Isaiah 53
Encyclopedia
Isaiah 53, taken from the Book of Isaiah
, is the last of the four Songs of the Suffering Servant
, and tells the story of the Man of Sorrows
or "The Suffering Servant", which became a common theme in medieval and later Christian art. The passage is known for its interpretation by many Christians to be a prophecy of the coming of Jesus
, being written over 500 years before his birth. This interpretation is rejected by Jewish theologians, many of whom identify the servant to be the nation of Israel. Many Christians view the entire chapter, and particularly this passage to refer to the suffering Jesus faced
as well as the absolution of sins believed to be made possible by his death.
-- English translation of the Hebrew text of from Judaica Press Complete Tanach
were first identified by Bernhard Duhm
in his 1892 commentary on Isaiah. The songs are four poems taken from the Book of Isaiah written about a certain "servant of YHWH." God calls the servant to lead the nations, but the servant is horribly abused. The servant sacrifices himself, accepting the punishment due others. In the end, he is rewarded.
The fourth of the "servant songs" begins at Isaiah 52:13, continuing through 53:12 where it continues the discussion of the suffering servant. There is no clear identification for the "servant" within this song, but if the reader pays close attention to the authors word choice, one can deduce that the song could refer to either an individual or a group.
The word servant is used 23 times in the book. 19 in chapters 41 to 53. Israel/Jacob is called the servant at least 11 times: the first 2 in chapter 41. Servant is used 4 times in the previous 40 chapters referring to Isaiah, Eliakim, servants in general, and David.
Many of these verses such as 43:10 You are My witnesses, said the Lord, and My servant whom I have chosen, 44:21 You are My servant Israel, 49:3 You are My servant Israel, and others, clearly show the nation referred to by the singular "servant". The word messiah is found twice, referring to Cyrus 45:1, and in chapter 61.
The word "servants" is used 9 times in chapters 54 to 66. Prior to ch 54 it's last used in ch 37. All 9 references in ch 54 to 66 are to Israel: 54:7 "For a small moment have I forsaken you; but with great mercy will I gather you,...17 This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord."
The Messiah is referred to in chapter 9:6 "For the increase of the realm and for peace there without end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from now and forever." Jews therefore believe the Moshiach (Messiah) will bring peace and rebuild Jerusalem/the Temple as his primary functions among others.
Those that argue the "servant" to be an individual, have "proposed many candidates from Israel's past." (Coogan 334) The song declares that the "servant" intercedes for others, bearing their punishments and afflictions. In the end, he is rewarded with an exalted position. On the other hand it is argued that the "servant" represents a group of people, more specifically the nation of Israel, and they feel that they have paid because of an almost 2000 year exile, pogroms, blood libels, Hitler and the Nazis, and continue to suffer on behalf of others (Isaiah 53:7,11-12). Also, through the authors choice of words, we, our, and they, one could also argue that the "servant" was a group*. Isaiah 53:1-11 Early on the evaluation of the Servant by the "we" is quite negative: "we" esteemed him not, many were appalled by him, nothing in him was attractive to "us". But at the Servant's death the attitude of the "we" changes after verse 4 where the servant bears "our" iniquities, "our" sickness, by the servant's wounds "we" are healed. Posthumously, then, the Servant is vindicated by God. Because of its references to the vicarious sufferings of the servant, many Christians believe this song to be among the Messianic prophecies of Jesus
. Isaiah 52:13-53:12 and within the "Jewish tradition the servant was sometimes identified as a messianic figure of the future." (Coogan 334)
that is the most familiar one, the Septuagint text, and the Qumran
community's Great Isaiah Scroll
, one of the Dead Sea Scrolls
, dated to the 2nd century BCE
Much of the meaningfulness of Joseph of Arimathea
's role (q.v. for discussion) hinges upon the words of Isaiah 53:9, "He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth."
