LESSON 2, JUNE 2, 2012:
Today we're going to notice the
first lines in a fifteen verse Text, perhaps the premier Old
Testament Passage about the Crucifixion of Christ. I mean Isaiah
chapter 53. Then again, surely Psalm 22 would be a candidate for
that title as well.
Here's today's Verse, the initial though of the three verse
trilogy that introduces this great
chapter, again Isaiah 53.
"Behold, my
servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled,
and be very high." Isaiah 52:13
The Title "Servant," used often by Isaiah, translates the
Hebrew noun "ebed." It is a derivative of the word for "worker!"
This means that if we equate
Jesus with God's Servant here, something Bible expositors have
been doing for twenty-seven centuries, our dear Lord is God's
"Worker!" God's Servant!
In fact that's exactly how one
Gospel presents Jesus, as God's Perfect Servant! The Gospel of
Mark does this.
"Behold, my
servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled,
and be very high."
But what does our chapter say of
Jesus? Of this coming Servant of the Lord? It initially predicts
His Victory!
In whatever He comes to do ... He
will "deal prudently!" The term is "sakal," meaning "to be wise,
to prosper," or even "to be circumspect."
Furthermore, though this is the
great Isaiah Unit on the Death of Jesus, His apparent
Crucifixion, we are at once told He will "be exalted and
extolled!" The first word, spelled "rum," means "raised up."
Amazingly, maybe even the Resurrection is in view!
The second term, "extolled,"
translates "nasa," meaning "lifted up." Both hints here suggest
final vindication and approval for our Lord!
But His being "very high" is even more impressive! The
adverb "very" is a rendering of the word "meod" in Hebrew, just
meaning "exceedingly, greatly, diligently." But it is built on
an even earlier word, "ud," signifying anything "raked
together!" Jesus will be uplifted with a "pile" of honor and
glory and worship!
"Behold, my
servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled,
and be very high."
And that last word, "high," is "gabbah." It means yet again
"tall, above, upward."
So here we have a plethora of words, mostly synonyms actually,
all designed to magnify this great Servant of the Lord!
His Success is really being predicted, guaranteed, here even
before He begins His great Work of Atonement!
Wow!
What a Saviour.
What a God.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 3, JUNE 3, 2012:
Isaiah 53:1-12 is a great Text about
Jesus. Yet it is prefaced by three equally pivotal verses,
Isaiah 52:13-15. Today we notice verse 14.
"As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more
than any man, and his form more than the sons of men."
The first quick little thing I'd
like you to see is that the inspired sentence here begins
talking to the Servant, to the Lord Jesus.
"Many were astonied at Thee." But
then switches to talking about Jesus!
"His visage was so marred more than any man ...."
This whole approach to the Servant
of the Lord, a real Hero in the Book of Isaiah, is surprising.
One would have expected this Person to be popular, handsome,
successful.
The One being described here is at
best non-descript. In fact, rather unattractive it seems.
The verb astonished means "appalled,
stunned, stupefied, amazed." The noun "visage" is "sight,
appearance." And the "is marred" means "disfigured." And as
expected, "form" just means "shape." Or "outline, figure,
appearance."
This is Jesus as our Saviour.
Jesus in His perfect Life and Death.
Jesus our Redeemer.
Let's love Him today.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
He died for you and me.
LESSON 4, JUNE 4, 2012:
I want us today to study the third verse in our Isaiah chapter
53 sequence. That would be the next-to-last verse in chapter 52
however! Jesus is the Subject.
"So shall he
sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him:
for that which had not been told them shall they see; and
that which they had not heard shall they consider."
Translators have tampered with this verse for ages. They can't
leave that first verb, "sprinkle," alone. But our King James
Scholars, way back in 1611, got it right. The Servant of the
Lord here, Christ our Saviour, did "sprinkle" many!
In Hebrew "nazah" means "to spurt, spatter," even "to spring
forth!" Its significance lies in the fact that the Old Testament
Priests often, on command from God, "sprinkled" blood in the
symbolic act of forgiving sins!
More particularly, in Leviticus 16 "nazah" is the verb used for
the "sprinkling" of lepers (types of us old sinners) who have
been cleansed (saved, forgiven) by a miracle of God!
When we are told here that the coming Messiah will "sprinkle"
many Nations, Jesus is being emphasized as the Redeemer,
Emancipator, Saviour, of the world!
Wow!
No doubt about it, Isaiah 52-53, that unit of Scripture, does
prophesy in detail about the Atonement Jesus our Lord provides!
What a Saviour.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
Anyone reading here today been "sprinkled" by Jesus' precious
Blood?
LESSON 5, JUNE 5, 2012:
The first verse of Isaiah chapter 53 is preparatory. Yet it is
didactic too, teaching us a new Name for Jesus.
"Who hath believed
our report? And to whom is the Arm of the Lord revealed?"
Isaiah 53:1
Two questions, so typical of Scripture!
The suggestion is here being made that the chapter in front of
us is somewhat "hard" to believe. That many will either not
consider its claims seriously or completely reject its content.
That a Man, a Servant of the Lord, would be so mistreated, so
vilified, then slain! And yet that His Death would lead to Life
afterwards! That His Suffering would bring peace and salvation
and forgiveness to so many!
Wow!
The verb "believed" is spelled "aman" in Hebrew, meaning "to
consider something faithful or true." Or "to trust" in someone's
word.
