Isaiah 52 starts with a promise of the LORD’s redemption of Israel. In poetic language, we are told that while she went into slavery without a cost, she will be redeemed without cost as well.
As we move to Isaiah 52:13, we see a great example of the truth the original scrolls of Isaiah were without chapter or verse markings, because Isaiah 52:13-53:12 is a unit. It is the clearest demonstration of the Suffering Servant being Jesus. As we read the text, we see example after example of how what the servant was going to do reflects what Jesus did. This model of the Messiah as a suffering servant was not at all what the people expected or hoped for in the time of Jesus. Many had given up hope the Messiah would come. Others anticipated the Messiah’s coming as the moment when the LORD would liberate Israel from the tyranny of Rome, and reestablish her as the focus of world power. As we read through Isaiah 52:13-53:12, we see the LORD’s focus was much deeper, and while on the surface “weaker,” in the end much more powerful. Jesus came to set all of us free from sin and death, and to heal us at the deepest level–spiritually, emotionally, physically, in every way. Read these verses together and thank the LORD for fulfilling this promise through Jesus!
Isaiah 54 tells us the LORD will establish an everlasting covenant with His people. While He was angry with them for a time, and rejected them, the time is coming when He will restore them and that restoration will never end.
As we return to John 10, Jesus uses the image of shepherding to show us who He is and what He is like. He offers two images: 1) He is the Door of the sheepfold; and 2) He is the Good Shepherd. Through the first image He tells us He protects us (the sheep) from harm, whether it be from natural predators or thieves. When He tells us He is the Good Shepherd, He brings to mind Psalm 23 where King David told us the LORD is our Shepherd. Jesus made it clear time and time again in John’s gospel He is the Messiah, and He is God. The most powerful statement Jesus made about His work in John 10 is The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. I have come that you may have life in all its abundance! (John 10:10) Again, Jesus’ clear statement about who He is and what He came to do caused an argument between Him and the religious leaders. They wanted to kill Him for His proclamations and for making Himself equal with God. Jesus countered that His works demonstrated who He was, but the religious leaders wouldn’t accept Jesus’ claims. We are left with the same choice as the religious leaders: accept who Jesus is, because of what He has done, or reject the evidence and Him. When people tell us our faith is unreasonable, they are the ones being unreasonable. While it does take faith to trust Jesus as Savior and Lord, the evidence that He is both is overwhelming!