Isaiah 9:1-7 The Gifts of Christmas: Hope
Dark Times
The news isn’t very good right now.
On Wednesday, two National Guardsmen on duty in Washington DC were shot in an ambush. One of them has died, the other remains in serious condition. This in addition to a year of political violence that saw the assassination of Charlie Kirk as well as the assasination/home attacks of the lawmakers in Minnesota. Political rhetoric in our nation is as fevered as it ever has been, and the people willing to resort to violence is alarmingly high.
Then there’s the ongoing war in Ukraine. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February of 2022, it is estimated that Russia has lost nearly 1 million soldiers killed or wounded. Ukrainian forces are estimated to have lost nearly half a million. Confirmed civilian deaths number over 14,000. Negotiations to end the war continue to ebb and flow, but the violence continues.
And, of course, the Middle East. A ceasefire between Israel and Gaza remains in place, and yet there are still reports of violence and deprivation leaking out.
It seems that we live in very dark times. It’s easy to watch the news and feel a deep sense of despair. Is this really all there is? Violence and hatred and war? Is this how things are always going to be?
The Christmas Gifts
Today is the first day of Advent, the season in the church that anticipates Christ’s coming into the world at Christmas. As Christians, we believe that about 2000 years ago God Himself took on human flesh and was born in a stable in Israel. God entered the world.
And this year for Advent I’m asking the question: what sort of people ought we to be in response to this truth? What should the reality of Christmas create within us? How do we respond?
I’m calling this series “The Gifts of Christmas” because the things we’re going to talk about are made possible by Christ’s coming to earth. Not only do we receive the gift of salvation. But things like compassion and generosity and service and joy become possible because of Jesus.
And also: Hope. Because Jesus was born 2000 years ago, we can be hopeful people. Despite the darkness of the headlines, we believe there is something better coming.
The passage I’ve chosen for us to look at today is a classic Christmas text. It’s one of those passages that you see quoted on Christmas cards and mentioned on the radio. George Frideric Handel made it even more well-known when he incorporated it into one of the most famous pieces of music in all of Western Civilization: Handel’s Messiah. The passage is Isaiah 9:1-7:
1Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the Gentiles, by the way of the sea, along the Jordan-- 2The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.
3You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as men rejoice when dividing the plunder. 4For as in the day of Midian's defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor. 5Every warrior's boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.
6For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
Here’s the main idea we can draw from this passage: Because of the birth of Jesus, hope is possible in a dark world. We can be hopeful people—in spite of political violence and ongoing war—because Jesus came into our world.
There are three parts to this main idea, and each is drawn from the text. I’ll take them in reverse order from how I’ve stated it.
Walking in Darkness
So, first: we live in a dark world. This world certainly looks hopeless at times Verse 1 again:
1Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the Gentiles, by the way of the sea, along the Jordan--
Isaiah wrote at a time when God’s people were under assault. A man named Ahaz was king over Judah and he was being attacked by Aram and their neighbors to the north. God sent Isaiah to tell Ahaz not to be afraid of them, but Ahaz faltered and turned to mighty Assyria in the hopes of protection. He built an alliance with the great superpower of the time, and as a result opened the door to all kinds Assyrian atrocities.
So now all of Israel is suffering under the Assyrian jackboots. They were experiencing military defeat, slavery, and severe food shortages. If they had had daily newspapers, they would have been filled with news of Assyrian outrages, Israelite farmers forced off their land and into servitude, and a crumbling and corrupt government in Jerusalem. It would not have read much differently than the things we hear about the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East today. As the verse says, they were in “gloom” and “distress”.
Much of this suffering was their own fault. It was Ahaz’s failure to trust in God that opened the door to the Assyrians in the first place. Plus, the last few verses of chapter 8 tell us that the people were choosing to consult with mediums and spiritists rather than inquire of their God. Isaiah 8:19-22:
19When men tell you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. 21Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king and their God. 22Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom, and they will be thrust into utter darkness.
When things got rough, they preferred to listen to the dead rather than the law and testimony of God. And it was only when things went badly that they chose to pay attention to God, at that point blaming Him rather than seeking his help.
And, of course, it’s the same with us. So much of the bad news in our world is man-made. It’s the result of people seeking their own way, trying to do their own thing. Listening—not necessarily to mediums and fortune-tellers—but to voices other than God.
And the result is darkness. Verse 2:
2The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.
This is a hopeful verse, of course; but before we get to the hope we have to consider the hopeless situation they—and we—are in.
