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The purpose of this appendix is to present a number of Rabbinical views on the fourth "suffering servant song," Isaiah 52:13-53:12. As you will see, there were differing opinions on this portion of scripture. However, the Messianic application of Isaiah 52-53 by the ancients was certainly a majority opinion.
"Behold, my servant Messiah shall prosper; he shall be high and increase, and be exceedingly strong."
"He [Messiah] shall save them from the servitude of the nations, they shall see the punishment of their enemies and be seated with the spoil of their kings. By his wisdom he shall vindicate the meritorious, in order to bring many to be subservient to the Torah, and he shall seek forgiveness for their sins. Then I will apportion unto him the spoil of great nations, and he shall divide as spoil the wealth of mighty cities, because he was ready to suffer martyrdom that the rebellious might subjugate to the Torah. And he shall seek pardon for the sins of many, and for his sake the rebellious shall be forgiven.
Babylonian Talmud folio 98b
"The Messiah-what is his name?...The Rabbis say, 'The leprous one; those of the house of Rabbi say, 'The sick one,' as it is said,
'Surely he hath borne our sicknesses,' etc...
[4]"
Midrash Ruth Rabbah
"Another explanation (of
Ruth 2:14): He is speaking of the King Messiah: 'Come hither,' draw near to the throne; 'and eat of the bread,' that is, the bread of the kingdom; 'and dip thy morsel in the vinegar,' this refers to the chastisements, as it is said,
'But he was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities' "
[5]
Yalqut ii57I
"Who art thou, O great mountain? (
Zech. 4:7) This refers to the King Messiah. And why does he call him 'the great mountain?' Because he is greater than the patriarchs, as it is said,
'My servant shall be high, and lifted up, and lofty exceedingly'; he will be higher than Abraham, who says, 'I raise high my hands unto the Lord' (
Gen. 14:22); lifted up above Moses, to whom it is said, 'Lift it up into thy bosom' (Num. 11:123); loftier than the ministering angels, of whom it is written, 'Their wheels were lofty and terrible' (
Ez. 1:1). And out of whom does he come forth? Out of David (
Ps. 2:6). According to another view this means, 'I have woven him,' cf. Jud. 16:14: i.e., I have drawn him out of the chastisements. Rabbi Huna, on the authority of Rabbi Aha, says,
'The chastisements are divided into three parts: one for David and the fathers, one for our own generation, and one for the King Messiah; and this is that which is written, 'He was wounded for our transgressions,' etc."
[6]
"How much more, then, will the King Messiah, who endures affliction and pains for the transgressors, as it is written, 'He was wounded,' etc., justify all generations! And this is what is meant when it is said, 'And the Lord made the iniquity of us all meet upon him.'"
Thanhuma[8]
"Rabbi Nachman says, 'The word 'man' in the passage, every man a head of the house of his fathers (
Num. 1:4), refers to the Messiah the son of David, as it is written, 'Behold the man whose name is 'Zemah' (the branch), where Yonathan interprets, Behold the man Messiah (
Zech. 6:12); and so it is said, '
a man of pains' and known to sickness.'"
P'Siqtha (According to Hulsius)[9]
"The Holy One brought forth the soul of the Messiah, and said to him, 'Art thou willing to be created and to redeem my sons after 6000 years?' He replied, 'I am.' God replied, 'If so, thou must take upon thyself chastisements in order to wipe away their iniquity, as it is written, 'Surely our sicknesses he hath carried.' The Messiah answered, 'I will take them upon me gladly.'"
