An Astonishing Yom Kippur Prayer

(The Musaf Prayer)

Israel’s Need for the Suffering Moshiach

“The Moshiach our righteousness has turned from us (meaning, He once had been here, but now has departed from us).We are alarmed, we have no one to justify us. Our sins and the yoke of our transgressions He bore. He was bruised for our iniquities. He carried on His shoulders our sins. With His stripes we are healed. Almighty G-d, hasten the day that might come to us anew: that we may hear from Mt. Lebanon a second time through the Moshiach, who is called Yenon.”

This selection from the Jewish prayer book corresponds almost word for word with the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah. Rabbi Yanai in Sanhedrin 98, folio 2, says concerning the Messiah, “His Name will be Yenon, as it is written, ‘His Name shall endure forever: His Name shall be continued as long as the sun’ (Psalm 72:17).” The word Yenon is the word which in this verse is translated “continued,” and means both “I am,” and “I will be.”

We now bring passages from the Zohar, Midrashim, and other rabbinical writings which agree that Isaiah 53 refers to the Moshiach, Who was pierced and bruised.

The Targum explicitly teaches that the whole chapter of Isaiah 53 refers to the Moshiach. On Isaiah 52:13 it elaborates, “My servant, The Moshiach, will be great, who was bruised for our sins.”

The Midrash Tanchumi, commenting on Isaiah 52:13, “He shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high” says, “He was more exalted than Abraham, more extolled that Moses, higher than the Archangels.” That can be applied to none other than the L-RD Yeshua, who was, and is, the greatest personality of all ages.

In Midrash Rabba of Rabbi Moses the preacher (page 660), we read:

“G-d hath from the beginning made a covenant with the Moshiach and told Him, ‘My righteous Moshiach, those who are entrusted to you, their sins will bring you into a heavy yoke: your ears will hear great shame: your mouth will taste bitterness, and your tongue will cleave to the roof of your mouth, and your soul will be weakened in grief and sighing. Are you satisfied with this?’ And He answered, ‘I joyfully accept all these agonies in order that not one of Israel should be lost.’ Immediately, the Moshiach accepted all agonies with love, as it is written in Isaiah 53:7, He was oppressed and he was afflicted.”

In the Zohar, which is considered by pious Jews as the holiest of books, we read as follows:

“In the Garden of Eden there is one palace called the palace of the sufferers. When the Moshiach goes into this palace and calls to all the sufferers and grieving ones, all the agonies of Israel come upon Him. If The Moshiach would not relieve Israel from the agonies and take them upon Himself, no one else could suffer the punishment of Israel for the transgression of the law. As it is written in Isaiah 53:4, ‘Surely he hath borne our griefs.”

In Siphre D'Bay Rav we read:

“Thus saith Rabbi Jose of Galilee, ’Come and learn of the merits of the King Moshiach who grieves for our transgressions, as it is written in Isaiah 53:5, ‘But he was wounded for our transgressions.’ ”

We see from the foregoing passages that highly esteemed Hebrew scholars agree that Isaiah 53 plainly describes the Moshiach who was bruised for the sins of the world.

Why is not this wonderful chapter read in the synagogue today? Because the enemies of Moshiach, fearful lest the Jews night discover that Yeshua is the true Moshiach, eliminated the reading of this chapter from their Sabbath services (Haftora). Therefore, on one Sabbath they read through Isaiah 52 to verse 12 then they skip chapter 53 in its entirety and go on, at the next Sabbath, with chapter 54. But a great many Jews have become believers in the L-RD Yeshua through reading this wonderful chapter (53), on other occasions, which is one of many passages pointing out the truth as it is in Moshiach Yeshua (Jesus).

Here is one example:

THE REMARKABLE EXPERIENCE OF AN ETHIOPIAN CHAMBERLAIN

And the angel of the L-rd spoke unto Philip saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. And he arose and went: and, behold a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem to worship was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the Prophet. Then the Spirit said unto Philip, “Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.” And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the Prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou reads? And he said How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? For his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered Philip, and said I pray thee, of whom speaketh the Prophet this? Of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Yeshua. And as they went on their way, they came unto certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water, what hinders me from being baptized? And Philip said, ‘if you believe with all your heart, you may’. And he answered and said,’ I believe that Yeshua is the Son of G-d’. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch; and Philip baptized him (Acts 8:26-38).

Other examples that Yeshua is the promised Moshiach of the Hebrew Scriptures are to be found in many passages in G-d’s Holy Word. That Yeshua I the Moshiach of prophecy is certain from the following passages:

THE SUPREME TEST – THE PROPHECIES FULFILLED TO THE LETTER

And they that had laid hold on Yeshua led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled ….. Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council sought false witness against Yeshua, to put him to death; but found none: though many false witnesses came, yet they found none. Lastly came two false witnesses that said,’ This fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of G-d, and to build it in three days’. And the high priest arose, and said unto him, ‘Answerest though nothing? What is it with these witness against thee?’ But Yeshua held his peace… Then they spit in his face, and buffeted him; and others smote him with the palms of their hands, saying ‘Prophesy unto us, thou Moshiach, Who is he that smote thee? (Matthew 26:57-68).’

Then the soldiers of the governor took Yeshua into the common hall, and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers. And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe, And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail King of the Jews! And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head. And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him…..And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say a place of a skull, they gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink. And they crucified him and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet”. They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots. And sitting down they watched him there: and set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS YESHUA THE KING OF THE JEWS (Matthew 27:27-37).”

Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Yeshua cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? That is to say, My G-d, My G-d, why hast thou forsaken me? Some of them that stood there, when they heard that said, this man calls for Elias. And straightway one of them ran, and took a sponge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink. The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him. Yeshua, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from top to bottom: and the earth did quake , and the rocks rent and the graves were opened: and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many, Now when the centurion and they that were with him, watching Yeshua, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying ‘Truly this was the Son of G-d (Matthew 27:45-54)’.

Dear reader, will you not join the Roman Centurion, and with trembling and yet with rejoicing, exclaim, “Truly this was the Son of G-d”? If ever you reach heaven, if ever you stand righteous and justified in the presence of a Holy G-D, it will only be because you have trusted the L-rd Yeshua, The Moshiach for your salvation and for eternal life.

Retyped with permission by Chosen People Ministries