Jewish and Christian scholars both agree that is the natural beginning of the section, which is reasonable when one considers that the original Hebrew does not have the modern chapter breaks. The speaker from to the end of chapter 52 is God himself, whereas from the beginning of 53:1 through 53:9 the gentile kings of nations are speaking in their numbed astonishment. This narrative expressed by the surprised leaders of the surrounding gentile nations is referred to in 52:15. This alternation in speakers is evident in that verses and speak of "My [i.e. God's] servant," while the intervening verses refer to "our transgressions" (i.e., in the Jewish view of this chapter, the transgressions committed by the gentile nations against God's servant, Israel, or, in the Christian view of this chapter, the sins of individuals against God).
believed referred to Israel. Rashi, writing in the 11th century, did have some historical precedent for this
interpretation, as his commentary became one of the best popular commentaries on the Tanakh.
Eliyahu Rabbah, which scholars agree was written in the end of the tenth century, (Tana Devei Eliyahu) has 3 citations referenced below.
The first book of the Talmud - Brachot page 5a (compiled between app 220 and 300 CE) applies Is 53 to the people of Israel and those who study Torah - "If the Holy One, blessed be He, is pleased with a man,He crushes him with painful sufferings. For it is said: And the Lord was pleased with [him, hence] He crushed him by disease (Isa. 53:10). Now, you might think that this is so even if he did not accept them with love. Therefore it is said: "To see if his soul would offer itself in restitution"(Ibid). Even as the trespass-offering must be brought by consent, so also the sufferings must be endured with consent. And if he did accept them, what is his reward? "He will see his seed, prolong his days"(Ibid). And more than that, his knowledge [of the Torah] will endure with him. For it is said: "The purpose of the Lord will prosper in his hand"(Ibid). It has been taught: R. Simeon b. Yohai says: The Holy One, blessed be He, gave Israel three precious gifts, and all of them were given only through sufferings.. These are: The Torah, the Land of Israel and the World To Come."
In Christian church father Origen
's Contra Celsus
, written in the year 248, he writes of Isaiah 53:
Sanhedrin 98b in the Babylonian Talmud applies Is 53:4 to the Messiah and applies Is 53:12 to Moses in Sotah 14a.
The Jerusalem Talmud (Shekalim 5:1) applies Isaiah 53:12 to Rabbi Akiva
.
The Mahari Kara (R' Yosef Kara, a contemporary of Rashi 11th century) on Isaiah : Quote: "Behold My servant shall prosper: Israel My servant shall be exalted and lifted up, and shall be very high. And [according to] the teachings of our Rabbis: He shall be more exalted than Abraham, as it is written: "I have raised my hand toward the Lord…" []. He shall be more lifted up than Moses, as it is written: "…as the nurse lifts up the suckling…". And he [Israel] shall be higher than the ministering angels, as it is written: "And they had backs, and they were very high…" [].
Numbers Rabbah 13:2 applies Is 53:12 to Israel in exile - "There can be almost no doubt that the redactor of Numbers Rabbah had before him an ancient Midrash on Numbers, and perhaps on other books as well, which has not come down to us and which we do not know of today. From the nature of the passages that were incorporated from this work and that remain in the Numbers Rabbah that we have today, one may conclude that this Midrash belonged to the group of Tanhuma-style Midrashim."
The Midrash Rabba on Deuteronomy says, "The Israelites poured out their soul to die in the captivity, as it is said, 'Because he poured out his soul to die.' (Isaiah 53:12)"
Furthermore, the Midrash known as Tana Devei Eliyahu contains three references to Isaiah 53, applying them to the righteous of Israel (chapters 6, 13, 27).
Another Midrash, Aleph Beitot (final chapter) quotes Isaiah 53 in reference to the nation of Israel as a whole.
Midrash Psalms 94:2 applies Isaiah 53:10 to the righteous in general (also in other earlier writings - Mechilta De Rabbi Ishmael)
Ruth Rabbah 2:14 interprets Is 53:5 to the Messiah
Kuzari
also identifies Isaiah 53 as the nation of Israel.
Chovot ha-Levavot
also identifies Isaiah 53 as the nation of Israel.
There are numerous individuals that the Zohar applies Isaiah 53 to:
1. 52:13-14 is applied to the Angel Metatron in Zohar Volume I
182a.
