Isaiah 53 is one of the great prophecies of Christ found in the Old Testament, through one of its greatest prophets. It reveals Him as the Suffering Servant who would bear the iniquities of His people under the wrath of God. It also reveals He would be raised from among the dead and share the spoils of His victory with His redeemed people! It was written some 700 years before the birth of Christ, and when the specific details of the prophecy are considered, it is utterly amazing to behold the accuracy of its predictions. Isaiah 52:13–15 serves as a prologue to the prophecy, predicting Christ’s exaltation, His disfigurement due to the cross, and the reception of His work by the Gentile nations and their kings.

The prophecy opens with two questions posed by the prophet. The first question is, “Who has believed our report?” It is specifically directed to the nation of Israel (see Jn. 12:37–38; Rom. 10:16), but includes the whole world as well. And note: the question is not “Who has heard it?” or “Who knows about it or understands it?” but “Who has believed it?” If we have heard it, have we believed it? Of all the questions asked us in life, this is by far the most important one we must answer.

The second question is, “to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” The “arm of the Lord” means the disclosure of God’s power, His strength; here it is Messiah Himself. The Arm of God would be revealed to the people of Israel. However, when He appeared, even His own people did not believe in Him (Lk. 4:16–30; Mk. 6:1–5). He came to His own and they did not receive Him (Jn. 1:11). “What? This carpenter of Nazareth is our Messiah?” This would be His nation’s attitude toward Him. What about us? We have heard of Him. He has been revealed to us by “many infallible proofs” (Acts 1:3). But have we believed in Him?