08 Why the Servant Stayed Silent at His Trial (Isaiah 53:7-12)

Krisan Marotta: This is the Wednesday in the Word podcast, and I'm Krisan Marotta. Thanks for joining us. Today we're looking at Isaiah chapter 53, verses 7 through 12. This is the eighth time in our series on the servant songs from the Old Testament book of Isaiah. You can find lecture notes with links to everything mentioned in today's talk on our website. Just go to wednesdayintheword.com slash servant songs eight. Glad to have you along. We are finishing the fourth servant song today. We looked at the first sections of this song in our last session. The song itself goes from 5213 through 5312. It's divided into five sections, with each section having three verses, and we looked at the first three sections in our previous session. Today we're going to finish it up with the last two. This text from my the whole song from 5213 through 5312 is the most frequently quoted Old Testament text in the New Testament. And in it, Isaiah gives a detailed description, which he wrote approximately 700 years before the birth of Christ. He gives a detailed description of the servant's atoning work, his reception by God, and his rejection by the nations and Israel. Just to review, the sections are 52, 13 through 15, where God exalts his servant. Then 53 verses 1 through 3, where we see Israel reject the servant because he didn't have the credentials she sought. 53, 4 through 6, the servant suffers our death for us. That's the centerpiece of the song. Then 53, 7 through 9, Israel executes the servant while the servant remains silent. And then he concludes in 53, 10 through 12, God rewards the servant and grants him eternal glory. And you'll note God has the first and the last word in these sections. Last week we covered the first three sections. Just review those. In the first one, the exaltation of the servant, fifty-two, thirteen through fifteen, we saw that the servant would be exalted. But just as the nations were speechless in horror at his disfigurement, so they will be speechless with joy at his exaltation. And in there that section we saw the first irony of this passage. Those who had never heard of the prophecies of the servant will worship him when they hear his name and what he has done, while those who had the prophecies will reject him. Then in fifty three, one through three we see Israel rejecting the servant because he wasn't part of the establishment. Consequently, they judged him of no value and despised him. And in that we see the second irony of this passage, those to whom the prophecies were given would reject the servant. Then in 53, 4 through 6, the centerpiece of the song, we see the servant suffer a horrible death on our behalf, and that gives us the third irony of this passage, that Jesus died our death, and his sacrifice was utterly unappreciated and despised, and yet its very rejection ensured that it was a success. Nothing else so perfectly displayed God's love for us. And we're going to continue that theme of this perfect display of God's love today as we look at the rest of the song, which essentially describes the servant's trial, death, and burial, and then finally his reward. Have you ever wondered if all the pain and the anguish of this life is worth it? Sometimes life just seems so hard and you wonder why does it have to be this way? Or why does it have to be so hard? Why can't I just get along with my children? Or why do marriages take so much work? Or why do we have all these relationship issues and bickering and infighting and backstabbing at the office and the church even? And why is why is it that even with the best of intentions, we do these stupid things that end up hurting each other? And then on top of that, we live in a world where there are disasters and tragedies and floods and fires and earthquakes and plane crashes. And you look around and you think, well, why does life have to be so hard? Well, I'm not going to answer those questions, but I am going to tell you that the suffering is worth it. All the suffering, the anguish, the tragedy is worth it. And we're going to look at the servant's anguish and suffering today and his reward, and I think we can argue that it will be similar for us. In fact, Peter, Paul, and James all argue that our suffering is worth it, that when we get to glory, when we finally stand as children of God in heaven, we will look back on this life as hard as as it is or was at that point and say, it was worth it. But before we get the rewards, we have to go through the suffering. And that brings us to the fourth irony of our passage, which we're going to look at in 53, 7 through 9, and that is the contrast between the violence of the nation and the silence of the servant. So let's look at 537 through 9, the execution of the servant. First 53 7, he was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth, like a lamb that is led to slaughter, and like a sheep that is silent before its shears, so he did not open his mouth. Though the servant did not deserve to die at all, he died willingly. Notice the repetition here of the phrase, he did