2. 53:5 is applied to Elijah the prophet in Zohar Volume II 115b.
3. 53:5 is applied to Moshiach ben Yosef in Zohar Volume III
276b.
Then we have the following eight references to Moses:
1. 52:13 in Zohar Volume III page 153b.
2. 52:13, 53:2,5 in Zohar Volume III 280a.
3. 53:1 in Tekunei HaZohar page 43a.
4. 53:5 in Tekunei HaZohar page 54b and 112a.
5. 53:5,7 in Zohar Volume III 125b.
6. 53:5,6,7 in Zohar Volume III 282b.
7. 53:7 in Zohar Volume I 187a.
8. 53:10 in Zohar Volume II 29b.
There are eight references to the Righteous of Israel:
1. 52:12 in Zohar Chadash page 15a
2. 52:13 in Zohar Volume I 181a.
3. 53:5 in Zohar Volume III 218a, 231a, 247b
4. 53:10 in Zohar Volume I 140a; Volume II 244b; Volume III 57b
), describes a scene in which God commands Philip the Apostle
to approach an Ethiopian eunuch
who is sitting in a chariot, reading aloud to himself from the Book of Isaiah. The eunuch comments that he does not understand what he is reading (Isaiah 53) and Philip explains to him that the passage refers to Jesus. "And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? Of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus." This has been the standard Christian interpretation of the passage since Apostolic times.
Isaiah 53:4 is also quoted in Matthew
8:17, where it is used in context of Jesus' healing ministry.
Taken literally, this description, is inconsistent with the short, childless life of Jesus. But there is interpretive room to argue that a resurrected Jesus has prolonged his days indefinitely and that his "seed" are those who become Christians.
The reason that the Servant is referred to in the third person may be that these verses are written from the point of view of Gentile
nations amazed at Israel's restoration, or it may simply be a method of figurative description. Supporters of this theory argue that the reason for the use of past tense is based on the differences between Proto-Isaiah and Deutero-Isaiah. Chapters 40-55 of Isaiah are referred to as "Deutero-Isaiah" because the themes and language are different from the rest of the book, leading some scholars to believe it was written by another author. Deutero-Isaiah differs from Proto-Isaiah in that it refers to Israel as already restored, which could account for the past-tense of the passage.
The Servant passages in Isaiah, and especially Isaiah 53, has to be compared with Psalm 44. Psalm 44 directly parallels the Servant Songs, it is probably the best defense for reading Isaiah 53 as applicable to the nation of Israel.
1:24, written in the 700s, a debate about a much less controversial topic results in the arrest of the Jew engaging in the debate.
, Nahmanides
expressed the Jewish viewpoint of Isaiah 53 and other matters regarding Christian belief about Jesus's role in Hebrew Scripture. The disputation was awarded in his favor by James I of Aragon
, and as a result the Dominican Order
compelled him to flee from his home country for the remainder of his life. Passages of Talmud were also censored. In a number of other disputation
s, debate about this passage resulted in forced conversions, deportations, and the burning of Jewish religious texts.
Book of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
, is the last of the four Songs of the Suffering Servant
Servant songs
The Servant songs are songs in the Book of Isaiah. They were first identified by Bernhard Duhm in his 1892 commentary on Isaiah. The songs are four poems written about a certain "servant of YHWH." God calls the servant to lead the nations, but the servant is horribly abused...
, and tells the story of the Man of Sorrows
Man of Sorrows
Among the passages in the Hebrew Bible that have been identified by Christians as prefigurations of the Messiah, the Man of Sorrows of Isaiah 53 is paramount - the various theological traditions are discussed at that article...
or "The Suffering Servant", which became a common theme in medieval and later Christian art. The passage is known for its interpretation by many Christians to be a prophecy of the coming of Jesus
Ministry of Jesus
In the Christian gospels, the Ministry of Jesus begins with his Baptism in the countryside of Judea, near the River Jordan and ends in Jerusalem, following the Last Supper with his disciples. The Gospel of Luke states that Jesus was "about 30 years of age" at the start of his ministry...
