51:11–16 Again, Isaiah summarized a constant theme, that instead of hearing dying men (v. 12), Israel should trust the Creator of all things. He had delivered Israel in the past and is to do so permanently in the future before the nations can be destroyed (v. 14), so they have no need to fear oppressors. The blessing of restored Israel will be evidenced in the joy of v. 11.
51:16 My words in your mouth. Israel had been the unfaithful depository of divine revelation (cf. Rom. 9:1–5), but the time is coming when God will put words into the mouths of His future faithful remnant (59:21) when He sets up the kingdom of Messiah in Zion on a renewed earth. Cf. 51:6; 65:17; 66:22.
51:17, 18 Jerusalem, you who have drunk. Jerusalem experienced the Lord’s anger through her extended subservience to foreign powers with no human to deliver her (v. 18), but the punishment will end (v. 22; 40:1, 2; cf. 29:9). On the other hand, Babylon will drink from the cup of His anger forever (Rev. 14:8–11; 16:19).
Is. 51:18
Isaiah’s Description of Israel’s Future Kingdom
Description: 1. The Lord will restore the faithful remnant of Israel to the Land to inhabit the kingdom at its beginning.
Isaiah passages: 1:9, 25-27; 3:10; 4:3; 6:13; 8:10; 9:1; 10:20, 22, 25, 27; 11:11, 12, 16; 14:1, 2; 14:22, 26; 26:1-4; 27:12; 28:5; 35:9; 37:4, 31, 32; 40:2, 3; 41:9; 43:5, 6; 46:3, 4; 49:5, 8; 49:12, 22; 51:11; 54:7-10; 55:12; 57:13, 18; 60:4, 9; 61:1-4, 7; 65:8-10; 66:8, 9, 19
Description: 2. As the Lord defeats Israel’s enemies, He will provide protection for His people.
Isaiah passages: 4:5, 6; 9:1, 4; 12:1-6; 13:4; 14:2; 21:9; 26:4, 5; 27:1-4; 30:30, 31; 32:2; 33:16, 22; 35:4; 39:8, 9; 49:17, 18; 52:6; 54:9, 10; 55:10, 11; 58:12; 60:10, 12, 18; 62:9; 66:16
Description: 3. In her kingdom, Israel will enjoy great prosperity of many kinds.
Isaiah passages: 26:15, 19; 27:2, 13; 29:18-20; 22:22, 23; 30:20; 32:3; 32:15-20; 33:6, 24; 35:3, 5, 6, 8-10; 40:11; 42:6, 7, 16; 43:5, 6, 8, 10, 21; 44:5, 14; 46:13; 48:6; 49:10; 52:9; 54:2, 3; 55:1, 12; 58:9, 14; 60:5, 16, 21; 61:4, 6-10; 62:5; 65:13-15, 18, 24; 66:21, 22
Description: 4. The city of Jerusalem will rise to world preeminence in the kingdom.
Isaiah passages: 2:2-4; 18:7; 25:6; 40:5, 9; 49:19-21; 60:1-5, 13-15, 17; 62:3, 4
Description: 5. Israel will be the center of world attention in the kingdom.
Isaiah passages: 23:18; 54:1-3; 55:5; 56:6-8; 60:5-9; 66:18-21
Description: 6. Israel’s mission in the kingdom will be to glorify the Lord.
Isaiah passages: 60:21; 61:3
Description: 7. Gentiles in the kingdom will receive blessing through the channel of faithful Israel.
Isaiah passages: 11:10; 19:18, 24, 25; 42:6; 45:22, 23; 49:6; 51:5; 56:3, 6-8; 60:3, 7, 8; 61:5; 66:19
Description: 8. Worldwide peace will prevail in the kingdom under the rule of the Prince of Peace.
Isaiah passages: 2:4; 9:5, 6; 11:10; 19:23; 26:12; 32:18; 54:14; 57:19; 66:12
Description: 9. Moral and spiritual conditions in the kingdom will reach their highest plane since the Fall of Adam.
