Jesus will surprise many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of Him, for what He is, is altogether different from what they imagined. People are surprised to learn that a great person such as Christ was actually a small man who lived in the despised region of Galilee, in the despised city of Nazareth, in the poor home of a carpenter, and that He was rejected and put on the cross and crucified (53:2-10*a).

Visage denotes the appearance and also refers to the face or facial expression. Christ’s face and His form were marred (disfigured) in order that He might save us. This is astonishing, different from what people expected Christ as a servant of God to be.

According to some MSS and ancient versions; other MSS read, you.

Christ has been exalted to the third heavens, to the right hand of God (Phil. 2:9; Heb. 4:14; 7:26; 8:1). He has also been lifted up. Before being exalted and lifted up, Christ was humiliated (v. 14; 53:1-10a; Phil. 2:8).

From the day that He came out to minister on this earth, the Lord Jesus acted wisely and prospered in God’s pleasure (v. 13a; Isa. 53:10b; Matt. 11:19 and note Matt. 11:19^3d). God’s good pleasure was first that the Son would go to the cross and die for God’s chosen people (Matt. 26:39; Heb. 10:5-10) and then that He would rise from the dead to regenerate millions of God’s people to be God’s sons (1 Pet. 1:3; John 20:17). This is the wisdom by which Christ as the Servant of Jehovah acted wisely. Since His ascension Jesus has been acting prudently and wisely on the earth, and in whatever He has done, He has prospered.

Isa. 52:13-15; 53:1-12 reveals Christ as the Servant of Jehovah not in the Old Testament economy but in the New Testament economy, i.e., as God who became a man, who died and resurrected, and who became the life-giving Spirit to enter into His elect and dwell in them as the indwelling Spirit.

Indicating that the vessels of the temple, which had been carried away to Babylon (2 Chron. 36:18; Dan. 1:1-2), would be brought back to Jerusalem (Ezra 1:7-11).

Referring to Babylon. See note Isa. 48:20¹.

See note Isa. 51:9^1b.

This is the announcing of the restoration (Matt. 19:28). Isa. 40:9 speaks of God coming to accomplish redemption unto salvation for His people, whereas this verse, after redemption has been accomplished, announces that in the restoration, the millennial kingdom, God reigns (cf. Rev. 11:15). The reigning God here is the Redeemer, the Savior, mentioned in ch. 40.

The things to be recounted, to be seen, to be heard of, and to be contemplated are the things reported and revealed in ch. 53 concerning Christ in His incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension according to the New Testament gospel.