, being written over 500 years before his birth. This interpretation is rejected by Jewish theologians, many of whom identify the servant to be the nation of Israel. Many Christians view the entire chapter, and particularly this passage to refer to the suffering Jesus faced
Passion (Christianity)
The Passion is the Christian theological term used for the events and suffering – physical, spiritual, and mental – of Jesus in the hours before and including his trial and execution by crucifixion...
as well as the absolution of sins believed to be made possible by his death.
- 8From imprisonment and from judgment he was taken, and his generation who shall tell?
- For he was cut off from the land of the living; because of
- the transgression of my people, a plague came upon them.
-- English translation of the Hebrew text of from Judaica Press Complete Tanach
Fourth servant song
The servant songsServant songs
The Servant songs are songs in the Book of Isaiah. They were first identified by Bernhard Duhm in his 1892 commentary on Isaiah. The songs are four poems written about a certain "servant of YHWH." God calls the servant to lead the nations, but the servant is horribly abused...
were first identified by Bernhard Duhm
Bernhard Duhm
Bernhard Lauardus Duhm was a German Lutheran theologian born in Bingum, today part of Leer, East Frisia....
in his 1892 commentary on Isaiah. The songs are four poems taken from the Book of Isaiah written about a certain "servant of YHWH." God calls the servant to lead the nations, but the servant is horribly abused. The servant sacrifices himself, accepting the punishment due others. In the end, he is rewarded.
The fourth of the "servant songs" begins at Isaiah 52:13, continuing through 53:12 where it continues the discussion of the suffering servant. There is no clear identification for the "servant" within this song, but if the reader pays close attention to the authors word choice, one can deduce that the song could refer to either an individual or a group.
The word servant is used 23 times in the book. 19 in chapters 41 to 53. Israel/Jacob is called the servant at least 11 times: the first 2 in chapter 41. Servant is used 4 times in the previous 40 chapters referring to Isaiah, Eliakim, servants in general, and David.
Many of these verses such as 43:10 You are My witnesses, said the Lord, and My servant whom I have chosen, 44:21 You are My servant Israel, 49:3 You are My servant Israel, and others, clearly show the nation referred to by the singular "servant". The word messiah is found twice, referring to Cyrus 45:1, and in chapter 61.
The word "servants" is used 9 times in chapters 54 to 66. Prior to ch 54 it's last used in ch 37. All 9 references in ch 54 to 66 are to Israel: 54:7 "For a small moment have I forsaken you; but with great mercy will I gather you,...17 This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord."
The Messiah is referred to in chapter 9:6 "For the increase of the realm and for peace there without end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from now and forever." Jews therefore believe the Moshiach (Messiah) will bring peace and rebuild Jerusalem/the Temple as his primary functions among others.
Those that argue the "servant" to be an individual, have "proposed many candidates from Israel's past." (Coogan 334) The song declares that the "servant" intercedes for others, bearing their punishments and afflictions. In the end, he is rewarded with an exalted position. On the other hand it is argued that the "servant" represents a group of people, more specifically the nation of Israel, and they feel that they have paid because of an almost 2000 year exile, pogroms, blood libels, Hitler and the Nazis, and continue to suffer on behalf of others (Isaiah 53:7,11-12). Also, through the authors choice of words, we, our, and they, one could also argue that the "servant" was a group*. Isaiah 53:1-11 Early on the evaluation of the Servant by the "we" is quite negative: "we" esteemed him not, many were appalled by him, nothing in him was attractive to "us". But at the Servant's death the attitude of the "we" changes after verse 4 where the servant bears "our" iniquities, "our" sickness, by the servant's wounds "we" are healed. Posthumously, then, the Servant is vindicated by God. Because of its references to the vicarious sufferings of the servant, many Christians believe this song to be among the Messianic prophecies of Jesus
Messianic prophecies of Jesus
Jews and Christians do not agree on what Biblical statements constitute messianic prophecies. Christians point to many statements that they assert are messianic prophecies that Jews do not hold as referring to the Jewish Messiah at all....