Isaiah passages: 27:6; 28:6, 17; 32:16; 42:7; 44:3; 45:8; 51:4; 61:11; 65:21, 22
Description: 10. Governmental leadership in the kingdom will be superlative with the Messiah heading it up.
Isaiah passages: 9:6, 7; 11:2, 3; 16:5; 24:23; 25:3; 32:1; 32:5; 33:22; 42:1, 4; 43:15; 52:13; 53:12; 55:3-5
Description: 11. Humans will enjoy long life in the kingdom.
Isaiah passages: 65:20, 22
Description: 12. Knowledge of the Lord will be universal in the kingdom.
Isaiah passages: 11:9; 19:21; 33:13; 40:5; 41:20; 45:6, 14; 49:26; 52:10, 13, 15; 54:13; 66:23
Description: 13. The world of nature will enjoy a great renewal in the kingdom.
Isaiah passages: 12:3; 30:23-26; 32:15; 35:1-4, 6, 7; 41:18, 19; 43:19, 20; 44:3, 23; 55:1, 2, 13; 58:10, 11
Description: 14. “Wild” animals will be tame in the kingdom.
Isaiah passages: 11:6-9; 35:9; 65:25
Description: 15. Sorrow and mourning will not exist in the kingdom.
Isaiah passages: 25:8; 60:20
Description: 16. An eternal kingdom, as a part of God’s new creation, will follow the millennial kingdom.
Isaiah passages: 24:23; 51:6; 51:16; 54:11, 12; 60:11, 19; 65:17
Description: 17. The King will judge overt sin in the kingdom.
Isaiah passages: 66:24
51:19 two things. The city of Jerusalem (v. 17) had suffered the twofold loss of property (“desolation and destruction”) and human life (“famine and sword”).
51:20 Your sons have fainted. The city’s inhabitants lay helpless in the streets, having expended all their strength in fighting unsuccessfully against the Lord’s fury (40:30).
51:21, 22 drunk but not with wine. Jerusalem was drunk through drinking the cup of God’s wrath (63:6). But, in contrast to Babylon, which drank the fury of God’s wrath to the last drop (v. 17; Rev. 18:6), Israel will have the cup removed before all the wrath is consumed. It will be handed to Israel’s oppressors for them to drink the full fury (49:26; Jer. 25:15, 26, 28; Zech. 12:2).
Isaiah 52
52:1, 2 your strength…beautiful garments. A call is given for Zion to awake from drunkenness and clothe herself in garments of honor and dignity provided by the Lord. Foreign invaders will no longer control the city at the time of her final restoration.
52:3 sold yourselves for nothing…redeemed without money. The Jews became the servants of their foreign conquerors, who paid nothing for Israel, so the Lord will redeem Israel gratuitously from sin (45:13; 55:1).
52:5 Those who rule over them. A reference to the Babylonians and their cruelty to captive Israelites. My name is blasphemed. Foreign rulers despised the God of Israel as long as His people were in bondage. God delivered His people, not for their goodness, but for the sake of His holy name—to prove He was truthful, faithful, and powerful (Ezek. 20:9, 14). Paul cited the blasphemy to Israel’s God that resulted from the hypocrisy of first-century Jews not applying to themselves the standards of God that they knew and taught others (Rom. 2:24).
52:6 in that day that I am He. After the Day of the Lord, when Israel experiences deliverance from her worldwide dispersion, she will recognize the fulfillment of prophecies through Isaiah and others and enjoy full assurance that the Lord had spoken and fulfilled His promises of deliverance. They will connect these events with the great “I AM” (43:11; Ex. 3:13–15).
