Daily Bible CEV April 7 Verses

The Suffering Servant

¹³The LORD says: My servant will succeed!

He will be given great praise and the highest honors.

¹⁴Many were horrified at what happened to him.

But everyone who saw him was even more horrified

because he suffered until he no longer looked human.

¹⁵My servant will make nations worthy to worship me;

kings will be silent as they bow in wonder.

They will see and think about things

they have never seen or thought about before.

What God's Servant Did for Us

Isaiah 53 Has anyone believed us or seen the mighty power

of the LORD in action?

²Like a young plant or a root that sprouts in dry ground,

the servant grew up obeying the LORD.

He wasn't some handsome king.

Nothing about the way he looked made him attractive to us.

³He was hated and rejected;

his life was filled with sorrow and terrible suffering.

No one wanted to look at him. We despised him and said,

"He is a nobody!"

⁴He suffered and endured great pain for us,

but we thought his suffering was punishment from God.

⁵He was wounded and crushed because of our sins;

by taking our punishment, he made us completely well.

⁶All of us were like sheep that had wandered off.

We had each gone our own way,

but the LORD gave him the punishment we deserved.

⁷He was painfully abused, but he did not complain.

He was silent like a lamb being led to the butcher,

as quiet as a sheep having its wool cut off.

⁸He was condemned to death without a fair trial.

Who could have imagined what would happen to him?

His life was taken away because of the sinful things

my people had done.

⁹He wasn't dishonest or violent,

but he was buried in a tomb of cruel and rich people.

¹⁰The LORD decided his servant would suffer as a sacrifice

to take away the sin and guilt of others.

Now the servant will live to see his own descendants.

He did everything the LORD had planned.

¹¹By suffering, the servant will learn the true meaning

of obeying the LORD.

Although he is innocent, he will take the punishment

for the sins of others,

so that many of them will no longer be guilty.

¹²The LORD will reward him with honor and power

for sacrificing his life.

Others thought he was a sinner,

but he suffered for our sins

and asked God to forgive us.

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