“He Shall See His Seed”

Isaiah 53:10-12

Beginning with this sentence and going through the rest of the chapter, Isaiah shows us what the certain, just, and inevitable results of Christ’s death must be. Do not ever think that the results of our Lord’s death are uncertain. The Arminian, the freewiller, must say, “There are no sure and certain results of Christ’s death. Everything is left to chance. Everything depends upon what man will do. Everything is determined by man’s will.” Blasphemy! In these lines of inspiration God the Holy Spirit tells us exactly what the results of Christ’s death shall be. It is written, “He shall not fail!” Our Lord’s death was not a gamble, a crap-shoot. He effectually accomplished all that he came here to do. Here we see the infallible efficacy of Christ’s atonement.

“He shall see his seed.” We do not have to guess who his seed are. His seed is the generation (Ps. 22:30) that shall serve him, the whole body of God’s elect. He shall see them, everyone of them, forgiven, justified, regenerated, sanctified, and glorified (John 12:24, 32).

“He shall prolong his days.” That simply means that, once he has by his death fully satisfied the justice of God and put away the sins of his people, he will be raised from the dead to declare in the most public, undeniable manner possible that all for whom he died are forever justified (Rom. 4:25). Being raised from the dead, he shall then be exalted and glorified to give eternal life to all his redeemed ones (John 17:2; Rom. 14:9; Phil. 2:8-11).

“And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.” Do not fail to notice that word shall. Everything that God wants done shall be done by the risen, exalted, glorified Christ. All the pleasure of God’s eternal purpose is being and shall fully be accomplished by King Jesus (Rom. 8:28-39).

“He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied.” There is that word shall again. Twice it is given in this sentence. The Holy Spirit intends for us to understand that there is absolutely no uncertainty about what the consequences of Christ’s atonement are. This text is talking about a satisfied Savior, not a frustrated assistant! When the Word of God talks about the satisfaction of Christ, it is talking about two things: Christ making satisfaction and Christ being satisfied. By his one offering for sin, our Redeemer has completely satisfied the law and justice of God (Gal 3:13; 1 John 1:9). By his sin-atoning death, as our Substitute, our Savior satisfied all types, shadows, and prophecies of the Old Testament Scriptures (Genesis 3:15 - Psalm 22 - Isaiah 53 - Noah’s Ark - The Ram Caught in the Thicket - The Paschal Lamb - The Scapegoat - The Brazen Serpent - The Smitten Rock). The crucified Christ presented to sinners in the gospel satisfies all the demands of a guilty conscience, all the needs of a convicted sinner, and all the desires of a renewed heart (Heb. 9:12-14; 1 Cor. 1:30; Ps. 73:25-26; Phil. 3:7-14). And the Son of God shall be satisfied with his ransomed people. I mean that our Redeemer shall be satisfied with the results of his sin-atoning work as our Substitute. He shall be satisfied because they all shall be perfectly saved (Eph. 5:25-27; Isa. 62:5). He was satisfied with his work when it was done (John 17:4; 19:30). He is satisfied with the reward of his obedience - His Exaltation and Glory (Phil. 2:8-12). He is satisfied with his present position and work as our great High Priest (I John 2:1-2). And the Son of God shall be satisfied when he sees his seed, all his seed saved, completely saved (John 6:37-40): called by his Spirit, converted by his grace, and conformed to his image. He shall be satisfied in that day of the great and glorious resurrection. When time shall be no more, the Lord Jesus shall raise his redeemed up to glory (1 Cor. 15:51-58), declare and display the perfection of their everlasting righteousness in him (Matt. 25:31-34), present to his Father the whole number given to him in election, redeemed by him at Calvary, called by him in grace, and preserved by him in mercy (I Cor. 15:24-28), and, at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, he shall bring us into everlasting blessedness and enjoy everlasting praise from his redeemed ones (Rev. 4:11-12; 5:9-14).

Nothing will satisfy Christ short of the complete salvation of his people (Matt. 1:21). Nothing will satisfy the believer’s heart short of perfect, complete conformity to Christ (Phil. 3:10). And both Christ and his saints shall be satisfied. I am certain that this is the meaning of the phrase “He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied”, because that is what the next phrase declares.

“By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.” All the many whose iniquities Christ bore on the tree shall be (There’s that word again - “shall!”) justified, and they shall be justified by his knowledge. Perhaps that means by the knowledge of him; but I prefer to stick with our translation. Christ shall justify his elect according to his knowledge of those for whom he died (John 10:14, 27-28).

Now look at verse 12. Here the prophet summarizes all that he has said concerning the glorious, infallible efficacy of Christ’s redeeming work as our Substitute. Here is a declaration of Christ exaltation and glory. - "Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong.” Here are the reasons for his exaltation and glory. The Lord Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand of the majesty on high because his work is finished and his work was and is a complete success, “because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." Concerning our Lord’s intercession, John Gill explains that he did this “not merely in a petionary way, but by presenting himself, his blood, righteousness, and sacrifice, pleading the merits of these and calling for, in a way of justice and legal demand, all the blessings which were stipulated in the everlasting covenant, between him and the Father, to be given to his people in consequence of his sufferings and death.” Read John 17:9, 20-24. Christ made intercession for us before the world began. Christ made intercession for us in the garden. Christ made intercession for us on the cross. Christ makes intercession for us today in heaven (I John 2:1-2; Rom. 8:33-34; Heb. 7:24-25; 9:24). And our Redeemer’s intercession is effectual!

Don Fortner