For to us a Child is Born-Isaiah 9:1-7

Isaiah, Old Testament, Sermons

Presentation Isaiah 9 1-7

Happy 3rd week of advent before the birthday celebration of our Lord Jesus! As you know advent means arrival. So, we are anticipating the birth of Jesus with joyful expectations. Yesterday, we had a baby shower for Sarah Gutierrez here at the Bible house. [Pic 1] It was a joyful occasion for their coming baby next month. How much more we should be joyful and celebratory for the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus! To those who don’t know Ramon and Sarah personally, the birth of their child is not as significant for you. But there is the birth of a child that no one on earth, including us, should ignore—for it determines our eternal destiny. That is the birth of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. This is why today I’m sharing my pre-Christmas message. Next week we will have a special Christmas worship service. We will have a tag team message by the father and son team Jim and David Cook. Please come because you don’t want to miss it. I believe their message will not only be wonderful but delicious, because not only one Cook but two Cooks are preparing it. Today, we want to think about the Jesus, as the promised child 700 years before his birth. This was his birth announcement made from the prophet Isaiah. Not one month ahead, but 700 years ahead. Most of all, we want to learn why Jesus is the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace.

FOR TO US A CHILD IS BORN

Isaiah 9:1-7

Key Verse: 6:

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon[d] his shoulder, and his name shall be called[e] Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Look at verses 1-2. [a]“But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.[b]2 [c] The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.” As mentioned, these events happened centuries before the birth of Jesus. It was a time of darkness for God’s people because of many enemies threatening to attack them. Geographically speaking, the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali are located in the northern part of Israel. [Pic 2] What was significance about this? You see, most of Israel’s enemies attacked them from the north, consequently, these lands took the initial brunt of the enemies’ invasions. As you see from the map, it was also known as the Galilee of the nations or gentiles because many other nationalities lived in that area of the world. This was because “the way of the sea” was also a trade route that many kinds of people and trading companies passed through.  Metaphorically speaking, they lived in darkness due to the death and destruction they faced after every invasion. The great empire at that time was the Assyrian from the north. [Pic 3] The Assyrians were also known as barbaric people, who invented many evil ways to torcher and kill their captives. When they attacked it was like a big tidal wave crushing and destroying everything in their path. Like a terrible storm bringing behind it dark clouds and torrential rain. But Isaiah prophesied that their situation would greatly change in the future. Instead of darkness, a great light will shine.

Look at verse 2 again. “2 [c] The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.” [Pic 4] Isaiah was prophesying the coming of the Messiah, Jesus, who would shine his light to the people walking in darkness. Our God is amazing because always in the time of darkness He provides a great light, which provides hope for His people. This prophesy was fulfilled in Matthew 4:13-16, “13 And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:15 ‘The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—16 the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.’” Those territories where darkness once ruled would be filled with a great light. According to Bible scholars, Jesus did two-thirds of his earthly ministry in that region. They are known today as the holy lands because that is where Jesus walked, taught, and did his miracles. Jesus did not only heal the blind eyes physically, but he also opened the spiritual eyes of those who were living in darkness. God blessed America to be a great and rich superpower country. But we see also many parts of it in darkness due to racism, cultural sickness, and violence. Even though America has been blessed, there are so many people who suffer due to the darkness of drugs, alcoholism, sexual abuse, depression, or anxiety. [Pic 5] We need to pray and care for people in our sphere of influence in order to bring them to the light of Jesus. Jesus himself said in John 8:12b, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” I thank God for Jesus, who shone his light in my life when I was university student with no direction or meaning of life. He sent His servants in my life to love and serve me and show me a good example of how to live for God’s glory. Most of all, Jesus forgave my sins, took me out of the darkness, and showed me that I was a child of God, created for His glorious purpose. Not only does Jesus shine His light upon us, but he also increases the joy of His people.

Look at verses 3-4. “3 You have multiplied the nation; you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil.4 For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian.” As we known, in wars, people are displaced and are killed. When the Assyrians defeated their enemies, they also took captives from their homeland and brought them back to their land to use as slaves. Such atrocities cause the population of countries to decrease and people to be scattered. But Isaiah prophesied that the nation would multiply and their joy increased. How could this be? In God’s time, His people will increase in number and more importantly, their joy would increase through the spread of the gospel to the whole world. Revelation 7:9a reads, “After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.” Together, they will joyfully worship the Lord Jesus. Their joy is compared to the joy of a harvest and the joy of victorious people after winning a great war.

