He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed” (Isa.53:3-5).

The text above is one of the most important scriptures in the Bible related to our healing and forgiveness. It is one of the most familiar Messianic prophecies in scripture that prophesies what Christ would accomplish for us at the cross. Notice that Isaiah points to the Messiah as a solution for two categories of issues in our lives. The prophet says that Messiah will take up our infirmities and sorrows (NIV) and our transgressions and iniquities. We understand transgressions and iniquities. These speak of sin and violations of the Law. But what about infirmities and sorrows? That category is a little vague.

Unfortunately, it has been poorly translated in most modern versions. The poor translation is most likely due to a theological mindset that healing is not for today. There are two important Hebrew words in this passage that we must take note of. The first is choli which means “sickness” and the other is makob which means “pains.” In most modern translations they are translated as grief or infirmities and sorrows.

Let me quote from F.F. Bosworth regarding this passage. “All who have taken the time to examine the original text have found what is universally acknowledged everywhere. These two words mean, respectively, “sicknesses” and “pains” everywhere else throughout the Old Testament. The word choli is interpreted “disease” and “sickness” in Dt. 7:15, 28:61; 1 Kings 17:17; 2 Kings 1:2, 8:8; 2 Chr. 16:12, 21:15; and other texts. The word makob is rendered “pain” in Job 14:22, 33:19, etc. Therefore, the prophet is saying, in this fourth verse, ‘Surely, he hath borne our sicknesses and carried our pains.’… Isaiah 53:4 cannot refer to disease of the soul, and neither of the words translated “sickness” and “pain” have any reference to spiritual matters but to bodily sickness alone. This is proven by Matthew 8:16-17: ‘…and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying, ‘Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses’” (F.F. Bosworth, Christ the Healer, p.34-35).

The point is that Matthew quoted Isaiah 53:4 and clearly applied it to Christ as he was healing sickness and disabilities or physical infirmities.  So…when we are told that by his wounds we are healed, he means “healed from sickness and physical disabilities.” We tend to doubt these promises because as westerners affected by Greek thought, we somehow believe that God is only interested in our spirits and not our bodies. Yet, in every covenant, God provided for both. Forgiveness is for our spirits and souls. Healing is for our bodies. God is concerned with all three.

Isaiah is echoing what David wrote in Psalm 103 – who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases. Sin separates us from God. Separation from God because of sin opens us up to the curse of the Law, which includes disease. Leaf through the curses and blessings of Deuteronomy 28 and you will have a feel for the curse of the Law. Under law, sin still stands against us and gives the enemy a legal right to afflict us. When sin is taken away, the curse of the Law loses it power. Health and healing are then within reach. Healing can be received by those with faith and also administered by those with faith.

Remember the paralytic man in Matthew 9. Jesus declared, “Take heart, son, your sins are forgiven.” The Pharisees, of course, began to whisper that no man had the right to forgive sins. Jesus then said, “Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins….” Then he said to the paralytic, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” And the man got up and went home” (Mt.9:5-7). Jesus demonstrated that the forgiveness of sin makes healing available to us. At the cross, Jesus not only bore our sins but also our sicknesses. Through the cross, God intends to heal the whole man – body, soul, and spirit.

Those in Christ walk in forgiveness and have been freed from the curse of the Law. “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us” (Gal.3:13). Therefore, healing is our inheritance in Christ. Like many blessings in Christ, the blessing is available to each of us but must be received by faith. As we reflect again on the Lord’s Supper, the blood represented by the cup symbolizes the forgiveness of our sins. The bread, which represents the broken body of Christ (his wounds), symbolizes the healing that is available to us as well. Both forgiveness and healing come by faith. Both are readily available to the children of God. We are quick to receive forgiveness, but most believers still doubt God’s healing for them – at least in their hearts. Most of us fall in the category of knowing that he can but not being certain that he will. On many days I tend to slip into that category as well. That uncertainty keeps healing from many of us who need it.

So then…how do we move from doubt to faith in the area of healing? We will discuss that in my next blog, Both Forgiveness and Healing – Part 4.