Isaiah 53:3 Meaning and Explanation
“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →The servant endures complete rejection and suffering, and we, the people, turned away from him.
The Context of Isaiah 53:3
Isaiah now shifts to the human response to the servant; 'despised and rejected' draws on the Hebrew root for contempt, while 'man of sorrows' echoes ancient Near Eastern lament; the phrase 'we hid our faces' carries the weight of collective shame and avoidance.
What Does Isaiah 53:3 Mean?
To be despised is to be held beneath contempt, scarcely worth anger. The servant is not admired, feared, or envied, he is simply passed over, dismissed as less than human. He is a man of sorrows, not because he caused them but because he has lived so deeply in the reality of human pain that sorrow has become his native country. We, the people, hide our faces from him, a gesture of revulsion, abandonment, the refusal to acknowledge his presence. It is the cruelest silence.
Yet in this rejection lies the seed of redemption. We hid our faces because we could not bear to see our own suffering reflected in his eyes. We despised him because his presence named our brokenness. But he did not hide his face from us. He stood in our sorrow, bearing it not with bitterness but with the quiet strength of one who loved us even as we turned away. In Jesus, rejection becomes the stage on which perfect love is revealed.
How to Apply Isaiah 53:3 Today
We know rejection and know the human tendency to withdraw from those who suffer. Jesus entered that wilderness deliberately, so that no one need ever believe their suffering is too much for God to witness or to redeem.
Frequently Asked Questions About Isaiah 53:3
What does Isaiah 53:3 mean?
The servant endures complete rejection and suffering, and we, the people, turned away from him.
What is the context of Isaiah 53:3?
Isaiah now shifts to the human response to the servant; 'despised and rejected' draws on the Hebrew root for contempt, while 'man of sorrows' echoes ancient Near Eastern lament; the phrase 'we hid our faces' carries the weight of collective shame and avoidance.
How can I apply Isaiah 53:3 today?
We know rejection and know the human tendency to withdraw from those who suffer. Jesus entered that wilderness deliberately, so that no one need ever believe their suffering is too much for God to witness or to redeem.