Zohar, Section 
"There is in the garden of Eden a palace called the Palace of the sons of sickness: this palace the Messiah then enters and summons every sickness, every pain, and every chastisement of Israel; they come and rest upon him. And were it not that he had thus lightened them off Israel and taken them upon himself, there had been no man able to bear Israel's chastisements for transgression of the law: and this is that which is written, 'Surely our sicknesses he hath carried.' "
Yepheth Ben 'Ali[10]
"Others of them think the subject of it (
Isaiah 53) to be David and the Messiah, saying all the expressions of contempt, such as 'many were desolated at thee,' refer to the seed of David who are in exile; and all the glorious things, such as
'behold my servant will be prosperous' and 'so shall he sprinkle', refer to the Messiah. As to myself, I am inclined, with Benjamin of Nehawend, to regard it as alluding to the Messiah, and as opening with a description of his condition in exile, from the time of his birth to his accession to the throne: for the prophet begins by his being seated in a position of great honour, and then goes back to relate all that will happen to him during the captivity. He thus gives us to understand two things: In the first instance, that the Messiah will only reach his highest degree of honour after long and severe trials; and secondly, that these trials will be sent upon him as a kind of sign,
so that, if he finds himself under the yoke of misfortunes whilst remaining pure in his actions, he may know that he is the desired one, as we shall explain in the course of this section. The expression
'my servant' is applied to the Messiah as it is applied to his ancestor in the verse, 'I have sworn to David my servant' (
Ps. 84:4)...By the words
'surely he hath carried our sicknesses,' they mean that the pains and sicknesses which he fell into were merited by them, but that he bore them instead: the next words
'yet we did esteem him,' etc., intimate that they thought him afflicted by God for his own sins, as they distinctly say,
'smitten of God and afflicted.' And here I think it necessary to pause for a few moments, in order to explain why God caused these sicknesses to attach themselves to the Messiah for the sake of Israel...Inasmuch now as at the end of captivity there will be no
prophet to intercede at the time of distress, the time of the Lord's anger and of his fury, God appoints his servant to carry their sins, and by doing so lighten their punishment in order that Israel might not be completely exterminated. Thus from the words 'he was wounded for our transgressions', we learn two things: 1) that Israel had committed many sins and transgressions, for which they deserved the indignation of God; 2) that by the Messiah bearing them they would be delivered from the wrath which rested upon them, and be able to endure it, as it is said, 'And by associating with him we are healed.' God will indeed afflict the Messiah with longer and severer sicknesses than Ezekiel."
Mysteries of Rabbi Shim'on Ben Yohai
(Compiled in the Eleventh Century)[11]
"And Armilaus will join the battle with Messiah, the son of Ephraim, in the East gate...and Messiah, the son of Ephraim, will die there, and Israel will mourn for him. And afterwards the Holy One will reveal to them Messiah, the son of David, whom Israel will desire to stone, saying, Thou speakest falsely; already the Messiah is slain, and there is none other Messiah to stand up (after him): and so they will despise him, as it is written,
'Despised and forlorn of men'; but he will turn and hide himself from them, according to the words,
'Like one hiding his face from us.'"[12]
Rabbi Mosheh Ben Nachman(1250-1270 C.E.)[13]
"The right view respecting this Parashah is to suppose that by the phrase 'my servant' the whole of Israel is meant, as in
Isaiah 44:2, and often. As a different opinion however is adopted by the Midrash, which refers it to the Messiah, it is necessary for us to explain it in conformity with the view there maintained. The prophet says, The Messiah, the son of David, of whom the text speaks, will never be conquered or perish by the hands of his enemies. And in fact, the text teaches this clearly.
[14] In agreement with the words of Daniel, Isaiah says the Messiah, the servant of the Lord, will understand: he will perceive the end, and forthwith will rise up and be exalted, and his heart will be 'lofty in the ways of the Lord' (
2 Chronicles 17:6) to go and gather the outcasts of Israel, 'not by strength and not
by might, but by his spirit' (
Zech. 4:6), trusting in the Lord, after the manner of that first redeemer who came with Pharaoh with his staff and scrip (cf.
