The Person of Christ in Isaiah 53
The Person who is the subject of Isaiah 53 is referred to more than forty times in the chapter. He is brought before us in various ways. He was One that grew up "as a root out of a dry ground." Of this One spoken of many times in these various ways, there is one thing that is said about Him that is very striking: "When we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him."
It is that One that grew up in this world before God "as a root out of a dry ground." In this One spoken of so, in Him God saw every beauty: the One in whom from first to last, God had delight, and from whom continually a sweet savour rose up. That savour was the savour of obedience. It was not a savour of legal obedience; that was not the kind of obedience that the Lord rendered. The kind of obedience He rendered that caused such fragrance to God was the obedience of love. "That the world may know that I love the Father."
How is it that in this poor world, this vast world, if you please, there are here and there a few, though when gathered together there are a good many that do see beauty in Him and that do desire Him, whom the beauty of the Lord attracts? What has made it to be thus with you and with me and with every believer far and near? Who gave us the anointed eye, the opened ear? Who gave us the receiving and understanding heart?
Oh, "To Thee our all we owe;
The precious Saviour and the power
That makes Him precious, too."
How precious that sovereign grace becomes to us as we go on and learn more of its sovereignty, its righteousness. It is no longer, through that sovereign grace, true of us, "When we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him," but we learn how little we see! Perhaps we see little beyond the fact that He is our Saviour, but that is beauty, and God gives us in some measure to share His joys and thoughts of Him who grew up before Him "as a root out of a dry ground."
What an Object there was on earth for God when Christ was here! On that Object His eye rested, and to that Object now His sovereign grace attracts.
There are several things among the many things said about Him in this short chapter to which really the last few verses of the preceding chapter belong, which tell out His glory in a special way. One is in the words: "The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." How that tells out the infinite glory of that same One. Here is One, sinless in Himself, this "root out of a dry ground"; here is One upon whom God can lay the iniquity of us all. How it tells, does it not, the glory of that One.
The memorials of His death bring Him before us in a special way as the Bearer of our sins in love to us and in love and obedience to God His Father. What a theme for praise is Christ when the eye beholds His beauty or a little of it when He becomes not simply an Object of faith (that is first), but when He becomes an Object of love! It says in Peter, "Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see Him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory."
In one of our hymns we sing together,
"Perfect soon in joy before Thee,
We shall see Thee face to face."
How these words refresh and strengthen us. Who can conceive what the perfection of joy and glory will be in His presence! We shall see Him face to face.
May God in His grace make Isaiah 53 exceedingly precious to us all.