52:7 How beautiful…good news. Messengers will traverse the mountains around Jerusalem to spread the good news of the return of redeemed Israel to the Land (40:9; 61:1; Nah. 1:15). Paul broadened this millennial reference to the preaching of the gospel in the kingdom to include spreading the gospel of God’s grace from the time of Jesus Christ on (Rom. 10:15; cf. Eph. 6:15). good things...salvation…”Your God reigns!” The good news pertains to the ideal conditions of Israel’s golden age, during which Christ will reign personally over His kingdom (24:23; Ps. 93:1).
52:8 eye to eye. See Num 14:14. This Heb. expression portrayed two people so close to each other that they can look into one another’s eyes. The point is that the messengers of the truth (“watchmen”) will see the Lord return to Zion (a better translation) as vividly as they see each other looking eye to eye.
52:9, 10 comforted…redeemed. The ruined city will respond to the call to sing for joy because the Lord has provided comfort (40:1, 2; 49:13; 51:12) and redemption (41:14; 43:1, 12, 14; 44:6, 23, 24; 47:4).
52:11 Depart! Depart! The prophet commands the Israelites to leave the lands of their exiles to return to Jerusalem (48:20; Jer. 50:8; Zech. 2:6, 7; Rev. 18:4). Under Cyrus there was only a limited return (50,000), but the final fulfillment in view here is in the future. Touch no unclean thing...be clean. Returning exiles were not to defile themselves by taking property home from their exile (cf. Josh. 6:18; 7:1). The NT gave these prophetic words an application in principle by using them as an exhortation forbidding Christians to involve
themselves with spiritual ties to forces of heathendom (2 Cor. 6:17).
52:12 not…with haste. Delivered captives will not have to hurry in their return to Jerusalem, as their ancestors did when delivered from Egypt (Ex. 12:11, 33, 39; Deut. 16:3). They can move deliberately and safely, with the Messiah in front and God in back. Cf. 58:8.
52:13—53:12 This is the last and most memorable of the 4 Messiah/Servant songs (cf. 42:1–9; 49:1–13; 50:4–11). This section contains unarguable, incontrovertible proof that God is the author of Scripture and Jesus the fulfillment of messianic prophecy. The details are so minute that no human could have predicted them by accident and no imposter fulfilled them by cunning. Clearly this refers to Messiah Jesus, as the NT attests (cf. Matt 8:17; Mark 15:28; Luke 22:37; John 12:38; Acts 8:28–35; Rom. 10:16; 1 Pet. 2:21–25). It is often alluded to without being quoted (cf. Mark 9:12; Rom. 4:25; 1 Cor. 15:3; 2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Pet. 1:19; 1 John 3:5).
52:13–15 Here is a summary and preview of the humiliation and exaltation of the Servant, described in more detail in 53:1–12. The details cover the work of Christ in His substitutionary death, His burial, His resurrection, His saving of sinners, His intercession, and His kingdom.
52:13 exalted…extolled…very high. Ultimately, when the Servant rules over His kingdom, He will receive international recognition for the effectiveness of His reign (cf. Phil 2:9).
52:14 His visage was marred. The Servant must undergo inhuman cruelty to the point that He no longer looks like a human being. His appearance is so awful that people look at Him in astonishment (53:2, 3; Ps. 22:6; Matt. 26:67; 27:30; John 19:3).
52:15 sprinkle many nations. In His disfigured state, the Servant will perform a priestly work of cleansing not just Israel, but many outside the nation (Ex. 29:21; Lev. 4:6; 8:11; 14:7; Num. 8:7; 19:18, 19; Heb. 9:13). shut their mouths. At His exaltation, human leaders in the highest places will be speechless and in awe before the once-despised Servant (cf. Ps. 2). When He takes His throne, they will see the unfolding of power and glory such as they have never heard. Paul applied the principle in this verse to his apostolic mission of preaching the gospel of Christ where Christ was yet unknown (Rom. 15:21).
Isaiah 53
53:1 Who has believed our report? The question implied that, in spite of these and other prophecies, only a few would recognize the Servant when He appeared. This anticipation found literal fulfillment at Christ’s first advent. Israel did not welcome Him at His first advent (John 1:9–11; 12:38). Paul applied the same prophecy to the world at large (Rom. 10:16). the arm of the LORD. At His first coming, the nation did not recognize the mighty, incarnate power of God in the person of Jesus, their Deliverer.
