimic throne–He who had a
reed put into His right hand, was none other than the Almighty Lord who
said, "Light be," and the light flashed forth out of the darkness! And
He upon whose sacred shoulders fell the cruel flagellation of the Roman
scourge till the plowers made deep scarlet furrows down His blessed
back–He was that God who created and who still sustains the heavens
and the earth and all things that exist, or ever have existed! He was a
suffering Man, but, at the same time, He was the Son of God– and He is
the Son of God, today–and God, the Son, too! As you think of His pain,
couple with it the thought that He bore all that agony voluntarily that
we might be saved–"I gave My back to the smiters, and My cheeks to
them that plucked off the hair: I hid not My face from shame and
spitting."
Even if God becomes Incarnate, yet none can touch Him unless He permits
them to do so, but Jesus said, "I lay down My life for the sheep…No
man takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself." No man could have
scarred that blessed back of His unless Christ had been willing, out of
mighty love, to suffer thus on His people's behalf! None could have
plucked His hair unless He had put Himself into the position to have it
plucked, in order that He might redeem us from all our iniquities! Many
a martyr has suffered much, but he could not avoid it, for he was bound
and he was not able to strike his foes or to escape. But here sat One
to be spit upon, who could, if He had willed it, have withered into
nothingness all who stood about Him! With one glance of those eyes of
His, had He but grown angry, as He well might have done, He could have
burned up their very souls, for it was He who dried up the river and
who clothed the heavens with blackness, who was thus despitefully used!
Blessed be the majesty of that Omnipotence which controlled
omnipotence– that mighty love which bound the Godhead so that it came
not to the rescue of the Manhood of the suffering Savior!
In addition, however, to the pain, we are asked, in this verse, to
particularly notice the contempt which the Savior endured. The plucking
of His hair was a proof of the malicious contempt of His enemies, yet
they went still further and spit in His face. Spitting was regarded by
Orientals and, I suppose, by all of us, as the most contemptuous thing
which one man could do to another, yet the vile soldiers gathered round
Him and spat upon Him. It is almost too terrible to think of or to
speak of, but what must it have been for Jesus to endure it? I think
you can realize the utter uselessness of human speech in trying to
describe this scene. If the Divine thought of the text could leap out
among you, like some mystic fire, then you might feel it, but as for
our poor words, they cannot convey the sacred flame to you. But there
stands the mysterious Truth. Enlarge upon it as we may, we can never
fathom it, nor half fathom it–that He, the Creator of the heavens and
the earth, here declares that He hid not His face from shame and
spitting!
I must again point out to you the beautiful touch of voluntariness
here–"I hid not My face." Our Savior did not turn away or seek to
escape. If He had wished to do so, He could readily have done it, but
He hid not His face from any of the contempt that the most malicious
and wicked of men wished to heap upon Him. Even when He came to die and
they brought Him a drink which was customarily given to criminals–a
strong, stupefying draught which would have somewhat relieved the
pain–when He had tasted it, He would not drink it. The vinegar He did
taste, but that wine mingled with myrrh He would not drink because He
did not come here to escape any pain or any shame that His people
deserved to suffer. He must go through with it all to the bitter end
and, therefore, He will not, in any sense or way, endeavor to escape.
"I hid not My face from shame and spitting." Oh, splendor of voluntary
condescension and of marvelous love on the part of Him before whom the
nations are as a drop in the bucket–who takes up the isles as a very
little thing and to whom time is but a span compared with His own
eternity! The express image of His Father, yet He bows to shame and
spitting! Blessed be His holy name forever and forever!
I will close when I have noticed three combinations which the verses of
my text will make. I will but mention them and ask you to meditate upon
them at your leisure.
First of all, put the first and the last together, as I have already
done–"Behold, at My rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers a
wilderness: their fish stink because there is no water, and die for
thirst. I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their
covering…I gave My back to the smiters, and My cheeks to them that
plucked off the hair: I hid not My face from shame and spitting." Those
verses together show you the full ability of Christ to save. Here we
have the God and the Sufferer. What a wondrous Christ He is–Divine
and, therefore, able–Human and struck and suffering and, therefore,
full of compassion! "It behooved Him in all things to be made like unto
His brethren." And see how like His brethren He is, yet He is God! The
ladder that Jacob saw had its foot upon the earth and its top reached
to
Heaven. It would have been of no use if its foot had not been upon the
earth, for what man on earth could have climbed it? It would have been
of no use if, with its foot upon the earth, it had not reached to
Heaven–there would not have been any connection, after all. Behold,
then, in the Humanity of Christ, how the foot of this ladder rests upon
the earth and see, in His Deity, how the top reaches to Heaven! Happy
are the feet that tread the rungs of this celestial ladder– they shall
climb into eternal rest! Glory, O Believers, in the Divine and Human
Person of your Lord, and rest in Him in confidence and peace!
