In the first reading of today’s celebration of the Lord’s Passion, we hear the last and greatest of Isaiah’s “servant songs.” Isaiah’s words interpret the events we proclaim in John’s passion narrative: It was our infirmities that he bore, our sufferings that he endured… he was pierced for our offenses, crushed for our sins. Jesus, fully God and fully human, bears the weight of sinfulness and takes upon himself the guilty judgment that falls on all humanity. Thus Pilate can say with truth: Ecce homo, “Behold, the man!” In the crucifixion and death of Jesus, all the ugliness of human sin is laid bare.
But upon the Cross Jesus also reveals a renewed humanity, one no longer rebellious and disobedient toward God but faithful and righteous, even to the point of death. Through the mouth of Isaiah, the Lord says of Christ, If he gives his life as an offering for sin … the will of the LORD shall be accomplished through him. Through his obedience to the Father, Jesus is the one whose suffering justifies many; obedient to the Father’s plan of love, he is now the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him. For this reason Jesus is raised high and greatly exalted, even on the Cross. It is an exaltation that will be made plain on Easter morning, but it is present on the Cross even now, in mystery.
Today, let us contemplate Jesus, who through his passion and death reveals the poles of humanity: our sinful disobedience that bears fruit in an ugly death, and his loving, faithful obedience that bears fruit for eternal life. Recognizing both our infinite need and the infinite gift of God, let us ask for his Spirit to fashion us more and more in the likeness of the Son, the firstborn from the dead.