53:2 before Him. Though unrecognized by the world (v. 1), Messiah Jesus was observed carefully by God, who ordered every minute circumstance of His life. dry ground…no beauty that we should desire Him. The Servant will arise in lowly conditions and wear none of the usual emblems of royalty, making His true identity visible only to the discerning eye of faith.
53:3 despised…rejected…despised. The prophet foresees the hatred and rejection by mankind toward the Messiah/Servant, who suffered not only external abuse, but also internal grief over the lack of response from those He came to save (e.g., Matt. 23:37; Luke 13:34). we hid…we did not esteem. By using the first person, the prophet spoke for his unbelieving nation’s aversion to a crucified Messiah and their lack of respect for the incarnate Son of God.
53:4 borne…carried. Cf. vv. 11, 12. Even though the verbs are past tense, they predict happenings future to Isaiah’s time, i.e., “prophetic perfects” in Heb. here and elsewhere in this Servant-song. Isaiah was saying that the Messiah would bear the consequences of the sins of men, namely the griefs and sorrows of life, though incredibly the Jews who watched Him die thought He was being punished by God for His own sins. Matthew found an analogical fulfillment of these words in Jesus’ healing ministry (see notes on Matt. 8:16, 17), because sickness results from sin for which the Servant paid with His life (vv. 7, 8; cf. 1 Pet. 2:24). In eternity, all sickness will be removed, so ultimately it is included in the benefits of the atonement.
53:5 wounded for our transgressions…bruised for our iniquities. This verse is filled with the language of substitution. The Servant suffered not for His own sin, since He was sinless (cf. Heb. 4:15; 7:26), but as the substitute for sinners. The emphasis here is on Christ being the substitute recipient of God’s wrath on sinners (cf. 2 Cor. 5:21; Gal. 1:3, 4; Heb. 10:9, 10). chastisement for our peace. He suffered the chastisement of God in order to procure our peace with God. by His stripes we are healed. The stripe (the Heb. noun is singular) that caused His death has brought salvation to those for whose sins He died. Peter confirms this in 1 Pet. 2:24.
53:6 All we…every one…us all. Every person has sinned (Rom. 3:9, 23), but the Servant has sufficiently shouldered the consequences of sin and the righteous wrath deserved by sinners (cf. 1 Tim. 2:5, 6; 4:10; 1 John 2:2). The manner in which God laid our iniquity on Him was that God treated Him as if He had committed every sin ever committed by every person who would ever believe, though He was perfectly innocent of any sin. God did so to Him, so that wrath being spent and justice satisfied, God could then give to the account of sinners who believe, the righteousness of Christ, treating them as if they had done only the righteous acts of Christ. In both cases, this is substitution. See notes on 2 Cor. 5:21.
53:7, 8 This is the portion of Scripture read by the Ethiopian eunuch and subsequently explained to him by Philip as referring to Jesus (Acts 8:32, 33).
53:7 opened not His mouth. The Servant will utter no protest and will be utterly submissive to those who oppress Him. Jesus fulfilled this (Matt. 26:63; 27:12–14; Mark 14:61; 15:5; Luke 23:9; John 19:9; 1 Pet. 2:23). lamb to the slaughter. The Servant was to assume the role of a sacrificial lamb (Ex. 12:3, 6). Jesus fulfilled this figurative role literally (John 1:29; 1 Pet. 1:18, 19; Rev. 5:6).
53:8 cut off…for the transgressions of My people. The Servant lost His life to be the substitute object of wrath in the place of the Jews, who by that substitution will receive salvation and the righteousness of God imputed to them. Similar terminology applies to the Messiah in Dan. 9:26.
