Isaiah 53:6
“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
King James Version (KJV)
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This verse stands at the center of Isaiah 53, summarizing both humanity's universal straying and the servant's bearing of the iniquity laid upon him.
What Does Isaiah 53:6 Mean?
Isaiah 53:6 confesses that everyone has strayed like wandering sheep, and that the servant bore the guilt of all. The verse begins and ends with the word "all," forming a frame around the whole human condition. Sheep are prone to wander, scattering after their own appetites, and the image captures how each person has "turned every one to his own way." The straying is universal and personal at once -- not just a crowd's failure but each individual's.
The center of the verse reveals God's response: "the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." The guilt that belonged to the wandering sheep was placed upon the servant. This is the heart of the chapter's vision of substitution -- the iniquity of many converging on one who willingly bore it. The same "all" that describes the straying describes the iniquity that was laid on him, so the remedy is as wide as the problem. The New Testament writers saw this fulfilled in Christ, who took upon Himself the sins of the world. Read on its own terms, the verse offers both honest confession and astonishing hope: we have all gone astray, yet God provided one to bear what we could never carry ourselves.
In the Original Language
The Hebrew ta'ah means to wander or go astray, like lost sheep; 'avon means iniquity, guilt, or the punishment that guilt deserves.
Cross References
“For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.”
- 1 Peter 2:25
“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
- 2 Corinthians 5:21
“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.”
- Isaiah 53:4
Application
Admit your own wandering honestly, and find hope in the one upon whom God laid the iniquity that you could never bear on your own.