"Report," the noun, is "shemuah" and means "news" or "rumour" or
"tidings." It may be a link to something Isaiah just wrote a
little earlier: "How beautiful upon the
mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that
publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that
publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!"
Isaiah 52:7
All this is amazing.
"Who hath believed our report? And to whom is the Arm of the
Lord revealed?" Isaiah 53:1
But today I want to especially emphasize the second part of our
verse. Where Jesus is obviously called "the Arm of the Lord!" In
Hebrew "zeroa" means "shoulder" as well as "arm." It is also
translated "power" and "strength" in the King James Bible.
See it?
Jesus is God's Right Arm!
Jesus is God's Power and Strength!
No wonder Jesus said in Matthew 28:18 "All
Power is given Me in Heaven and in earth."
The Arm of the Lord saved me!
And anything God ever does in all eternity future ... He will
accomplish by means of His "Arm!"
By the medium of our dear Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!
Now That's a Title worth remembering!
Enjoy the Arm of the Lord today!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 6, JUNE 6, 2012:
I'm sure the chapter is presenting Jesus! Yet it was written
seven hundred years before His Virgin Birth!
Verse 2 is today's focus: "For he shall
grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry
ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see
him, there is no beauty that we should desire him."
This Sentence depicts our Lord, not primarily in His Death, but
in His Perfect Life!
He will grow up, He will be raised in His physical Body ... as a
"tender plant." That's "yoneq" in Hebrew, a "sapling," a
"sucker" growing out of the stump of a fallen tree.
And as a "root out of dry ground," likely a metaphor for Jesus
God's Son being born and raised in the context of a dry and
nearly dead Judaism!
Furthermore we are told that Jesus, in the eyes of common
mankind, had no "comeliness," spelled "hadar" and meaning
"splendor, majesty, glory, adornment!" This is a surprising
statement, but we must take it at face value. Folks around Jesus
as He grew up saw in Him nothing of note. They did not suspect
Him to be the Darling only begotten Son of God!
The verb "desire" is "chamad" in Hebrew. It means "to covet, to
take pleasure in, to delight in, to lust after."
No natural appeal toward the Lord Jesus!
I suspect what makes Him lovely yet to this day is the drawing
power of the Holy Spirit! And the inviting descriptions of Him
in Scripture!
"For he shall grow
up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry
ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see
him, there is no beauty that we should desire him."
Yet He came to die for our sins, which the Chapter is soon to
teach us. He in all His Deity and Humanity, bearing rejection
and sin and suffering, paid our sin debt in full!
What a Saviour!
The longer I know Him ... the lovelier He becomes!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 7, JUNE 7, 2012:
Isaiah 53:3 in the King James Bible speaks volumes. Plus, it's
one of those verses with which most Bible students are familiar.
"He is despised and
rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief:
and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was
despised, and we esteemed him not."
Wow!
For several days now I have tried to establish the fact that our
Text is talking about Jesus. Every fundamental, conservative
Bible Commentator in print says so. Jesus, the Son of God!
Yet after all that reasoning, I am told this?
"He is despised and rejected of men; a man
of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were
our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him
not."
What a turnabout!
We suspect a King ... and read about a Reject?
We suspect Success ... and verse 3 obviously presents Failure!
"Despised" means "held in contempt, scorned."
"Rejected" means "fleeting," sort of a "He will amount to
nothing" attitude.
"Sorrows" means "pain, soreness, grief," but in the plural here.
"Grief" is a classic Hebrew noun for "sickness." The disease of
sin really.
No one wanted to see this Man, we hid our faces from him, using
a verb that once in the Bible means "to be absent." We ran away
from Him!
And "esteemed" translates something like this: "to think" about
a person! To "ponder" Him, to regard or evaluate Him.
We ignored Him!
"He is despised and
rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief:
and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was
despised, and we esteemed him not."
This is what Jesus became ... that we might be saved!
He was rejected ... that we might be accepted!
Isaiah 53, a great chapter on the idea of substitution.
Tell Jesus today, folks, that you love Him!
Oh, what He endured for our sakes!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 8, JUNE 8, 2012:
In the Book of Isaiah, primarily chapter 53, we have a great
description, full and accurate, of Jesus' Sufferings as our
Saviour.
Today we notice verse 4. "Surely he hath
borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him
stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted."
I would like to give special attention to the verbs "hath borne"
and "carried." By using dual nouns, "griefs and sorrows," the
Prophet is depicting our "sins." One teacher feels that really
the "results" of our sins are in view here, thus our sins
collectively. Sin does produce grief and sorrow in large
volumes!
"Hath borne" translates "nasa," used 654 times in the Old
Testament! It means "to transport, to take away, to lift up."
Jesus, our sin Bearer! Jesus, our sin Remover!
"Carried" is spelled "sabal" in Hebrew, meaning "to tote a heavy
load." So heavy that it may have to be "dragged" away, to some
far-off location.
Jesus took our sins ... He had none of His Own ... and
transported them into non-existence!
He did that for us!
He was our substitute on the Cross!
Yet even as He did that great thing, the greatest deed of all
history ... we though Him to be "stricken, smitten and
afflicted!"
Hated by God Almighty!
Yet rather He was the Special Son of God, the Only Begotten Son
of God ... all that time!
What a Redeemer!
What a Plan!
What a great God we serve!
And, if saved, how very blessed we are!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
Our sins are gone!
