Healing in Christ's redemption

Jesus provided healing as part of His redemption. Healing is not a reward, it is a sign. All healing is a work of God’s Grace. We see this grace in the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus. Isaiah is our witness to this great truth.

Whatever Jesus did with sins, he did with sickness.

Isaiah 53: 4 reads"Surely He (Christ) hath borne our griefs (kholee—sicknesses), and carried our sorrows (makob—pains)."

"Kholee" (sickness) is from "chalah"—to be weak, sick or afflicted. In Deuteronomy 7:15 we read, "The Lord will take away from thee all sickness (kholee)." This word is translated sickness in Deuteronomy 28: 61; 1 Kings 17: 17; 2 Kings 1:2; 2 Kings 8: 8, and other places.

"Makob" is translated "pain" in Job 33:19, "He is chastened also with pain (makob)." In Jeremiah 51: 8 we read, "Take balm for her pain (makob)."

Then Isaiah 53:4 should read, "Surely He (Christ) hath borne our sicknesses, and carried our pains." Every unprejudiced Hebrew scholar must admit that this is the correct translation. [Footnote 1]

Let us now examine the verbs in Isaiah 53: 4,"Borne" (nasa) and "Carried" (sabal)."Nasa" means to bear in the sense of "suffering punishment for something." Leviticus 5: 1, "And if a soul sin, then he shall bear (nasa) his iniquity." In Isaiah 53: 12 we have the true meaning of "nasa" set forth. Isaiah 53: 12, "And He (Christ) was numbered with the transgressors, and bare (nasa) the sins of many."

This same verb (nasa) in Isaiah 53: 12 teaches us that Christ bore our sins vicariously; so all unprejudiced minds must admit that this very same verb (nasa) in Isaiah 53:4 teaches us that He (Christ) bore our sicknesses vicariously. The clear teaching therefore is that Christ bore our sicknesses in the very same way that He bore our sins.

"And carried (sabal) our pains."

This verb "sabal" (carried) also means "to bear something as a penalty or chastisement." Lamentations 5: 7, "Our fathers have sinned . . ., and we have borne (sabal) their iniquities." Isaiah 53:11, "He (Christ) shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied and shall be satisfied for He shall bear (sabal) their iniquities."

Delitzsch was perhaps, without one exception, the greatest Hebrew scholar in Germany. Regarding Isaiah 53:4 Delitzsch says: "Freely but faithfully does the Gospel of Matthew translate this text, 'Himself took our infirmities and carried our sicknesses.' The help which Jesus rendered in all kinds of bodily sickness is taken in Matthew to be a fulfillment of what in Isaiah is prophesied of the Servant of Jehovah.

The Hebrew verbs of the text, when used of sin, signify to assume as a heavy burden and bear away the guilt of sin, as one's own; that is, to bear sin mediatorially in order to atone for it. But here, where not our sins, but our sicknesses and pains are the object, the mediatorial sense remains the same. It is not meant that the Servant of Jehovah merely entered into the fellowship of our sufferings, but that He took upon Himself the sufferings that we had to bear, and deserved to hear; and, therefore He not only bore them away, but also in His own person endured them in order to discharge us from them. Now when one takes sufferings upon himself which another had to bear, and does this, not merely in fellowship with him, but in his stead, we call it Substitution." { Keil and Delitzsch Commentary on the OT}

The logical conclusion that Christ died for our sicknesses in the very same way that He died for our sins. Jesus took the infirmities and sicknesses of the very same persons for whose sins He died, i.e., the whole world (1John 2:2) If the sins- past, present, future were forgiven, then it’ same for sickness.

The word for "healed", both in the Septuagint (Is 53:4) and the Greek New Testament (1Pet2:24) is "iaomai," a verb that always speaks of physical healing in the New Testament. It is used 28 times in the New Testament, and always in connection with physical healing.

We can therefore be fully assured, when Peter declares, "By His stripes (bruise -singular) ye were healed," that he is referring to our bodily healing, and not to any spiritual blessing. The use of the dative singular here, "molopi", tells us, as clearly as language can express it, that our dear Saviour's back had been so terribly scourged that no one blow could possibly be distinguished from the other. Every spot on His back was so bruised and lacerated, that it was just like one great bruise. Had there been one quarter inch of space between any two of the bruises, the Greek here must then have read "molopsi" (bruises) and not "molopi" (bruise). His whole back was just one great bruise.

Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8), and He went about doing good and healing (iaomai) ALL that were oppressed (katdunasteuomenous) of the devil. The word here for "oppressed" is "katadunasteuomenous," the present participle, passive of "katadunasteuo"—I dominate or exercise lordship over." Then all whom Christ healed while on earth were diseased or afflicted because Satan had gotten the lordship, either over them, or their ancestors.

Jesus healed people who were legally under the devils dominion and he decreed emancipation proclamation when He cried out IT IS FINISHED. Every manner of sickness and disease is outlawed and especially over a Christian is illegal.

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Footnote 1- Quote from Bodily Healing and The Atonement by Dr. T. J. McCrossan, who is a noted pastor, author, Bible teacher, and highly respected Greek and Hebrew scholar, taught Greek and Hebrew languages in the Manitoba University, Manitoba, Canada, before entering the ministry. For 18 years he was the Examiner in Greek for the Presbytery of Minneapolis, Minnesota. During this period, he not only built Bethany Presbyterian Church of that city, but for 12 years pastored the historic Oliver Presbyterian Church of Minneapolis.