Now put the two middle verses together–"The Lord God has given Me the
tongue of the learned," and so on. And then, "The Lord God has opened
My ears, and I was not rebellious." Here you have the Teacher and the
Servant, and the two together make up this Truth of God–that Christ
teaches us, not only with words, but with His life. What a wonderful
Teacher He is, who Himself learned the lessons which He would have us
learn! Let us take His yoke upon us and learn of Him. Let us study His
precepts, but also imitate His example. His track I see–I have not
merely a map of the road, but His footsteps show me which way I am to
go. Watch in all things that you follow Christ, for He still says to
His redeemed ones, "Follow Me."
Now put the whole text together and think of Jesus Christ in all those
various views which I have so feebly set before you and I think the
result will be–at least, to God's people–that they will say, "This
God shall be our God forever and ever! And it shall be our delight to
do His bidding at all times." It is a high honor to serve God–and
Christ is God. It is a great thing to be the servant of a wise
teacher–and Christ has the tongue of the learned. It is a very sweet
thing to walk in the steps of a perfect Exemplar–and Christ is just
that. And, last and best of all, it is delightful to live for Him who
suffered and died on our behalf. Those wounds of His have marked us as
His own. That scourge, those bleeding shoulders, and that face so
marred have won us altogether to Him and, henceforth, for us to live
shall be Christ, that to die may be eternal gain! The Lord grant that
it may be so, for Jesus' sake! Amen.
EXPOSITION BY C. H. SPURGEON: ISAIAH53.
This is one of the chapters that lie at the very heart of the
Scriptures. It is the very Holy of Holies of Divine Writ. Let us,
therefore, take off our shoes, for the place whereon we stand is
especially holy ground.
This fifty-third of Isaiah is a Bible in miniature. It is the condensed
essence of the Gospel. I thought that our Beloved Friend, Mr. Moody,
answered with extreme wisdom a question that was put to him when he
came to London some years ago. A number of ministers had come together
to meet Mr. Moody and they began to discuss various points, and to ask
what were the evangelist's views upon certain doctrines. At last, one
Brother said, "Would Mr. Moody kindly give us his creed? Is it in
print?" In a moment the good man replied, "Certainly. My creed is in
print, it is the 53rd of Isaiah." It was a splendid reply. How could a
man come closer to the very essentials of the faith than by saying, "My
creed is in the 53rd of Isaiah"? I trust that many of you, dear
Friends, cannot only say, "This is my creed," but also, "This is the
foundation upon which I have built all my hopes for time and for
eternity. This is the source of my sweetest consolation. This is the
sun that makes my day and the star that gilds my night." In these 12
verses there is everything that we need to teach us the way of
salvation. God, the infinitely-wise Teacher, has revealed to us, within
this short compass, all that is necessary to bring peace to troubled
spirits.
First, the Prophets speak–
Isaiah 53:1. Who has believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the
LORD revealed?This is a cause for sorrow upon sorrow–for the Prophets
to have God's message to deliver and yet for men to reject it–for them
to have to tell it, but to tell it in vain. Yet, dear Friends, this has
been the lot of some of God's most faithful servants in all ages and we
must not complain if it should be our lot, also. I should not have
voluntarily chosen to be Jeremiah, the weeping Prophet, yet, I think
not one of God's servants deserves greater honor than he does, for he
continued to bravely deliver his Master's message even when none
believed him and all rejected his testimony. Isaiah links himself with
all the other Prophets who had been rejected and he says, "Who has
believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?"
2. For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out
of a dry ground. This is why Christ was not received by those to whom
He came–and why the testimony of the Prophets concerning Christ was
rejected by those to whom it was delivered–because He was not revealed
to them as a towering palm tree or widely-spreading cedar, but, like
the humble yet fruitful vine, He was "as a tender plant, and as a root
out of a dry ground."
2. He has no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is
no beauty that we should desire Him. To carnal eyes there was no
apparent beauty in Christ–nothing of the aesthetic, as men call it,
and nothing of the pompous, nothing outwardly attractive. He came here
in the utmost simplicity. Remember the angel's message to the
shepherds– "And this shall be a sign unto you; you shall find the Babe
wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger." There was nothing of
pomp or show about Him–"no form nor comeliness." He made no display of
scholarship, no presence of deep philosophy, nothing that the carnal
mind hunts after. But the all-glorious Deity, revealed in Human form,
spoke simple but sublime Truth and, therefore, men rejected Him.