. Isaiah 52:13-53:12 and within the "Jewish tradition the servant was sometimes identified as a messianic figure of the future." (Coogan 334)
Textual versions
The passage survives in three versions, from three autonomous and parallel manuscript traditions: the Masoretic textMasoretic Text
The Masoretic Text is the authoritative Hebrew text of the Jewish Bible and is regarded as Judaism's official version of the Tanakh. While the Masoretic Text defines the books of the Jewish canon, it also defines the precise letter-text of these biblical books, with their vocalization and...
that is the most familiar one, the Septuagint text, and the Qumran
Qumran
Qumran is an archaeological site in the West Bank. It is located on a dry plateau about a mile inland from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Israeli settlement and kibbutz of Kalia...
community's Great Isaiah Scroll
Isaiah scroll
The Isaiah Scroll or 1Qlsa was found in a cave near the Dead Sea with six other scrolls by Bedouin shepherds in 1947, later known as the Dead Sea Scrolls. It is the most complete scroll out of the 220 found, being complete from beginning to end...
, one of the Dead Sea Scrolls
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name...
, dated to the 2nd century BCE
Much of the meaningfulness of Joseph of Arimathea
Joseph of Arimathea
Joseph of Arimathea was, according to the Gospels, the man who donated his own prepared tomb for the burial of Jesus after Jesus' Crucifixion. He is mentioned in all four Gospels.-Gospel references:...
's role (q.v. for discussion) hinges upon the words of Isaiah 53:9, "He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth."
Jewish and Christian scholars both agree that is the natural beginning of the section, which is reasonable when one considers that the original Hebrew does not have the modern chapter breaks. The speaker from to the end of chapter 52 is God himself, whereas from the beginning of 53:1 through 53:9 the gentile kings of nations are speaking in their numbed astonishment. This narrative expressed by the surprised leaders of the surrounding gentile nations is referred to in 52:15. This alternation in speakers is evident in that verses and speak of "My [i.e. God's] servant," while the intervening verses refer to "our transgressions" (i.e., in the Jewish view of this chapter, the transgressions committed by the gentile nations against God's servant, Israel, or, in the Christian view of this chapter, the sins of individuals against God).
Jewish literature
Jewish commentator RashiRashi
Shlomo Yitzhaki , or in Latin Salomon Isaacides, and today generally known by the acronym Rashi , was a medieval French rabbi famed as the author of a comprehensive commentary on the Talmud, as well as a comprehensive commentary on the Tanakh...
believed referred to Israel. Rashi, writing in the 11th century, did have some historical precedent for this
interpretation, as his commentary became one of the best popular commentaries on the Tanakh.
Eliyahu Rabbah, which scholars agree was written in the end of the tenth century, (Tana Devei Eliyahu) has 3 citations referenced below.
The first book of the Talmud - Brachot page 5a (compiled between app 220 and 300 CE) applies Is 53 to the people of Israel and those who study Torah - "If the Holy One, blessed be He, is pleased with a man,He crushes him with painful sufferings. For it is said: And the Lord was pleased with [him, hence] He crushed him by disease (Isa. 53:10). Now, you might think that this is so even if he did not accept them with love. Therefore it is said: "To see if his soul would offer itself in restitution"(Ibid). Even as the trespass-offering must be brought by consent, so also the sufferings must be endured with consent. And if he did accept them, what is his reward? "He will see his seed, prolong his days"(Ibid). And more than that, his knowledge [of the Torah] will endure with him. For it is said: "The purpose of the Lord will prosper in his hand"(Ibid). It has been taught: R. Simeon b. Yohai says: The Holy One, blessed be He, gave Israel three precious gifts, and all of them were given only through sufferings.. These are: The Torah, the Land of Israel and the World To Come."
In Christian church father Origen
Origen
Origen , or Origen Adamantius, 184/5–253/4, was an early Christian Alexandrian scholar and theologian, and one of the most distinguished writers of the early Church. As early as the fourth century, his orthodoxy was suspect, in part because he believed in the pre-existence of souls...
's Contra Celsus
Contra Celsus
Against Celsus, Greek Kata Kelsou, Latin Contra Celsum, is the title of a major work by the Church Father Origen of Alexandria, countering the writings of Celsus the Platonist. It was written in 248 CE.-External links:...
