He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall
declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land
of the living, for the transgression of my people was he
stricken.--Isaiah liii. 8.
Here the Prophet presents us with another sketch, which so exactly
corresponds with many features in the sufferings of Jesus, that we
cannot well mistake, if we consider him as the person intended.
What supinness do we behold in the cause of truth, how faint are
the exertions to promote the Glory of God, to whom are we indebted
for all spiritual and temporal blessings. Surely, the disciples of
Christ, in every age, must blush to compare their want of zeal for
their Master's Glory, with the ardour and unwearied perseverance
displayed by the adversaries of the Lord. What exertion and
determination of purpose, is discoverable in the persecutors of
Jesus. If they cannot accomplish their object in one way, they
attempt it in another. If Annas or Caiaphas have not the power
(Judea being under the Roman yoke) to execute Jesus, his enemies,
nothing daunted, try Pilate and Herod, from whose tribunal, the
innocent sufferer is again conveyed back to the Judgment Hall of
Pilate, and eventually to Calvary. Thus was the blessed Jesus
led bound by his insulting persecutors, from place to place, and
compelled to walk many a wearisome mile, surrounded by an incensed
rabble, who thirsted for his blood. He was, indeed, taken from
prison and from judgment, but, who shall declare his generation.
We may trace his journeys and count the number of his years on
earth; but, we cannot name the period of time, when he first
began his existence; for he existed as God, from everlasting to
everlasting.[87] We hear the Jews saying "As for this fellow, we
know not whence he is." As man, we see him cut off out of the land
of the living. And the Prophets and Apostles, all join in stating,
that it was "for the transgressions of his people, he was stricken."
They again and again repeat the same sentiment. We are not left
with a solitary proof or two, on a subject of so much importance;
but it is written as with a sunbeam, throughout the whole canon
of scripture. We should never view the sufferings of Jesus,
but in connexion with the precious truth, that it was "for the
transgression of his people he was stricken."
[87] Romans xix. 5. Hebrews xiii. 8.