Isaiah 53:4-5
“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities.”
King James Version
Vicarious suffering bearing our griefs and wounds, the cornerstone of Isaiah 53's substitutionary atonement theology.
Fulfillment References
Matthew 8:17 1 Peter 2:24 Romans 4:25
How Traditions Read This Prophecy
Apostolic (Oneness) PentecostalThe heart of the gospel in prophecy: 'he was wounded for our transgressions... with his stripes we are healed.' The Servant bears our griefs and sins — not His own. This is the Lord Jesus, God in flesh, suffering vicariously (1 Pet. 2:24; Matt. 8:17). The God we sinned against bore the wound Himself; the Judge took the place of the guilty.
JewishRead by many in Judaism as the vicarious suffering of righteous Israel among the nations; the medieval debate shifted the dominant reading toward a national interpretation.
CatholicThe vicarious atonement — Christ wounded for our sins, His stripes our healing; central to the theology of the Passion (cf. the Catechism).
ProtestantThe clearest Old Testament statement of substitutionary atonement, fulfilled in Christ (1 Pet. 2:24) — penal substitution's keystone text.
AcademicThe fourth Servant Song's vicarious-suffering language is much studied; whether it teaches substitution or representative suffering, and the servant's identity, are debated.
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Cross-references, Hebrew/Greek, Dead Sea Scrolls notes, study tools and multi-tradition analysis in the interactive explorer.
Bible Prophecy Explorer · based on J. Barton Payne’s Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy catalogue · an openly Apostolic (Oneness) Pentecostal study resource — all traditions presented fairly. Pastor: C. Myles Young, PhD · Bishop: Nathaniel J. Wilson, Ed.D.