, written in the year 248, he writes of Isaiah 53:
- Now I remember that, on one occasion, at a disputation held with certain Jews, who were reckoned wise men, I quoted these prophecies; to which my Jewish opponent replied, that these predictions bore reference to the whole people, regarded as one individual, and as being in a state of dispersion and suffering, in order that many proselytes might be gained, on account of the dispersion of the Jews among numerous heathen nations.
Sanhedrin 98b in the Babylonian Talmud applies Is 53:4 to the Messiah and applies Is 53:12 to Moses in Sotah 14a.
The Jerusalem Talmud (Shekalim 5:1) applies Isaiah 53:12 to Rabbi Akiva
Rabbi Akiva
Akiva ben Joseph simply known as Rabbi Akiva , was a tanna of the latter part of the 1st century and the beginning of the 2nd century . He was a great authority in the matter of Jewish tradition, and one of the most central and essential contributors to the Mishnah and Midrash Halakha...
.
The Mahari Kara (R' Yosef Kara, a contemporary of Rashi 11th century) on Isaiah : Quote: "Behold My servant shall prosper: Israel My servant shall be exalted and lifted up, and shall be very high. And [according to] the teachings of our Rabbis: He shall be more exalted than Abraham, as it is written: "I have raised my hand toward the Lord…" []. He shall be more lifted up than Moses, as it is written: "…as the nurse lifts up the suckling…". And he [Israel] shall be higher than the ministering angels, as it is written: "And they had backs, and they were very high…" [].
Numbers Rabbah 13:2 applies Is 53:12 to Israel in exile - "There can be almost no doubt that the redactor of Numbers Rabbah had before him an ancient Midrash on Numbers, and perhaps on other books as well, which has not come down to us and which we do not know of today. From the nature of the passages that were incorporated from this work and that remain in the Numbers Rabbah that we have today, one may conclude that this Midrash belonged to the group of Tanhuma-style Midrashim."
The Midrash Rabba on Deuteronomy says, "The Israelites poured out their soul to die in the captivity, as it is said, 'Because he poured out his soul to die.' (Isaiah 53:12)"
Furthermore, the Midrash known as Tana Devei Eliyahu contains three references to Isaiah 53, applying them to the righteous of Israel (chapters 6, 13, 27).
Another Midrash, Aleph Beitot (final chapter) quotes Isaiah 53 in reference to the nation of Israel as a whole.
Midrash Psalms 94:2 applies Isaiah 53:10 to the righteous in general (also in other earlier writings - Mechilta De Rabbi Ishmael)
Ruth Rabbah 2:14 interprets Is 53:5 to the Messiah
Kuzari
Kuzari
The Kitab al Khazari, commonly called the Kuzari, is one of most famous works of the medieval Spanish Jewish philosopher and poet Rabbi Yehuda Halevi, completed around 1140. Its title is an Arabic phrase meaning Book of the Khazars...
also identifies Isaiah 53 as the nation of Israel.
Chovot ha-Levavot
Chovot ha-Levavot
Chovot HaLevavot or Ḥovot HaLebabot, , is the primary work of the Jewish philosopher Bahya ibn Paquda, full name Bahya ben Joseph ibn Pakuda...
also identifies Isaiah 53 as the nation of Israel.
There are numerous individuals that the Zohar applies Isaiah 53 to:
1. 52:13-14 is applied to the Angel Metatron in Zohar Volume I
182a.
2. 53:5 is applied to Elijah the prophet in Zohar Volume II 115b.
3. 53:5 is applied to Moshiach ben Yosef in Zohar Volume III
276b.
Then we have the following eight references to Moses:
1. 52:13 in Zohar Volume III page 153b.
2. 52:13, 53:2,5 in Zohar Volume III 280a.
3. 53:1 in Tekunei HaZohar page 43a.
4. 53:5 in Tekunei HaZohar page 54b and 112a.
5. 53:5,7 in Zohar Volume III 125b.
