Despised?

             He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. (Isaiah 53:3-4)

 

                One of the benefits of long-distance driving is getting to listen to books, and over the past two days, I listened to the whole New Testament, which means all four gospels – one story told from four points of view. Then this morning, this passage showed up as the verse of the day and I’m wondering about it. The prophecy was applied to Jesus – and it should be – but while it must be true, based on what I read, how was it true?

            Some may say that this passage means that Jesus was physically ugly. I suspect that if He had been either exceptionally unattractive or exceptionally attractive as a physical specimen, there would be some note of it in Scripture. Instead, there’s no mention. That leads me to think that they disciples considered him about average. The fact that Judas had to lead the soldiers to Him also means that there couldn’t have been anything that distinguished Him from other Jews in His basic appearance. So it wasn’t that.

                And the gospels make it clear that He did have a following. Thousands of people showed up for His sermons. This weekend, we’ll celebrate the fact that some part of the population of Jerusalem ushered Him into the city crying “Hosanna!” There is evidence that He was not despised by everyone all along the way. So how is this prophecy true?

                Perhaps a contemporary parallel might help. I’m not suggesting that we equate Mr. Trump with Christ. Mr. Trump is not Jesus and not like Jesus as a person, but there are some parallels. For a time, Mr. Trump was tolerated and even enjoyed by the public. There were people  who never liked him, but the “beautiful people” smiled and got their pictures taken with him. Then he announced that he was running for president, and he became public enemy number 1, the despised, the fat & ugly, and the morally abhorrent. He hadn’t changed, but public opinion had changed.

                There are other examples. Collegiate professors and scientists who have questioned the decrees of the “scientific community” have been excommunicated. We’ve been told to “follow the science” and that “the science is settled” and anyone who questions the science is rejected as a human being without consideration of their questions.  I recently read an account of a group of “renegades” doing archeological research in Central America, and the rejection of their findings because “scientists” didn’t control the expedition. Candidates for public office have been accused of crimes and without a trial, we were told that we must believe the victim, even if there is no proof and the victim’s story is full of holes.  And how many movies have we watched in which a bully targets someone, and all the someone’s friends disappear like smoke in the wind?  What all of this proves is that the opinion of social leaders and experts can sway public opinion over-night.  Jesus was celebrated on Sunday, and by Thursday night, He had been arrested, and before noon on Friday, a considerable crowd of people were screaming “Crucify!”

                There’s another factor to consider. Many who “believed” in Jesus believed that He was the Messiah. That meant He was expected to kick Rome out, free Israel and establish the nation as a superpower for the rest of eternity. And when push came to shove, He didn’t. His not living up to expectations made Him despised because He had failed the test, not lived up to their trust. This is also typical. Leaders are loved if they’re doing what they’re expected to do. The moment they fail or refuse, hatred toward them abounds.

                One more thought about Jesus being despised. How many people despise someone, and who those people are can have a major influence on the question. If there is consensus among the those who are considered as opinion leaders. It may not matter whether “we” actually means everyone if “we” means all the important people who have a right to speak on an issue. We hear this quite a bit, too. “The science is settled!” Any statement disagreeing with it is fake news.

                And ultimately, we would have despised Him at some point in His time here. We have despised Him, and have  held Him in low esteem because – just as with Jews – we have been offended that He doesn’t do what we expect or demand.