Thursday, February 18, 2016

Isaiah's prophecy about our Messiah

Who has believed what he has heard from us?
     And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
 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.
 Surely he has borne our griefs
    and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
    smitten by God, and afflicted.
 But he was pierced for our transgressions;
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
    and with his wounds we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray;

    we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
    the iniquity of us all.
 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.
 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,
    stricken for the transgression of my people?
 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.
 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.
 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,
    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,
because he poured out his soul to death
    and was numbered with the transgressors;
yet he bore the sin of many,
    and makes intercession for the transgressors.

Isaiah 53:1-11



The words of prophet Isaiah that were prophesied 700 years before our Messiah Yeshua's birth still powerfully impact people's lives and bring many souls to Salvation. 
To anybody reading these verses, I'd like to raise the question: "who do you think this text is about?". Read them carefully and take time to reflect. Ask Hashem to reveal you the truth and you will come to the conclusion that Isaiah's word can only target one single person in the Suffering Servant.

The chapter that is missing from the Haftarah

It is quite intriguing to notice that this precise part of the Tanakh is excluded from the readings at the synagogues.
Many orthodox Jews will advocate that the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53 does not refer to a single person, but Israel as a whole. 
The most common argument used by many rabbis is that Israel is suffering and thus, is Hashem's sacrificial lamb.
It is a matter of fact: Israel suffered and still suffers. However, does Israel meet Hashem's standards of purity to be the sacrificial lamb?
Israel might have suffered, but Israel is not sinless-which are the requirements to be designed as the sacrificial lamb.
None of us-besides the Messiah of Israel-meets Hashem's requirements for the atonement of sins.
In the same way the blood of the lamb preserved the Israelites from Hashem's wrath during the night of Pessakh, the blood of the Messiah will offer atonement of sins to anybody who accepts His sacrifice.
Some others will state that this part of the Tanakh speaks of Isaiah himself. But was Isaiah sinless? Could Isaiah's blood offer atonement for the sins of humanity? The answer is clearly NO.

Only one person in history fulfilled this prophecy 2000 years ago. His Name is Yeshua ben Yosef, Yeshua haMaschiach, the Messiah sent to Israel and our Messiah.

You have doubts about what I just affirmed with confidence?

Regardless of your confession, ask Hashem earnestly to reveal you the truth and He will.

He took our place



Isaiah 53 talks about the Suffering Servant being pierced. The whole text is clearly pointing at Yeshua's crucifixion.

Since the first humans introduced sin into the planet because of their disobedience, the wrath of Hashem remained on all mankind.
Now examine your heart, in all honesty and respond to my questions.

You might be a good person, but do you think that you are righteous in front of God?
Do you really think that your actions can earn you Heaven?

God's standard is perfection. Hashem does not settle for any less.
Are you perfect to Hashem's standards?

The truth is that we all deserve a high punishment as sinners. The sanction for sin is DEATH.

We all deserve to go to hell for the sins we committed and to live far away from the Almighty.

Fortunately, Yeshua our Messiah, in His immense compassion, accepted to pay the highest price for our Salvation: His death on the Cross.

Through His pain, He offers us healing and atonement of sins.
All you have to do is to repent of your sins and accept Him as your Lord and Savior.

Will you take His hand while it is still time to experience His mercy?

Copyright© by Isabelle Esling


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