For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Isaiah here shows us the foundation of all our hope: God will not merely free His people from captivity, but will establish Christ on His royal throne so that through Him we obtain supreme and everlasting happiness. Every promise, in every age, rests on the Mediator; we must never content ourselves with temporal mercies, but lift our eyes to Christ, the end toward which all God's benefits point.
AI summary
Even in the darkest hour, God's people possess a nevertheless: they are troubled yet not forsaken, sorrowful yet always rejoicing. The God who forms light and creates darkness has set bounds to both; He can say to the dimness, Thus far you shall go and no further. This is our comfort when all grows black.
AI summary
Commenting on Isaiah 9:1-7
This child is the Messiah, not Hezekiah as the Jewish writers claim; Hezekiah was already ten years old when this prophecy came, and nothing in his life matches these titles. The attributes here, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, belong to Christ alone; no mere creature can bear such names.
AI summary