But the Lord was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief; if He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.
— Isaiah 53:10 —
Robert Kensinger: Evangelical Ministries of the Americas | Honduras
It’s hard to imagine a father being “pleased” to crush his son, but that’s exactly what Isaiah 53:10 tells us happened when Jesus was crucified on the cross. Here we are given a glimpse into the very heart of God the Father as he “caused the iniquity of us all to fall on [His Son]” (Isa. 53:6). Nowhere else in Scripture do we see God pleased about punishing men for their sin. He is pleased to bless Israel (Num. 24:1) and to make them His people (1 Sam. 12:22). He is pleased with “a broken and a contrite heart” (Psa. 51:16–17). Glory be to God for His perfect and pleasing act of redemption! He is pleased with proper worship in the Jewish temple (Hag 1:8), as well as with the sacrifices of praise through “doing good and sharing” (Heb. 13:16). However, we never see God pleased in the chastisement of a man for sin except for here in Isaiah 53:10. The question, then, is: Why? Why would God the Father be pleased to crush His own Son, putting Him to grief? It is because the Son has made Himself a substitutionary offering for sin so that the grace of God may be eternally revealed in all its fullness and the glory of His love may be put on display for all to see. Through His sacrifice, the Son is blessed with His spiritual posterity (believers, both Jew and Gentile), the eternal enjoyment of the fruits of His labor, and the personal pleasure of having all things placed beneath His feet. Glory be to God for His perfect and pleasing act of redemption!
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