Here is a prophecy of the sufferings of the dying Messiah. At the very last, the Father takes upon Himself the ultimate responsibility for all that has happened. "You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above" said Jesus to Pilate, (John 19.11 RSV). The Father, Creator and sustainer of all things, declares His acceptance of responsibility for everything that happens in His creation. God is not the author of sin but takes responsibility for the fact that sin is allowed to remain in the world and evil men are permitted to practise evil deeds. He could end all that in a moment by the exercise of His will, but Jesus knows that the eventual outcome will justify the wisdom of the course He is taking. So it is true to say that it pleased the Lord to bruise Him in the sense that the Father deliberately allowed that "bruising" to take place, and did not lift a finger to stop it. None would claim that God took pleasure in the harrowing scenes of the trial and crucifixion, but we ought to realise that God did look upon the whole transaction with the serenity of infinite wisdom, knowing that the end of the story would be glory. And in the meantime He gave strength and comfort to the Son as He drank to the bitter end the cup which He had poured for Him. Father and Son were in complete harmony and full understanding the one with the other during the whole of that dark time.

This is when Jesus uttered the sad words "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here and watch with me" (Matt. 26.38). It is so easy to assume that Jesus was troubled in mind at the thought of the physical sufferings He was so shortly to endure. One wonders if our thinking has not been altogether along wrong lines, unduly influenced by what would undoubtedly have been our own reaction under similar circumstances. Jesus' outlook was different from that of sinful man and He had a wider mental horizon than any other. He had lived before the world was; the whole wide creation of God had been His sphere of action. Even in the bitter moments of the betrayal, the trial, and the crucifixion, that fact must have made an inestimable difference. Men who enter into what they know is to be suffering ended by death cannot visualize, because they do not know, what lies beyond death. Jesus did know, and His knowledge of the other world must have been a wonderful stay and strength in the midst of His physical suffering. But there was another suffering to be endured, one that perhaps was much more crucial to Him. How would His disciples behave after He was gone? Would they show themselves men of stamina and courage to continue the work He had begun? He must of necessity leave them to plant the seed of His word in the world after His death and in the power of His Spirit lay the foundations of the Church, without which God's purpose for all mankind could not go into effect. Were they capable of discharging the commission He must now leave to them? Were these the thoughts which caused Jesus' soul to be "exceeding sorrowful, even unto death?" The men He had chosen were so little conscious of the position in which their Master was placed that they could sleep soundly while He endured His Gethsemane agonies. In a few hours' time one of them was going to deny Him in public and they were all going to forsake Him and flee for their lives. Was this the cup He had to drink and from which He desired to be saved if it were the Father's will? If so, the expression "he has put him to grief" takes on a new and a terrible significance. That grief was caused, not by the Master's enemies, but by His own disciples. He might reasonably have expected to yield up His human life on the Cross fortified and comforted by the presence of the twelve who had continued with Him in His trials. He might have hoped that the last sight His eyes would behold as the shades of death came down would be the stalwart company of men who were to proclaim and establish His message in the world. But it was not to be; there were just a few women and the faithful John. It cannot be held that Jesus lost faith, even for one moment, during that climax to all His sufferings; but that He must have suffered intense grief at the defection of those who should have been His comforters during that time is undeniable.

It was at this moment that Jesus uttered the oft-misunderstood cry "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Whatever Jesus meant by the words, He could not have meant that He had any doubt as to His Father's continued favour and strength. To His last moment He knew that God was with Him. Rather it is that Jesus uttered the words as an affirmation in the sight of all spectators that His faith still held. Jesus deliberately quoted the opening verse of Psalm 22. Now that fact is of great significance for it is a very special psalm. It is the traditional psalm sung or quoted by Israel when hard pressed by their enemies, when escape seemed hopeless and death stared them in the face. The first 18 verses of the psalm are eloquent of despair, as though God had deserted His people and left them to their fate. Then verses 19-22 express the continued faith of Israel, that despite the apparent indifference of God, He does care and is mindful of His people's plight, and will eventually deliver. Finally, vv 23-31 tell of deliverance accomplished, the enemies of Israel scattered, and the people of God triumphantly exalted. It thus follows that the crying out of the first verse of Psalm 22 at a time of extremity was tantamount to an avowal of faith that, despite the apparent hopelessness of the case, God would surely deliver at the end.

When Jesus cried the words, they conveyed to the listeners His implicit faith that although He was going down into the darkness of death, He knew that the Father would raise Him from the dead and exalt Him to His own right hand. Like Israel in their battles, the enemies had for the moment gained the upper hand and there was no immediate salvation from their murderous designs; He must inevitably perish at their hands. But that was not the end; as a witness to that sure fact He cried the words which told all Israel of His faith that "the third day he shall rise again"

"He shall see of the fruit of the travail of his soul, and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to become righteous; and he shall bear their iniquities" (v.11).

When the Creator of all things stood and viewed all that He had made, He pronounced it "very good". By how much more shall our Lord be satisfied when he sees the glorious consummation of His redemptive work?

It is a most important principle that God looked upon His creation in the days of Adam's sinless perfection and it was satisfactory. After the Fall He was not satisfied and He did not intend to leave matters there. He put into operation the great Plan of redemption of which Jesus is the central figure. The serpent was to bruise the heel of the seed; but the seed was to bruise the head of the serpent—to destroy it. That was the promise given in Eden, and although many years were to pass, God was not indifferent. At the right time the work of deliverance began.

Here in Isa.53 11 that work has ended. The Deliverer looks back upon the dark story of the past, and views the glorious reconciliation of "whosoever will" to the Father. All that mankind has achieved during the Millennial Age, 'a thousand years of trial', has been in consequence of the "travail of his soul". All that ascends to God in praise and worship from the multitudes of redeemed humanity is the direct result of the "travail of his soul". The happiness and the loyalty of all mankind, the beauty and the glory of the restored and everlasting Earth, the peace and harmony of a creation ordering its course as God desires it, has come about because of the "travail of his soul". So when our Redeemer looks upon the human creation made perfect through willing acceptance of His sacrifice on their behalf, He will he satisfied. As He enters communion with the glorified body of saints, His Church, "changed" to be like Him and with Him where He is, He will be satisfied. Fruits of God's plan will be sources of satisfaction to the One who suffered and died for us that we might live for ever with him.