The Word Translated "Grief" in Isaiah 53:4 Literally Means Physical Illness
Did you know that when Isaiah 53:4 says Jesus "bore our griefs," the Hebrew word used means sickness and disease — not emotional suffering?
"Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows." — Isaiah 53:4, KJV— Isaiah 53:4
Isaiah 53:4 is one of the most quoted prophetic verses in the New Testament — and one of the most mistranslated in terms of its concrete meaning.
The English rendering — "he hath borne our griefs" — sounds emotional, spiritual, and inward. And that meaning is present. But the Hebrew word behind "griefs" is choli (חֹלִי, Strong's H2483), and its primary meaning is: illness, sickness, disease.
Choli is the same word used in Deuteronomy 28:61 for the diseases that would come upon Israel as a covenant consequence. It is the same word used in 2 Kings 1:2 when Ahaziah fell and became sick. It describes physical, bodily illness — not just spiritual or emotional pain.
Matthew knew this. In Matthew 8:16–17, immediately after Jesus healed many who were sick, Matthew quotes Isaiah 53:4 as the fulfillment: "He himself took our infirmities and bore our diseases." Note the word Matthew uses: diseases. This is the New Testament author interpreting the Hebrew text — and interpreting it as physical healing ministry.
The second word in Isaiah 53:4 — translated "sorrows" — is makob (מַכְאֹב, Strong's H4341): pain, physical pain, anguish. Not merely emotional grief. Physical suffering that Jesus took into Himself so that you would not have to carry it.
Why It Matters
The cross was not only a transaction for sin. It was a physical bearing of physical sickness. Isaiah 53:4 placed the choli — the disease — on Jesus deliberately, so that 1 Peter 2:24 could say with confidence: "by his stripes ye were healed." Both are true. Both are physical. Both are purchased.
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