When one takes the time to read Isaiah 53 slow enough, the predictions about the coming Messiah can be quite alarming. Consider the expression regarding our Savior that He would be “acquainted with grief” (53:3). “Acquainted” does not merely mean that He would see grief or feel it, for the rest of the Old Testament indicates that God saw and felt grief. But, now, Immanuel would experience grief in an all new form. The “grief” in this passage looks at the pain, anguish and suffering that our Lord would undergo, not only through His close association with His friends, but also through firsthand experience when inflicted with a cruel punishment.
In a very personal and up-close way, Jesus was “acquainted with grief.” But He didn’t have to be! If given the choice, who would knowingly choose to be “acquainted with grief”? Would you readily volunteer for the guaranteed opportunity to be “acquainted with grief”? Jesus knew exactly what He would encounter on this earth; Isaiah prophesied more than seven centuries before Christ came. Yet, He still chose to be “acquainted with grief” for you and for me!