confessing that he dwelt among a people of unclean lips. Among other practices that made Israel resemble their

idolatrous neighbours, rendering them unfit for the service of the Lord, is the prohibition, in Leviticus 19:27,

`neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard'; for of all the heathen at that time it could be written `their

corruption (same word as "marred") is in them, and blemishes be in them: they shall not be accepted for you' (Lev.

22:25). The reader will observe that the context deals with the need for a spotless offering in the sacrifices of Israel.

Here, in Isaiah 53, is `the Lamb of God', Who had laid aside His glory, and was made a sin-offering on our behalf,

stooping down to this likeness of `corruption' and being charged with the very thing He had come to remove. Israel

were `astonished' at the depths to which He descended, but they did not know it was for their sakes. In Isaiah 53,

that light breaks in - but we have not reached that section yet. They treated Him as a moral leper, `we hid as it were

our faces from Him'; they could not `see' anything in Him to desire Him. Again Ezekiel 28 must be quoted. The

Saviour's visage was `marred', not through pride, but in love that passeth knowledge; but of the fallen cherub it is

written, `Thine heart was lifted up (gabah, "high", Isa. 52:13) because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted (same word

as "marred") thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness' (Ezek. 28:17).

`Form', Hebrew toar, is once translated `visage' (Lam. 4:8), and is used, in the way common to Hebrew poetry,

as a repetition for emphasis. Perhaps there is a glance at the description given of David:

`Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite, that is cunning in playing, and a mighty valiant man, and a

man of war, and prudent in matters, and a comely person' (1 Sam. 16:18).

It will be remembered that David was described as being `ruddy and of a fair countenance' (where the word

`countenance' is mareh, `visage', of Isa. 52:14), although Samuel was warned about looking on the `countenance' of

Eliab, for that was to judge merely by outward appearance and not by the heart (1 Sam. 16:7). The word translated

`visage' occurs in but one other place in Isaiah, and that is in chapter 11:3, `He shall not judge after the sight of His

eyes'. Applying, then, all that we have seen, both of the structure of these verses and the meaning and usage of the

words which they contain, we believe that we can perceive that the astonishment and wonder of these many people

and kings at the depth of the Saviour's humiliation, arises out of the following facts:

(1) They who judged after the sight of their own eyes saw nothing but the outward appearance, and just as Israel

were unanimous in the choice of Saul as their king, by reason of his `countenance', even though they were

self-deceived, so they were unanimous in their rejection of their true King because of this selfsame

superficial judgment.

(2) The reason why Israel made so tragic a mistake was because of their moral condition. They themselves, as

Isaiah 1 and 6 indicate, were moral lepers, and when they looked upon the Lord, they saw but their own

reflection, the sin and stripe that He bore, but they saw not the patient, lowly sin-bearer Himself.

(3) The many references that we have made to antichristian persons, (the king of Babylon, the king of Tyre, and

Lucifer, son of the morning), place the Christ of God, in direct contrast with the false christ, the man of sin,

the fallen cherub and the whole satanic travesty of truth. These exalt themselves; these corrupt themselves.

He, though originally in the `form' of God, took upon Him the `form' of a servant, and in that form, which

had no comeliness, He was despised and rejected, yet `this same Jesus' shall be `admired' (thaumazo, `be

wondered at', the LXX equivalent of `startle' in Isa. 52:15) in that day.

We now approach the opening verses of Isaiah 53 itself, but the structure of the passage as a whole has shown us

that these are so interwoven with the closing words of the previous chapter that they cannot be considered

separately. We must therefore carry forward with us all that we have learned concerning the `astonishment' of those

who failed to see beyond the marred visage of the suffering Saviour, and realise that our present study is a

continuance of the same theme.

To refresh our memory, the following outlines are repeated from previous studies: