Isaiah 53:12 says, “Therefore I (GOD) will divide Him (JESUS) a portion with the great, and He (JESUS) shall divide the spoil with the strong. What is the portion that God is referring to? Who are the great? What is the spoil(plunder)? Who is the strong?
Since verse 12 begins with the word ‘therefore’, let’s go back and read a couple of verses that lead up to this verse. Isaiah 53:10-11 says, “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.” As it does in verse 12, these verses deal with the Lord and His son, Jesus.
It is so hard to understand how that God could find pleasure in the sufferings of His only begotten Son. If fact, we see that it is the Lord Himself that bruises His Son. It is the Lord Himself that puts His Son to grief. YET, if we continue to read, we see the results of Jesus’ suffering and understand God’s pleasure.
* Because of His sufferings on the cross, the Lord Jesus has a seed. He has descendants, or those who have life because of the sacrifice of His own life!
* His days are extended. The Lord Jesus said of Himself in Revelation 1:18, “I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore…”
* Under Christ’s government and guidance, the will (good pleasure) of the Lord shall succeed and prosper.
We go on to see that God shall see the results of the travail (anguish) of Christ and shall be satisfied. This is accomplished because for those who put their faith in the Lord Jesus, he shall “bear their iniquities.
Now let’s look at verse 12, “Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; 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.”
To the victor go the spoils. Because Christ has died and become victorious over the grave, the spoils of victory belong to Him. The sense here is, that God will give to His Son, and He shall receive, great and happy success in his wonderful undertaking. He shall conquer all his enemies, and lead captivity captive, as is stated in Ephesians 4:7-8, “But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.” Of course, the sacrifice of the Lord on the cross has already occurred. Although in Isaiah’s day, it was a future event, we know it today as an accomplished and completed event. We now experience the blessed results of the Lord’s death for us.
The GREAT are those who are nothing in themselves, but have found their greatness in Christ. In like manner, the STRONG are those who are weak in themselves, but have found their strength in Christ. It is the believer in Christ that is both great and strong in Him. Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ WHICH STRENGTHENETH ME.”
We also see in verse 12, the four wondrous reasons for Christ’s glorious triumph:
* He poured out his soul unto death.
* He was numbered with the transgressors.
* He bore the sin of many.
* He made intercession for the transgressors.
What blessed truth! What a blessed savior! 1 Corinthians 15:57 tells us, “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (333.2)