Salvation, the Spirit, and the Resurrected Servant in Isaiah

Over 500 years before Jesus, there was a prophecy that an innocent servant would suffer and die on behalf of the sins of others—but also be raised to life again. At the time Isaiah 52:13–53:12 was written, there was no precedent for such a radical idea, which makes this passage all the more shocking and profound.

Yet Yahweh was pleased to crush him; he afflicted [him] (with sickness). If she (or you) places his life a guilt offering, he will see offspring, he will prolong days and the will of Yahweh will succeed in his hand. From the trouble of his life, he will see light. He will be satisfied. In his knowledge, my righteous servant shall make many righteous, and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide to him [a portion] among the many, and with [the] strong ones he shall divide bounty, because he exposed his life to death and was counted with transgressors, and he carried [the] sin of many and will intercede for transgressors (Isa 53:10–12).

The Identity of the Servant in Isaiah

Is the servant the nation of Israel or an individual? We can’t assume it’s always one or always the other in Isaiah; both generalizations are problematic. The identities of the various “servants” in Isaiah are:

Not counting early references to the prophet himself or to Eliakim, an official under King Hezekiah, the servant in the book of Isaiah is always Israel (or, synonymously, Jacob) previous to Isaiah 49:

But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend; you whom I took from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest corners, saying to you, “You are my servant, I have chosen you and not cast you off” (Isa 41:8–9).

“You [Israel] are my witnesses [“you” is plural in the Hebrew],” declares Yahweh, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me” (Isa 43:10).

“But now hear, O Jacob my servant, Israel whom I have chosen!” Thus says Yahweh who made you, who formed you in the womb and will help you: Fear not, O Jacob my servant, Jeshurun whom I have chosen (Isa 44:1–2).

Remember these things, O Jacob, and Israel, for you are my servant; I formed you, you are to me a servant; O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me (Isa 44:21).

For the sake of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen, I call you by your name, I name you, though you do not know me (Isa 45:4).

In these examples, the servant is the people or nation of Israel—likely the second generation of Israelites living in Babylon during the exile.

But this collective identity shifts in Isaiah 49. Note the first-person language for the servant in Isaiah 49:1–4:

Listen to me coastlands, pay attention peoples from afar. Yahweh called me before I was born, while I was in my mother’s womb he named me. He made my mouth like a sharp sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me and he made me a polished arrow, in his quiver he concealed me away. And he said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” But I said, “I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity; yet surely my judgment is with Yahweh, and my wage with my God.”

At first glance, the line “You are my servant, Israel” suggests that Israel remains synonymous with Yahweh’s servant; but one verse later, in Isaiah 49:5, there is a clear distinction between Israel and the servant:

And now Yahweh says, who formed me in the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him, and that Israel might be gathered to him, for I am honored in the sight of Yahweh, and my God has become my refuge.

Isaiah 49:6 also makes this distinction:

He [Yahweh] says, “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the survivors of Israel; I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

The juxtaposition of Israel against the servant suggests that we should understand Isaiah 49:3—“You are Israel my servant”—as an annunciation of a new servant, who will go on to fulfill all or part of Israel’s role in bringing God’s salvation to the ends of the earth (compare Luke 3:22).

Interpreting Isaiah 52:13–53:12

The individual in Isaiah 52:13–53:12 has taken up Israel’s commission as God’s chosen and called servant. It is his duty to reconcile God and humanity. But how will he do this? Who causes the servant’s suffering? Who kills him? When we identify the pronouns (she, he, you) in our passage, four major players emerge: “the prophet,” “Zion” or “Jerusalem” (Isa 51:3–23; 52:7), the servant, and Yahweh. In this light, Isaiah 53:10–12 reads:

[The prophet says,] “Yet Yahweh was pleased to crush [the servant]; he afflicted [the servant] (with sickness). If [Zion/Jerusalem] places [the servant’s] life a guilt offering, [the servant] will see offspring, [the servant] will prolong days. And the will of Yahweh is in [the servant’s] hand, it will succeed. Out of trouble of his life [the servant] will see light; [the servant] will be satisfied by his knowledge.” [Yahweh says,] “My righteous servant will bring justice to many and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I, [Yahweh] will divide to [the servant] a portion among the many, and with [the] strong ones [the servant] shall divide bounty, because he exposed his life to death and was counted with transgressors, and he carried the sin of the many and will intercede for transgressors.

