Making sense of the Servant Songs

Read Isaiah 50:4-9a again.

"I gave my back to those who struck me, and my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard..." (verse 6)

I have always had trouble with the Servant Songs. In part because I don't like to think that such suffering is a requirement of the Christian life. That's because too often in history, people who suffer needlessly (like abused women) have made sense of their situations by framing it as their call. Sometimes the call is to get out of the suffering. A professor reminded me once that Jesus is the only one called to suffer. Sometimes we as human beings suffer as a result of this broken world, but it was not God's intention for us.

I also have trouble with the Servant Songs in Isaiah because the debate is open on whether or not they refer to Jesus Christ; there is an ongoing scholarly debate as to the identity of the Servant. Was it a prediction of Jesus or not? We'll never know. I tend to subscribe to the notion that it was not because I went to a Jewish university and was trained on these texts by Rabbis rather than Christian scholars. BUT, this is the thing...I see these songs as the soil out of which the seed of our Messiah grew up. This poetry of the Old Testament is the nutrients with which we understand Christ. So whether or not these Isaiah passages actually predict the coming of Christ, I'm not sure it even matters because even if it were NOT specific to Jesus, what it says is truthful when it comes to the overall picture of how God works. God takes suffering and turns it into vindication. God calls us to places where we are likely to struggle. The call of discipleship often comes at a great personal cost. God takes what is weak and uses it in unexpected and amazing ways. And this song is one aspect of earthen soil from which our Messiah as seed, sprouted and grew. This is just my take and there a good many who would disagree. What do you make of these songs?

Reflection

• Scriptural poetry like this deals in humiliation. What unsettles you or strengthens you in these lines?
• Who is called to suffer?

Prayer

God who suffered willingly for us, we give our unending thanks for your walk before us so that in our own days of trial and pain, we know you went first. In the name of your Son, Amen.