KJV Isaiah 50:4-6 “… the tongue … speak … Mine ear…My back …My cheeks …My face…”
NASB Isaiah 50:4-6 “…the tongue … sustain …My ear …My back …My cheeks …My face”
Isaiah 50 is the third of the four “Servant Songs” of Isaiah. As we progress from chapters 42 through 49, 50, and finally to chapter 53, there is a definite increase in the opposition and suffering of Jehovah’s faithful Servant. It reaches a crescendo in Isaiah 53 as we are granted insights into the full meaning and measure of Calvary.
Isaiah 50 details for us the faithfulness of the Servant in His complete surrender to whatever the voice of God poured into His ear (vv 4, 5). This section (vv 4-9) is prefaced by a contrast with Israel as the Failing Servant of Jehovah and is followed by an admonition to all Future Servants. Inherent in each is the response to the will of God.
As we trace the Fruitful and Faithful Servant of verses 4-9, the total surrender of His Person is highlighted by the mention of various parts of His body.
His Tongue
He was given the tongue of “the learned” or instructed One. He knew how to speak; He knew when to speak; He knew what to say, and He knew to whom it should be said. His every word was attributed to what His Father had given Him to say (John 14:10). Never an idle word, never a wrong word, and never a needless word escaped His lips. “Never man spake like this Man.”
His Ear
His ear was opened each morning to hear what His Master would have for Him for the day. He received His “assignment” morning by morning. He was marked by personal communion (mine ear), a priority (morning), and the practice (morning by morning). As the will of God was poured into that ear, He was obedient. The Hebrew Servant of old gave his ear to the door post. His suffering was minimal and temporary. This Servant, in giving His ear, would end up giving His all.
His Back
As a result of His ear being opened and His will submissive to His Master’s will, He gave His back to those who would scourge Him. Men may have thought that they had captured the Lord and subdued Him in their supposed superior strategy and strength. The truth is that He GAVE His back to the smiters.
It must have been a remarkable thing for these hardened soldiers to see someone allowing Himself to be flogged yet offering no resistance. They would observe Him stretching His body on the cross, allowing His hands to be pierced, yet offering no struggle.
His Cheeks
One of the most degrading and humiliating things was for a man to have his beard cut or removed (cf 2 Sam 10:4). The Lord willingly offered His cheeks as men sought to de-masculinize Him and abuse Him. No word of rebuke, counter-threat, or anger escaped His lips. The beard was plucked from His face, one painful hair after another.
His Face
Shame and spitting! This was the same face before which angelic beings hid their faces (Isa 6). This is the same face from which the heavens and earth will one day flee (Rev 20:11). Yet here it was, the object of the spittle of His creatures, the target for all their shameful and vile malice.
His devotion was complete. Every part of His being was offered; nothing was held back.
Read the “Celine Dion and God” story here.
Consider:
Review the three parts of the chapter and contrast and compare the Failing Servant of vv 1-3 and the future servants, which conclude the chapter.