In his epistles, the apostle Paul spoke of a “mystery revealed.” To the Romans he wrote about “the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed and made known” (Rom 16:25-26). He explained to the Ephesians: “This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise of Christ Jesus” (Eph. 3:6; cf. Col. 1:26-27). To the Colossians he put it more simply—“the mystery of God, namely, Christ” (Col. 2:2).
At the heart of the mystery of the gospel lies the mystery of a suffering Redeemer, the paradox of a servant King. And nowhere is this mystery and paradox put more powerfully than in the fourth Servant Song of Isaiah. This poem can be divided into five stanzas of three verses each. The first stanza introduces the Servant or Messiah. To some extent, He's what we would expect—a wise and exalted figure. But in other ways He's a surprise—disfigured and marred. And He's going to “sprinkle” or redeem many nations, not just Israel. An unexpected mystery is being prophesied and revealed here.
The second stanza focuses on the unexpectedness of His being. The Messiah is supposed to be a king, but here He's “a man of sorrows.” The third stanza deals with the unexpectedness of His mission. He's supposed to rescue and conquer, bringing justice and peace, but here He's “pierced for our transgressions.” He's supposed to be received with praise and acclaim, but here He's misunderstood and wounded.
The fourth stanza goes on to describe the unexpectedness of His fate. He's supposed to be crowned as a king, but here He's “led like a lamb to the slaughter” and “assigned a grave with the wicked,” a victim of injustice. The fifth stanza summarizes the purpose of all this: Salvation. The Messiah's redemptive suffering is God's will, and so His death won't be the end. “He will see the light of life” again—that is, He'll be resurrected!
posted by I love Jesus! ! ! @ Monday, June 25, 2007
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