3. He is despised and rejected of men. This was written long before He
came to earth–"He is despised and rejected of men" and, truly, though
He is now in Heaven, I need not alter the tense of the verb. I do not
say, "He was despised," though that would be true, for, alas, it is
still true, "He is despised and rejected of men"!
3. A Man of Sorrows and acquainted with grief What an amazing
expression that is! Our blessed Lord had made the acquaintance of
grief. He knew it, understood it, was familiar with it–slept with
it–rose with it–walked the livelong day with it and, therefore, my
Brothers and Sisters, He knows your grief and He can meet it! He is
such a master Comforter because He was such a mighty Sufferer.
3. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him. Shame upon us that we,
who have been redeemed by Him–we, who He has loved from eternity–we,
who now delight in Him–"we hid, as it were, our faces from Him."
3. He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. Even we, to whom now He is
all our salvation and all our desire–we, unto whom He is now most
precious–"we esteemed Him not."
4. Surely He has borne our griefs. Can all of you say this? Can
everyone of us unite in the reading of this sentence, "Surely, He has
borne our griefs"? If you have truly learned that He bore your griefs,
you may indeed bless His name, for it is the best news that ever
reached your ears! Go and tell it to your fellow sufferers–"Surely He
has borne our griefs."
4. And carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of
God, and afflicted. They thought that God had smitten Him, and so He
had, but they wrongly supposed that there was something of sin in Him
that caused God to strike Him, whereas He was "holy, harmless,
undefiled," and He was only stricken and smitten because He was bearing
the sins of His people.
5. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our
iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His
stripes we are healed. Milton, Shakespeare, Cowper and the whole of the
poets that were ever or are, all put together, could not write four
sentences like those in this verse! There is more meaning, more deep
philosophy, more music, more to charm and satisfy the human heart in
those four sentences, than in the sweetest of merely human language.
Let me read them again–and as I do so, let everyone of us take each
line to himself–"But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was
bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him;
and with His stripes we are healed."
6. 7. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to
his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He
was oppressed, andHe was afflicted, yet He openednot His mouth: He was
brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers
is dumb, so He opened not His mouth. These words have been the means of
the conversion of multitudes. You recollect in the Acts of the
Apostles, what that rich Ethiopian said to Philip when he read these
words–"I pray you, of whom speaks the Prophet this? of himself, or of
some other man?" If we read this chapter over and over again, and so
read it as to find Christ, it will, indeed, be a blessed thing for us!
8, 9. He was taken fromprison and from judgment: and who shall declare
His generation? For He was cut off out of the land of the living: for
the transgression of My people was He stricken. And He made His grave
with the wicked, and with the rich in His death; because He had done no
violence, neither was any deceit in His mouth. All that He suffered was
not because He was guilty, but because He was innocent! The only crime
which I have ever heard rightly laid to His charge is that which the
poet sweetly describes as "found guilty of excess of love." It was
indeed so. He loved us beyond all measure and because of that love He
died for us.
10. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief The
Lord was at the back of it all. Not Pilate, nor Herod, nor Judas, nor
Jew, nor Roman, but Jehovah bruised Him.
10. When You shall make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His
seed. He shall prolong His days, and theplea-sure of the LORD shall
prosper in His hand. Here the strain changes altogether. From the
depths of woe, we begin to rise with hopes of a glad result of all the
suffering and sorrow and shame. Glory be to the name of Christ, He has
a mighty right hand into which God has placed that work which is
according to His own good pleasure–even the work of saving guilty
men–and that work, in His prolonged days, until the end of time, shall
prosper in the hand of the Christ of God!
11. He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied.
Christ did not die at haphazard, as some seem to think. A sure and
glorious result must come of "the travail of His soul." Such precious
blood as His could not fall to the ground at a chance. Whatever the
design of His cross was, it shall be accomplished. I could imagine
failures in Creation, if so it pleased God, but never in redemption!
11. By His knowledge shall My righteous Servant justify many; for He
shall bear their iniquities. That is the top and bottom of it all–"He
shall bear their iniquities." The red line of Substitution runs through
the whole chapter.
12. Therefore will I divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall
divide the spoil with the strong; because He has poured out His soul
unto death: and He was numbered with the transgressors; and He bore the
sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.