Friday, September 27, 2024

Jewish Interpretations of Isaiah 53 before AD 1000

  

Source

Date

Individual

Messiah

Israel

Vicarious Suffering

Reference

Talmud

c. 300-600 CE

Yes*

No

No

No

Shekalim 5:1

Talmud

c. 300-600 CE

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

Sanhedrin 98b:14

Talmud

c. 300-600 CE

No**

No

No

No

Berakhot 51:11

Talmud

c. 300-600 CE

No

No

No

No

Berakhot 57b

Talmud

c. 300-600 CE

Yes**

No

No

Yes

Sotah 14a:7-10

Targum of Jonathan on Isaiah

c. 150 BCE—c. 350 CE

Yes

Yes

No

No

Targum Jonathan on Isaiah 52:13

Tanchuma Toldot

c.500-800 CE

Yes

Yes

No

Unclear

Tanchuma Toldot 14:1

Peshikta

c. 600-900 CE

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

Driver and Neubauer

Midrash Ruth Rabbah

c. 700-950 CE

Yes

Yes

No

Unclear

Midrash Rabbah Ruth 2:14

 

Table 12. Summary of major Rabbinic literature on Isaiah 52:13-53:12 before 1000 CE

*Rabbi Akiva ** The one who the Lord delights in ***Moses

 

Source: Nick Meader, Resurrection: Extraordinary Evidence for an Extraordinary Claim (Eugene, Oreg.: Resource Publications, 2024), 237-38

 

 

On why the Jewish interpretation changed after AD 1000:

 

One explanation is Rashi—probably the most influential scholar in Jewish history. He likely pioneered the claim that the servant of Isaiah was Israel alone. Jewish persecution during this period may have impacted Rashi. In 1096, he witnessed the death of many friends and family by Crusaders seeking a source of income for their travels.

 

Reinterpretation of Isaiah 53 had several benefits. It delegitimized the arguments of Christendom that Jesus was the Messiah of Isaiah 53. How could that be true, if the Jewish people had all along concluded the passage was about Israel? It also encountered suffering Jews. (Ibid., 240)

 

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