How does Isaiah 53:8 show that the death of Jesus should not be considered as atonement for the sins of humankind? Read on to find out.
Answer:
Verse 8, a statement made by the enemies of the suffering servant of the Lord, shows that Jesus could not be the suffering servant.
Christians allege that Jesus suffered as atonement for mankind's sins. It would appear from the New Testament that Jesus became flesh and blood, that is, a human being, in order to pay the ransom for sins and bring redemption through blood sacrifice as required by the Law of Moses. For example, Paul writes in Colossians, "we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins" (1:14) and "through the blood of his cross" (1:20) and "in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblamable and unreprovable in his sight" (1:22). He also states, "But now, in Christ Jesus, you who sometimes were far off are made close by the blood of' Christ" (Ephesians 1:13). Thus, it is alleged that "the man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5) suffered as atonement for mankind's sins through the shedding of the human blood of his human flesh. It is not his alleged divinity that was supposedly sacrificed but his humanity.
This presents a problem for Psalms 49:8 (verse 7 in some versions) declares, "No man can by any means redeem his brother, or give to God a ransom for him." Yet, it is precisely through his humanity that Jesus would have to offer himself as a redemption or ransom. Are the psalmist's words "no man can by any means" confined solely to ordinary man? If Jesus was fully human while still allegedly being divine, then he was a man in every way understood within the context of the psalm. Then, in no way can he redeem mankind or give himself to God as a ransom for mankind through the means of his human nature or his supposed divine nature.