Yahweh is the ultimate cause behind the servant’s suffering (Isa 53:12)—it was in His will (Isa 53:10)—but Zion or Jerusalem (symbolizing Yahweh’s people) makes the servant a “guilt offering.”

In ancient Israel, a “guilt offering” was made by someone who had deceived, robbed, defrauded, lied, or sworn falsely. In addition to making things right with other people, the Israelites needed to make things right with Yahweh (Lev 5:14–19; 7:7; compare Lev 16:22). Guilt offerings of bulls (or goats) died when offered; so the servant, as the guilt offering for God’s people, must die (Isa 53:10).

But something miraculous happens: The servant is alive—he is resurrected. He “sees offspring” and “prolongs days,” both of which can only happen in life (e.g., Gen 48:11; Isa 61:9; Exod 20:12; Deut 4:40; 5:16; 17:20; 25:15; Josh 24:31; Judg 2:7; Prov 3:1–2). Isaiah 53:11 also implies resurrection: “He will see light” (compare Isa 9:6; Psa 36:10; 49:20; Job 3:16; 33:28), and “he will be satisfied in his knowledge.”

“Because the servant exposed his life to death” and was resurrected, he is able to “carry the sin of many and continue to intercede for transgressors” (Isa 53:12). It is because of the servant’s death and resurrection that God’s relationship with Israel, and with all people, is restored.

The Apostle Paul takes up this language when he speaks of the importance of Jesus’ resurrection, its connection to our salvation, and the power it gives us to overcome sin (Rom 6:5–14). The resurrection of Jesus, the Suffering Servant, has radical implications for all of humanity.

The Servant and Our Resurrection

The Suffering Servant, as the saving grace of humanity, is both resurrected and the bringer of resurrection. Picking up on the language of Isaiah 52:13 and Isaiah 53:11, Daniel 12:1–4 speaks of a corporate resurrection of many people. Daniel 12:2 says: “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake. Some to everlasting life and some to reproach and contempt.”

Theologically, this link suggests that it is because of the Suffering Servant that the resurrection of humanity is possible. This connection is also made in Revelation 20:11–15, which speaks of the resurrection of the dead and the judgment of humanity during the end times. This act is directly tied to the personhood of Jesus, who is referred to as the Lamb who is slain and who appears as a rider—clothed in a robe dipped in blood—on a white horse battling evil (Rev 5:12; 19:11–21). The Suffering Servant is likewise prophesied using the language of a divine warrior, equating Him with Yahweh (Isa 52:15–53:1; 53:12).

From the larger perspective of the book of Isaiah as a whole, the Suffering Servant is also connected with the Messiah figure of Isaiah 11, who judges rightly, helps the impoverished, and has the very Spirit of Yahweh upon Him (compare Isa 11:1–2; 53:2; Zech 3:8–9).

The Servant, Justice, and the Holy Spirit

The Suffering Servant prophecy is so powerful that it is understandable why Jesus casts His entire ministry in terms of it, proclaiming His authority to bring good news to the impoverished and freedom to the oppressed, and to heal; He reads Isaiah’s prophecy and says it is about Him (Luke 4:18; Isa 61:1–2). The Suffering Servant, Jesus, is not just about salvation or even just about resurrection—He is about new life for all of humanity. The cry of justice and longing for restoration is integral to what it means to be a Christian.

The Spirit of Yahweh is upon Jesus, as He proclaims in Luke; and it because of Jesus that the Holy Spirit is with believers today. The trajectory of Luke’s Gospel—and Luke’s second volume, Acts—is that the good news of Jesus will reach the entire world via the Holy Spirit’s work among His people (Luke 24:45–49; Acts 2). In Luke, Jesus shows that the Scriptures point to Him and specifically to His death and subsequent glory (Luke 24:26–27, 44). And this grounds the mission of Jesus’ people today: to set the captives free through the work of the Spirit, to raise up the impoverished and oppressed, and to proclaim that salvation has come to the world. Yahweh’s favor and Spirit have reached the world via the Suffering Servant. Jesus, the one prophesied so powerfully centuries before in the book of Isaiah, is still seen among us via the work of the Holy Spirit (John 14:15–31). Jesus is God with us (Isa 7:14).1

John D. Barry