We see here written the example of “the day of Midian.” What had happened on that day? This story can be found in Judges 7. At that time, the enemies of Israel, the Midianites, had overrun their country and threatened to take over. They had a large army with 120,000 soldiers while Gideon was able to gather around 32,000 soldiers. But God had plan to teach Gideon and all His people to trust in Him in the most difficult of times. God told Gideon He would reduce the number of soldiers so that they could not boast that they had won the war by their own strength. He commanded Gideon to send anyone home who was afraid to fight. So, 22,000 soldiers went home, leaving only 10,000. But God said it was still too many soldiers. Then God had all the soldiers go to the water and drink. Those who bent over and drank the water like dogs were sent home. Those who used their hands to bring the water to their mouths were told to stay. In this way, there were only 300 men left to fight against 120,000 enemies. It was impossible for them to win this war on their own. By a miracle of God and a lot of noise made by Gideon and his men, they were able to win the victory. The Midianites had become confused by all the noise that they began to fight each other. Gideon and the small Israelite army had won a great war by the help of Almighty God. In the same way, God wanted the Israelites to trust in Him in Isaiah’s time. Then they would see a great victory.

Look at verse 5. “5 For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult and every garment rolled in blood will be burned as fuel for the fire.” This verse is a good segue to the last two verses of today’s passage because it shows what happens at the time of King Jesus’ rule. Isaiah’s prophesies in these verses were two-fold—one is Jesus’ first coming, and second is Jesus’ return as King of kings and Lord of lords. When King Jesus sits on His throne to rule there will be no longer any need for war nor weapons of war. Instead of soldiers’ uniforms and army fatigues made for fighting men and women, they could be used to make blankets and nice clothing to keep people warm. Instead of nuclear bombs being used to destroy cities and people, they can be used for nuclear plants to give homes electricity and keep them warm during the winter. Our morning prayer group has been praying every morning from Monday to Saturday for almost two years for the war in Ukraine to end before the severe winter sets in. Already in Ukraine, hundreds of thousands of soldiers, both on the Russian and Ukrainian side, have died needlessly. The only hope we have in this troubled and evil world is the Son given to us from God Himself.

Look at verse 6. “6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon[d] his shoulder, and his name shall be called[e]
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Here is the climax of Isaiah’s prophesy and the true meaning of Christmas. In this verse, we also find the baby Jesus’ true identity and essence:

First of all, a child is born and a son is given. A child is given shows Jesus’ humanity, and a son given shows his divinity. Jesus was born as an ordinary and helpless baby. When we think about it, it was actually dangerous to send Jesus as a helpless baby. The mortality rate of babies at that time was up to 50% because of the difficulty of life, lack of medical resources, diseases, and wars.  This week my family and friends prayed for our grandson, Theodon, because he was admitted to the hospital in the intensive care unit for a viral infection. We thank God because of prayer and proper medical care he was able to get the medicine, get better, and go home from the hospital. [Pic 6] As we know, after Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, king Herod sent soldiers to kill all the babies two years and under because he was afraid the baby Jesus was going to be a political rival. He didn’t know that Jesus had come to establish a spiritual kingdom. In spite of all these clear and present dangers, God still sent His Son, Jesus, into the world. This is because our God wanted to bring hope, joy, light, and a Savior to our dark and sinful world. As Luke 2:10 reads, “10 And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.’” Jesus is not only our Savior, but He is our Lord, who rules our hearts as well.

Second, “the government shall be upon his shoulder.” As mentioned, Isaiah’s prophecy has two parts. The first part is Jesus’ first coming, and the second part is Jesus’ return. When Jesus first came, he did not overthrow the Roman government that was harassing and occupying their land. This is why many Jews, especially the religious leaders, vehemently rejected Jesus as their Messiah. He was too lowly and poor to be their Promised Messiah. They wanted a powerful and political leader to be their Messiah, more powerful than the Roman emperors. So, they had Him crucified and nailed to the cross. But when Jesus returns again, He will not be a lowly servant as before, but King of kings and Lord of lords. The first time He came riding on a donkey into the city of Jerusalem, but the next time He will come on a horse ready for battle. He will defeat all his enemies and establish His kingdom as an everlasting kingdom. He will not only rule over the earth, but the whole universe.

