The first part of Isaiah 53:10 speaks of Christ’s propitiatory death. I preached on it last Sunday. God the Father is given as the agent behind the suffering of His Son. Dr. Merrill F. Unger said, “The Lord crushed Him by putting Him to grief” (Merrill F. Unger, Ph.D., Unger’s Commentary on the Old Testament, Moody Press, 1981, volume II, p. 1299).

“Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin…”
       (Isaiah 53:10a).

The Keil and Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament says,

It was men who inflicted upon [Christ] such crushing suffering, such deep sorrow; but the supreme [cause] was God, who made the sin of men [serve] His pleasure, His will, and predetermined counsel (Eerdmans, 1973 reprint, vol. VII, part II, p. 330).

But now we see, in the second half of Isaiah 53:10, what came out of Christ’s suffering. His passion and death laid the groundwork for the triumph of His resurrection, and the victory of His people on the earth! Please stand and read the second half of the verse, beginning with the words, “He shall see.”

“…He shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand” (Isaiah 53:10b).

You may be seated. Note from the text three wonderful results that came from Christ’s suffering!

I. First, He shall see His seed!

“He shall see his seed” (Isaiah 53:10).

That is the first result of Jesus’ death. “He shall see his seed.” This refers to Christ’s spiritual seed, His offspring. Millions of people have come to Christ and have become “his seed.” Jesus predicted that when He said,

“They shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God” (Luke 13:29).

From the Day of Pentecost onward, uncounted numbers have come to Christ throughout the world. And in the end, when Christ returns to this world from Heaven,

“His seed shall inherit the earth” (Psalm 25:13).

But Christ did not have to wait until He returned the second time to see His seed. Immediately, upon His resurrection from the dead, He saw them, and they saw Him! The Apostle Paul said,

“He was seen of Cephas [Peter], then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once…After that, he was seen of…all the apostles. And last of all he was seen of me also” (I Corinthians 15:5-8).

They saw Him. As the Apostle John put it,

“which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life” (I John 1:1).

And He saw them, when He had risen from the dead,

“Then…came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord” (John 20:19-20).

“He shall see his seed.”

They saw Him and He saw them – and they were His seed, His spiritual offspring! When He had risen from the dead, He saw His seed!

After He ascended back to Heaven, the power of the Holy Spirit moved and three thousand were converted. Again this promise in Isaiah was fulfilled. Looking down from Heaven, Jesus saw His seed. And so it was throughout the Book of Acts. The risen Christ looked down from His throne in glory and saw the multitudes that trusted Him and became His seed.

And so it has been through the ages. Jesus has looked down from Heaven and has seen His seed multiplied across the face of the whole earth; thus fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy, that they would come “from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and…sit down in the kingdom of God” (Luke 13:29).

Yes, that promise has been fulfilled millions of times throughout history, and throughout the earth.

“He shall see his seed.”

And when you come to Jesus by faith, He will see you too! At the moment of conversion you will enter into the vast number of those who are His seed – on earth and in Heaven.

“He shall see his seed.”

How we rejoice that the risen Christ has seen such a blessed and glorious sight – men and women of all races and nations believing in Him, and joining themselves unto Him forever! Yes,

“He shall see his seed.”

And in that final triumph, when Christ shall come in His glory to set up His Kingdom on this earth, when He shall come again to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords,

“His seed shall inherit the earth” (Psalm 25:13).

And “He shall see His seed,” for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it! “Jesus Shall Reign.” Sing it!

Jesus shall reign where’er the son
   Does his successive journeys run;
His kingdom spread from shore to shore,
   Till moons shall wax and wane no more.
(“Jesus Shall Reign” by Isaac Watts, D.D., 1674-1748).

II. Second, He shall prolong His days!

Look back to our text in Isaiah 53:10, for here is another great result of Jesus’ suffering and death.

“He shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days…”
       (Isaiah 53:10).

The second effect of Christ’s death is, “He shall prolong his days,” for when He died on the Cross His life did not end. He was not held long by death in the tomb. The third day came, and the conquering Christ sprang back to life. He burst the iron chains of death, and came forth from the grave, to die no more! “In that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God” to die no more forever! (Romans 6:10).

“Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him” (Romans 6:9).

“The three sad days.” Sing it!

The three sad days have quickly sped;
He rises glorious from the dead:
All glory to our living Head! Alleluia!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
   (“The Strife is O’er,” translated by Francis Pott, 1832-1909).

“He shall prolong his days,”

“Because he continueth ever…he ever liveth to make intercession for [us]” (Hebrews 7:24, 25).