6. 53:5,6,7 in Zohar Volume III 282b.
7. 53:7 in Zohar Volume I 187a.
8. 53:10 in Zohar Volume II 29b.
There are eight references to the Righteous of Israel:
1. 52:12 in Zohar Chadash page 15a
2. 52:13 in Zohar Volume I 181a.
3. 53:5 in Zohar Volume III 218a, 231a, 247b
4. 53:10 in Zohar Volume I 140a; Volume II 244b; Volume III 57b
New Testament
One of the first claims in the New Testament that Isaiah 53 is a prophecy of Jesus comes from the Book of Acts, in which its author (who is also the author of LukeLuke the Evangelist
Luke the Evangelist was an Early Christian writer whom Church Fathers such as Jerome and Eusebius said was the author of the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles...
), describes a scene in which God commands Philip the Apostle
Philip the Apostle
Philip the Apostle was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. Later Christian traditions describe Philip as the apostle who preached in Greece, Syria, and Phrygia....
to approach an Ethiopian eunuch
Ethiopian eunuch
The Ethiopian eunuch is a figure in the New Testament of the Bible. The story of his conversion to Christianity is recounted in Acts 8.-Biblical narrative:...
who is sitting in a chariot, reading aloud to himself from the Book of Isaiah. The eunuch comments that he does not understand what he is reading (Isaiah 53) and Philip explains to him that the passage refers to Jesus. "And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? Of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus." This has been the standard Christian interpretation of the passage since Apostolic times.
Isaiah 53:4 is also quoted in Matthew
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...
8:17, where it is used in context of Jesus' healing ministry.
Israel
Citing a number of Biblical verses that refer to Israel as the "servant", many of them from the Book of Isaiah such as 49:3 He said to me, "You are My servant, Israel, in whom I will display My splendor." Jewish scholars, and several Christian scholarly books, like Revised Standard Version Oxford Study Edition Bible, The Revised Standard Version tell us that Isaiah 53 is about national Israel and the New English Bible echo this analysis. Judaism, teaches that the "servant" in question is actually the nation of Israel. These scholars also argue that verse 10 cannot be describing Jesus. The verse states:- 10he shall see [his] seed, he shall prolong [his] days
Taken literally, this description, is inconsistent with the short, childless life of Jesus. But there is interpretive room to argue that a resurrected Jesus has prolonged his days indefinitely and that his "seed" are those who become Christians.
The reason that the Servant is referred to in the third person may be that these verses are written from the point of view of Gentile
Gentile
The term Gentile refers to non-Israelite peoples or nations in English translations of the Bible....
nations amazed at Israel's restoration, or it may simply be a method of figurative description. Supporters of this theory argue that the reason for the use of past tense is based on the differences between Proto-Isaiah and Deutero-Isaiah. Chapters 40-55 of Isaiah are referred to as "Deutero-Isaiah" because the themes and language are different from the rest of the book, leading some scholars to believe it was written by another author. Deutero-Isaiah differs from Proto-Isaiah in that it refers to Israel as already restored, which could account for the past-tense of the passage.
The Servant passages in Isaiah, and especially Isaiah 53, has to be compared with Psalm 44. Psalm 44 directly parallels the Servant Songs, it is probably the best defense for reading Isaiah 53 as applicable to the nation of Israel.
Before 1000
The earliest known example of a Jew and a Christian debating the meaning of Isaiah 53 is the example from 248 cited by Origen stated above. The discourse between Origen and his Jewish counterpart does not seem to have had any consequences for either party. This was not the case for the majority of centuries that have passed since that time. In Ecclesiastes RabbahEcclesiastes Rabbah
Ecclesiastes Rabbah or Kohelet Rabbah is an haggadic commentary on Ecclesiastes, included in the collection of the Midrash Rabbot. It follows the Biblical book verse by verse, only a few verses remaining without comment. In the list of the old sedarim for the Bible four sedarim are assigned to...
1:24, written in the 700s, a debate about a much less controversial topic results in the arrest of the Jew engaging in the debate.
