Isaiah 53 Re-interpretation — Rabbinic Judaism Debunked

The Suffering Servant was originally understood as the Messiah — Rashi changed it to 'Israel.'

The Talmud (Sanhedrin 98b) and Targum Jonathan both identify the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53 as the Messiah. The Zohar (II, 212a) explicitly says 'These are the sufferings of Messiah.' It was Rashi in the 11th century who first reinterpreted the passage as referring to the nation of Israel — a reading impossible in context since the Servant suffers for 'my people' (Isaiah 53:8), meaning Israel cannot be both the sufferer and those being healed.

Verdict: The rabbis' own sources confirm Isaiah 53 is messianic.