Avoiding the Hermeneutical Trap of Arminianism: Part 3 – A Look at Isaiah 53:6

By Mark W. Christy, PhD

(This series has been adapted from several sermons that covered verses relied upon by Arminians to defend their stance. In order to properly undergird their position, the Arminians are tasked with finding clear biblical support for the human will being an active part (and therefore, completely free and beyond the control of God’s sovereign will) of the salvation process. If this can be accomplished, then they must, of necessity, engage the verses that appear to directly support the Calvinistic position that salvation is wholly based upon God’s sovereign, elective will. These verses include (but are not limited to) Matthew 11:25-27, John 5:21 and 12:37-40, Romans 8:28-9:33, and Ephesians 1:4-7.)

Is 53:6 – “All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.”

As is common among verses used by Arminians to defend their position, Isaiah 53:6 could easily serve as proof for universalism, so long as one is willing to strip it away from its context. This is a breach of proper hermeneutics, of course, for those who desire to ascertain the truth being declared in God’s Word. To avoid wrong interpretations and correctly understand the prophet’s actual meaning, one must identify to whom “all of us” refers.

In v.1, Isaiah begins this chapter (Chapter 53) with these questions: “Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” This message, which he mentions, concerns the arm of the Lord, and the arm of the Lord is a reference to the Messiah, who will be the strength of God’s salvation. This being the case, Isaiah is in effect asking, ‘To whom has the Messiah been revealed?’

After describing the coming Messiah in vv.2-3, the prophet answers his own questions in vv.4-5, “Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed.” From these verses, it becomes obvious that those to whom the Messiah will be revealed will have “esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.” Despite their failure to recognize the Messiah, He will be “pierced through for [their] transgressions” and “crushed for [their] iniquities.” Ultimately, these horrible things that will befall the Messiah will be for their “well-being” so that they may be “healed.”

Based upon this short survey of the context, it seems rather straightforward to conclude that “all of us” are those who are healed, those to whom the arm of the Lord has been revealed. By identifying the prophet’s audience as believers, this verse quickly loses any appeal it may have had for those advocating universalism. At this point, those advocating Arminianism may feel that they have cause to at least breathe a brief sigh of relief, but in actuality, this verse also further cements the Calvinistic position because it affirms limited atonement.

To see this, one must, as has been shown, first identify “all of us” and “us all” in v.6 as believers. After coming to this exegetical conclusion, one will notice that Isaiah is declaring that only the sin (“iniquity”) of believers, as opposed to the sin of all people, will “fall on” the Messiah. This confirmation of limited atonement is only further enhanced by the implication of the prophet’s original question in v.1: “And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” This question implies that only a select group will have the arm of the Lord revealed to them. The prophet, as has been shown, goes own to selectively identify those to whom the Messiah is revealed and then limits His saving work on the cross to them.

In conclusion, the evidence provided by the context of Isaiah 53:6 along with the verse itself is so overwhelmingly Calvinistic that Arminians would do well to avoid its mention. Their willingness to do so, however, reveals an improper reliance upon their own thinking and experience alongside an unwillingness to allow the truth that they proclaim to arise directly from the Word of God.