Isaiah 53: One Man or a Nation

This week, a Christian asked how I could claim that Isaiah 53 refers to the suffering of the Jewish people at the hands of the nations, since the passage appears to describe an individual, and not a nation.

I answered that his objection is a result of reading the Bible out of context. Let me explain.

In the Jewish Scriptures or Tanach, the nation of Israel is often referred to in the singular, as though it were one person. There are at least seven such examples. For instance:

Judges 20:11 says, “All the men of Israel gathered as one man” and Ezra 3:1 "the people assembled as one man."

Similarly, in Isaiah 41:8 God refers to Israel in the singular saying, “Israel is My servant,” as well as in Isaiah 43:10, when God says, “You are my witnesses, says the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen.”

In fact, you will notice that Isaiah 43:10 shifts between singular and plural—“witnesses” (plural) and “servant” (singular)—clearly showing that Israel as a nation can be referred to as a single individual

Furthermore, when we read Isaiah 53:8 in context and with an accurate translation, Isaiah tells us that the nations will say “for the transgression of my people, they (the Jewish people) were stricken.” The key word here is “lamo” (למו), which in Hebrew is plural. However, Christian translations often mistranslate it as “he” in the singular rather than correctly as “they.”

Throughout the Tanach, lamo is used in the plural more than 50 times.”

For example, in Psalms 99:7 it says: וחוק נתן למו “A law He gave to them”.

Together, the context of Isaiah and the accurate Hebrew translation show that the ‘suffering servant’ in Isaiah 53 refers to the nation of Israel, who suffered as ‘one man’ from the afflictions inflicted by the nations of the world” as also indicated by the Hebrew letter מ in Isaish 53:5 which mean “from” and not “for.”

To understand Isaiah 53, it is essential to read it in context and with an accurate translation. When we do, it is clear that the ‘suffering servant’ refers to the nation of Israel, who suffered as ‘one man’ from the violence inflicted upon them by the nations of the world.

Furthermore, Isaiah 52 and 53 describe that in the Messianic age the nations will be astonished when they witness God’s redemption of His servant Israel. They had assumed that the Jews suffered because God had rejected them but will now acknowledge that the suffering was the result of their persecution of the Jewish people

May we speedily see the coming of the true messiah (Moshiach) when there is true peace and the knowledge of God will fill the earth.

Rabbi Bentzion Kravitz

→ Get the book - Know What to Answer - When Someone Challenges Your Faith. Available on Amazon at: https://a.co/d/crv9E0L