1000–1500
In 1263 at the Disputation of BarcelonaDisputation of Barcelona
The Disputation of Barcelona was held at the royal palace of King James I of Aragon in the presence of the King, his court, and many prominent ecclesiastical dignitaries and knights, between Dominican Friar Pablo Christiani, a convert from Judaism to Christianity, and Rabbi Nachmanides The...
, Nahmanides
Nahmanides
Nahmanides, also known as Rabbi Moses ben Naḥman Girondi, Bonastruc ça Porta and by his acronym Ramban, , was a leading medieval Jewish scholar, Catalan rabbi, philosopher, physician, kabbalist, and biblical commentator.-Name:"Nahmanides" is a Greek-influenced formation meaning "son of Naḥman"...
expressed the Jewish viewpoint of Isaiah 53 and other matters regarding Christian belief about Jesus's role in Hebrew Scripture. The disputation was awarded in his favor by James I of Aragon
James I of Aragon
James I the Conqueror was the King of Aragon, Count of Barcelona, and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1276...
, and as a result the Dominican Order
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
compelled him to flee from his home country for the remainder of his life. Passages of Talmud were also censored. In a number of other disputation
Disputation
In the scholastic system of education of the Middle Ages, disputations offered a formalized method of debate designed to uncover and establish truths in theology and in sciences...
s, debate about this passage resulted in forced conversions, deportations, and the burning of Jewish religious texts.
Modern era
The use of Isaiah 53 in debates between Jews and Christians still often occurs in the context of Christian missionary work among Jews, and the topic is a source of frequent discussion that is often repetitive and heated. Some devout Christians view the use of the Christian interpretation of Isaiah 53 in proselytization efforts as an act of love. A common view among Jews today is that, while the persecutions of the Middle Ages that resulted from disputations are in the past, Jews still suffer under the threat that their children will be drawn into Christian groups that engage in active proselytization.See also
- Messianic prophecies of JesusMessianic prophecies of JesusJews and Christians do not agree on what Biblical statements constitute messianic prophecies. Christians point to many statements that they assert are messianic prophecies that Jews do not hold as referring to the Jewish Messiah at all....
- New CovenantNew CovenantThe New Covenant is a concept originally derived from the Hebrew Bible. The term "New Covenant" is used in the Bible to refer to an epochal relationship of restoration and peace following a period of trial and judgment...
- Christianity and Judaism
- Messiah (Handel)Messiah (Handel)Messiah is an English-language oratorio composed in 1741 by George Frideric Handel, with a scriptural text compiled by Charles Jennens from the King James Bible and the Book of Common Prayer. It was first performed in Dublin on 13 April 1742, and received its London premiere nearly a year later...
External links
- Jewish Isaiah 53 from a counter-missionary website
- Y'shayahu's "Suffering Servant" (Y'shayahu, ch.53 by Professor Mordochai ben Tziyyon, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel (retired)
- A complete analysis of Isaiah 53 by Rabbi Moshe Shulman from a counter-missionary website
- Targum on Isaiah 53 by Rabbi Moshe Shulman from a counter-missionary website
- Zohar on Isaiah 53 by Rabbi Moshe Shulman from a counter-missionary website
- Haftorah and Isaiah 53 by Rabbi Moshe Shulman from a counter-missionary website
- Mysteries of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai and Isaiah 53 by Rabbi Moshe Shulman from a counter-missionary website
- Moshe Ibn Crispin and Isaiah 53 by Rabbi Moshe Shulman from a counter-missionary website
- Suffering Servant ( 24 Articles ) from Jews for Judaism, a counter-missionary website
- http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Radio/Player.htm#0#1292
- Jewish Interpretation of Isaiah 53
- Jewish Encyclopedia: Servant of God
- Catholic Encyclopedia: Messiah
- Isaiah 53 by Rabbi Tovia Singer
- Audio Downloads of Judaism’s response to Isaiah 53 available at Outreach Judaism
- A Jewish refutation of Christian interpretation
- One Christian's interpretation of Isaiah 53
- A Christian examination of Isaiah 53
- A Jewish explanation of the text from Rabbi Dov
- Isaiah 53: The Jewish Perspective