The odds are at least 1 in 3 that about a year ago you were sitting in a dark room reading from the Old Testament Book of Isaiah.

Can’t recall such an occasion? Well, according to a Barna poll, 33 percent of American adults viewed “The Passion of the Christ” in a movie theater during 2004. Millions more have since watched the movie on DVD.

So think hard. At the very beginning of the film, just as the theater darkened, a form of the following words appeared on the screen. Remember?

“He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and like one from whom men hide their face, He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed.”

These words are excerpted from a book written by the Jewish prophet Isaiah, who lived in Judah around 745-695 B.C. A convincing case for the integrity of the copied manuscripts of Isaiah’s writings was made in 1947 with the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

So here’s a little three-question Easter quiz for you.

1. To whom was Isaiah referring in this 53rd chapter of his book?

Some Jewish leaders have suggested that his reference is to the nation of Israel. But that postulate breaks down on several fronts, including that of an impossible mix of metaphors, i.e., if Israel is “He,” then who is “we” (“my people,” verse 8)?

The description doesn’t fit Gandhi. It certainly doesn’t fit the Buddha. It doesn’t fit Geronimo, Krishna or Zeus. It doesn’t fit Lao-Tzu. Or Vishnu. Or Martin Luther. Or Martin Luther King.

However, there is one whom the description fits perfectly, even uncannily – and that’s the very One of whom Isaiah has already been writing. The social, emotional and theological dynamics of the Isaiah 53 personage match the Gospel accounts of Jesus, in life and in death.

Many folks see this connection quite readily. Rabbis are hard-pressed to deny it. And frankly, there are no viable alternative candidates.

2. But if Isaiah was writing about Jesus, how could he have done so with such insight seven centuries before the fact?

This isn’t just fortune-cookie prophecy. These references are more detailed than anything that Jeanne Dixon or Nostradamus ever wrote. How do we explain it?

The only reasonable answer is that Isaiah was inspired to say and write what he said and wrote by a supernaturally intelligent being whose knowledge was not limited by time. In other words, God.

But there is a corollary implication. If God inspired Isaiah to write chapter 53, he must have also inspired him to write chapter 9. Describing the Messiah there, he said that his name would be “Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

So! The suffering servant of Isaiah 53 is really the Messiah of Isaiah 9, Jesus Christ, very God of very God.

And that raises one more question.

3. What are we going to do about it?

If Jesus’ suffering and sacrificial death was prophesied 700 years before it happened, and if Jesus really is God, as he claimed to be, and if he really is coming back to earth to vindicate truth and judge sin – what then? Are we prepared to meet him? Have we ever actually approached him in prayer, asking to receive the deliverance that he offers by means of the fact that he was crushed, chastened and scourged on our behalf?

Suddenly the cross of Christ becomes a whole lot more than just an abstract historical icon, doesn’t it?

Boris Grushenko, in Woody Allen’s film, “Love and Death,” often yearned for some indication that God was real. “If only He would provide some clear sign of His existence, like making a large deposit in my name at a Swiss bank,” Boris says. “If he would speak just once – if he would just cough!” On another occasion Boris tells Sonya: “If I could just see a miracle. Just one miracle. If I could see a burning bush or the seas part or my Uncle Sasha pick up a check.”

Well, Boris, here’s a little suggestion. Go read Isaiah 53. Consider its age-old significance. Then celebrate the Resurrection. And have a happy Easter.

The Rev. Daryl E. Witmer is founder and director of the AIIA Institute, a national apologetics ministry, and associate pastor of the Monson Community Church. He may be reached at AIIAInstitute@aol.com or through ChristianAnswers.Net/AIIA. Voices is a weekly commentary by Maine columnists who explore issues affecting spirituality and religious life.