Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. Isaiah 53:4-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The original Hebrew words, translated in the King James Bible as "grief" and "sorrows" are better translated as "disease" and "sicknesses". The King James translators got it right in Matthew 8:17.-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses." Matthew 8:17------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------A better translation of Isaiah 53 can be found in the Jewish Tanakh translation as follows-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3 He was despised, and forsaken of men, a man of pains, and [acquainted with disease], and as one from whom men hide their face: he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 [Surely our diseases he did bear], and our pains he carried; whereas we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. .....10 [Yet it pleased the LORD to crush him by disease;] to see if his soul would offer itself in restitution, that he might see his seed, prolong his days, and that the purpose of the LORD might prosper by his hand: Isaiah 53:3-4, 10---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"Yet it pleased the LORD to crush him by disease." is translated in the King James as-"Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief".The word translated as "Grief" in the original Hebrew is-chalahkhaw-law'Outline of Biblical Usage 1) to be or become weak, be or become sick, be or become diseased, be or become grieved, be or become sorrya) (Qal) to be weak, be sick
(Piel)1) to be or become weak, feel weak2) to become sick, become ill3) (CLBL) to entreat, pray, begc) (Niphal)1) to make oneself sick2) to be made sick3) to be tiredd) (Pual) to be made weak, become weake) (Hithpael) to make oneself sickf) (Hiphil)1) to make sore2) to make sick3) to show signs of sickness, become sick4) to grieveg) (Hophal)1) to be made sick2) to be woundedAuthorized Version (KJV) Translation Count — Total: 75 AV — ...sick 34, beseech 6, be weak 4, grievous 4, be diseased 3, wounded 3, pray 3, intreat 3, grief 2, grieved 2, sore 2, pain 1, infirmity 1, intreated 1, laid 1, prayer 1, sorry 1, make suit 1, supplication 1, travail 1 We can also look to the messianic psalm 41:4-9 quoted in John 13:18----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"The LORD will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing: thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness. I said, LORD, be merciful unto me: heal my soul; for I have sinned against thee. Mine enemies speak evil of me, When shall he die, and his name perish? And if he come to see me, he speaketh vanity: his heart gathereth iniquity to itself; when he goeth abroad, he telleth it. All that hate me whisper together against me: against me do they devise my hurt. {An evil disease, say they, cleaveth fast unto him: and now that he lieth he shall rise up no more.] Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me." Psalm 41: 4-9----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me. John 13:18---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------From this comes the Oral tradition of the Rabbis, The Leper Messiah. The following is an essay be Fred Klett.-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The Curious Idea of the "Leper Messiah" When one studies rabbinic ideas of the Messiah one comes upon a very curious idea: Messiah is a Leper! Where does this idea come from? We'll tell you below, but first consider some of the rabbinic references.Babylonian Talmud: "The Messiah --what is his name?...The Rabbis say, The Leper Scholar, as it is said, `surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him a leper, smitten of God and afflicted...'" (Sanhedrin 98b) The Talmud also "records" a supposed discourse between the great Rabbi Joshua ben Levi and the prophet Elijah. The rabbi asks "When will the Messiah come?" And "By what sign may I recognize him?" Elijah tells the rabbi to go to the gate of the city where he will find the Messiah sitting among the poor lepers. The Messiah, says the prophet, sits bandaging his leprous sores one at a time, unlike the rest of the sufferers, who bandage them all at once. Why? Because he might be needed at any time and would not want to be delayed. Elijah says he will come "Today, if you will listen to his voice." (Sanhedrin 98a)There is also a strange story about the Baal Shem Tov, founder of the Hasidic movement. One day the rabbi was riding with a young student. He stopped his wagon at the hut of an old leper, horribly affected by the disease. The rabbi climbed down and spent a great deal of time with the poor man. When he returned to the wagon and recommenced his journey, the puzzled student asked the rabbi who it was that the rabbi had visited with. The rabbi replied that in every generation there is a Messiah who will reveal himself if the generation is worthy. The leper he had been meeting with was that Messiah, but the generation was not worthy, so the Messiah would depart. (Quoted in The Messiah Texts, by Raphael Patai, page 31.)Where did this "Leper Messiah" idea come from? This odd concept must have arisen from the rabbis as they struggled with Isaiah 53. They either saw the Messiah's sufferings as leprosy or split the Messiah in two, one a sufferer and one a conqueror. (See the section on the "Two-Messiahs" theory.) The Hebrew words in Isaiah 53:4, stricken (nagua) and smitten (mukkay) are interpreted as referring to a leprous condition. Either word can refer to being stricken with a disease, yet they need not be understood in that way, much like our English work "stricken" can refer to stricken with disease or just simply stricken, as with a fist. Either way, Jesus was stricken. He was certainly made sick by the Roman floggings and beatings and the tortuous ordeal of crucifixion. He was certainly stricken with the Roman lash. As a leper was despised and rejected of men, so also was the Messiah despised and rejected. And still today there are many who see Jesus as being as repugnant as leprosy and his followers as those who should be isolated and shunned.To the followers of the Suffering One, his afflictions, described in Isaiah 53, are the agonies of one dying to provide atonement. The lamb being led to slaughter envisioned by Isaiah is described as one punished in the place of his people. Jesus, the true Messiah, came as the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." His crucifixion provided a substitutionary sacrifice adequate to fulfill the punishment we all deserve. Let us praise the God of Israel, our Redeemer, who has provided his Messiah to take the just punishment for his people so that we might be forgiven our sins! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------© 1997 Fred Klett--------------------------------------------------------------------------------"And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself: whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country." Luke 4:23Daniel FreemanSodom, CABabylon the Great
