Salvation for Far-Off Foreign Nations

Scripture: See, my Servant shall prosper; he shall be highly exalted. Yet many shall be amazed when they see him—yes, even far-off foreign nations and their kings; they shall stand dumbfounded, speechless in his presence. For they shall see and understand what they had not been told before. They shall see my Servant beaten and bloodied, so disfigured one would scarcely know it was a person standing there. So shall he cleanse many nations. Isaiah 52:13-15

Observation: It is the famous chapter 53 where the Servant is seen to be beaten, tried, and executed though he be innocent, and the prophet declares this is for the redemption of all mankind ... he has taken the punishment for us. Yet it is the last three verses of chapter 52 that introduce this Servant.

Here, two descriptions contradict one another. The Servant is beaten, bloodied, and disfigured ... however he is also prosperous and highly exalted. In addition, two other outcomes of these descriptions exist, which both relate to kings and nations both foreign and far-off in the future. The Servant will cleanse these many nations, and their people will understand all of this even though they have never been told of it.

Christians stand in the power of this prophesy. Jesus - the promised Servant of God - was beaten and bloodied in a horrible way, and emerged from that victorious over death, lifted into the place of greatest honor. Today, we can believe in the salvation that comes from Jesus receiving this punishment for our sins and be cleansed by it ... it is a faith that we can feel even before we understand it.

Application: I have said before that I often wonder about God's plan of salvation for gentiles. In the bible, we do see Israel as the chosen people, but we clearly see Old Testament nations that believe in God, interact with the Lord, and are even cared for and blessed by Yahweh. Here we explicitly see that the salvation of Jesus was always planned for far-off, foreign nations. It was the plan that we would believe, dumbfounded and speechless by the love of Jesus, understanding our need for and hope in salvation, prepared to honor Messiah when we learn of it.

I am part of the far-off foreign nations. I live a long time in the future from this prophesy, in a land on the other side of the planet from Jerusalem. Jesus died to cleanse me. He took my punishment for sin so I may be blameless before God. Isaiah said so 2,500 years ago.

Prayer: Lord, may I never lose sight of the fact that Jesus died a terrible death for me. My only response can be to live for Jesus. I know I am not worthy of such great love and sacrifice, which makes your mercy all the greater. Thank you for your grace and love. Amen.