For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name is called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty щGod, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace.
Read Full Chapter →Commentary for this Verse
God's answer to His people is not an army or a new ruler. It is a baby. What is strange is what He is called. These are titles no human king could carry. They raise the question of who this Child really is.
A Child born, a Son given
The verse says two things about one Person, and the two halves are not the same. One writer draws out why the wording shifts from "born" to "given":
Arend RemmersLook at Isaiah chapter 9 verse 6: "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given." We could call this simple repetition. But in the Word of God nothing is simple repetition. The child who is born is the Lord Jesus, the eternal Son of God. He came down into this world as man. But the Holy Spirit adds, "a son is given." As Son He was never born. He existed from all eternity, and God gave Him to us when He came into this world.
Another writer makes the same point from the opposite side — from what the verse does not say:
A J PollockNotice that Scripture tells us a child is born, but not that a Son is born. Some teach that the Lord only became the Son of God when He was born as a man. Had the text read that way, they would have seized on it as proof of their false teaching. But it tells us, "a son is given." The well-known gospel verse, John 3:16, agrees with this: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son."
Wonderful: a name that hides as much as it reveals
The Hebrew word behind this name appears in one other place. There a husband and wife asked their heavenly visitor for His name:
A J PollockOne of the names given to this Child is "Wonderful" [Hebrew pele, meaning something that cannot be grasped or understood]. The same word appears when the Angel of Jehovah — here the Lord Himself — came to Manoah and his wife and promised them a son. Manoah wanted to honour his heavenly Visitor, so he asked Him His name. The reply was, "Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?" (Judges 13:18).
Counselor: the source others draw from
Other kings take advice. This King gives it:
H J Vine"Counselor." He will be the Source of all counsel for those who share the government and its benefits in that day. Every good counsel has already come from Him. He is the One who said, "I have counsel and sound wisdom; I have insight; I have strength. By me kings reign, and rulers decree what is just; by me princes rule, and nobles, all who govern justly" (Proverbs 8:14-16).
Mighty God: the title Isaiah also gives to God
Jehovah is God's own name in the Old Testament. One writer points to the very next chapter of Isaiah:
Frank WallaceIn Isaiah 9 we have the description of the Messiah, the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ. One of the names given Him here is "the mighty God" (v. 6). Now turn over to chapter 10. There Isaiah gives the same name to Jehovah, "the mighty God" (v. 21). So the Old Testament itself proves that the Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ, is God, the mighty God.
Commentators differ on how much weight this title carries in its setting. Darby held that here it speaks of the place He holds rather than an argument about His nature — "He must be God, but it is His position not His nature which is asserted" — while granting that such righteous rule must be divine.
Everlasting Father: not a confusion of Persons
This title sounds like it mixes up the Father and the Son. One writer answers that:
The Bible TreasuryThis name in no way confuses the person of the Father with the person of the Son, but is a title which Messiah will take in His official glory as King of Israel. This child shall be called the Father of eternity. This title belongs to Israel — not to the other nations, and not to the church.
The government on His shoulder
The government rests on one shoulder. One writer sets that beside the lost sheep of Luke 15:
H J Vine"The government shall be upon His shoulder." Happy day to come for the world! He will succeed where the politicians and rulers fail so sadly now. "On His shoulder" the government will be safe. But Luke 15 tells us that the sheep — the lost sinner He seeks and finds — has both "shoulders" for his security. One shoulder will do for the government of the earth, but nothing less than both for the sheep He loves so well.
Prince of Peace
This last name will not arrive by negotiation:
An Outline of Sound WordsSoon the Lord Jesus will come again to reign as "Prince of Peace." But He will bring that peace in through fearful judgments. People have longed for peace for ages, but their own efforts have never won it. It will come when the judgments of the Lord set all evil aside. He "made peace by the blood of his cross." He preaches peace now in the gospel. And He will bring the world a peace it has never known.
Summary
- Given, not made. The Child was born; the Son was given — He was already the Son before He came into the world, so the gift is as old as eternity.
- Named, not flattered. "Wonderful" means something beyond human grasp. It is the name the heavenly Visitor refused to give Manoah in Judges 13.
- God, not just great. In the next chapter Isaiah gives that same name, "Mighty God," to God Himself. Commentators differ on whether the title here stresses His nature or the position He takes.
- Carried, not shared. The government rests on one shoulder. The lost sheep gets both. He is stronger than the world imagines, and gentler with one sinner than we dare hope.
- Peace, but by judgment. The last title crowns the rest. He made peace by the blood of the cross. He preaches it now. He will enforce it on earth when He reigns.