Isaiah 53 in Rabbinic Thought

“Jesus can’t be the Messiah because he didn’t bring world peace!” How many times have you heard this? Or that the passages that Christians quote from the Hebrew Bible – particularly Isaiah 53 – to sustain their claim have absolutely no support among the Jewish sages?

While it is commonly taught that the Messiah’s role is to restore the Kingdom of God, there is also a basis for a Suffering Messiah in Jewish thought. Let’s look at the sources:

Isaiah 53:5 – “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.”

Midrash Konen (11th century) – “Messiah Son of David who loves Jerusalem ... Elijah takes him by the head ... and says ‘You must bear the sufferings and wounds by which the Almighty chastises you for Israel's sins;’ and so it is written, He was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities.”

Zohar 2:12a – “The children of the world are members one of another. When the Holy One desires to give healing to the world, he smites one just man amongst them, and for his sake heals all the rest. From where do we learn this? From the saying ‘He was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities.’”

Isaiah 53:10 – “Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You 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.”

Midrash Asseret Memrot – “The Messiah, in order to atone for them both [for Adam and David], will make his soul a trespass offering as it is written.”

A modern day interpretation:

Some Chabad Lubavitch publications refer all of Isaiah 53 to Messiah, and apply it to their late Rebbe Menachem Schneerson: “… the illness of the Moshiach is clearly foretold by the prophet Isaiah in chapter 53…” [footnote: Shmuel Butman of Chabad, Chairman of the International Campaign to Bring Moshiach, Jewish Press, April 22, 1993]

Commenting upon Rebbe Schneerson’s incapacitating illness a member of the Lubavitcher women's group stated, “It is written that the Messiah will endure intense suffering before being revealed.” [footnote: Interview with Michael Wherip in the Seattle Post Intelligencer, January 3, 1993]

Although the above may represent a “minority report” among Jewish scholars, it cannot be denied that Isaiah 53 has and is understood to be a Messianic passage for some.

“Isaiah 53 in Rabbinic Thought” list compiled by D. Pyle. For more information on this subject, visit www.chosenpeople.com and http://www.isaiah53.com.