LESSON 9, JUNE 9, 2012:
The fifth Verse of Isaiah 53 emphasizes "substitution" as
clearly as anywhere in Scripture. It is a precious jewel in any
Bible student's collection.
"But he was
wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our
iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him;
and with his stripes we are healed."
The prepositions are critical!
Wounded "for" our transgressions!
Bruised "for" our iniquities!
Our chastisement was "upon" Him!
We are healed from the malady of sin-sickness "with" His
stripes!
Look what Jesus endured for us. Wounds, meaning "pollutions,
desecrations, sorrows."
Bruises, implying the idea of being "crushed to pieces!"
Chastisement in Hebrew means "discipline, whipping, correction,
soreness."
Stripes means "bruises, blows, blueness," graphically so.
Jesus did all this, experienced such agony ... for you and me!
Yes, for us all! "He is the propitiation
for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of
the whole world." First John 2:2
I've said this a lot lately. What a Saviour!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 10, JUNE 10, 2012:
The best known Verse in the whole
chapter, in Isaiah 53, is our study for today. In it one can see
two distinct aspects of man's sinfulness, then we can
immediately view God's response to the whole sin problem!
"All we like
sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way;
and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."
Isaiah 53:6
The noun for sheep is from a Hebrew
noun which is derived from a root verb meaning "to roam."
Better, "to migrate." A little flock of rams and ewes and their
lambs, grazing over the meadowlands of Israel.
Yet these animals have "gone
astray," illustrating man's propensity to sin, to err from God's
Way. The verb means "to wander, to stagger." It surely portrays
the fact that we as men are born into sin. We inherited from our
forefathers, all the way back to Adam in Eden, an old sin
nature!
But then we "have turned" from the
Lord, a phrase proving man's free will. We are also sinners
because we have chosen to be! We repeatedly sin and commit acts
of lawlessness.
"All we like sheep
have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way."
So we are lost on both
counts, parentage and practice!
So what did God the Father do?
What's His Answer to our "lostness?" Here it is.
"The LORD hath laid on him (on Messiah, on
His Servant, on Jesus) the iniquity of us all."
The verb "hath laid" is "paga." It
means "to encounter, to reach the mark, to make intercession!"
Wow, what thoughts the lexicon just presented us!
Jesus is the Nexus, the Crux, the
Heart, the Solution ... God's Perfect Response ... to our
iniquity!
"Iniquity" is a little word found
fairly often in the Old Testament, 230 times. It means something
"twisted, perverse, distorted." Taking the good things of God
and changing them into selfish, unnatural entities.
When one fuses these three clauses
together, he or she gets enough to think about all day long! All
week long!
Jesus, the Ideal Occupier of our
thoughts for the rest of our lives!
In fact, for all eternity!
"All we like
sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way;
and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."
Amen!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 11, JUNE 11, 2012:
The Verse we're noticing today is the seventh of twelve. Really
the seventh of fifteen overall, from Isaiah 52:13 through Isaiah
53:12. It speaks of Jesus' remarkable "quietness" during His
Trial and Crucifixion.
"He was oppressed,
and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought
as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers
is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth."
The first verb here suggests Jesus was placed under great
pressure. It's linked to the noun "taskmasters" in the King
James Bible, five times anyway. He was "taxed" heavily,
mistreated to the extreme.
"Afflicted" means "browbeaten!"
Yet Jesus remains virtually non-responsive!
He said little to Pilate.
He said absolutely nothing to Herod!
No record of any remark of our Lord's to His executions is
recorded either.
No curses!
Not a slur, or even a hint of animosity or hatred!
He died like a "lamb!"
He was "sheared" without protest!
In fact, viewing Scripture compositely, Jesus died ultimately to
please His Father. He spoke more to Him, God Almighty, than to
anyone!
No man or woman ever died like He did. Ancient records exists of
many who were slain by Rome ... all of whom were initially very,
very loud as they were tortured!
Jesus died like a little sheep would have!
Like a lamb, just as Isaiah has pictured.
In fact, Hallelujah, Jesus is the Lamb!
The very lamb of God!
John the Baptist said it best perhaps,
"The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith,
Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."
John 1:29
Need I say more?
What miraculous prophecy we are studying these days!
Proving the Bible to be the Word of God.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 12, JUNE 12, 2012:
We continue learning about Jesus, as our Substitutionary Saviour.
"He was taken from prison and from
judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut
off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my
people was he stricken." Isaiah 53:8
The noun "prison" is spelled "otzser" in Hebrew. It means
"coercion, restraint." Isaiah is speaking of Jesus' future
arrest at the hands of the Roman government.
The "judgment" Isaiah mentions is without doubt the series of
trials Jesus faced, each of which was illegal to some extent.
The question, "Who shall declare His
generation," addresses the fact of legal representation.
Who is our Lord's lawyer? He had none. Everyone had forsaken Him
and run away!
"He was taken from prison and from
judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut
off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my
people was he stricken."
Next comes a critical comment, now a fact of history.
"He was cut off out of the land of the
living." These words clearly mean that Jesus "died!" He
sacrificed his Own Life for us to be saved!
Death is involved in this atonement!
But why?
Because someone other than Himself had sinned, "transgressed"
against God. The noun "pesha" means "rebellion!" We sinners had
bucked God's Rule, His Lead and Authority and Word!
We were insurrectionists!
