His death also is not passed over in silence; rather, it is indicated with great clarity in the divine Scriptures. So that no one might be ignorant of the events and be led into error, the writers did not hesitate to state even the cause of His death: He endured it not for His own sake but for the immortality and salvation of all. They also spoke of the plot of the Jews against Him and the insults they inflicted upon Him.
They say, “A man under affliction, who knows how to bear weakness, for His face is turned away. He was dishonored and not esteemed. He bears our sins and is in pain for us, and we considered Him to be in pain, afflicted, and mistreated. But He was wounded because of our sins and weakened because of our lawlessness. The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His bruise we were healed.” Marvel at the Word’s love for humanity: for our sake He is dishonored so that we may be honored. “For all of us,” it says, “went astray like sheep; each person wandered in his own way, and the Lord delivered Him up for our sins. Because He was mistreated, He does not open His mouth. Like a sheep He was led to slaughter, and like a lamb silent before its shearer, so He does not open His mouth. In His humiliation His judgment was taken away.”
Then, lest anyone suppose from His suffering that He was merely an ordinary human being, Scripture anticipates such suspicions and speaks of the power at work on His behalf and of how His nature differs from ours, saying: “Who will declare His generation? For His life is taken from the earth. Because of the lawlessness of the people He was led to death. I will give the wicked in place of His burial and the rich in place of His death, because He committed no lawlessness, nor was deceit found in His mouth. And the Lord desires to cleanse Him from the wound.”