Spurgeon said, “From the heights in heaven he looks [down] upon the multitude of his seed upon the earth...As many as the stars of heaven, as countless as the dust of the summer, are the seed of our Lord Jesus Christ” (C. H. Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Pilgrim Publications, 1978 reprint, volume 51, p. 565).

“He shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days…”
       (Isaiah 53:10).

III. Third, His work shall prosper!

Stand and read the entire text aloud, paying careful attention to the clause beginning with the words, “and the pleasure.”

“He shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand”
       (Isaiah 53:10).

That is the third result of Jesus’ death, “And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.” Spurgeon said,

More than [nineteen] hundred years have passed since he rose from the dead to his new life, yet he still lives; and his days, we know, shall be continued while this earth shall stand, yea, and at the end, when he shall deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father, still he shall prolong his days. “Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever;” thou shalt endure, though the mountains perish, and though the skies are rolled up like a vesture that is worn out (Spurgeon, ibid.).

“And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand”
       (Isaiah 53:10).

The good pleasure, the will, the purpose of the Lord, will “prosper in his hand.” God the Father said to Jesus,

“I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6).

“And the Gentiles shall come to thy light…the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee” (Isaiah 60:3, 5).

“Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim [China]” (Isaiah 49:12).

“And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand”
       (Isaiah 53:10).

A few months ago we saw a video presentation about China distributed by The Voice of the Martyrs. It showed the testimony of an old Chinese man named Moses Xie [Shay]. During “The Cultural Revolution,” he was handcuffed and locked in prison by the Communists for many years because he preached the Gospel of Christ. In the depths of despair, he was ready to commit suicide. Then, he said, the voice of Jesus spoke to his heart, “My child, my grace is sufficient for thee.” Brother Xie said he heard that three times in his heart. He burst into tears the third time he spoke of it. “My child, my grace is sufficient for thee.” Tears of gratitude filled his eyes as he spoke of Christ’s power to save him in that Communist prison.

Then the video shifted and showed a film clip of tens of thousands of Chinese Communists literally worshipping Mao Tse Tung, the cruel Communist dictator, who killed more people than Hitler. As they chanted in praise of Mao Tse Tung, I thought, “We Christians will be there when you Communists are gone.” When the Chinese Communist Party lies on the ash heap of history, Christianity will still be there, stronger than ever, because it is growing at a fantastic rate today. “We will be there when you are gone.” And so it is throughout the earth. To the enemies of Christ, where’er they be, we can say with full confidence, “We Christians will be here when you Communists are gone!” For “the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand”!

Christians may be lowly and despised in the sight of men. We may be mocked and despised now, as our Saviour was. But Christ has risen from the dead, and “the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.” Therefore, no matter how much true Christianity is despised and rejected, it “shall prosper in his hand.” And in the end,

“The kingdoms of this world [shall] become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever” (Revelation 11:15).

Then, my brethren, we will see what Jesus’ death has accomplished, for “the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.” Jesus is coming again to reign over all the earth!

Jesus shall reign where’er the sun
   Does his successive journeys run;
His kingdom spread from shore to shore
   Till moons shall wax and wane no more.
(“Jesus Shall Reign” by Isaac Watts, D.D., 1674-1748).

He is coming again, He is coming again,
   The very same Jesus, rejected of men;
He is coming again, He is coming again,
   With power and great glory, He is coming again!
(“He Is Coming Again” by Mabel Johnston Camp, 1871-1937).

And to those of you who are not yet converted, we plead with you to come by faith to the risen Christ. We encourage you to be washed clean from your sins by His precious Blood. We urge you to come with us and follow the Saviour no matter what the cost! We are on the winning side, for “the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.” Therefore I urge you to come to Jesus, be converted, be on the winning side!

Come, then, and join this holy band,
   And on to glory go,
To dwell in that celestial land,
   Where joys immortal flow.
Only trust Him, only trust Him,
   Only trust Him now.
He will save you, He will save you,
   [Christ] will save you now.
(“Only Trust Him” by John H. Stockton, 1813-1877).

(END OF SERMON)
You can read Dr. Hymers’ sermons each week on the Internet
at www.realconversion.com. Click on “Sermon Manuscripts.”

You may email Dr. Hymers at rlhymersjr@sbcglobal.net, (Click Here) –
or you may write to him at P.O. Box 15308, Los Angeles, CA 90015.
Or phone him at (818)352-0452.

Scripture Read Before the Sermon by Dr. Kreighton L. Chan: Isaiah 53:1-10.
Solo Sung Before the Sermon by Mr. Benjamin Kincaid Griffith:
“The Strife is O’er” (translated by Francis Pott, 1832-1909).