The Prophesies of the Son (Isaiah)

Introduction

What is it about Christmas that makes it such a sought after holiday. I know people who start counting down to next Christmas the day after Christmas. We even have Christmas in July…and before you know it, it’s September, and the signs of the beloved holiday begin, little by little until we hit October and all the stores are decorated and the real countdown begins. However, I would like to submit to you this morning that the true countdown to Christmas began in eternity past. In the council of the Godhead.

We have already seen how this countdown plays out in our current advent series, In the Fullness of Time, and have been shown very clearly that God’s plan of redemption was no accident. The promise given to Eve that her seed would crash the serpent’s head, and the covenant made with Abraham that through his seed all the nations of the world would be blessed is no coincidence or act of fate, but a carefully and meticulously designed plan.

This morning we will look at The Prophesies of the Son, focusing specifically on one given by the prophet Isaiah. My prayer is that in our countdown to Christmas, we will see the continuous unbroken thread in these specific, detailed prophesies as we trace the coming of Jesus the Messiah, in the fullness of time.

Text: Isaiah 9:1-7

Isaiah 9:1–7 ESV

1 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. 2 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 his shoulder, and his name shall be called 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.

Main Idea: Because God’s revelation through His Prophets regarding the coming of His Son was so detailed, we must know for certain that the birth of Christ was no accident!

Note: Isaiah the prophet prophesied for more then 40 years, between 740-700 BC, therefore, these prophesies are over 700 years before the coming of Christ.

The prophet prophesied during the reigns of Judah’s Kings, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah.

His prophesies during the throws of God’s judgments against both the ten northern tribes by Assyria, and the two southern tribes by Babylon because of their constant disobedience and idolatry. In the midst of this doom and gloom, God’s covenant that he made with Abraham is still seen as ongoing and valid, through the coming of the seed of the woman, the Messiah.

The details of such prophesies are nothing more then Divinely inspired!

Let’s begin with,

I. The Prophesy of the Coming Light (1-2)

A. A Directed Light (1-2)

Isaiah prophesies, In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali - Verse 1 describes God’s judgment on the 10 northern tribes, with these regions in Galilee of the nations (Zebulun and Naphtali) being the first to suffer from the Assyrian invasion of 732 b.c, 10 years before the displacement of the northern ten tribes in 722 BC.

However, in the midst of such hopelessness and gloom, the good news is that though this region was the first to come under attack by foreign invaders, they will be the first to see the light of the Messiah who launches his worldwide mission from Galilee, as Matthew tells us,

Matthew 4:12–17 ESV

12 Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. 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.” 17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

It is important to note that the majority of Jesus ministry was done in Galilee. His first miracle of turning water into wine was done in Capernaum, Galilee

B. A Dispelling Light (2)

The light of the Messiah would be one that overcomes the hopelessness and darkness of that time, as Isaiah’s words tell us in verse 2:

Isaiah 9:2 “2 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.”

have seen - the Hebrew perfect views the action of the verb from an outer perspective, the perspective of seeing or thinking of the action of the verb as a whole and complete, without respect to the time of the action. In other words, though the action is still future, it is seen as complete!

Jesus was truly the prophesied light in the land of darkness. A deep darkness that had fallen over this land in which the Assyrians had cast their terrible shadow.

In John’s gospel prologue we read:

John 1:4–5 ESV

4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Note: that no matter how deep the darkness, the true light of Christ will always prevail! But not only does the one who is coming dispel darkness, so that we can find our way, but that all our focus will be on him, as he fights for his people as we see in,

II. The Prophesy of the Coming Champion (3-5)

Note that verse 3 begins with the pronoun You, which is used 3 times in this verse, looking at the action from the 2nd person singular, and refers back to, and personifies the light in verse 2.

The verbs attached to this pronoun have what is called in the Hebrew a perfective aspect suffix, which simply means that the action of the subject is seen in its completed state without reference to time.

In other words, the one who dispels darkness is the one who is scene to be the champion for his people, as if it was already completed.

A. He Builds the Nation (3)

Speaking in the 2nd person singular, you, does what... multiplies them instead of destroying them.