That's why Jesus was "killed," why He was "stricken." "Nega"
here in Hebrew means Jesus suffered a "stroke!" A "plague or
disease" hit Him! He was "wounded" of God.
He died because of our sin!
Smitten of God!
Killed due to our wickedness!
Laid down His Life ... that we might live eternally!
Again I say, What a Saviour!
Love Him today.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 13, JUNE 13, 2012:
Isaiah 53:9 tells us several precise things about Jesus and His
Death for our sins. In reality it's a powerful Verse proving the
accuracy of the Word of God, the reality of Biblical inerrancy.
"And he made his
grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because
he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his
mouth."
Jesus was slain, crucified, with the "wicked." This fact is here
revealed, as Isaiah wrote it, seven centuries before the fact!
Before the event occurred!
"Wicked" is "rasha" in Hebrew, meaning "actively criminal and
hostile." In other words, Jesus would be killed while associated
with the lowest elements of society!
And this too, "rasha" here is in the plural number! Why? Be
cause Jesus was sacrificed between two malefactors!
Between two thieves, plural indeed!
Amazing!
But then our verse continues, miraculously as ever! "He," that's
Jesus, will be linked "with the rich" in His Death. And here the
word is "singular!" Just one rich person! That would have been,
of course, Joseph of Arimathea who was wealthy and buried the
Lord in Joseph's special tomb! Read Matthew 27:57 for proof.
Perfect grammatical accuracy again!
Then again, Jesus had "done," meaning "committed or practiced,"
absolutely "no violence." No "cruelty" in His Life! This noun is
"hamas," think of that!
Jesus was sinless.
The noun "deceit" means "falsity" in any way.
Jesus always told the Truth.
Jesus is the Truth according to His Own Words in John
14:6.
There's only one way to end any Verse in Isaiah 53, this chain
of jewels about our Lord.
"What a Saviour!"
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 14, JUNE 14, 2012:
We now enter the "heart" of this great Isaiah 53 Text, its last
three verses. They are powerful, some of the most important
sentences in the Bible.
"Yet it pleased the
LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou
shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his
seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the
LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of
his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall
my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their
iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with
the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong;
because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was
numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors."
Today we can't even cover the first of the trilogy. Verse 10,
which reads: "Yet it
pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief:
when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see
his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the
pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand."
But we can ponder its first clause a few minutes.
"It pleased the Lord to bruise Him."
How astounding!
It pleased God the Father to bruise His Only Begotten Son! God
"hurt" Jesus ... on the Cross!
And this is not man's opinion of the crucifixion either. It is
God's Truth about the matter. Holy Spirit uttered words straight
from the Mouth of God to the Prophet Isaiah then later to us.
The verb "pleased" is "chaphetzs" in Hebrew, meaning "to bring
delight" to someone! "To will" something to be so. "To favor" an
outcome. Even in some cases "to bend down" to make something
happen.
"It pleased the Lord
to bruise Him."
There would have been no Cross for Jesus ... and for you and me
... had God the Father not designed and executed it. God was
pleased that it happened ... in the sense that through that
Event, through the Power of Jesus' Blood, lost sinners can be
saved!
The word "bruise," spelled "daka," simply means "to crush!" To
be "broken, shattered." Once "beaten to pieces."
What a thought!
What Love!
What a Plan!
What a path to eternal life!
What a God!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
I have later today thought how John 3:16 might be a commentary
on today's Verse, today's clause.
"It pleased the Lord
to bruise Him." Remember it with me:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have
everlasting life." Amen!
LESSON 15, JUNE 15, 2012:
We are spending some time in Isaiah 53:10. Not a verse a day,
right now, as earlier in the chapter.
"Yet it pleased the
LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou
shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his
seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the
LORD shall prosper in his hand."
The clause we're visiting today reads of God the Father in
relation to His Son Jesus: "He hath put
Him to grief."
Just that, but what a ton of meaning it carries.
The heart of our little text is "hath put to grief" in English.
In fact, that's the whole statement apart from the pronouns! In
Hebrew this is a basic verb, "chalah." It means "to be made weak
or sick or diseased!" It also can imply "made to suffer pain!"
Plus, "chalah" here is framed in the Hiphil Mood, grammatically
telling us that the verb is in the "causative" stem.
Something or Someone is causing, is behind, is the Source ... of
Jesus' Grief here!
The Ultimate Cause is God the Father, His Love for lost sinners.
The immediate cause was our wickedness and filth and
transgressions.
God caused His Only Begotten Son, though Jesus did so willingly,
to become a terminally ill (sin-sick) patient, dying on the
cruel Cross of Calvary ... that we might be made well! By that I
mean healed of our sin and ungodliness!
I mean saved!
"He hath put Him to
grief."
Using language here that's reminiscent of the poor lepers of Old
Testament days ... Jesus took our spots, our humiliation, our
deaths, our repudiation, our isolation ... upon Himself!
He became the Cure for our cancerous malady, our rebellion
against Almighty God, our sins.
God gave Jesus all this, God His Father put Him to such
suffering and agony ... that we might be born-again!
Again I must say it. What a wonderful God! What a precious
Saviour! What a glorious Plan!
The plan of salvation!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 16, JUNE 16, 2012:
We are working our way through ... one Verse of Scripture! It's
critical too, Isaiah 53:10. Today we muse over the third clause
it contains. "Thou shalt make His soul an
offering for sin."
Here's how it sits in its context, the whole sentence, the whole
verse. "Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise
him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make
his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed,
he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD
shall prosper in his hand."
