Isaiah 53:5

"Surely he has borne our sickness and carried our suffering; yet we considered him plagued, struck by God, and afflicted."

Key Reflection

In Isaiah 53:5, the prophet describes a paradox where the suffering servant—later identified as Jesus in Christian interpretation—bears the sicknesses and sorrows of his people. The original audience would have understood this through their experience of communal suffering, recognizing that affliction often brings shame and suspicion of divine punishment. Yet, they mistakenly viewed the servant's suffering as evidence of personal sin or divine wrath rather than as a redemptive sacrifice for their collective guilt.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

But he was wounded -Margin, ‘Tormented.’ Jerome and the Septuagint also render this, ‘He was wounded.’ Junius and Tremellius, ‘He was affected with grief.’ The Chaldee has given a singular paraphrase of it, showing how confused was the view of the whole passage in the mind of that interpreter. ‘And he shall build the house of the sanctuary which was defiled on account of our sins, and which was delivered on account of our iniquities. And in his doctrine, peace shall be multiplied to us.

Related Verses

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