1 Sam. 17:40), and smote his land with the 'rod of his mouth' (
Isa. 11:4). And so it is said in the Midrash, 'He will be higher than Abraham, more exalted than Moses, and loftier than the Ministering angels'; the Messiah, that is, will be higher than Abraham, who was an expounder of the belief in God and, in spite of the opposition of the king, gained proselytes in the land of Nimrod: for the Messiah will do more than he did; he will proselytize many nations. And he will be more exalted than Moses: Moses went in unto Pharaoh, the great and wicked king, who said, I know not the Lord (
Ex. 5:2), and, although only a shepherd and the humblest of
men, was not afraid of him, brought forth his people out of the 'furnace of iron' (
Deut. 4:20,
Jer. 11:4). But the Messiah will do more than Moses: for he will stir himself up against the kings of the whole world, so as to bring forth Israel from their hands, and to execute vengeance upon the Gentiles. And he will be loftier than the ministering angels, for although they exert themselves diligently in the redemption of Israel (like Michael,
Daniel 10:20,21), yet the Messiah will achieve more than the whole of them together. And wisdom will accompany this elevation of the Messiah, and his nearness to God: for neither Abraham, whom the glorious and fearful Name speak of as his friend (
Isaiah 41:8), and with whom also he made a covenant; nor Moses, who was nearer to the Deity than any man; nor the ministering
angels, who >stand round about him on his right hand and on his left' (
1 Kings 22:19), approach so closely to the knowledge of the Almighty as the Messiah; for of him it is written that he 'came to the Ancient of days', and that they 'brought him near before him' (
Daniel 7:13), but of the angels it is only said that 'ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him...' The text continues, referring still to
the Messiah,
'As many were astonished by thee.' Their astonishment was shewn by mocking him when he first arrived, and by asking how one 'despised', 'meek and riding upon an ass' (
Zech. 9:9) could conquer all those kings of the world who had laid hold of Israel, and rescue him from their hand...For in the beginning he was 'like a small tree' springing up
'out of the dry
earth,' which never grows great enough to put forth boughs and to bear fruit: he was
'despised', for he had no army and no people, but was 'meek and riding upon an ass,' like the first redeemer Moses, our master, when he entered with his wife and children upon an ass (
Ex. 4:2)...
'He was oppressed and he was afflicted': for when he first comes,[15] 'meek and riding upon an ass', the oppressors and officers of every city will come to him, and will afflict him with revilings and with insults, reproaching both him and the God in whose name he appears, like Moses our master...The prophet continues: 'And because he was numbered with the transgressor,' expected, as I have stated, to be reckoned amongst them, 'and carried the sin of many' --what happened to him at that time was not for his own sins, but for the sins of
others--'and for the transgressors,' i.e. (according to what is said above, verse 6) 'allowed' the iniquity of sinners and transgressors 'to light' upon himself."
Rabbi Mosheh Kohen Ibn Crispin[16]
"This Parashah the commentators agree in explaining of the captivity of Israel, although the singular number is used in it throughout. The expression 'my servant' they compare rashly with
Isaiah 41:8, 'thou Israel art my servant,' where the prophet is speaking of the people of Israel (which would be singular); here, however, he does not mention Israel, but says simply 'my servant'; we cannot therefore understand the word in the same sense. Again in
Isaiah 49:8 he addresses the whole nation by the name of their father Israel (or Jacob, as he continues, 'Jacob whom have chosen', but here he says 'my servant' alone, and universally employs the singular, and as there is no cause constraining us to do so, why should we interpret the word collectively and distort the passage from its natural sense? Others have supposed it to mean the just in this present world, who are
crushed and oppressed now, but who in the future will have understanding, and 'shine as the brightness of the firmament' (
Daniel 12:3): but these too, for the same reason, by altering their number, distort the verses of their natural meaning. As then it seemed to me that the doors of the literal interpretation were shut in their face, and that 'they wearied themselves to find the entrance',
having forsaken the knowledge of our Teachers, and inclined after the 'stubbornness of their own hearts' and of their own opinion, I am pleased to interpret it, in accordance with the teaching of our rabbis, of the King Messiah, and will be careful, so far as I am able, to adhere to the literal sense: thus possibly, I shall be free from the forced and farfetched interpretations of which others have been guilty. This prophecy was delivered by Isaiah at the divine command for the purpose of making known to us something about the nature of the
future Messiah, who is to come and to deliver Israel, and his life from the day he arrives at discretion until his advent as a redeemer, in order that if anyone should arise claiming to be himself the Messiah, we may reflect, and look to see whether we can observe in him any resemblance to the traits described here: if there is any such resemblance then we may believe that he is the Messiah our righteousness; but if not, we cannot do so...The explanation of this Parashah, referring to the Messiah speedily to be revealed in our own days, is now completed."