not open his mouth. He didn't defend himself, he didn't cry out this isn't fair, he didn't try to justify himself or point out their errors and their flaws. Instead, he remained silent. His silence gives us the clue that the emphasis is not that he did not deserve to die. That's true, he didn't he did nothing to deserve to be put to death. But the emphasis is that even though he didn't deserve to die, he died willingly. He didn't open his mouth to protest or defend himself, he went willingly and knowingly. I'd like to read a section from Motors' commentary. I'm not sure how you pronounce his name, I've never heard it spoken. And I'll link to it in the lecture notes. It's long, but I thought he said it best. And now I'm quoting The servant offered no physical resistance to violence, but humbled himself. He offered no verbal resistance, but did not open his mouth. Animals go as uncomprehendingly to slaughter as to shearing. The servant, who knew well, went to his death with a calmness reflecting not an ignorant but a submitted mind. And I'm skipping a bit, he goes on. Isaiah expressed the truth of the servant's death in the accepted terminology of sin bearing, verses four through six, and now seven through nine he introduces and indeed drives home a new thought. It is not that the servant did not deserve to die, for that is implicit in verses four through six, but that though he did not deserve to die, he was willing to do so. Then I'm skipping a bit more, and he can he goes on Sin as willfulness is a thing God cannot overlook. It's the very heart of our sinfulness that we sin because we want to. And then he concludes, Because of this, no animal can do more than picture substitution. Only a person can substitute for a person, only a consenting will can substitute for a rebellious will. The servant indeed fulfills the stated requirements for a substitute. He identified with sinners in their condemnation, verses four and five. He was without stain of sin, verse nine, he was acceptable to the holy God, verses six and ten. He also adds what no one ever did or could, the will to accept and submit to the substitute's role. So the emphasis is that he went willingly. He didn't defend himself, he didn't cry out because he was willing to die on our behalf. Until I studied this passage, it always bothered me why Jesus' death was an accepted sacrifice for us. Why did it work? What made it acceptable to God? What for instance, why weren't the animal sacrifices enough? So there was this hole in my theology that I Isaiah has filled. The difference, the thing that was key, the difference between the animal sacrifices and what Jesus did for us is Jesus went to his death willingly. He chose to give himself up for us, which completely covered our choice to sin. So he lived a life in keeping with the covenant, he was holy without sin and righteous before God, and then he chose to die on our behalf. At his trial, then his silence is contrasted with the violence of his oppressors. And I think verse seven is alluding to his trial, juxtaposing the violence of his oppressors with his silence. He died a violent death, yet he said nothing. The account in Matthew's gospel tells the story of the cruelty and the violence he faced. Listen to this. This is Matthew twenty-six, starting in verse sixty-five. Then the high priest tore his robes and said, He has blasphemed. What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have heard the blasphemy. What do you think? They answered, He deserves death. Then they spat in his face and beat him with their fists, and others slapped him and said, Prophesy to us, you Christ, who is the one who hit you? And yet he does not respond. And we saw this in an early in the earlier servant song in chapter forty two, where it he said in forty two two, he will not cry out or raise his voice, nor make his voice heard in the streets. And Matthew corroborates going on this is chapter twenty seven, verse twelve. And while he was being accused by the chief priests and elders, he did not answer. Then Pilate said to him, Do you not hear how many things they testify against you? And he did not answer him with regard to even a single charge, so the governor was quite amazed. Why didn't Jesus say anything in his defense? That always puzzled me. Why not defend himself? Well I think there's three reasons we get from Isaiah. First, we talked about this. His silence magnified the horror of his death and the depravity of his executioners. His death was necessary to bring about our salvation and he knew it. And by remaining silent, he was putting a spotlight on the depravity of his executioners, revealing their sin and rebellion as sin and rebellion. Silence in the face of unjust charges forces the accuser to stop and think about his own depravity, I think. Second, I think his silence showed that Jesus was saving his speech for the court of heaven. He knew who his ultimate judge and advocate was, and he knew one day he would stand in the court of heaven before the true judge and advocate, and his silence showed that he put his fate in God's hands, not in his ability to be