Claims Examined · Bible & Manuscripts
Isaiah 53 was written after Jesus to fit him.
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A complete copy of Isaiah, including chapter 53, was found among the Dead Sea Scrolls and dates to about 150–100 BC, more than a century before Jesus. The text existed before him. Who the “servant” is remains a real debate between Jewish and Christian readers.
Where this claim comes from
Sometimes claimed by skeptics who find the parallels between Isaiah 53 and the crucifixion too close to be a coincidence.
Weighing the evidence
Supports the claim
- None from the manuscripts. The claim is usually made without reference to them.
Counts against it
- The Great Isaiah Scroll from Qumran Cave 1 contains all 66 chapters, including Isaiah 53.
- Handwriting places it around 150–100 BC; radiocarbon tests give a range of about 356–103 BC.
- The Greek translation of Isaiah (the Septuagint) was also made before the time of Jesus.
Discussion
Isaiah 53 describes a servant who is “pierced for our transgressions” and “led like a lamb to the slaughter” (, ). Christians have read it as a portrait of the crucifixion since the first century (). It is so close that some skeptics suggest it was written afterward. The manuscripts rule that out.
A scroll older than Jesus
In 1946–47, Bedouin shepherds found the Great Isaiah Scroll in a cave at Qumran near the Dead Sea. It is a complete copy of Isaiah, about 24 feet long. Scholars date its handwriting to about 150–100 BC, and radiocarbon tests broadly agree.1 Chapter 53 is there, and it reads essentially as our Bibles do.2
What remains open
The dating settles when the text was written. It does not settle what it means. Many Jewish readers understand the servant as Israel, pointing to . Christians point to details that fit an individual who suffers for others. That debate is worth having, and we will take it up separately. But the idea that Isaiah 53 was forged after the fact does not survive contact with the scroll.
Sources reviewed
- primaryGreat Isaiah Scroll (1QIsaᵃ), Qumran Cave 1. Israel Museum, Shrine of the Book. Link
- secondaryEmanuel Tov, Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible, 3rd ed.. Fortress Press, 2012.
- secondaryMartin Abegg Jr., Peter Flint and Eugene Ulrich, The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible. HarperSanFrancisco, 1999.
Review history
- First published.