Rabbi Mosheh El-Sheikh[17]
"[regarding
Isaiah 53] I may remark then, that our Rabbis with one voice accept and affirm the opinion that the prophet is speaking of the King Messiah, and we ourselves shall adhere to the same view."
Rabbi Sh' Muel Lanyado[18]
"'My servant', i.e., the King Messiah,
'shall be high and exalted and lofty exceedingly' --he shall be higher than Abraham, of whom it is written, 'I raise high my hand to the Lord' (
Gen. 14:22)...The opinions of our wise men on the interpretation of this verse have now been discussed: but we do not gather clearly from their language whether they are speaking of Messiah son of Ephraim [the Suffering Servant], or of Messiah son of David. The same doubt is suggested by Abarbanel, who thinks however that the former cannot be intended; for how, he asks, could it be said of him that he will
'be high and exalted, and lofty exceedingly'? If on the contrary, we refer the prophecy to Messiah son of David, there is difficulty in the expression
'marred beyond man'; for Isaiah says., 'Behold my servant, whom I uphold; my chosen one in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him'
(
Isaiah 52:1). And again, 'And a rod shall come forth out of the stem of Jesse' (
Isaiah 11:1) how, too, can he say of him,
'stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted,' for Messiah son of David will be 'just and victorious' (
Zech. 9:9), and so far from being 'despised and forlorn of men', that 'unto him will the Gentiles seek' (
Isaiah 11:10)? Nor are the other verses applicable to him, which declare how he will endure sufferings and death for Israel's sake"
Notice here the rabbis difficulty in applying this prophecy to the two Messiahs. A Messiah (Messiah Ben Joseph) who comes and who is simply rejected, then suffers and dies, cannot completely fulfill the prophecy. Furthermore, a Messiah (Messiah Ben David) who comes and is exalted and lofty, without suffering death, cannot fully fulfill the passages either! However, this vignette (Isaiah 52:12-53:12) can easily be understood if a single Messiah is both despised and rejected at one appearance and exalted and exceedingly lofty at another appearance!
Rabbi Naphtali Ben Asher Altschuler[19]
"I will now proceed to explain these verses of our own Messiah, who, God willing, will come speedily in our days! I am surprised that Rashi and Rabbi David Kimchi have not, with the Targum, applied them to the Messiah likewise...but he the Messiah suffered in order that by his sufferings atonement might be made for the whole of Israel, as it is said of the prophet Micah, that the blood issuing from him made atonement for all Israel. The sickness which ought to have fallen on us was borne by him: the prophet means to say, when Messiah Ben Joseph shall die between the gates, and be a marvel in the eyes of creation, why must the penalty be so severe? What is his sin, and what is his transgression, except that he will bear the chastisements of Israel, according to the words, 'smitten of God.' Others consider that the passage speaks of the Messiah who is smitten 'now' with the pains of the world to come as it stands in the Gemara and endures the sufferings of Israel.
'And yet we'--it is Israel who are speaking--thought that he had been hated of God. But it was not so: he was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities, and 'the chastisement' which was afterwards to secure our peace was upon him..."
Rabbi Mosheh Ben Maimon[20]
"What is to be the manner of the Messiah's advent, and where will be the place of his first appearance...and Isaiah speaks similarly of the time when he will appear without his mother or father or family being known, 'He came up as a sucker (infant) before him, and as a root out of dry earth,' etc., in the words of Isaiah, when describing the manner in which the kings will hearken to him, 'At him the kings will shut their mouth; for that which they have not heard they have perceived.'