persuasive or articulate. He trusted himself to God and saved his speech for the judge who really mattered. And then finally, and probably most importantly, his silence showed his willingness to follow God's plan. It showed that he was willing to offer himself as an atoning sacrifice, as we've just discussed. And yet no one knew what he was doing. Look at fifty three eight. By oppression and judgment he was taken away, and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living for the transgression of my people to whom the stroke was due? Verse seven refers to his trial, and now in verse eight we see his death. No one present at Jesus' trial had enough insight to realize that he was dying for them, and that's the question verse eight asks. Who is considered? Who considered that he was cut off from the land of the living? Who considered as he was taken away that he was dying for their transgressions? Who among his generation realized that his he was being cut off from the land of the living for others who actually deserved to die? And of course the rhetorical answer is expected no one, no one figured it out. They scourged him, they beat him, they crowned his head with thorns, they forced him to carry his own cross, and yet, as we saw in chapter fifty, verse six, it says, I gave my back to those who strike me, and my cheeks to those who pluck out the beard. I did not cover my face from humiliation and spitting. Peter refers to this blindness of the nations in his sermon in Acts two. In Acts two, twenty-three he says, This man delivered referring to Jesus, this man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put him to death. But God raised him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for him to be held in its power, and with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, Be saved from this perverse generation. This perverse generation couldn't see that Jesus was dying this death for them. Paul writes the same thing in First Corinthians two. This is first Corinthians two, six through eight. Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature, a wisdom, however, not of this age, nor of the rulers of this age who are passing away. But we speak of God's wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory, the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood, for if they understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. So who considered that he was dying for their transgressions? No one. If they had considered it, if they had understood, they would not have crucified him. Immediately after his death then God begins to vindicate him. Verse seven referred to his trial, verse eight to his death, and now in nine we come to his burial. His grave was assigned with wicked men, yet he was with a rich man in his death, because he had done no violence, nor was there any deceit in his mouth. Done no violence covers his outward behavior, no deceit in his mouth covers his inward attitudes, and so it's comprehensive he'd done no wrong either in action or his or in thought, either in on the outside or on the inside. Since the servant was condemned as a criminal, we would expect to find him in a criminal's grave, and yet he was buried as a rich man. Immediately after Jesus' death, God begins to vindicate him, and I think one of the first bits of evidence is that only the people who loved Jesus were allowed to touch his body. Think about that. You would expect the Romans to display and abuse Jesus' body as a lesson to the Jews and any other revolutionaries, but they weren't allowed to do that because God immediately began to vindicate Jesus. God kept all his bones, not one of them was broken, and though he died a criminal's death, he was given a burial fit for a king because God was already starting his vindication. Here's Matthew's account. This is chapter twenty seven starting in verse fifty seven. When it was evening there came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him, and Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own tomb which he had hewn out of the rock, and he rolled a large stone against the entrance of the tomb and went away. I read that in all of Jerusalem archaeologists have discovered only three tombs of the type that used a rolling stone to close the entrance. Two of them belonged to royalty, and the third belonged to Joseph of Arimathea, which implies that Jesus' burial was fit for a king. Though he died the death of a criminal, he was rewarded because he had done no violence and no wrong. And notice too, the text here assumes he died. He died and was buried. This is not fainting, there's no passing out, there's no appearing to be dead. He was dead. Those who don't believe in the resurrection have argued that he was just appeared to be dead, but he wasn't actually dead. But I think the gospels corroborate that he was in fact dead. So before we go on to the last section, let's just review where we've been. We have these five sections of three verses each. And in the first section, we saw that although the nations had no knowledge of Jesus, they would fall down and worship him. In the