The Meaning of Isaiah 53:10 Explained

Isaiah 53:10

KJV: Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.

YLT: And Jehovah hath delighted to bruise him, He hath made him sick, If his soul doth make an offering for guilt, He seeth seed -- he prolongeth days, And the pleasure of Jehovah in his hand doth prosper.

Darby: Yet it pleased Jehovah to bruise him; he hath subjected him to suffering. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see a seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of Jehovah shall prosper in his hand.

ASV: Yet it pleased Jehovah to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his'seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of Jehovah shall prosper in his hand.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Yet it pleased  the LORD  to bruise  him; he hath put [him] to grief:  when thou shalt make  his soul  an offering for sin,  he shall see  [his] seed,  he shall prolong  [his] days,  and the pleasure  of the LORD  shall prosper  in his hand. 

What does Isaiah 53:10 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The apparent miscarriage of justice just described ( Isaiah 53:9) would not be what it would appear to be. It would be the deliberate act of Yahweh. It would please Yahweh to crush His Servant and to put Him to grief. The Father did not find the sufferings and death of His Son something pleasurable (or enjoyable) to behold, but they pleased (satisfied) Him because they fulfilled His great purpose of providing redemption for humankind.
"The faithful God of the Bible would certainly not visit bad things on innocent people, would he? Yes, he would if some greater good would be served (cf. Job)." [1]
The greater good in this case was that the Servant would be the perfect and final guilt (trespass) offering for sin thus taking away the sins of the world ( John 1:29). The subject of this sentence, "He" or "His soul," may be Yahweh or the Servant. The point is moot, however, because both Yahweh and the Servant made the Servant an offering for sin. The guilt offering in Israel made reparation, compensation, and satisfaction ( Leviticus 5:1-13). Rather than dying childless, Yahweh would bless the Servant with many spiritual children, future believers (cf. Isaiah 53:8). He would also prolong His days by resurrecting Him (cf. Isaiah 53:9).
"Only his bodily resurrection could serve to fulfill such a prediction as this." [2]
"The Old Testament testifies uniformly that the dead are alive, and in this sense it is no surprise to find the Servant alive after death. But things are said about him after death that set him apart from all others." [3]
Seeing one"s offspring was a blessing on those whom God favored (cf. Psalm 127:3-5; Psalm 128:6; Proverbs 17:6), as was living a long life (cf. Psalm 21:4; Psalm 34:12; Proverbs 3:2). The Servant would also accomplish Yahweh"s good purpose for His life (cf. Isaiah 52:13; Isaiah 55:11; Joshua 1:7; 2 Chronicles 20:20; Psalm 1:3; John 17:4). Thus the Servant"s life would not be futile after all.

Context Summary

Isaiah 53:1-12 - The Rejected And Suffering Redeemer
The common lot of man may be summed up in three words: suffering, sin, and death. Our Lord, the Divine Servant, presents a notable exception to the rest of the race-not in His sufferings, Isaiah 53:3; not in His death, for He died many deaths in one, Isaiah 53:9, r.v. margin, but in His perfect innocence and goodness. His sufferings were due to sins not His own, Romans 5:8. We must make His soul our guilt offering, Isaiah 53:10, r.v. margin. It is the same word as is used in Leviticus 5:1-16. There is no need to summon the aid of another. Do it for yourself!
Jesus shall one day be satisfied. In the glory that shall accrue to the Father; in the redemption of untold myriads; in the character of the redeemed; in the destruction of the results of the Fall, we shall hear His sigh of content and see the triumph on His face. We shall witness His transference of the kingdom to the Father, 1 Corinthians 15:24. We shall behold the satisfactory termination of the mystery of evil. If He is satisfied, we shall be! [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 53

1  The prophet, complaining of incredulity, excuses the scandal of the cross
4  By the benefit of his passion
10  And the good success thereof

What do the individual words in Isaiah 53:10 mean?

Yet Yahweh it pleased to bruise Him He has put [Him] to grief when You make an offering for sin His soul He shall see [His] seed He shall prolong [His] days and the pleasure of Yahweh in His hand shall prosper
וַיהוָ֞ה חָפֵ֤ץ דַּכְּאוֹ֙ הֶֽחֱלִ֔י אִם־ תָּשִׂ֤ים אָשָׁם֙ נַפְשׁ֔וֹ יִרְאֶ֥ה זֶ֖רַע יַאֲרִ֣יךְ יָמִ֑ים וְחֵ֥פֶץ יְהוָ֖ה בְּיָד֥וֹ יִצְלָֽח

וַיהוָ֞ה  Yet  Yahweh 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
חָפֵ֤ץ  it  pleased 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: חָפֵץ 
Sense: to delight in, take pleasure in, desire, be pleased with.
דַּכְּאוֹ֙  to  bruise  Him 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Infinitive construct, third person masculine singular
Root: דָּכָא  
Sense: to crush, be crushed, be contrite, be broken.
הֶֽחֱלִ֔י  He  has  put  [Him]  to  grief 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: חָלָה 
Sense: to be or become weak, be or become sick, be or become diseased, be or become grieved, be or become sorry.
תָּשִׂ֤ים  You  make 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: שׂוּמָה 
Sense: to put, place, set, appoint, make.
אָשָׁם֙  an  offering  for  sin 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אָשָׁם  
Sense: guilt, offense, guiltiness.
נַפְשׁ֔וֹ  His  soul 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.
יִרְאֶ֥ה  He  shall  see 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: רָאָה 
Sense: to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider.
זֶ֖רַע  [His]  seed 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: זֶרַע  
Sense: seed, sowing, offspring.
יַאֲרִ֣יךְ  He  shall  prolong 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָרַךְ 
Sense: to be long, prolong.
יָמִ֑ים  [His]  days 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
וְחֵ֥פֶץ  and  the  pleasure 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: חֵפֶץ  
Sense: delight, pleasure.
יְהוָ֖ה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
בְּיָד֥וֹ  in  His  hand 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
יִצְלָֽח  shall  prosper 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: צָלַח 
Sense: (Qal) to rush.