This is God the Father being addressed, "Thou shalt make." And
Jesus God's Son is the Subject being discussed, His Soul is in
focus. "His Soul an offering for sin."
The main verb is "shalt make," spelled "sum" or at times "siym"
in Hebrew. It means "to appoint, to lay hands on (often
violently), to establish, to constitute, to set for a sign,"
these kinds of ideas.
Jesus is a Marker, a Token, an Icon, the very Essence of this
Offering for sin! Paul expresses the truth this way:
"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin;
that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."
Second Corinthians 5:21, where God the Father made Jesus to be
sin for us!
Jesus is Clay in His Father's Hands on Calvary!
He is the Old Testament Lamb made flesh dying for sinners!
God made Jesus an "Offering for Sin."
Wow!
And the word used here for "offering for sin" is "asham,"
actually translated 34 times in the Old Testament as "trespass
offering."
Jesus is literally our Trespass Offering!
And while that's a complicated theme, in essence it's the one
Mosaic Offering in which the offended party, the wronged
individual, gets back all he lost, full restitution ... plus one
fifth more!
Complete restoration ... plus twenty percent!
Wow again!
In other words, on the Cross Jesus gave back to us all sin had
taken away, all our ungodliness had robbed from us!
But that's not all!
He also, when He saved us, gave back MORE that sin had
destroyed!
I'm far more blessed under Jesus than I would have ever been
under Adam, even before Adam had sinned in the first place!
I was defrauded by Adam's transgressions, all we humans were.
But Jesus has made possible the righting of all those wrongs ...
plus a whole lot more!
Why?
Because of the Love of God the Father!
The One Who made His Son an Offering for our wicked sins.
Sometime today thank God for the Cross!
Why not right now?
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 17, JUNE 17, 2012:
The Verse we're studying continues yet again today.
"He shall see His seed." A sentence
within a Verse! From Isaiah 53:10 to be exact.
The whole context: "Yet
it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to
grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin,
he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days,
and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand."
The words highlighted this morning speak of a Dead Jesus, a
Saviour for the sins of mankind, somehow "seeing" his seed. He
will have "children" because of His Death on Calvary!
The verb "see" is "raah," the heart of the word for "shepherd!"
He will "pastor" His seed! He will care for them and provide for
them and feed them and protect them too!
"Seed" is "zera" in Hebrew, meaning "posterity, children."
A clear promise here of the salvation of countless lost souls
because of the Blood of Jesus!
Born again!
Children of God because of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Praise the Lord!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 18, JUNE 18, 2012:
I realize our pace through Isaiah 53 has slowed a lot. But to me
Verse 10 is so very crucial.
Here's it is in full, the whole Verse.
"Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him
to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he
shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days,
and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand."
The clause for this Monday is "He shall
prolong His Days." This is said of a Man Who has just
died! Remember Verse 9, which we've just studied:
"He made his grave with the wicked, and
with the rich in his death."
Yes, Jesus died!
Yet "He shall prolong His Days?"
God just promised so!
This conclusively, undoubtedly, assuredly speaks of the fact
that Jesus Christ the Son of God, the Servant of the Lord in
Isaiah, our Sacrificial Substitute on Calvary ... will not
remain dead!
He is slain!
But will still have many days yet to live!
This is Resurrection.
This is precisely what Revelation 1:18, quoting Jesus Himself,
means: "I am he that liveth, and
was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen."
Alive forever!
His days were prolonged!
Eternally so!
The verb "prolong" means "to lengthen," here in an "incomplete
action" sense! Always living!
Think of it.
The Resurrection in Isaiah 53!
What a Saviour!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 19, JUNE 19, 2012:
The last few words of Isaiah 53:10 agree with the first
statements of the Paragraph. In other words, Jesus will be
extremely successful in His Death on the Cross!
Isaiah writes of our Lord: "The pleasure
of the LORD shall prosper in his hand."
The whole Verse culminates this way! "Yet
it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to
grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days,
and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand."
The God of the universe, God the Father in Heaven ... His
Pleasure will be fully satisfied in Jesus' Sacrificial Death on
Calvary.
Again, for emphasis:
"The pleasure of the
LORD shall prosper in his hand." The very Word of God!
The noun used for "pleasure" here is spelled "chephetzs" and
means "delight." But it can also indicate Someone's "purpose" in
a thing. And we can also add a hint of "willingness" to the
definition.
The verb "shall prosper" is interesting too. It's "tzslach" and
means "to make progress, to grow, to come mightily!" And this
one I like a lot: "to break out!" Bursting at the seams!
Now let's blend these two metaphors. On the Cross ... Jesus
brought to the Face of His Father in Heaven a smile, great
pleasure! Because now God can save sinners and do so
righteously! Legally, in a manner acceptable to his Perfect
Character!
Furthermore, God's Plan of saving folks like you and me has now
been supernaturally successful! God has prospered in His goal of
redeeming the lost ... because Jesus laid down His Own Life on
that Cross long ago.
Talk about a building program!
Talk about a large family!
Talk about Victory!
On the Hill called Golgotha two thousand years ago ... God's
Plan of Salvation was enacted, pleasing Him for all eternity. A
Plan that still works today, over two millennia later!
Truly, it is so! The Pleasure of the Lord did proper in Jesus'
Hands!
Amen!