Third, the Wonderful Counselor. As we learned about in our Tuesday Bible study, wonderful here can be used as an adjective like “miraculous” or “supernatural.” Jesus’ teachings and words spoken would be out of this world. We all need counseling like a financial counselor or marriage counselor for human reasons. But for things that impact us spiritually and determines our eternal destiny we need our Wonderful Counselor Jesus. Jesus’ gave supernatural counseling to Nicodemus about being born again in John 3:3, “Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.’” Now all Christians want to be known as “born again” Christians. It really gives us a new perspective of our lives physically and spiritually, inwardly, and outwardly. Actually, every word that Jesus spoke was wonderful counseling. Jesus had told the thirsty Samaritan woman that he would give her living water that would well up to eternal life. After encountering Jesus, two Roman soldiers said, “We never heard anyone talk like this man.” Even compared to the teachings of religious leaders and wise men in the world, Jesus’ teachings are matchless. Confucius once said, “Do not do to others, what you don’t want them do to you.” But Jesus said, “Do to others as you would want them do to you.” Jesus’ words are always proactive so that God’s people will take initiative as God took the initiative to save His people. As Jesus also taught, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Jesus also gives us wise counseling to live our lives in a way pleasing to God and a blessing to others. Jesus is the one who helps us make the right decisions of life when we come to Him in prayer and seek His counseling. If you don’t seek His counseling then you are on your own and you have to live with the consequences of your decisions.

Fourth, the Mighty God. As we know, the Trinity consists of Three Persons—God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Jesus revealed in His earthly ministry that the mighty power of God was working in and through Him.  Jesus is not only man, but he is the God-man. He has what is called by theologians a hypostatic nature—both the nature of man and the nature of God in one. This is the great incarnation, God coming down as man. This is the deity of Jesus. For a few examples, He was able to walk on water. He calmed the storm at his mere command. He was able to heal the eyes of the blind and make the cripple to walk again. He raised dead people to life. He had omniscient power to know what were in the hearts and minds of men. After His resurrection, he ascended back to heaven to sit on His throne. When we rely on Jesus’ mighty power, we can be strong enough to overcome the demands of life. Philippians 4:13 reads, “13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” Jesus, the Mighty God, gives us the strength to live as a father, a husband, a follower of Christ, and for several of us the strength to live as a grandfather and grandmother. Baby-sitting and taking care of babies in your old age you need a lot of strength. Soon Rhoel and Elena will understand, so get ready. Speaking of fathers, the next one is about another kind of father.

Fifth, the Everlasting Father. As mentioned, Jesus and the Father are one. Another way to look at “Father” here is like the founder or source of. For example, everyone in America should know who is the founder or father of the automobile—Henry Ford. Who is the father of the telephone? Alexander Bell, of course. Who is known as the father of the internet? Vint Cerf, not Al Gore (Once, he ran for president and declared in started the internet). Jesus is the Father or source of everlasting life. Jesus had said to Martha and Mary that whoever believed in Him would never die, but live forever. In His high priestly prayer, Jesus prayed in John 17:3, “3And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” Jesus would also have the loving, merciful, and righteous characteristics of His Father God. This is why He was compassionate to take care of the hungry, the poor, the orphan, the widow, the sick, and many other outcasts and marginalized in society. But like righteous Father God He also defended weak people who could not defend themselves and had righteous angry to the self-righteous religious leaders who condemned others. Jesus had the perfect balance of gentleness and meekness with power and strength. That is why the Bible describes Him as both the Lamb of God and the Lion of Judah. He is the one who brings peace and order to the world.

Sixth, the Prince of Peace. What does this mean? Does it mean that Jesus is the Prince of John and Maria Peace? What do nations in conflict and people in trouble want more than anything else in the world? They want peace more than anything else. Peace of mind, peace in their hearts, peace with others, and most of all, peace in their souls. But they cannot find this kind of peace in the world. Most if not all the peace treaties in the world have been broken. Mankind cannot keep peace with others even though they really want to. Because by nature mankind is selfish, greedy, proud, and defensive. So, many seek drugs or alcohol to find some temporary peace. The peace that goes beyond human understanding only comes from Jesus, the Prince of Peace. Many things cause us disturbances and troubles of life. If we have to take care of them all by ourselves, we can become like mental patients. Thank God that we can bring all our troubles to Jesus who gives us true peace in our hearts and our lives. Philippians 4:7 reads, “7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” And God promises that our peace and joy in Jesus will have no end.

