The Servant Lives to Conquer: Isaiah 53:12

Isaiah 53:12 begins with that ever important word: "therefore". This follows the statement in verse 11 that the servant will make many to be accounted righteous and shall bear their iniquities. And then verse 12 says, "Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong."

This speaks of the Servant's exaltation. He receives the spoil of the victory. He receives His due reward. And as the rest of the verse emphasizes again, it is "because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors."

The "therefore" at the beginning of verse 12 makes the same connection between Jesus' humiliation and exaltation as the "therefore" in Philippians 2:9. "And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name..." Jesus' humiliation on our behalf is rewarded with great exaltation.

Another indication of the Servant's success is in the middle of verse 10, just after the statement that "he shall see his offspring." It goes on to say, "He shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand." This is a reference to Jesus' resurrection, because even though He was crushed and put to grief, He prolongs His days.

His mission did not end in death. His Father crushed Him, but then His Father brought Him back to life and prolongs His days. He lives, and He reigns forever more!

Christ's resurrection is so essential to the Gospel, because had He not conquered the grave, His sacrificial death would have been a total failure; He would have saved no one.

As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15, "if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins" (v. 17). It was not enough that Jesus died. He had to die and then conquer death. He had to triumph over the grave. Our salvation depends upon it. Romans 4:25 says He "was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification."

That verse shows us the inseparable connection between Jesus' death and His resurrection. He was raised for our justification, meaning His resurrection proved that the substitutionary death was effective. The resurrection proves that Jesus' death conquered death, and therefore purchased our justification.

This is the reason why the observance of Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday is such a significant time for Christians. These are the two enormous events that have revolutionized our lives and they should be the focus of our lives every day of the year.

Jesus died on a cross for our sins, and He came back to life on the third day to demonstrate His triumph over sin and death. Jesus accomplished His agonizing mission, and then He looks out over the fruit of His labors, and He is satisfied.

by Sesky Paul