And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness:

5. How does the language of Isaiah 53:4, 5 indicate that Jehovah’s “Servant” was to serve as the antitypical “scapegoat”?

⁵ According to Isaiah’s prophecy, chapter fifty-three, Jehovah’s “Servant” is the sin-bearer who was typified by the scapegoat of the Atonement Day that continued being observed at Jehovah’s temple until the destruction of the city of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 C.E. That the Messianic “Servant” was to serve as the antitypical “scapegoat,” the prophet Isaiah proceeds to show, saying: “Truly our sicknesses were what he himself carried; and as for our pains, he bore them. But we ourselves accounted him as plagued, stricken by God and afflicted. But he was being pierced for our transgression; he was being crushed for our errors. The chastisement meant for our peace was upon him, and because of his wounds there has been a healing for us.”​—Isaiah 53:4, 5.

8. What incident indicates that the cures that Jesus performed had something to do with his role as Sin-bearer?

⁸ In the case of Jehovah’s “Servant,” the cures that Jesus thus miraculously performed were an evidence that he was the Sin-bearer. For example, when religious critics accused Jesus of blaspheming for saying to a paralyzed man: “Take courage, child; your sins are forgiven,” this is what followed: “And Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said: ‘Why are you thinking wicked things in your hearts? For instance, which is easier, to say, Your sins are forgiven, or to say, Get up and walk? However, in order for you to know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins—’ then he said to the paralytic: ‘Get up, pick up your bed, and go to your home.’ And he got up and went off to his home. At the sight of this the crowds were struck with fear, and they glorified God, who gave such authority to men.”​—Matthew 9:2-8.

9. (a) Why is cleansing from sin more vitally needed by mankind than physical healing? (b) As a basis for such cleansing, what provision was required?

⁹ Although the many marvelous miracles testified to the fact that Jesus was the Messiah, the Anointed One (Acts 10:38), he was more concerned about healing all mankind of that which was the root cause for all this sickness. The chief cure needed was the curing of sin, the wages of which is death with all its associated bodily infirmities and ailments. (Romans 6:23) The spiritual healing was more vital than the physical healing, for one’s having a bodily cure performed upon one by Jesus or by his authorized disciples did not mean the eternal salvation of the cured one. The cleansing from sin required the shedding of the blood of Jesus Christ in sacrificial death on the antitypical Day of Atonement.​—Hebrews 9:22.

10. (a) What made it appear as if Jesus were “plagued” by God? (b) How was the chastisement upon him “meant for our peace”?

¹⁰ Because of the religious persecution heaped upon him by those who were legitimately serving at the temple in Jerusalem and by other highly esteemed religious leaders, it appeared as if Jesus were “plagued” by God himself. He appeared to have wounding stripes laid upon him by God through those who were apparently engaged in God’s true service. But the uncomplaining endurance of this was excellent discipline for Jesus from his heavenly Father. In view of its severity, it was like chastisement for him. (Hebrews 12:2-8) But this chastisement was “meant for our peace,” that is to say, the endurance of this chastisement by Jesus was meant to work for our coming into peaceful relationship with God.

11. How did Jesus react to the suffering heaped upon him, and with what benefit to us?

¹¹ If Jesus had rebelled against this disciplinary experience on earth, all would have been lost for us. But one of his most intimate apostles, Simon Peter, writes to us, saying: “Christ suffered for you, leaving you a model for you to follow his steps closely. He committed no sin, nor was deception found in his mouth. When he was being reviled, he did not go reviling in return. When he was suffering, he did not go threatening, but kept on committing himself to the one who judges righteously. He himself bore our sins in his own body upon the stake, in order that we might be done with sins and live to righteousness. And ‘by his stripes you were healed.’” (1 Peter 2:21-24) Here the apostle Peter quotes from Isaiah 53:5, and thus becomes another Jew who, under divine inspiration, identifies Jesus Christ as the “Servant” foretold in Isaiah’s prophecy.