second, we saw that when the servant went to his own people, the keepers of the law and the prophecies, they would reject him. Third, we saw the very one they rejected was dying for them. And then in the fourth section we just looked at the servant was oppressed and treated violently, yet he willingly suffered in silence. And now we come to the last section, and here we find out that God Himself was behind it all. He orchestrated all these events because of the depth of his love for us. Let's look at the reward of the servant in verses ten through twelve. But the Lord was pleased to crush him, putting him to grief. If he would render himself as a guilt offering, he will see his offspring, he will prolong his days, and the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in his hands. So it starts out the Lord was pleased to crush him. The servant's atoning sacrifice was part of God's plan. Notice the section begins and ends with reference to the Lord. So this atonement was not a new concept in salvation history, it was always part of the plan. And Peter says this in his sermon in Acts. Referring to Jesus, he says in Acts 222, this man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to the cross by the hands of godless men and put him to death. And then later on in four hundred twenty seven and twenty-eight, he says, For truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your purpose predestined to occur, and that you is referring to the Lord. So he cooperates. The Lord was behind all this, behind the betrayal, the beatings, the insults, the thorn, the nails, the hours of darkness, the sword on his side, behind the frightened apostles, the Romans, Judas, the Sanhedrin was God Himself directing the show. And the atoning sacrifice was always part of the plan of salvation. And notice it says the Father was pleased to sacrifice his servant despite the cost. Think about that. Think about what it cost the Father. He bankrupted himself to bring about this plan. He had only one son, and yet he willingly gave him up for us. Scripture never tells us how much pain this cost the Father. Nowhere do you hear God saying, Do you know what it cost me to buy your salvation or something like that? But there are clues. Listen to what God says to Abraham when he asks Abraham to offer up Isaac. This is Genesis twenty two two. He said, Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you. Look at these words, your only son, the son you love. Behind those words I think you can sense God's recognition of the enormity of what he is asking Abraham to do. Listen to David lamenting the death of his wicked and rebellious son Absalom, this is in Second Samuel eighteen thirty three. The king was deeply moved and went up to the chamber over the gate and wept, and thus he said as he walked, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom, would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son. How much more profound and deep must the grief of the father be as he watched the death of his righteous, sinless, only son? David's wailing for one of many sons, a wicked and rebellious son, a son that was trying to kill him. How much more profound would be the depth of the father's grief? Think how hard it is to lose a child. I've only lost a child through miscarriage, and that was a devastating experience. I can barely imagine the grief of losing a child you've had a chance to know and love and see grow. And yet God's grief is never mentioned. We only catch glimpses in these other scriptures. Instead, our text says God was pleased. He was delighted to crush his servant. Delight means excited agitation, taking pleasure in something. So rather than telling us how much it cost God to offer his son on our behalf, God tells us he was delighted to do it. Notice these verses, this verse begins and ends with a reference to God. God, the director, may be grieving and wounded backstage, but when he steps in front of the audience, there are no tears and laments. Instead, he tells us he was delighted to make this sacrifice for us, people who were rebellious and against him. That's how much the Father loves us. Now we come to the servant's reward. Look at fifty three ten. But the Lord was pleased to crush him, putting him to grief if he would render himself as a guilt offering. He will see his offspring, he will prolong his days, and the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in his hand. So the servant's going to be rewarded for his obedience. He'll receive three things. First, though, he has to offer himself as a guilt offering. That has the idea of reparation and compensation. It meets both the needs of the sinful people before God and God's requirement for justice. So because the servant was willing to become a guilt offering, he will be rewarded by the Father, and he will receive three things a new family, a new life, and a new position. So notice it says first he will see his offspring, he will see a new family, a new seed. This is the fulfillment of his calling to regather Israel. The regathering is occurring, and it's not just Israel, it's his spiritual seed. So