God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit ... the great
God Who is One! Yet in His Triune Existence, He devised and
implemented and still daily enacts the greatest Plan of all
Ages!
Praise His Name.
He's still, through Jesus' Blood, saving sinners!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 20, JUNE 20, 2012:
We're going to study a new Verse from Isaiah chapter
fifty-three. And it's just precious! The whole Text, fifteen
Verses counting the last three of Isaiah chapter fifty-two,
concentrate on Jesus!
Jesus as our Substitute on the Cross!
Jesus making Atonement for sinners.
Isaiah long ago wrote of Him: "He shall
see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied:
by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he
shall bear their iniquities."
The sentence, our Text, is complex. It's first clause however is
relatively simple, and immensely revealing!
"He shall see of the travail of his soul."
First of all, Jesus knew what he was doing on the Cross! He was
not a victim! He was not murdered. Not in His Own Eyes, or the
Eyes of His Father! Not in the Eyes of Scripture, either!
"He saw the travail of His Soul." This was of course in the
future when Isaiah first penned it, Jesus' Virgin Birth not
occurring for another seven hundred years.
"He shall see of the travail of his soul."
The verb "shall see" is "raah" in Hebrew. It means "to look at"
something, obviously. But more is involved, "to consider, to
understand, to regard," and three times in the King James Bible
"to enjoy!"
Jesus was omnisciently aware that He was offering Himself as a
Sacrifice for the sins of the whole world!
He keenly was alert to every point of Doctrine and every shadow
of Law that He was obeying and fulfilling! He "saw" His Travail!
Nothing took Him by surprise that Day, the Day of the Cross!
Furthermore, "He shall see of the travail
of his soul" implies that "work" was done on Calvary's
Hill too. "Travail" translates "amal," a noun used fifty-five
times in the Old Testament. It means "sorrow, trouble, misery,
pain, grief," none of which is a surprise.
But "amal" also means "toil, labor, hard work!"
Calvary was a Work Day for Jesus!
He clocked in about nine that Morning and finished about three
that Afternoon, and our dear Lord accomplished more that six
hour period that we can ever imagine!
Jesus knew His Job Description and completed it perfectly!
"Amal" also can mean "iniquity, wickedness." It's precisely
expressed both these ways in the Bible. Jesus understood that on
Golgotha's Hill He was being made "sin" for us! He literally
became our sin-offering! He paid our spiritual indebtedness for
us!
Jesus died for you and me!
Oh, what a glorious Saviour we enjoy!
He came to die.
He was fully aware of His Task.
He pondered His Role carefully.
Then He went to Work!
And, hinting at tomorrow's lesson, our Lord was successful!
Amen.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 21, JUNE 21, 2012:
After the Lord in Isaiah chapter 53 describes the Ordeal of
Jesus' Death on the Cross, He makes one of the most amazing
observations of all history.
He, through His prophet, says of Jesus:
"He shall be satisfied." These exact words constitute a
vital part of Isaiah 53:11. "He shall see
of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied:
by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he
shall bear their iniquities."
The verb used here, "shall be satisfied," is "saba" in Hebrew,
written with three little consonants. And "saba" means "filled
to the full." Or just "satiated." Completely content! In
everyday language, "just perfect!"
Jesus actually looked back over His Work on Calvary's Cross ...
and thought or maybe even said, "Well done!"
Mission accomplished!
Sufficient Blood was shed to save all humanity!
Wow!
We often, and correctly, sing: "Satisfied with Jesus."
But today ponder this thought. He too is satisfied! Maybe not
with us ... but certainly with His Life Goal.
Dying for sinners.
Providing complete Redemption for the lost.
Being what the woman at the well in John chapter four called
"the Christ, the Saviour of the world."
John 4:42
Praise God.
What a Plan of Salvation He devised.
And executed.
And provides for "whosoever will."
Jesus ... rightly so ... pleased with all He's done!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
He's that Good!
LESSON 22, JUNE 22, 2012:
The Plan of Salvation ... in Isaiah chapter fifty-three?
Yes!
In a single clause, too!
Isaiah 53:11 thunders in part: "By His
knowledge shall my righteous Servant justify many."
This is God the Father talking!
As we have all earlier learned, this Servant is Jesus. He is
"righteous" because He never sinned, not once. Plus, He is God
the Son. "By His knowledge shall my
righteous Servant justify many."
He can "justify" many lost souls, the "world" of John 3:16 whom
God loved so dearly, because of the Blood He shed on the Cross.
The verb "justify" is "tzsadaq," meaning "to make righteous!" To
declare straight, not crooked, in the sight of God! That's what
He does when He "saves" us.
But here how is that accomplished?
What is God's idea? "By His knowledge
shall my righteous Servant justify many."
"By His Knowledge" ... sinners are saved.
This is not simply something Jesus knows ... rather it is what's
now called a "personal relationship" with the Lord Jesus Christ!
Do you "know" Jesus as the One Who has died for you?
Who has convicted you of sin?
Who has, once genuine faith is expressed in Him, moved into your
heart and life via the Holy Spirit?
Do you know Him like this?
Jesus in John 17:3 literally defines being saved this way,
perhaps even alluding to Isaiah 53:11.
"Father, this is life eternal, that they might know Thee, the
only True God, and Jesus Christ, Whom thou hast sent!"
Truly, a great Verse of Scripture ... "By
His knowledge shall my righteous Servant justify many."
Past, present, future ... the way lost souls are saved.