Sepher Ha-Gilgalim[21]
"You must know that the soul of celestial splendor no created being in the world has ever yet been worthy to obtain: the King Messiah, however, will receive it: it is accordingly said of him, 'He shall be high and exalted', etc., or as our rabbis say, 'He shall be higher than Abraham, exceedingly above Adam!' "
Yalqut Hadash[22]
"Forthwith the Messiah proceeds into one of the palaces in Paradise called the Palace of the Children of Sickness; he enters thither and invites all the pains and sufferings of Israel to come and rest upon him. And did he not in this way lighten them off Israel, there would be no man in the whole world able to bear the punishment incurred for the transgressions of the Law; while Israel were in their own land they freed themselves from such sicknesses and other punishments by means of offerings, but now the Messiah frees them from them, as it is written, 'He was wounded for our transgressions.'"
Herz Homberg[23]
"This prophecy is disconnected with what precedes it. According to the opinion of Rashi and Ibn Ezra, it relates to Israel at the end of their captivity; the term
'servant' and the use of the singular number referring to the individual members of the nation. But if so, what can be the meaning of the passage,
'He was wounded for our transgressions', etc.? Who was
'wounded'? Who are the
'transgressors' Who 'carried' the sickness and 'bare' the pains? And where are the sick? Are they not the same as those who are
'smitten' and who 'bear'? An if
'each turned to his own way,' upon whom did
'the Lord lay the iniquity of them all?' The Ga'on, Rabbi Sa'adyah, explains the whole Parashah of Jeremiah: and there are indeed numerous parts of scripture in which we can trace a great resemblance to what befell Jeremiah while persecuted by the false prophets. But the
commencement of the prophecy,
'He shall be high and exalted and lofty exceedingly,'and similarly the words
'with the mighty he shall divide the spoil,' will not admit of being applied to him.
The fact is that it refers to the King Messiah, who will come in the latter days, when it will be the Lord's good pleasure to redeem Israel from among the different nations of the earthYand even the Israelites themselves will only regard him as 'one of the vain fellows', believing none of the announcements which will be made by him in God's name, but being contumacious against him, and averring that all the reproaches and persecutions which fall to his lot are sent from heaven, for that he is 'smitten of God' for his own sin. For they will not at first perceive that whatever he underwent was in consequence of their own transgression,
the Lord having chosen him to be a trespass-offering, like the scapegoat which bore all the
iniquities of the house of Israel. Being, however, himself aware that through his pains and revilings the promised redemption will eventually come at the appointed time, he will endure with a willing soul, neither complaining nor opening his mouth 'in the siege and distress wherewith the enemies of Israel will oppress him' (as is pointed out from the passage here in the Haggadah)."
[24]
Levi Ben Gershom[25]
"It follows necessarily from this verse (
Deut. 34:10) that no prophet whose office was restricted to Israel alone could ever arise again like Moses; but it is still quite possible that a prophet like Moses might arise among the Gentile nations. In fact the Messiah is such a prophet, as it is stated in the Midrash on the verse
'Behold my servant shall prosper,' etc., that he will be 'greater than Moses', which is explained to mean that his miracles will be greater than Moses'; Moses, by the miracles which he wrought, drew but a single nation to the worship of God, but the Messiah will draw all nations to the worship of God as it is written (
Zeph. 3:9), 'Then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may call on the name of the Lord,' etc. And this will be effected by means of a marvelous sign, to be seen by all the nations even to the ends of the earth, viz.
the resurrection of the dead."
According to this Rabbi, one of the signs of the Messiah is that he will resurrect the dead, something the New Testament says Jesus did many times!