it's not just physical children of Abraham, but spiritual children from every tribe and nation. In the age to come, the the servant will be given an abundance of seed. Those who like Abraham have faith, not just those who are physically descended from him. And we're going to pick up this theme again in the next passage we look at in chapter fifty-four. But in the resurrection, his spiritual seed will be far more numerous than the physical seed of earthly Israel. We start, we stray like sheep, but we return as children. Second, he will prolong his days. God will give him a new kind of life, eternal life, described in the Old Testament as length of days. So he will be rewarded with the life of the age of ages, the life to come, where everyone is righteous, he will no longer be wounded by our sin or rejected by our ignorance and rebellion or despised because of our lack of understanding. In the new life, in eternal life, he will be giving a righteous flock, righteous seed who worship and adore him. And then third, the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in his hands. He will be given this new position of honor. He will be vindicated, worshipped, and respected and honored at last. But notice these rewards don't happen in this life. They happen in the resurrection. They are in the age to come. They begin after his death on the cross, and there's a sense in which they won't be fully fulfilled until the second coming. But we get so caught up in the here and now and the comforts and the pleasures of this life that we tend to get lo we tend to lose the value of what's coming. The real reward, the things truly worth having, are in the age to come. It's as if we are standing in the lobby waiting for the doors to open so we can go in and see the show. This is just the prelude. This is just the beginning. The real show happens in the resurrection in the age to come. But sometimes we get too focused on all the things we have to do now, you know, sort out our tickets, get a program, all that to continue my analogy, all the stuff of the of being in the lobby. But the it's just the lobby, the real deal, the real show, the real thing is yet to come. Behind the players in the crucifixion, behind the Romans, behind the Jews rejecting him, and Pilate judging him was a loving father directing the show. And here he comes on stage and says, I did it for you, and I was delighted to do it because I love you. Behind the cross, the suffering and the agony was an obedient son who will be rewarded for his sacrifice, and he went willingly at the Father's plan because this is how much he loves us. Then in fifty-three eleven we see he will be satisfied, none of his suffering is wasted. Look at fifty-three eleven. As a result of the anguish of his soul, he will see it and be satisfied. By his knowledge, the righteous one, and grammatically that's the servants, by his knowledge the righteous one, my servant, will justify the many as he will bear their iniquities. So the word anguish speaks to all that pain and suffering and the all that went into his death and crucifixion, and that has fruit. Remember back in chapter forty-nine when the servant evaluates his ministry on earth. He was supposed to embody everything Israel failed at, and yet when he faced the cross, he was abandoned by everyone, even his disciples. So he's supposed to regather the nation of Israel, but at the cross it didn't look like he succeeded. And he cries out in that s in that song, I have toiled in vain. The result of my work appears to be chaos, it appears to be futile without substance. And yet, here we see in 5311, all of that pain is vindicated. In the resurrection, all that pain is vindicated. None of it was wasted, it will all bear fruit, he will justify the many, and he will bear their iniquities, and the plan of salvation will go forth. I think we can learn from that that the pain we suffer in this life is not wasted. We sometimes are tempted to think it's useless or it's too much or we've toiled in vain, but God has a plan, He has a purpose for it. At least in part, pain increases our capacity for joy, but there are lots of other lessons we learn from it. I think we can learn from the servant that God has a plan for all the suffering and the tragedy, and like the servant, one day we will see his plan unfold and be satisfied. In the resurrection, Christ saw not only the children of Israel, but peoples from all nations becoming his spiritual seed. So God had him accomplish a far greater task than regathering only the nation of Israel. Instead he gathered those from many nations, he justified the many. His one act, his sacrificial death on the cross, reversed the terrible destruction caused by sin which Adam introduced into the race. Paul echoes this in Romans five, saying through one man's disobedience many were made sinners, and then through the obedience of the one, many were made righteous. Jesus solves the problem that Adam introduced into the race. His task was great, and he accomplished it. He will be justified by the Father, and he will be satisfied when he sees his new creation. And then in