Daily Devotions
40 Days and 40 Nights
"He shall bear their iniquities."
Text: Isaiah 53:11c
ISAIAH’S PROPHECY CONCERNING THE SUFFERING OF THE MESSIAH
One of the most heart-wrenching texts to read in the Scriptures must be Isaiah’s prophecy concerning the suffering of the Messiah. The following verses may be highlighted: –
1. “He is despised and rejected by men” Isaiah 53:3a
2. “A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief” Isaiah 53:3b
3. “He was wounded for our transgressions” Isaiah 53:5a
4. “He was bruised for our iniquities” Isaiah 53:5b
5. “He was oppressed and He was afflicted” Isaiah 53:7a
6. “He was led as a lamb to the slaughter” Isaiah 53:7b
It pains the heart to read about the suffering that the Lord Jesus had to endure! (Take time to read Isaiah 53 meditatively and prayerfully!)
THE REACTION OF THE PEOPLE PROPHESIED
What is just as disturbing is to read about how people would respond to the suffering of the Messiah!
1. “There is no beauty that we should desire Him” Isaiah 53:2d
2. “And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him” Isaiah 53:3c
3. “And we did not esteem Him” Isaiah 53:3d
4. “Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God” Isaiah 53:4b
Isaiah did not distance himself from the people who must have grieved the Lord. He identified himself with erring sinful Israel who did not know how to appreciate the suffering Messiah!
GOD’S WILL DECLARED
What was God’s will concerning the suffering of the Messiah-Servant? The following verses are deep and profound!
1. “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief” Isaiah 53:10a
2. “When You make His soul an offering for sin” Isaiah 53:10b
3. “By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many” Isaiah 53:11b
4. “He shall bear their iniquities” Isaiah 53:11c
HOW WOULD THE MESSIAH UNDERSTAND HIS MISSION ON EARTH?
The 40 days and 40 nights Jesus spent in the wilderness would allow Him to ponder deeply all the different aspects of His mission on earth.