The Meaning of Isaiah 53:6 Explained

Isaiah 53:6

KJV: All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

YLT: All of us like sheep have wandered, Each to his own way we have turned, And Jehovah hath caused to meet on him, The punishment of us all.

Darby: All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way; and Jehovah hath laid upon him the iniquity of us all.

ASV: All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and Jehovah hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

All we like sheep  have gone astray;  we have turned  every one  to his own way;  and the LORD  hath laid  on him the iniquity  of us all. 

What does Isaiah 53:6 Mean?

Verse Meaning

A simile now reinforces the point just made. Sheep are notoriously shortsighted; they go after the next clump of grass without regard to where their feet may lead them. They are also self-centered; their only thought is how they can satisfy themselves with no concern for the welfare of other sheep. Consequently sheep often get lost. Humans are the same.
"Sheep tend to travel together, so if the leading sheep turns aside from the path for grass or some other purpose, usually all the sheep do so. They tend to follow the lead sheep which is often dangerous. Similarly all Israel [1] had turned aside (cf. 1 Peter 2:25) from following the Lord, from keeping His commandments." [2]
But Yahweh would cause the consequences of our natural sheep-like tendencies to fall on the Servant. Rather than every person having to bear the consequences of sin himself or herself, as Job"s friends argued he or she must, God would make His Servant suffer for the iniquity of all sinners (cf. Leviticus 16; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 2:22-25).
"Under the Law of Moses, the sheep died for the shepherd; but under grace, the Good Shepherd died for the sheep ( John 10:1-18)." [3]
Suffering in God"s service is frequently vicarious. It often involves suffering because of the sins of others as well as for our own sins.

Context Summary

Isaiah 53:1-12 - The Rejected And Suffering Redeemer
The common lot of man may be summed up in three words: suffering, sin, and death. Our Lord, the Divine Servant, presents a notable exception to the rest of the race-not in His sufferings, Isaiah 53:3; not in His death, for He died many deaths in one, Isaiah 53:9, r.v. margin, but in His perfect innocence and goodness. His sufferings were due to sins not His own, Romans 5:8. We must make His soul our guilt offering, Isaiah 53:10, r.v. margin. It is the same word as is used in Leviticus 5:1-16. There is no need to summon the aid of another. Do it for yourself!
Jesus shall one day be satisfied. In the glory that shall accrue to the Father; in the redemption of untold myriads; in the character of the redeemed; in the destruction of the results of the Fall, we shall hear His sigh of content and see the triumph on His face. We shall witness His transference of the kingdom to the Father, 1 Corinthians 15:24. We shall behold the satisfactory termination of the mystery of evil. If He is satisfied, we shall be! [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 53

1  The prophet, complaining of incredulity, excuses the scandal of the cross
4  By the benefit of his passion
10  And the good success thereof

What do the individual words in Isaiah 53:6 mean?

All we like sheep have gone astray every one to his own way we have turned and Yahweh has laid on Him - the iniquity of us all
כֻּלָּ֙נוּ֙ כַּצֹּ֣אן תָּעִ֔ינוּ אִ֥ישׁ לְדַרְכּ֖וֹ פָּנִ֑ינוּ וַֽיהוָה֙ הִפְגִּ֣יעַ בּ֔וֹ אֵ֖ת עֲוֺ֥ן כֻּלָּֽנוּ

כֻּלָּ֙נוּ֙  All  we 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common plural
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
כַּצֹּ֣אן  like  sheep 
Parse: Preposition-k, Article, Noun, common singular
Root: צֹאן  
Sense: small cattle, sheep, sheep and goats, flock, flocks.
תָּעִ֔ינוּ  have  gone  astray 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common plural
Root: תָּעָה  
Sense: to err, wander, go astray, stagger.
אִ֥ישׁ  every  one 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
לְדַרְכּ֖וֹ  to  his  own  way 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, common singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: דֶּרֶךְ  
Sense: way, road, distance, journey, manner.
פָּנִ֑ינוּ  we  have  turned 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common plural
Root: פֹּונֶה 
Sense: to turn.
וַֽיהוָה֙  and  Yahweh 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
הִפְגִּ֣יעַ  has  laid 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: פָּגַע  
Sense: to encounter, meet, reach, entreat, make intercession.
בּ֔וֹ  on  Him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
אֵ֖ת  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
עֲוֺ֥ן  the  iniquity 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct
Root: עָוֹן  
Sense: perversity, depravity, iniquity, guilt or punishment of iniquity.
כֻּלָּֽנוּ  of  us  all 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common plural
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.