Rabbi Liwa of Prague[26]
"The Messiah, who is the perfection of the world, will be 'high and lofty and exalted'; now, inasmuch as he is the perfection, he is also the consummation, and the consummation is above all things, for all tends thereto: and this is why it is said of this Messiah that he will be 'high and exalted and lofty.' "
Pesiqta Rabbati[27]
"[When he created the Messiah] the Holy One, blessed be He, began to tell him the conditions [of his future mission], and said to him: 'Those who are hidden with you [your generation], their sins will in the future force you into an iron yoke, and they will render you like unto this calf whose eyes have grown dim, and they will choke your spirit with the yoke, and because of their sins your
tongue will cleave to the roof of your mouth.[28] Do you accept this?' He said before Him: 'Master of the Worlds! With gladness in my soul and joy in my heart I accept it, so that not a single one of Israel should perish; and not only those who would be alive should be saved in many days, but even the dead who have died from the days of Adam the first man until now... This is what I want, this is what I accept!' "
Pesiqta Rabbati (Ch. 36)
"The Fathers of the world [Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob] will in the future rise up in the month of Nisan and will speak to him; 'Ephraim, our true Messiah' Even though we are your fathers, you are greater than we, for you suffered because of the sins of our children, and cruel punishments have come upon you the like of which have not come upon the early and later generations, and you were put into contempt by the nations of the world because of Israel, and you sat in darkness and blackness and
your eyes saw no light, and your skin cleft to your bones, and your body dried up like a potsherd.[29] All this because of the sins of the children. Do you want that our children should enjoy the happiness that the Holy One, blessed be He, allotted to Israel, or perhaps, because of the great sufferings that have come upon you on their account, and because they imprisoned you in the jail house, your mind is not
reconciled with them?"
Midrash Konen BHM 2:29-30[30]
"The fifth house [in the heavenly Paradise] is built of onyx and jasper stones, and silver and gold, and good pure gold. And around it are rivers of balsam, and before its door flows the river Gihon. And [it has] a canopy of all trees of incense and good scent. And in it beds of gold and silver, and embroidered garments. And there sit Messiah Ben David and Elijah and Messiah Ben Ephraim. And there is a canopy of incense trees as in the Sanctuary which Moses made in the desert. All the vessels and pillars are of silver, its covering is gold, its seat is purple. And in it is Messiah Ben David who loves Jerusalem. Elijah of blessed memory takes hold of his head, places it in his lap and holds it, and says to him: 'Endure the sufferings and sentence of your Master who makes you suffer because of the sin of Israel.' And thus it is written:
'He was wounded because of our transgressions, he was crushed because of our iniquities' (
Isaiah
53:5) until the time when the end comes."
Machzor for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur[31]
"`Our righteous anointed [Messiah] departed from us: horror hath seized us, and we have none to justify us. He hath borne the yoke of our iniquities, and our transgression. He beareth our sins on his shoulders that he may find pardon for our iniquities. We shall be healed by his wound, at the time the Eternal will create him as a new creature."
Rabbi Abraham Farrissol[32]
Regarding
Isaiah 53 he states, "In as much as in this Parashah there seems to be considerable resemblances and allusions to the work of the Christian Messiah, and the events which are asserted to have to have happened to him-How, e.g. He came and bare the iniquity of the Church-so that no other prophecy is to be found, the gist and subject of which can be so immediately applied to him, it is essential that we should discuss and explain it with care..."
By now there should be little doubt as to the identity of the suffering servant in Isaiah 53. His future glory, his rejection, suffering and his sacrificial substitutionary death as an atonement for the sins of all mankind (all we like sheep) were foreseen, piece by piece, like a puzzle by these Jewish scholars.
As C.S. Lewis said, "You must make your choice."
Who do you say Jesus was? Your answer, according to Jesus himself, will have a profound effect upon your eternal destiny.
Notes
[1] Portions in bold are actual paraphrases or quotes from Isaiah 52:13-53:12.
[2] The Targum of Yonathan Ben 'Uzziel, Paris and Oxford Editions. See The Fifty Third Chapter of Isaiah According to Jewish Interpreters, preface pg. iv, S.R. Driver, A.D. Neubauer, KTAV Publishing House, Inc., New York, 1969
[3] ibid, preface pg. iv.
