Isaiah 53 is an incredible passage from the Old Testament of the Bible. Every time I read it, it reminds me of the profound pain behind the crucifixion, and the humility displayed by Jesus as humanity proved every day in our actions towards Him why we needed and still need a savior.
The Book of Isaiah was written in 8th-century BC, and perfectly describes the life of the Messiah - so much so that it is sometimes referred to as the fifth gospel. Isaiah 53 specifically expresses how undeserving we were of the Savior - how He died to give life to those who thought of Him as the lowliest of low and scoffed at Him until the end.
1. Jesus was hated.
"For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not." Isaiah 53:2-3
Jesus came to us from nothing. When He was born He was laid in the feed trough where animals eat. The King of Kings came into His life with no grandeur or splendor. There was literally no room for Him to even be born, but He came. He was never treated like a King. He performed miracle upon miracle, but He was still mocked, despised, and nailed to a cross.
2. Jesus didn't protest.
"He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth."
Isaiah 53:7
"And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth." Isaiah 53:9
They knew He had done no wrong, but they still shouted: "Crucify Him." (Mark 15:13-14) He said nothing. While nailed to the cross people mocked Him. They jeered, "He saved others; He cannot save Himself." (Mark 15:31) He still said nothing. Jesus knew He was the lamb who had to be slain to bring the nations to the Kingdom of God.
3. It was God's will from the beginning.
"Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities." Isaiah 53: 10-11
The Father turned His face away from His son so that our faces would be turned to Him. So that we would tell the story of the Resurrection for ages - the man who lived a faultless life, whom we nailed to the cross with our sins, who died a sinners death, rose again on the third day to give life to those who gave Him death. Even knowing this we still turn from Him and run, but because of His grace, we can never run too far. That is the beauty of the Gospel.