Look at verse 7. “7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.” As we know, we want governments of this world to serve the real needs of those whom they govern over. But as we know, because of fallen and imperfect men governments don’t work as we want them to all the time. We get disappointed and want something or someone different. But someday there will be a perfect government because it will be ruled over by a perfect person. This government will be established and put on the shoulders of our Lord Jesus. In the book of Revelation, it speaks about Jesus’ 1,000-year reign on earth. King Jesus will not only reign with increasing peace, but with justice and righteousness forevermore. Why can only King Jesus rule with justice and righteousness forevermore? Because King Jesus is incorruptible and perfect. So many leaders of the world became corrupt due to taking bribes, or doing favors to rich business partners, or for their self-gain. In brief, all people are incorrigible and corrupt sinners. But it is impossible for King Jesus to do any of these things because He is perfect God. He cannot be bribed or corrupted because He owns everything in the universe.  He alone is worthy to rule the governments. And we don’t have to wait for Jesus to return to live under His rule. When we accept Jesus as our Savior today, he rules and governs our hearts and minds with the Holy Spirit. But it does not come to us automatically. We need to surrender our life to Him and submit to His lordship. When we do this, all of God’s promises will be fulfilled, if not in this life, in the life to come. How can we believe or be assured that this will happen? The end of verse 7 reads, “the zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.” God Himself will accomplish this. God is passionate to keep His promises for it reveals His glory and perfect character. As God kept His promises and sent His only Son, Jesus, the first time. He will keep His promise to send Him a Second time. Then the real meaning of Christmas found in Isaiah chapter 9, verses 6 and 7 will be fulfilled to their completion.

Who is the baby Jesus to you? Is He your Wonderful Counselor? Mighty God? Everlasting Father? Or Prince of Peace? Perhaps He is all that and more to you. I thank God for Jesus who is my Prince of Peace. Not just because my last name is Peace. There are many things in this world that can cause me, on a human level, to be anxious and worried. But my Lord Jesus has always given me peace in my soul when I surrender and trust in His sovereignty upon my life and those whom I pray for. At this Christmas time, you will need to ask yourselves, “Who is the baby Jesus to me?” May our Lord Jesus, the child given to us by God Himself, dwell in your hearts at this Christmas season. Amen.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 9:1Ch 8:23 in Hebrew
  2. Isaiah 9:1Or of the Gentiles
  3. Isaiah 9:2Ch 9:1 in Hebrew
  4. Isaiah 9:6Or is upon
  5. Isaiah 9:6Or is called

 

Bible Study Questions:

1.Look at verses 1-2a. Why were the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali were known for as places of gloom and darkness? See the maps below. Above Israel were the countries of Syria and Assyria. What were their relationships to Israel and Judah at that time? (see Isaiah 7:1-2)

2. Look at verses 2b-3. How would God change these lands in the future? How would God honor Galilee of the Gentiles? (Matthew 4:12-17) What is the meaning of “have seen a great light”? How would God increase their joy?

3. Look at verses 4-5. What happened in the time of Midian’s defeat? (see Judges 7:5-7) How could this story be a source of encouragement to God’s people? What will happen to all the weapons of war and why?

4. Look at verse 6. What does it mean that Jesus is the Wonderful Counselor? See some examples: John 3:3 and John 4:13-14. Do you know other wonderful counseling examples given by Jesus? Why is Jesus called the Mighty God when he was crucified on the cross?

5. What does it mean that Jesus is the Everlasting Father? The Prince of Peace? What do people of the world want more than anything else in our troubled world? How can they find it?

6. Look at verse 7. What does it mean His government will have no end? What does it mean to reign with justice and righteousness? What is the guarantee that this prophecy and any prophecy would be fulfilled?

For to Us a Child Is Born
9 [a] But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.[b]2 [c] The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.3 You have multiplied the nation; you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil.4 For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian.
5 For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult and every garment rolled in blood will be burned as fuel for the fire.6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon[d] his shoulder, and his name shall be called[e]
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

Footnotes
a. Isaiah 9:1 Ch 8:23 in Hebrew
b. Isaiah 9:1 Or of the Gentiles
c. Isaiah 9:2 Ch 9:1 in Hebrew
d. Isaiah 9:6 Or is upon
e. Isaiah 9:6 Or is called

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