twelve we see the servant glorified. Therefore I will allot him a portion with the great, and he will divide the booty with the strong, because he poured himself out to death and was numbered with the transgressors, yet he himself bore the sin of many and interceded for the transgressors. So he will be given the highest place of honor. Strength and great here are the spoils of victory. The servant will receive all those he died to save, making him truly the king of kings. The fact that there are spoils here indicates that a battle has been fought and won, and that battle, of course, was fought over sin and evil and death. The battle was won at the cross, and the captives to sin were set free. Notice the language here. Because he poured himself out to death shows his action was voluntary. He poured himself out, he went willingly, and was numbered with the transgressors, shows that he personally identified with those he came to save. Yet he himself bore the sins of many. He acted as a mediator, substituting himself in their place. And interceded for the transgressors, he acted as intercessor, acting as that bridge to reconcile rebellious sinners to God the Father. And all of this was accomplished because the servant was the servant was willing to be put to death. He conquered evil by becoming weak. He never fired a shot. He gave his whole life, he gave it to the fullest extent, and yet he refused to seek vengeance or justify himself. Although he was identified with the worst of sinners and bore their death, he still interceded for them. And we hear this even with his dying breath, as he says in Luke 23, 34, Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing. Look at the cost of our salvation. Look at what it costs the servant, which we talked about a lot in the last section, and what it costs the Father Himself, as we discussed earlier. And we talked about last time the love demonstrated by dying for your enemy. What takes more love? To die for someone you love who's part of your family, or to die for someone who is your enemy who hates you, who mocks you. Paul asks this question in Romans 5. He says, Which takes more love? Is it harder to die for your friend or for your enemy? With the expected answer, of course, it takes more love to die for your enemy who hates you. And yet both the father and the servant were willing to pay that price, and they considered it a worthwhile price to pay. The father planned it from the beginning, and the servant willingly chose to offer himself as the sacrifice, and their suffering gains us grace. How can we expect less of our own suffering? Our suffering, which, hard as it is, is trivial in comparison to what the servant went through. And yet, if suffering gains us mature faith, if it matures our faith and breaks our pride and drives us into our Savior's arms, hasn't it gained us everything worth having? And if God richly rewarded his servant and so greatly demonstrated his love for us, how can we doubt any pain or trial that he asks us to go through now? It's worth the reward. Paul says that the sufferings of this age aren't even worthy to be compared to the glory that is to follow. One day we will stand in glory and we will look back and go, Yeah, it was worth it. So how do you respond to this? What is required of so great a salvation? Well, Peter tells us in his sermon in Acts that I keep quoting, as he finished, many Jews present understood what he had said, they recognized the depth of their sin and the depth of God's grace, and this is how they respond, and it's how we should respond. This is Acts 2, starting in verse 37. Now, when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, Brethren, what shall we do? But that's the response. They were pierced to the heart and said, What shall we do? Recognize how much you need a savior. Recognize the depth of your sin and the magnitude of God's love. And what should you do? And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself. What is required of so great a salvation? Repent. Repent and be baptized. Weep over your sins that caused God to have to make this enormous sacrifice. Weep over your sins as if you lost your firstborn and repent. When we come to truly understand that the servant was crushed for us, for our guilt, the full weight of this realization should crush our hearts in thankfulness and gratitude and appreciation. That's what God asks of us in return. A humble and contrite spirit. Weep over your sins, repent, and trust Him for your salvation. Thank you for joining me today for the Wednesday in the Word podcast. I'm Krisan Marotta, and this is Serious Bible Study Applied to Real Life. It's the podcast where we try to explain not only what a passage means, but how we know what it means. Please subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or however you get your podcast. You'll find hundreds of episodes on our website so you can browse for the topic and passage you're most interested in. Our theme music is graciously provided by Reggie Coates of Heartfelt Music and Ministry. I'm Krisan Marotta, and you've been listening to Wednesday in the Word.