The Promise Of A Son
THE PROMISE OF A SON
6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us;
And the government will rest on His shoulders;
And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
7 There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace,
On the throne of David and over his kingdom,
To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness
From then on and forevermore.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this. (Isaiah 9:6-7). For the past three chapter we have seen a “son motif” running through the pages of Isaiah. It began in Isaiah 7:1-25 with the virgin-born son named Immanuel. Throughout chapter 8 we read of Isaiah giving names to his children that had prophetic significance. Now we come the final promise of a Son. Isaiah opens this section with a bit of typical Hebrew parallelism: For a child will be born to us,
A son will be given to us.
There are many celebrations that we observe throughout the year during which we have developed a tradition of giving gifts. There is Mothers Day and Fathers Day and there are birthdays. Of all of these, there is only one in which everyone is given gifts. It is Christmas. Though it has become commercialized, perhaps it is appropriate that this is a time of giving gifts because it commemorates the time when the Son was given. The great truth of the gospel is that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. His Profession: And the government will rest on His shoulders. The Hebrew word here for "the government" (hr'f.Mih) is used only here and in Isaiah 7:7. It is derived from the Hebrew hr'f' (sarah) describing a prince or ruler. To which government does this refer? Isaiah 7:6 does not say. But Isaiah 7:7 indicates that it is His government. It is the government of the Throne of David. The problem with this is that, from a physical perspective, the throne of David is long gone. There is a nation of Israel today, but no one identifies modern Israel with the throne of David. And yet, the promise says that this will be a reign of righteousness which shall last forever. And that of this government there shall be no end.
What is this government? I would suggest that this “government” refers to the Kingdom of Heaven. It is the government which has gone out to make disciples of all the nations (Matthew 28:18). It is the government which shall survive when all other rule and authority and power has been abolished (1 Corinthians 15:24). It is the government of God's people. Today we call it the church. His Personality: Wonderful Counselor. When we think of a counselor, it brings to mind one who has the answers to our problems. Jesus has the answer because He is the answer. He is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). His Power: Mighty God. The phrase “mighty God” is not all that common in the Old Testament, but when it is used, it points to God (Isaiah 10:21 and Jeremiah 32:18). In this case, it points to the deity of the Son. His Permanence: Eternal Father. The Hebrew of Isaiah 9:6 speaks of the Messiah being the “eternal Father.” It uses the single word d[;ybia]. What does this mean? Some have taught that this is an indication of Modalism — that Jesus is the Father and that they are both one person in the same way that I am a son and I am also a father. The Hebrew phrase is a compound word. This seems to be a Hebraism. There are a number of examples of this:
Abiethon (2 Samuel 23:31), “father of strength,” means “strong.”
Abiaseph (Exodus 6:24), “father of gathering,” means “gatherer.”
Abigail (1 Chronicles 2:16), “father of exultation,” is a woman's name meaning “exulting.”
If this is the same sort of Hebraism, then the term "father of eternity" in Isaiah 9:6 means simply that the promised Son would be eternal. His Peace: Prince of Peace. The ministry of the Son was to bring the most important peace of all; the peace that is between God and man. He is our peace (Ephesians 2:14) and He has not only made peace between God and men, but also He has broken down every wall that divides men.