"You may have been told that this verse and all of Isaiah 53 refers to Israel but I ask you does Israel despise itself? Does Israel not esteem itself? Can the people of Israel hide their faces from their own selves? If you read the book of Isaiah chapter 53 anew can you not help but to see that only Yehoshua (Jesus Christ) can fulfill the role of the Messiah of Israel? He is the one who was despised and rejected of men. He is the one who was cut off from the land of the living for the transgressions of my people."
If you read it in context, it is CLEARLY talking about the Nation of Israel.
A little history. The first and second half of Isaiah are thought to be written by 2 different authors - the second is not Isaiah - note the time perspective change midway through. Chapters 40-55 are known seutero-Isaiah. Isaaih talks about the destruction as imminent, while deutero-Isaiah talks about it as in the past.
Here are some other passages to consider
41:8 But thou, Israel, My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham My friend;
41:9 Thou whom I have taken hold of from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the uttermost parts thereof, and said unto thee: 'Thou art My servant, I have chosen thee and not cast thee away';
44:1 Yet now hear, O Jacob My servant, and Israel, whom I have chosen;
44:2 Thus saith the Lord that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, who will help thee: Fear not, O Jacob My servant, and thou, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
(Jeshurun is an affectionate name for Israel used in the Torah)
44:21 Remember these things, O Jacob, and Israel, for thou art My servant; I have formed thee, thou art Mine own servant; O Israel, thou shouldest not forget Me.
49:3 And He said unto me: 'Thou art My servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.'
From these, it should be clear to you that the "Servant" IS Israel. It is talking about the Babylonian exile. The former generation is described as the sacrificial sin offering, this is the generation who was taken into bondage, and is "him." The generation that was around when Cyrus ended the exile, is "us," the forgiven and restored nation.
Isaiah CAN'T be talking about Jesus. There are other passages that definitely don't refer to him.
For example
53:10 Yet it pleased the Lord to crush him by disease; to see if his soul would offer itself in restitution, that he might see his seed, prolong his days, and that the purpose of the Lord might prosper by his hand:
Again, HIM being the former generation of Israel who was taken into captivity. Jesus does not match this statement because he did not live a long life, and he did not have many children. The children of the Jews who were taken into exile who were freed by Cyrus DO meet this description, however.
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"When He comes back Israel will recognize the one whom they have pierced as the Messiah. "
Zechariah is not talking about crucifixion..
Zec 12 is talking about a war, not about Jesus. It is the Jews who will be great mourning those among them who their enemies have thrust their weapons through.
However, the opposite is true of Jesus. First of all, according to the New Testament, it is the Jews who had plotted to kill Jesus. If this is true, why would they have mourned over him?
Christians don't "mourn" over the death of Jesus, they see his death as being necessary sin offering to take away their sins. Thankful, grateful, appreciative, yes. Mourning, no, because Christians believe this was his role. In fact, I recall a NT passage (can't remember which, it isn't my forte...) where Jesus says not to mourn over him. I know the word "mourn" is used a lot in Christian theology about Jesus, but not in the way that this passage describes.
Just like "13:6 And one shall say unto him: 'What are these wounds between thy hands?' Then he shall answer: 'Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.'"
This doesnt' describe wounds characteristic of a crucifixion, where it is the WRIST that is pierced... despite popular portrayals. The hand is not strong enough to bear the weight, so Romans crucified people through their wrist.
Even if you disagree with my above characterization - you can't deny that if you look carefully, you will see that the HIM that is being mourned is not the same as the ME who is being pierced.
ping