Fathers

Isaiah 53

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Who has believed our message? To whom has Yahweh’s arm been revealed? For he grew up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground. He has no good looks or majesty. When we see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of suffering and acquainted with disease. He was despised as one from whom men hide their face; and we didn’t respect him. Surely he has borne our sickness and carried our suffering; yet we considered him plagued, struck by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought our peace was on him; and by his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray. Everyone has turned to his own way; and Yahweh has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, yet when he was afflicted he didn’t open his mouth. As a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he didn’t open his mouth. He was taken away by oppression and judgment. As for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living and stricken for the disobedience of my people? They made his grave with the wicked, and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased Yahweh to bruise him. He has caused him to suffer. When you make his soul an offering for sin, he will see his offspring. He will prolong his days and Yahweh’s pleasure will prosper in his hand. After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light and be satisfied. My righteous servant will justify many by the knowledge of himself; and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will give him a portion with the great. He will divide the plunder with the strong; because he poured out his soul to death and was counted with the transgressors; yet he bore the sins of many and made intercession for the transgressors.

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What the Fathers say

Isaiah 53:5

Eastern Fathers

Athanasius of Alexandria

It did not say, "He remedied our infirmities," lest, as being external to the body and only healing it, as he has always done, he should leave people subject still to death. Rather, he carries our infirmities, and he himself bears our sins, that it might be shown that he has become human for us, and that the body that in him bore them was his own body.

Discourses Against the Arians 3.31 ↗

Western Saints

Jerome

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed. LXX: But he was wounded for our sins, and he was weakened for our iniquities. He was wounded for our iniquities, saying in the psalm: They have dug my hands and my feet (Ps. XXI, 18), so that with his wound he might heal our wounds, and he was crushed, or afflicted because of our sins, so that he became a curse for us, to deliver us from the curse. …

Commentary on Isaiah ↗

Gregory the Dialogist

Kish, who is called harsh, signifies not only his elect, but also the Redeemer himself. For no one was harsher toward himself than he. For the prophet, indicating the severity of this harshness, says: "Truly he himself bore our infirmities, and he himself carried our sorrows" (Isa. 53:4). For to die is not to suffer for mortals, who are subject to the suffering of a condemned nature. …

Six Books On 1 Kings 4:80 ↗

Thomas Aquinas

But he was wounded. Here he sets out the fruit of his humiliation or of his passion. And first, he assigns the moving reason: but he was, not as we thought, but wounded, by thorns, nails, and lance, for our iniquities, taking them away, he was bruised, by scourges and blows. Or he was wounded, as to where the previous verse says: he was struck; he was bruised, as to where it says: afflicted: the breath of our mouth, Christ the Lord, is taken in our sins (Lam 4:20). …

Commentary on Isaiah ↗