DAY FIFTEEN

 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer,

and though the Lord makes His life a guilt offering,

He will see His offspring and prolong His days,

and the will of the Lord will prosper in His hand.

After the suffering of His soul,

He will see the light of life and be satisfied;

by His knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,

and He will bear their iniquities.

Therefore I will give Him a portion among the great,

and He will divide the spoils with the strong,

because He poured out His life unto death,

and was numbered with the transgressors.

For He bore the sin of many,

and made intercession for the transgressors.

Isaiah 53:10-12

 The first words of this passage come as a shock.  All this pain, all this agony, all this humiliation — God not only allowed it but actually initiated it.  How can this be?  How could God be happy to inflict such a terrible experience on His own Son?   But that is only half of the story. This magnificent story has a glorious ending.  Injustice, torture, torment and suffering did not end with death. On the other side of the grave there was life, and not only for Jesus but for us as well.  God’s pleasure was not in the suffering His Son had to endure but in the outcome of that suffering.  God knew that through the travail of His Son’s soul, there would be many who would be brought into His eternal kingdom.  Gaze long on the bloodied Son of God, hanging on a cross.  That is the measure of God’s love for you.