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 23, JUNE 23, 2012:
One sentence, a short one at that.
Yet, observed in its Isaiah chapter fifty-three setting, it
relates to us what Jesus did on the old rugged Cross thousands
of years ago.
Here's the context, with the germane words underlined, today's
lesson. "He shall see of the travail of
his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall
my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their
iniquities." Isaiah 53:11
There it is!
"For He shall bear
their iniquities."
That's Jesus Who did such a wonderful thing!
The noun for "iniquities" is spelled "avon" in Hebrew. It means
"perversity, mischief, sin, guilt." It is derived from a root
verb meaning "to bend, to twist, to distort." Here our sins are
pictured as our taking the good things God has provided
humankind ... and twisting and perverting them for our own
selfish and often unnatural use!
Wow!
And Jesus has forgiven the Believer of such sins?
Yes!
"He bore our iniquities!"
The key verb here is probably "shall bear." It is "sabal" as
Isaiah would have spelled it. It means "to carry away a
heavy load!"
Jesus did that for us!
He unburdened us of the terrible weight of sin!
He bore them for us!
Using a relative of this same verb, Isaiah 53:4 earlier said of
our dear Lord, "Surely He hath borne our
griefs."
He took them away!
Thank God today that the cumbersome, galling burden of guilt is
gone!
When Isaiah wrote it he was looking to the future, seven hundred
years to Calvary.
"For He shall bear their iniquities."
When we read it today we look backward!
"For He shall bear
their iniquities."
It's done!
He hath borne our iniquities!
Praise His Name.
Are you saved?
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 24, JUNE 24, 2012:
The eleventh Verse of Isaiah chapter fifty-three, our focus for
days now, has been so very interesting and informative. But now
we must go onward, to the last Verse in our chapter.
Speaking of Jesus, God the Father says:
"Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great,
and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath
poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the
transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made
intercession for the transgressors." Isaiah 53:12
This great Verse too is heavily fact-filled.
Its six clauses compete with First Timothy 3:16 as being one of
the most intricately built statements in all literature, maybe
all history.
Today, this Lord's Day, we notice God's promise concerning His
Son: "Therefore will I divide him a
portion with the great."
Sounds like a reward, doesn't it?
And that's exactly the implication, the guarantee!
God is giving Jesus something for His great success on the
Cross. For being the Sterling Saviour of the world.
The term "will divide a portion" translates one Hebrew verb. "Chalaq"
means "to divide, share, apportion." The idea is that, because
of the Cross, the Triune God will "inherit" certain things!
Things like A Virgin-Born Son sitting at the Father's Right Hand
for Eternity!
Things like a Bride for Jesus, the Born-Again and Blood-Washed
Church!
Like a People Sanctified and Cleansed and Victorious, via the
Power of the Holy Spirit!
Like a defeated and vanquished Devil!
Like an Eternity free from all evil!
Jesus shares with the Father and Holy Spirit in all This ...
because He is the Victor at Calvary!
He is the Obedient Son!
He is the Once Dead but now Alive Forever Redeemer!
Yes, the Godhead certainly is the "great" of our Verse. That
much we can know assuredly. "Therefore
will I divide him a portion with the great."
Let's rejoice in this great fact today.
The Crucifixion is done!
The Grave is empty!
Our Intercessor and Advocate is Alive and Well!
And Jesus is coming again!
Eternity ... with our Lord.
Hallelujah!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
All this is True because of Jesus' Vicarious Death, Three-Day
Burial, and Literal Resurrection!
LESSON 25, JUNE 25, 2012:
Today's Isaiah chapter fifty-three clause continues yesterday's
Verse, Verse twelve. And this will be our daily Lesson.
I will underline it for clarity.
"Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great,
and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he
hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with
the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made
intercession for the transgressors."
This is something Jesus will do!
"He shall divide the spoil with the strong."
This happened, we believe, at the Cross.
Jesus won the Battle!
To Him went the "spoils" of the War!
And He has "shared" those wonderful things with the strong!
But who are the "strong?"
In Hebrew the word is spelled "atzsum" and means "mighty, vast,
numerous," and other synonyms.
Jesus on the Cross overcame Death and Hell and the Grave and the
Devil and all the Demons ... no telling who and what else either
... and seized all the spoils, the prizes of the Battle!
Then He saved our lost souls by virtue of the Power of
His Shed Blood.
And as a result our Lord "shared" with us all the
Blessings He achieved by His Vicarious Death.
"He divided the
spoil with the strong."
We are strong through Jesus our Saviour!
Enjoy the Eternal Life He has provided you today. And the
millions of other blessings too!
He earned so much for us at the Cross ... that we still don't
know it all.
What a Saviour!
What Blessings!
What "spoil!"
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 26, JUNE 26, 2012:
Describing our Lord Jesus seven hundred years before His Virgin
Birth and Vicarious Death, Isaiah the Old Testament Prophet one
day wrote an amazing statement. He really condensed the New
Testament doctrine of the Atonement into a single clause.
Speaking of Jesus, we are told: "He hath
poured out his soul unto death." A short sentence,
indeed. But loaded with meaning!
The verb "hath poured out" translates one Hebrew word, "arah."
It means "to empty." Jesus' Life, like a bottle full of liquid,
was purposely "emptied" at the Cross, a "Drink Offering"
relating to the forgiveness of sin!
But notice this too. The verb also, really more fundamentally,
means "to be naked, to be bare." Jesus fulfilled this too. He
was stripped of His clothing as He died that day long ago.