53:9 with the wicked…with the rich. Because of His disgraceful death, the Jews intended the Servant to have a disgraceful burial along with the thieves (cf. John 19:31), but instead He was buried with “the rich” in an honorable burial through the donated tomb of rich Joseph of Arimathea (Matt. 27:57–60; Mark 15:42–46; Luke 23:50–53; John 19:38–40). no violence, nor…deceit. The Servant’s innocence meant that His execution was totally undeserved. Peter notes the fulfillment of this in 1 Pet. 2:22.
53:10 it pleased the LORD. Though the Servant did not deserve to die, it was the Lord’s will for Him to do so (Matt. 26:39; Luke 22:42; John 12:27; Acts 2:23). an offering for sin. Fulfilled by the Servant as the lamb of God (v. 7; John 1:29). Christ is the Christian’s Passover (1 Cor. 5:7). This conclusively eliminates the error that Christ’s atonement provides present-day healing for those who pray in faith. His death was an atonement for sin, not sickness. See note on 53:4. see His seed…prolong His days. To see His seed, the Servant must rise from the dead. He will do this and live to reign forever (2 Sam. 7:13, 16; Pss. 21:4; 89:4; 132:12).
53:11 He shall…be satisfied. The one sacrifice of the Servant will provide complete satisfaction in settling the sin issue (1 John 2:2; cf. 1:11). By His knowledge. The Servant knew exactly what needed to be done to solve the sin problem. justify many. Through the divine “knowledge” of how to justify sinners, the plan was accomplished that by His one sacrifice He declared many righteous before God (Rom. 5:19; 2 Cor. 5:21).
53:12 portion with the great…spoil with the strong. The Servant’s reward for His work will be to enjoy the “spoils” of His spiritual victories during His millennial reign. numbered with the transgressors. The Servant assumes a role among sinful human beings, fulfilled by Jesus when He was crucified between two criminals (Luke
22:37). made intercession for the transgressors. This speaks of the office of intercessory High-Priest, which began on the cross (Luke 23:34) and continues in heaven (cf. Heb. 7:25; 9:24).
Isaiah 54
54:1 barren…have not borne…have not labored…desolate. In her exile and dispersion, Israel has been destitute, disgraced as a woman who had borne no children (49:21). The prophet calls for singing, however, because of the Lord’s promise of future fruitfulness for the nation (49:19, 20). The NT supplies an additional application of the principle in this verse, citing it as evidence that the Jerusalem above, mother of the children of promise through Sarah, will enjoy great fruitfulness (Gal. 4:27).
54:2 Enlarge…stretch out…Lengthen. The prophet commanded barren Israel to prepare for the day when her numerous inhabitants will require larger space to dwell in (26:15; 49:19, 20).
54:3 expand…inherit the nations. The Messiah’s future kingdom is to be worldwide, far greater in extent than the former kingdoms of David and Solomon.
54:4 shame of your youth…reproach of your widowhood. Israel’s sins brought on the Egyptian captivity, the Babylonian exile, and her current dispersion, but the glories of the future kingdom will be so great that they will overshadow past failures.
54:5 husband…Redeemer. The basis for forgetting past failures is Israel’s relationship to the Lord as her husband (62:4, 5) and Redeemer (41:14).
54:6–8 forsaken…grieved…refused. Israel in exile and dispersion has been like a wife whose husband has rejected her. But this is only for a brief time compared to the everlasting kindness she will enjoy when the Messiah returns to gather the woeful wife (26:20).
54:9 waters of Noah. Just as God swore He would never again judge the whole earth with a flood (Gen. 8:21; 9:11), so He has taken an oath never to be angry with His people again. He will fulfill this promise after their final restoration.
54:10 mountains…hills…My kindness…My covenant. In the Millennium (48:6, 7; 51:6, 16) topography will change (see Ezek. 38:20; Mic. 1:4; Zech. 14:4, 10), but not God’s pledge of well-being for Israel as a result of the New Covenant (55:3; 59:21; 61:8).
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