Increases their joy; joy that had been lost because of the darkness of their sin and God’s resulting judgment.

He provides for them through the harvest and the spoils of war

Isaiah now gives further information by the use of the conjunction for (used 3x in 4-6)…switching to the 3rd person singular, he describes the action plan of the Messiah...

B. He Breaks Down Oppression (4)

yoke, staff, and rod are instruments of slavery and oppression; these will be placed upon him and removed from us, thus taking ownership of the oppression and burdens of his people .

This sounds very similar to what Jesus said in Matthew 11:28 “28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

broken as on the day of Midian - reference to Gideon and his small army defeating the Midianites through the power of God. Though it seems hopeless now, the Messiah will take what is small and feeble and he will break down all oppression.

C. He Judges all Enemies (5)

Shows that God’s champion, the Messiah, will finally destroy all their enemies and cast them into his fire of judgment.

Revelation 20:11–15 ESV

11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. 13 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. 14 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

So how is this all going to happen? Why should the people believe this since frail, sinful men have risen and fallen, and their fate seems inevitable. Isaiah explains by beginning with the conjunction for to show how this light and champion will come onto the scene, we see this in…

III. The Prophesy of the Coming Son (6-7)

We first see that…

A. The Son is Given (6)

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given (6)-

child is born - shows his humanity

son is given - shows his divinity

How was this human/divine child/Son given? Remember that it was to be the seed of the woman that would crush Satan’s head (Gen 3:15). Isaiah tells us just two chapters before in Isaiah 7:10-14

Isaiah 7:10–14 ESV

10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz: 11 “Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test.” 13 And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Here we see that the sign that Ahaz needed to trust the Lord to rescue Judah from and attack from both their brothers in the north and the Syrians was a virgin giving birth. How is that possible? Matthew’s gospel explains this to us:

Matthew 1:18–23 ESV

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).

note that Isaiah is claiming that this child; this son, was given to us. Who are the us? In the context, it is God’s covenant people who are receiving this son/child. Why is that important?

It’s because of what is contextually going on in Israel. The ten northern tribes have been displaced by Assyria, and the two remaining southern tribes are in the throws of being taken to Babylon, all because of their sin and rebellion against God.

Therefore, in the eyes of many Jews, it was over, God’s promises had failed. But now Isaiah responds with the promise of a son/child. What is the first characteristic about this child?

B. The Son is Sovereign (6b)

the government shall be upon his shoulder (6)- note the definite article, the government. Not just any government but the overarching, sovereign government of God himself. How do we know that? Let’s look at his name (denoted characteristics),

C. The Son is Named as God (6-7)

This Son is given four royal titles:

Wonderful Counselor (6) - extraordinary nature, miraculous problem solver, showing both knowledge of all things and the best solutions for all things (Rom 11:34-36 “34 “For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?” 35 “Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” 36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” ).

Mighty God (6) - of God essence (Phil 2:6 “6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,” ; Heb 1:3 “3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,”). He is our protector with no rival.

Everlasting Father (6) - This is not saying that Jesus is the Father as in the Godhead, but like a father, he is the eternal protector and provider of his church (speaking of Jesus, Paul says in, Col 2:10 “10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.” )

Prince (not a king’s son, but the principle sovereign) of Peace (6) - the ultimate peacemaker, bringing reconciliation between God and man (Romans 5:1 “1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”; Eph 2:14 “14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility” ).

Eternal throne of David (7) - in fulfillment of the Davis Covenant (2 Sam 7:16 “16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’ ”” ). This is none other than the promised Messiah, King Jesus!

with justice and righteousness from this time forth and forevermore (7) - God’s sending of His Son was so that His justice and righteousness might be on display for all time in those for whom Christ came!

Romans 3:23–26 ESV

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

So what is going to assure this will happen? The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this…God himself will make this happen!

So What?

The coming of the incarnate Christ was no accident, nor was it a part of a contingency plan, but the original plan decreed in eternity past.

Because God is in control of all history he therefore manipulates and superintends so that His decrees are fulfilled.

We must see that our lives are wrapped up in the incarnation. We as Christ’s church exist and are given our commission because of Christmas!

Do you have peace with God?