This verse is the logical outgrowth of the themes of verse 2. Beginning with the dry ground, and an uncomely man, we now have him rejected by others, and a man of sorrows. The hiding of the faces is indicative of the typical human reaction to things that we do not want to see - we turn away from them. Because this suffering servant will be rejected, men will turn from him so as not to see him. Indeed, Jesus was able to live in Israel, and while he was truly God come upon the earth, he was recognized as such only by a select few. For most, he was despised and rejected. Ludlow notes:
"[Jesus] experience constant sorrow and rejection throughout his life. (Matt. 23:37.) Members of his own family and the people in his hometown rejected him at first. (John 7:5; Luke 4:16-30.) His own chosen people, the Jews, rejected his messianic calling. (John 1:11; 5:18.) As his mortal ministry neared completion, one of his apostles betrayed him and another temporarily denied any knowledge of him. (Luke 22:48; 54-62.) This constant persecution and rejection must have cause Christ great sorrow, for the very people he came to save first turned away from him. (See Mark 9:12; 1 Ne. 19:7-10.) (Ludlow 1982, p. 449).