response for Isaiah43
- From: "Heide Allen" <esterstar@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 26 Jan 2006 19:03:56 GMT
From: "Frank" <roines@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Messiah Is God
Date: Sunday, November 20, 2005 8:34 PM
I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions,
(Isaiah 43:25 NIV)
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
(Isaiah 53:5)
"If you are the Christ, tell us plainly."
Jesus answered, "I did tell you,
but you do not believe.
....I and the Father are one."
(John 10:24-25, 30)
--
http://roines.home.mindspring.com
Isaiah 53:2
Isaiah 53:2 - And he came up like a sapling before it, and like a root out
from dry ground; he had no features and no splendor; and we saw him that he
had no appearance; and how could we desire him?
Isaiah 53:2(KJV) - 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.
A comparison of the two renditions reveals a significant difference; namely,
in the KJV, past tenses of the Hebrew verbs were changed into future tenses.
Since Isaiah 52:15 clearly indicates that the text which follows it is
spoken sometime in the future from a past tense perspective, the KJV
translation is in error by projecting the context of this verse into the
future.
Using metaphoric language, Isaiah 53:2 begins to describe the reasons for
the disbelief expressed in the preceding verse by the (leaders of the
Gentile) nations. Throughout their harsh and dangerous exile, the Jewish
people struggled like a young tree growing on parched land. Imagery of a
tree struggling to grow in dry earth as a metaphor for Israel's struggle to
survive in exile, is found elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible:
Ezekiel 19:10-13 - (10) Your mother is like a vine in your likeness, planted
by the water, fruitful and full of branches from the abundance of water.
(11) And it had sturdy rods for the scepters of rulers, and its stature was
exalted among the thick branches, and it could be seen because of its height
with its multitude of tendrils. (12) But it was plucked up in fury and it
was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up its fruit; its
sturdy rods were broken and withered - fire consumed them. (13) And now it
is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty ground.
Isaiah 60:21 - And your people, all of them righteous, shall inherit the
land forever, the scion of My planting, the work of My hands in which I will
glory.
Hosea 14:6-8 - (6) I will be like dew to Israel, he shall blossom like the
lily, and strike his roots like the [roots of trees of] Lebanon. (7) His
[young] branches shall spread, and his beauty shall be like the olive tree,
and his aroma like the Lebanon. (8) Those who dwell in his shade shall
return; they shall revive like grain and blossom like the vine; their
fragrance shall be like the wine of Lebanon.
Amos 9:15 - "And I will plant them on their land, and they shall no longer
be uprooted from their land that I have given to them," said the L-rd your
G-d.
This is a rather different picture from that which was described by the
(Gentile) nations in Isaiah 53:2. Instead of a beaten and struggling
people, Israel will be an exalted and successful people.
Does Israel (as G-d's servant) "fit" into Isaiah 53:2
Isaiah 53:3
Isaiah 53:3 - He was despised and forsaken by men; a man of pains, and
accustomed to illness, and as one from whom we would hide our faces; he was
despised, and we had no regard for him.
Isaiah 53:3(KJV) - 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.
As was the case with the previous verse, once again there is the a problem
of different tenses in the KJV rendition.
Israel is described as being despised elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible:
Isaiah 49:7 - Thus said the L-rd, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to
him who is despised of men, to him who is abhorred by nations, to him who is
a slave of rulers, .
Nehemiah 3:36 - Hearken, our G-d, for we have been despised, and return
their reproach upon their head, and make them despised in a land of
captivity.
Israel is described as being forsaken:
Isaiah 60:15 - Instead of your being forsaken and hated without a passerby,
I will make you an everlasting pride, the joy of every generation.
Israel is described as being afflicted, with the adversities often likened
to injuries and diseases:
Isaiah 1:5-6 - (5) Why are you beaten when you continue to rebel? Every
head is [afflicted] with illness and every heart with malaise. (6) From the
sole of the foot to the head, nothing in him is whole; only wounds and
contusions and fresh sores; they have not been treated, and they have not
been bandaged, and [the wound] has not been softened with oil.
Jeremiah 10:19 - Woe is to me for my hurt; my wound is acute, and I said [to
myself], "This is but an illness, I will bear it".
Isaiah 53:3 describes the one whom the (Gentile) nations characterize as
having been despised, as being a "man of pains" who is accustomed to
illness, and similar pictures were drawn elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible. The
lesson here is that all this has been going on for long periods, for
centuries. Therefore, these descriptions can only be of a people, not of a
single individual.
A change in perspective starts to emerge in the next set of four verses,
which are still spoken in the "voice" of the (Gentile) nations. The leaders
of the (Gentile) nations begin to recognize that Israel suffered because of
them.
Isaiah 53:4 - Indeed, he bore our illnesses, and our pains - he has carried
them, yet we had regarded him plagued, smitten by G-d, and oppressed.
Isaiah 53:4(KJV) - Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows:
yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
Here, the KJV suddenly reverts to the past tense, which makes it somewhat
more consistent with the Jewish translation and with the Hebrew text.
What might the leaders of the (Gentile) nations be saying
The prophet Jeremiah alludes to the actions of the (Gentile) nations when he
speaks of the redemption of G-d's servant, Israel:
Jeremiah 30:10,17 - (10) "And you, fear not, My servant Jacob," says the
L-rd, "and do not be dismayed, O Israel, for behold, I am saving you from
afar and your seed from the land of their captivity, and Jacob shall again
be at peace and tranquil, and none will frighten him."
(17) "For I will bring healing to you, and of your wounds I will heal you,"
says the L-rd, "for they called you an outcast [saying], 'she is Zion for
whom no one cares'."
The (Gentile) nations acknowledge that Israel was the victim who bore the
dire penalties which the iniquities of others have incurred. The (Gentile)
nations' own misdeeds, and not G-d punishing Israel for its sins, inflicted
the suffering on Israel. The Jewish people have been forced to carry ills
and pains caused by the direct actions of the (Gentile) nations. They have
borne the consequences of the (Gentile) nations' sickness, and have suffered
(and continue to) suffer because of them. The (Gentile) nations have held
that the Jewish people are cursed by G-d, and they were (and still are)
determined to see that they suffer the consequences of this alleged curse.
Heide
.
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