Isaiah 53:7Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Neither Pilate's wife's dream nor the treachery of Judas, nor the shame of the false accusers could change their hardened hearts. You crucify Him—why do you then appeal to Caesar? Like a lamb led to the slaughter, He remained silent before His shearers, embodying humility even through His death. I believe the prophet referred to Him as a sheep not solely for His silence but also for His role as a sacrificial offering; as Symmachus remarks, "And the sacrifice came for a sacrifice." The silence of those facing death often reflects fear, whereas His silence was profound, as even His mere words caused those who apprehended Him to stumble. When He asked them, ‘Whom do you seek?’ they drew back and fell to the ground (John 18:4-7). What response could be more compelling than this? What words could possess greater power? Witness His strength and also His meekness. How powerful He is, and how gentle! His divinity is evident not only in His might but also in His humility. Just as a lamb before its shearers does not speak, He maintained His silence. Yet He did speak, not with harsh or severe language, but with remarkable humility. If I have spoken wrongly, demonstrate that it is wrong; but if it is right, why do you strike Me? (John 18:23). Such a response was even more humble than remaining silent. Therefore, we will either remain quiet or respond with humility.

In response to the malicious questioning of Caiaphas, who demanded, "I adjure you by the living God, that you tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God" (Matthew 26:63), He boldly declared, "From henceforth ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming on the clouds of heaven" (Matthew 26:64). Pilate also inquired, "Is He the king of Israel?" to which Christ replied, "You speak" (Matthew 27:11). Subsequently, Pilate became complicit in the folly of the Jews, and after scourging Jesus, he ordered his soldiers to take Him away with the criminals to be crucified. Thus, the prophet’s words ring true: in His rage, He refrained from speaking; after enduring much suffering, He remained silent even when mocked, beaten, and spat upon by His cruel tormentors, and after experiencing various forms of humiliation, He was brought before Pilate. He chooses silence from His anguish, much like a lamb led to slaughter, or a sheep before its shearers remains silent; for sheep are designated for shearing at specific times, and shepherds use razors upon them. While this process can inflict pain, the sheep endure quietly and do not retaliate against their shearers. Similarly, Christ did not condemn those who maligned Him, nor did He look down upon the suffering. Instead, He entrusted Himself to the One who judges righteously (1 Pet. 2:23).

If He had desired to avoid suffering, He would not have endured it. If He had not suffered, His blood would not have been shed. Without the shedding of His blood, the world would not have known redemption.

By the blood of the sacrificial lamb, the doorposts of the Israelites were consecrated; through the blood of Christ, our foreheads are marked. This significant sign served to protect the homes that were anointed from the destroyer entering (see Exodus 12:22-23), and the mark of Christ shields us from harm if His salvation dwells within our hearts. Why do I mention this? Because many may apply the mark of Christ upon their foreheads yet lack an abiding presence within; they merely bear the sign of Christ without allowing His word to take root in their hearts. I emphasize this, dear brethren: the sign of Christ protects us from the destroyer when our hearts embrace Christ as their resident. My intention is to illuminate the meaning of this Jewish feast for us. Thus, the Lord came as the ultimate sacrifice so that we might experience a true Passover, commemorating His Passion as though it were the sacrifice of a Lamb.

As a lamb before its shearer is mute, so He did not open His mouth (Isaiah 53:7)—this is most evident when He refrained from responding to those who questioned Him. (Isaiah 53:7.) For while He frequently answered various inquiries, in instances where He chose silence, the imagery of the lamb is invoked, portraying His silence not as culpability but as innocence. Therefore, at His condemnation, where He remained silent, He did so not as one burdened by guilt and exposed for His offenses, but as a humble offering, a sacrifice made for the transgressions of others.

Presented before Pilate at His own volition and choosing silence, He was unjustly sentenced to crucifixion, thereby led like a sheep to the slaughter and rendered voiceless like a lamb before its shearer. For us, Christ our Passover was offered (1 Corinthians 5:7), whom John the Baptist identified by declaring, ‘Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world’ (John 1:29). In the Revelation given to John the Evangelist, He is frequently referred to as the Lamb that was slain (Revelation 5:6, 12). He Himself spoke in Jeremiah, saying, ‘But I, as an unkind lamb led to the slaughter, do not understand’ (Jeremiah 11:19). For He, who was sinless, became our sin offering (2 Corinthians 5:21). And just as a lamb might resist being led to sacrifice, He willingly endured suffering, that He might defeat the one who held the power of death (Hebrews 2:14), humbling Himself to even death on a cross (Philippians 2:8). This is the Lamb whose likeness the Passover lamb represented, whose blood, marked on the doorposts, caused the destroyer in Egypt to retreat (Exodus 12:1-23). This Lamb not only redeemed us through His blood but also enveloped us with His warm garment, rescuing those who were chilled by doubt and enabling us to heed the words of the Apostle who instructs, ‘If ye be baptized into Christ, into Christ ye shall be clothed’ (Galatians 3:27), and elsewhere, ‘Be clothed with our Lord Jesus Christ’ (Romans 13:14).

He is the One who struck down wickedness and rendered injustice powerless, just as Moses confronted Egypt. He has brought us forth from slavery to liberation, from the shadows to the light, from death to life, from oppression to an everlasting kingdom, establishing us as a new priesthood and a chosen people of eternity. This is the Passover of our redemption. This is the One who suffered greatly throughout history. This is He who was killed in Abel, bound in Isaac, sought refuge in Jacob, betrayed in Joseph, forsaken in Moses, sacrificed in the lamb, persecuted in David, and dishonored among the prophets. He is the One incarnated from the Virgin, crucified upon a tree, buried in the earth, resurrected from the dead, and exalted to the heavens. He is the Lamb who remained silent. He is the Lamb destined for sacrifice. He is the Lamb born of Mary, the beautiful Lamb. This is He who was taken from the flock and led to slaughter, sacrificed in the evening, buried by night, who was unharmed in His crucifixion, who was not destroyed in the grave, who rose from the dead and raised humanity from the depths.

The subsequent words of this passage, which liken Him to a sheep being led to slaughter, highlight not only Christ's gentle demeanor in the face of agony but also signify that His sufferings and death served as an atoning sacrifice for humanity's sins, prefigured by the paschal lamb: "our pascha, Christ, was sacrificed for us" (1 Cor. 5:7). In this sacrificial context, St. John the Baptist, while pointing to Christ, proclaimed: "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world" (John 1:29). Similarly, in the book of Revelation, Christ is referred to as the slain Lamb (Rev. 5:6, 12). As the Lamb, Christ not only redeemed us with His blood but also enveloped us in His righteousness, warming those of us who were cold in our disbelief, urging us to consider the words of the Apostle: "For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ" (Gal. 3:27). The passage in question was read by the Ethiopian eunuch on his return from Jerusalem. Unsure of its meaning, he learned from the Apostle Philip that it referred to Christ. Upon understanding, the eunuch believed in Him and was promptly baptized (Acts 8:32-38).