(Isa. 50:6; Matt. 5:39; 26:67; 27:26; John 19:1)
“The Oriental regarded the beard as a sign of freedom and respect, and to pluck out the hair of the beard (for cheek in effect would refer to a beard) is to show utter contempt” (Neh. 13:25; 2 Sam. 10:5.).
(Donald W. Parry, Jay A. Parry, and Tina M. Peterson, Understanding Isaiah [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1998], 443.)
The strikers or smiters would be those who have the public duty of beating a criminal… . The Oriental regarded the beard as a sign of freedom and respect, and to pluck out the hair of the beard (for cheek in effect would refer to a beard) is to show utter contempt (Young, The Book of Isaiah, 3:300).
(Victor L. Ludlow, Isaiah: Prophet, Seer, and Poet [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1982], 422.)