[4] Introduction to Jewish Literature, Etheridge, pg 409. For a detailed discussion of this reference see The Fifty Third Chapter of Isaiah According to Jewish Interpreters, preface, pg. iv, S.R. Driver, A.D. Neubauer, KTAV Publishing House, Ince., New York, 1969
[5] ibid pg. 409.
[6] Etheridge, pg. 409.
[7] See the monumental work Pugio Fidei, Martini, Raymundus, published by De Vosin in 1651. For a detailed discussion of this reference see The Fifty Third Chapter of Isaiah According to Jewish Interpreters, preface pg. iv S.R. Driver, A.D. Neubauer, KTAV Publishing House, Ince. New York 1969
[8] Etheridge, pg. 409.
[9] Theologia Judaica, Hulsius pg. 328.
[10] The Translation and commentary by the Quaraite (Jews who reject the traditions of the Talmud), Yepheth Ben 'Ali, a commentary of Sa'adyah's, according to the MS., No. 569, in the Imperial Library at St. Petersburg.
[11] Beth ham-Midrash, Jellinek, (1855) part ii, p. 80.
[12] For a detailed discussion of this reference see The Fifty Third Chapter of Isaiah According to Jewish Interpreters, pg. 32, S.R. Driver A.D. Neubauer, KTAV Publishing HOuse, Inc., New York, 1969.
[13] ibid, preface pg. ix, see # 20.
[14] That is, the text of Isaiah 53 clearly means that the Messiah will suffer and die at the hands of his enemies.
[15] Could it be that the rabbis here intimating that the Messiah will come twice?
[16] A Commentary of Rabbi Mosheh Kohen Ibn Crispin of Cordova. For a detailed discussion of this reference see The Fifty Third Chapter of Isaiah According to Jewish Interpreters, preface pg. x, S.R. Driver, A.D. Neubauer, KTAV Publishing House, Inc. New York 1969
[17] An Exposition of the Prophets, Rabbi Mosheh Ben Rabbi Hayyim Al-Sheikh, of Saphed. For a detailed discussion of this reference see The Fifty Third Chapter of Isaiah According to Jewish Interpreters, preface pg. xiii, see # 37, S.R. Driver, A.D. Neubauer, KTAV Publishing House, Inc., New York, 1969.
[18] Jewel of Gold, A Commentary on Isaiah by Rabbi Sh'Muel Lanyado, seventeenth century
[19] From Hind Sent Forth, a Commentary on the Prophets and Hagiographa by Rabbi Naphtali Ben Rabbi Asher Alschuler, according to the printed text.
[20] From The Letter to the South, (Yemen) by RAbbi Mosheh Ben Maimonides, as given in Qobez.
[21] For a detailed discussion of this referene see The Fifty Third Chapter of Isaiah According to Jewish Interpreters, S.R. Driver, A.D. Neubauer, KTAV Publishing House, Inc., New York, 1969
[22] From the later Yalqut, the portion styled Souls.
[23] From the exposition of the entire Old Testament, called Korem, by Herz Homber (Wein, 1818).
[24] See analysis of this verse in chapter 2
[25] From the Commentary on the Pentateuch (Deuteronomy 34:10) by Levi Ben Gershom (fourteenth Centery).
[26] For a detailed discussion of this reference see The Fifty Third Chapter of Isaiah According to Jewish Interpreters, pg. 568, S.R. Driver, A.D. Neubauer, KTAV Publishing House, Inc, New York, 1969.
[27] ibid, pg. 11.
[28] A reference to Psalm 22, tying the suffering servant to Isaiah 53
[29] ibid.
[30] For a detailed discussion of this reference see The Fifty Third Chapter of Isaiah According to Jewish Interpreters, pg. 394, S.R. Driver, A.D. Neubauer, KTAV Publishing House, Inc. New York 1969
[31] ibid, pg. 399.
[32] ibid, pg. 220.
Verse-Reference
Square — [Jhn 1:1 KJV]
Abbreviate Books
Use SBL Abbrev.