The noun "soul" is "nephesh" in Hebrew, our Lord's very "Life."
It comes from a root verb that suggests "to breathe."
Just a glimpse of another facet of Jesus' Death on Calvary.
Not accidental, very much on Purpose!
He deliberately poured out His Life ... so we can experience and
enjoy Eternal Life!
What a Saviour!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 27, JUNE 27, 2012:
Perhaps no other single Passage of Scripture anywhere gives us
any more information about Jesus' Death on the Cross, about His
Atonement, than Isaiah chapter fifty-three.
Today's Clause is no exception. Jesus liked it so much that He
Himself quoted it while on earth!
"He was numbered with the transgressors,"
that's what the Prophet wrote of the Suffering Servant of the
Lord, of Jesus Christ our Saviour. This is the middle clause of
Isaiah 53:12.
"Numbered" is just a Hebrew verb that means "counted, reckoned,
appointed." And "transgressors, " spelled "pasha" in Hebrew,
usually means "rebels."
These words surely predict Jesus' Sacrifice for us on Calvary,
especially the fact that two "thieves" or "malefactors" were
crucified along with Him. One on each side if you remember.
At least Mark applies the words this way in His Gospel. See Mark
15:28 for the details.
I mentioned Jesus using these words to further explain His
Death, Luke 22:37 gives proof. "For I say
unto you, that this that is written must yet be accomplished in
Me, And He was reckoned among the transgressors."
The Bible is so accurate!
Jesus, Who never did one thing wrong, Who never committed a
single sin ... executed among common criminals!
Folks, He did that to save you and me!
"He was numbered
with the transgressors," that our transgressions might be
eternally forgiven!
Oh, how we should love Him today.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 28, JUNE 28, 2012:
The word is "plethora." It means a "superabundance" of
something. It is borrowed into English from Greek, originally
meaning "fullness."
Well, Isaiah chapter fifty-three has presented us a plethora of
word pictures and figures of speech concentrating on the Death
of Jesus. The Sacrificial, Substitutionary, Death of Jesus. His
Offering of Himself on that old rugged Cross over two thousand
years ago.
Except Isaiah wrote these words seven hundred years before Jesus
came to die! Amazing, that's the word to describe Bible
prophecy!
Today's Lesson, today's clause from the last verse of Isaiah 53
is no exception to the trend. "He bore the sin of many."
Let me show it to you in its natural setting, in its context.
The whole verse: "Therefore will I divide
him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the
spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto
death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he
bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the
transgressors." Isaiah 53:12, where God the Father is
obviously talking!
"He bare the sin of
many."
No doubt Jesus did so, but what does that word, that verb, mean?
He "bore" our sins?
The Holy Spirit here has chosen the action word "nasa," a Hebrew
mainstay. It is found 654 times in the Bible, the Old Testament.
It means "to lift, to carry, to take, to take away."
Jesus "hauled" our sins away when He died for us at Calvary!
And that noun, "sin?" It a form of the verb "chata," meaning "to
miss the mark, to miss the way." In other words, this is the
"sin" that will deprive a man of salvation! Of Eternal Life!
Jesus on the Cross made possible the removal of my sin, my worst
sin. The sin of rejecting God's Grace ... the sin that would
have dragged me to Hell forever!
And for whom did Jesus do this?
"He bare the sin of
many." Who are the "many?" The Hebrew here is spelled "rab,"
meaning "great, huge, abundant," a quantitative figure in this
context.
We would say an 'innumerable" company!
John in his greatest verse ever called these "many" the
"whosoever wills" of earth at any given time!
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life."
Wonderful!
"He bare the sin of
many."
That includes you, if you're reading here today lost in your
sin. Trust Him now. He died for you. He has already paid for
your sin. He has shed enough Blood to take it away, all your
wrongdoing!
Jesus said in John 5:24. "Verily, verily,
I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him
that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into
condemnation; but is passed from death unto life."
It is still true!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 29, JUNE 29, 2012, CONCLUSION:
The last verse of Isaiah chapter fifty-three has been
tremendous. We've been studying it for days.
Now we've reached its last clause. Talking about Jesus, Whose
Death on Calvary provides Salvation to all who believe, Isaiah
teaches us: "He made intercession for the
transgressors."
The verb "made intercession" is spelled "paga" in Hebrew. It
means "to encounter." Or just "to meet" someone. I often define
it this way, "to drop in" on someone.
Through the years the verb has become associated with prayer.
Jesus praying for you or me is literally like Him "dropping in"
on us!
"He made
intercession for the transgressors." Here we are being
told that Jesus, on the Cross apparently (the context for all of
Isaiah fifty-three), prayed for sinners!
While He was on the Cross ... we were on His Mind!
And in reality, Jesus did pray for lost souls as He died to set
them free! Here are his precise words, according to the Gospels:
"Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them;
for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and
cast lots." Luke 23:34
Wow!
What a Saviour!
He deliberately and yet sincerely fulfilled that ancient Isaiah
53:12 prophecy ... as He begged God the Father to forgive even
His executioners and accusers and enemies!
"Father, forgive
them; for they know not what they do." Now that is
intercession for the transgressors!
Thank You, Lord.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
"Transgressors" is "pasha" in Hebrew, meaning "rebels, leaders
of revolt, deliberate offenders, rascals!"
Again I say, What a Saviour!
