Isaiah 53:5
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed. (NIV)
Today’s Reading: Isaiah 53:4-6
“But he” again reminds us that the redeemed Jewish remnant in the last days was wrong. They thought Jesus was being punished for his blasphemous claims. “But he” was actually being punished for their (and our) transgressions. How ironic that as Pilate handed Jesus over to be crucified, “All the people answered, ‘His blood is on us and on our children!’” (Matt 27:25). Yes, in fact it is and by his wounds we are healed.
He was “pierced” is the most accurate translation of the Hebrew word ḥālal. The KJV translates this word as “wounded” but that doesn’t accurately carry the weight of the word. It can also mean “crushed” because the word is meant to stress violence and excruciating pain that results in death. But we know that Jesus was “pierced” multiple times:
“Dogs surround me,
a pack of villains encircles me;
they pierce my hands and my feet” (Ps 22:16).
“One of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: ‘Not one of his bones will be broken,’ and, as another scripture says, ‘They will look on the one they have pierced’” (John 19:34-37).
“But he [Thomas] said to them, ‘Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.’
“A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe’” (John 20:25-27).
This future remnant of redeemed Jews is doing exactly what is prophesied in Zechariah:
“They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son” (Zech 12:10).
They realize that he was pierced for their “transgressions” which is translated from the Hebrew word pešaʽ meaning “intentional sin.” This is not an inadvertent action, it is a deliberate disobedience that produces guilt and shame. Pešaʽ breaks the covenant God has with Israel and can only be removed through divine forgiveness. And this is what God has done through Jesus:
“I, even I, am he who blots out
your transgressions (pešaʽ), for my own sake,
and remembers your sins no more” (Isa 43:25).
“I have made you, you are my servant;
Israel, I will not forget you.
I have swept away your offenses (pešaʽ) like a cloud,
your sins like the morning mist.
Return to me,
for I have redeemed you” (Isa 44:21-22).
“‘The Redeemer will come to Zion,
to those in Jacob who repent of their sins (pešaʽ),’
declares the Lord” (Isa 59:20).
We all have sinned – willfully disobeyed God. God is a just God so he is obligated to punish us for our sin. Death is the payment required to pay for our sin. But He is also a loving and merciful God. So He made a way for sin to be paid through substitution. This idea was built into the Jewish sacrificial system because one day, the Suffering Servant would come to earth and substitute himself for us.
The perfect Lamb of God would take the place of guilty sinners and pay the debt of our transgressions for us. We are now reconciled to God. We have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus. And God remembers our sins no more.
Christ in the Old Testament 
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