Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied. Isaiah 53:11
In the first ten verses of Isaiah 53, Isaiah has taken us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. But what is He doing now? This is the focus of verse 11 that we are considering today.
What could possibly come out of the appalling suffering of Jesus that would be so good that Jesus would look back at the cross and say that He was satisfied? As wonderful as the resurrection is, it is not an adequate answer to that question.
Think about the holocaust. There were people who survived that awful evil, but no one who endured the holocaust would dream of saying they were satisfied because they survived it.
Something came out of the anguish Jesus suffered that goes beyond mere survival. And what came out of His suffering was so great that He is glad He endured it. Isaiah tells us, later on, that Jesus will, “make many to be accounted righteous” (53:11). Other translations use the word justified. Jesus will justify many.
Isaiah is telling us in this verse that Jesus is satisfied because His people are justified. Out of Jesus’ suffering will come a vast company of redeemed people who are reconciled to God and will enjoy Him forever. And when Jesus looks at all these people, He is satisfied.
What does Jesus’ satisfaction tell you about the value He places on your salvation?
