Vicarious Sacrifice in the Intellectual World
Isaiah 53:4-6
Surely he has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.…


I In the intellectual world it is often expedient that one man should be sacrificed for the race. For instance, David Hume's total want of spirituality, though extremely injurious to him individually, was probably highly beneficial to the race in one way, viz. by showing to what monstrous conclusions intellect by itself was likely to lead. And the very infirmities and aberrations of the intellect, in some men, are full of instruction for the race at large. Unrestrained imagination often mars or destroys the life of its possessor, as did that of Rousseau, but adds much to the world's abiding mental wealth.

(A. Crauford, M.A.)



Parallel Verses
KJV: Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

WEB: Surely he has borne our sickness, and carried our suffering; yet we considered him plagued, struck by God, and afflicted.




The World's Majestic Failures
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