This prophecy really begins with verse 13 of the preceding chapter. "Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, He shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high." (Isaiah 52:13)
Altogether, it is a most vivid description of the life, sufferings, and death of Christ the Saviour. The Lord showed by His prophets, not only that the Saviour should come, but the time when He should come, the place where He should be born, and here, by Isaiah, the leading particulars and characteristics of His career while in this world. In verse 14 of the preceding chapter we read of the effects upon Him of His fast in the wilderness: "His visage was so marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men." (Isaiah 52:14)
Men may talk of men's fasting forty days, and count it as detracting from the merit of that fast of our Saviour; but the fact still remains that the condition to which our Saviour was reduced by his forty days' fast was lower than that which was ever reached by any man that was ever in this world, who lived after it. "His visage was so marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men." (Isaiah 52:14) "Who has believed our report?" (Isaiah 53:1)
Although the Lord had by His prophets foreshown the coming, and the manner of the coming, of the Saviour, yet there were few, very few, to receive Him at His coming. "He came unto His own, and His own received Him not." (John 1:11)
With what profound and reverent interest should the elders of Israel have been studying the place, the time, the circumstances, of the greatest event in the world's history,--the coming of the Son of God to accomplish the redemption of man! Oh, why were not the people watching and waiting that they might be among the first to welcome the world's Redeemer? But lo, at Bethlehem two weary travelers from the hills of Nazareth traverse the whole length of the narrow street to the eastern extremity of the town, vainly seeking a place of rest and shelter for the night. No doors open to receive them. In a wretched hovel prepared for cattle, they at last find refuge, and there the Saviour of the world is born. ...
An angel visits the earth to see who are prepared to welcome Jesus. But he can discern no tokens of expectancy. He hears no voice of praise and triumph that the period of Messiah's coming is at hand. The angel hovers for a time over the chosen city and the temple where the divine presence was manifested for ages; but even here is the same indifference. The priests, in their pomp and pride, are offering polluted sacrifices in the temple. The Pharisees are with loud voices addressing the people, or making boastful prayers at the corners of the streets. There is no evidence that Christ is expected, and no preparation for the Prince of life.
In amazement the celestial messenger is about to return to Heaven with the shameful tidings, when he discovers a group of shepherds who are watching their flocks by night, and, as they gaze into the starry heavens, are contemplating the prophecy of a Messiah to come to earth, and longing for the advent of the world's Redeemer. Here is a company that are prepared to receive the heavenly message. And suddenly the angel of the Lord appeared, declaring the good tidings of great joy. Celestial glory flooded all the plain, an innumerable company of angels was revealed, and as if the joy were too great for one messenger to bring from Heaven, a multitude of voices broke forth in the anthem which all the nations of the saved shall one day sing, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good-will toward men."--Ellen White, The Spirit of Prophecy, Volume Four (1884), Chapter XII "God Honors the Humble," p. 197-198.
We shall not attempt any annotation on any of that part of the lesson from verse 2 to verse 10. In these verses Inspiration himself, out of the depths of divine, pitying love, has described the sufferings, the afflictions, and the sorrows of the Holy One, who died for the children of men, and to attempt an "exposition" would be but to mar the beauty and the blessed symmetry of the description. We will, however, transcribe these verses, and whoever reads them, we ask him to read them over slowly, thoughtfully, three times. "For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: He has no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from Him; He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. Surely He has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 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. 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, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth: He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He opens not His mouth. He was taken from prison 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. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief: when you shall 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. He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied." (Isaiah 53:2-11)
That is, he shall see the fruits of His suffering, and shall be satisfied. Satisfied?
• Could He not be satisfied with the glory which He had with the Father before the world was? (John 17:5)
• Could he not be satisfied with His place upon that throne "high and lifted up," (Isaiah 6:1) where Isaiah saw Him?
• Could He not be satisfied with the worshipful song of the seraphim crying, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory" (Isaiah 6:3)?
Was not all this enough to satisfy Him? No, not while man was lost in this world of sin. "For the joy that was set before Him, He endured the cross, despising the shame." (Hebrews 12:2)
And when He shall have gathered to himself all of the fruits of His sufferings, from "sacrificing Abel" to the last one, then He "shall be satisfied;" then His joy will be full; then will be fulfilled His saying, "I will declare your name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto You." (Hebrews 2:12)
And again: "The Lord your God in the midst of you is mighty; He will save, He will rejoice over you with joy; He will rest in His love, He will joy over you with singing." (Zephaniah 3:17)
Do you want to share that joy, as well as add to it? Gather souls to Christ. increase the fruits of His suffering by bringing souls to His salvation, and you will increase His joy; then it will be said to you, "Enter into the joy of your Lord." (Matthew 25:21)
Oh, you suffering, afflicted, sorrowing Saviour! If I can add one ray of gladness to that fair brow that was pierced with the cruel thorns, I shall be satisfied. If I can add one beam of satisfaction to that visage that was so married more than any man, I shall be delighted. If I can add one thrill of joy to that great heart of love that was broken with the ingratitude of men, my joy shall be full. "Therefore will I divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong." (Isaiah 53:12)
Satan is the strong one who has spoiled the human race. He brought sin into the world, and death by sin, and has shut up man in his prison-house--the grave. And Jesus, in talking of Satan and his house and his power, said: "How can one enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house." (Matthew 12:29)
Satan had the power of death. (Hebrews 2:14) Christ died and went into the grave, and came forth exclaiming: "I am He that lives, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen; and have the keys [the power] of hell [the grave] and of death." (Revelation 1:18)
Now He will bring forth all who have gone down to the grave trusting in Him. And when He went into the land of the enemy, and returned a conqueror, He brought forth some spoils to grace His triumph, and soon will bring all. "And many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after His resurrection." (Matthew 27:52-53) "And having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it." (Colossians 2:15)
And, "When He ascended up on high, He led a multitude of captives." (Ephesians 4:8,margin)
In this text, Colossians 2:15, Paul uses the figure of a Roman triumph. When a Roman commander had gone into an enemy's country, and had seized the power, when he returned he brought captives and spoils to immense value to his capital city; and then he was awarded a triumph, wherein he should be exalted on high, and following in his train were all the captives and spoils which he had taken.
So when Christ went into Satan's country, and, as we have seen, seized the power, when He returned He brought a multitude of captives, who graced His triumph as He returned to His glorious city.
But that was only the beginning, that was but a foretaste; soon He comes to gather all His saints together unto Him; then when the righteous dead arise, and the righteous living are changed, and caught up to meet Him in the air; (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17) then when He returns with all His ransomed throng there will be a triumph indeed. And He deserves it. "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." (Isaiah 53:12)--Signs of the Times, December 3, 1885--Notes on the International Lesson, December 13--Isaiah 53:1-12
A.T. Jones