The Suffering Servant passage in Isaiah 53 makes a bold statement:

“Surely our griefs he Himself bore, and our sorrows he carried; . . .  “

That sounds nice, but how can that actually happen?

I believe the answer is found in a mystery.  The Catholic and Anglican Churches call this the Pascal Mystery.  It is the doctrinal core of the Gospel focusing on the passion and resurrection and glorification of Jesus Christ. I truly don’t want to be presumptuous, but I have asked the Lord to shed His light on the subject.

Consider these word pictures:

In order to understand the process of Jesus taking upon himself our sins, sicknesses and sufferings, I did several word searches.  Here are some word pictures to use:

“To bear” in Hebrew is nasa.  It means several things:

—  to carry off, or sweep off, like removing debris from one’s porch

—  to support, or hold up, like holding up a wall or a frail person

—  to  lift and bear the load, like carrying the other’s backpack

“To carry” is cabal .   It means to carry along, or to be gravid (pregnant) with the load.

So when you are experiencing physical pain, try to visualize Jesus doing any of the following verbs in order to remove your pain.  And believe that His blood, His death will do just what He says. He will carry off the pain, sweep away the disease, remove the decay and debris, just like a garbage man emptying your trash.

When you are experiencing emotional pain, believe that your pain has been placed  in the womb of Jesus — not your womb. Yes, he has become pregnant with your pain. But he is carrying it for you (like a surrogate mother)  until the day of its “birth” takes place.

Another picture might be your giving Jesus your backpack full of emotional burdens.  He puts it on His back and walks with you down your path.

Consider the verb “to sustain”.   It means to support me or brace me, or prop me up.   It is used in several different context:

—  to provide a support or a hand to hold one up.

—  to sustain the head of the sacrificial animal for the purpose of slaughter

—  to lay one’s hand on the head of a soldier or disciple to commission him.

Consider these verses which use the verb “to sustain.”

 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit. Ps. 51:12

Cast your burden upon the LORD and he will sustain you. Ps. 55:22

Sustain me according to your Word, that I may live. Ps. 119:116

Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the sustainer of my soul. Ps. 54:4

“To sustain” is the word camak  in Hebrew.  It is pronounced sah-makh’.  

The verb is used when the priests handle lambs being used for slaughter.

[The priests] shall lay their hands on the head of the ram.” Exo. 29:15, 19. Lev. 3:8.  The act of “sustaining” is to hold the lamb steady while the lamb’s jugular is sliced for the sacrifice.

Camak is also used when a leader commissions a priest or a soldier to go out in the service of the Lord.  Numb 27:23, [Moses} laid his hands on him [Joshua] and commissioned him.

My thought is that we need to offer our lives up to Jesus in order to fully participate in the mystery of the Cross.   We can do this by asking the Lord to camak us.  This is not an either/or choice, but a “please do both, Lord:”

(1) Cut my jugular so that I might die to you, and then

(2) send me out as your commissioned representative.

Be present in this process, My Lord and Savior.

In Christ,