Isaiah talks about people living in the land of the shadow of death. With war and exile and enslavement you can see how Israel at the time might have been described this way. And what about us? It never ceases to amaze me that more people died in war in the last century than all those who died in war in all of world history before, combined. Part of that has to do with population growth. But a lot of it has to do with the fact that as we become more technologically savvy, as we become more sophisticated in our knowledge and philosophy, we also become better at finding ways to fight and kill.
And even with the relative peace and security that comes from living in the United States, we can still be aptly described as living in the shadow of death. I mean, even if you live what most would consider to be a blessed life. Even if you go through life with no major illnesses, and you have a solid marriage, and your relationship with your kids and grandkids is strong, and you’re always gainfully employed and never know any significant deprivation or need… even then, the fact is: you are going to die. You’ll live 80 or 90 or even 100 years and then even a life without any significant suffering or pain will come to an end. We all live under death’s ever present shadow.
And, of course, for most of us, life doesn’t go quite that peacefully. We experience hurt and loss and disappointment. We know fear and pain and struggle. And then we die. It’s part of the curse God placed on Adam and Eve. We’ve been living with the consequences ever since. It’s easy to feel despair.
Increased Joy
So, we live in a dark world. But the darkness doesn’t get the final answer. Despite the headlines, this passage wants us to know that Hope is possible. Verse 2 again:
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.
This time, we look at this verse not for the bad news, but the good news. In spite of the sinfulness of His people that is causing their distress, God promises to do something.
Notice the past tense. It says the people walking in darkness have seen a great light. It says that a light has dawned. This is an example of what is known as the “prophetic perfect.” It doesn’t mean that these things had already happened before Isaiah wrote them down. Rather, he’s using the past tense to speak of future events because he’s so certain that they are going to come to be. The use of the prophetic perfect tells us that God knows what He is doing.
Isaiah uses the metaphor of light overcoming darkness. I love the candlelight service we have here every Christmas Eve. When we have that service, I love to have it as dark as possible within the sanctuary. We need to have some light, so we don’t stub our toes and so we can move around the edge of the sanctuary. But I try to keep it as dark as possible so that when we start lighting candles, we can see the way they push back the darkness. Even the darkest room cannot overcome the light from a single candle.
The same is true with God’s kingdom of light. The darkness can never put it out. God’s light has come into the world to overcome the darkness, and the darkness is helpless against it. Verse 3:
3You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as men rejoice when dividing the plunder
Isaiah envisions God’s people rejoicing. He uses two images: joy at the time of a successful harvest; and the joy of a victorious army dividing plunder after battle. The promise is that these people who are being defeated and beaten down will rise again, their fields will produce, and they will be triumphant in battle.
This becomes even clearer in the next verse. Verse 4:
4For as in the day of Midian's defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor.
The reference to Midian is a reference to the story of Gideon. In the days of the Judges the Midianites were much like the Assyrians: they were militarily stronger than the Israelites and forced the Israelites to pay them tribute. “They so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out to the LORD for help.” (Judges 6:6)
So God raised up an unlikely hero. Gideon was the youngest son in a family that was the weakest in his tribe. (Judges 6:15) He was also a bit of a coward. But the Lord gave him sign after sign to confirm that He was the One doing the calling and eventually Gideon raised an army.
But when Gideon got his men together, God told him there were too many. So he sent home all who were afraid. But even then, God said there were too many. So Gideon took them to a stream and sent home all who got down on their knees to drink. In the end, Gideon had only 300 men to fight against a huge army. But God delivered them into his hands. The Midianite defeat was complete and total.
And the point here is that there have been times before when the situation has seemed hopeless, and yet God has turned the tables by seemingly insignificant means. That’s virtually the Biblical definition of hope: even the smallest glimmer of light can begin to push back the dark. So verse 5:
5Every warrior's boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.
There’s a wonderful Hebrew word that you may have heard of before that’s being talked about here: “Shalom.” It’s not in this verse, but it is used a couple of times in the verses coming up. The straightforward translation of Shalom is peace. And yet, it is so much more than that.
Shalom is restoration to the way things are supposed to be. It’s the reversal of the curse. It’s wholeness and calm and renewal. That’s what this prophecy is looking forward to. The end of war. The end of the need even for the tools of war. Warrior’s boots and blood-stained tunics will be used as fuel for burning. As it says elsewhere: swords will be beaten into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks. (Isa. 2:4; Micah 4:3)
The world is very dark. But hope is possible. It’s breaking in as a tiny light, but like the dawn it will grow and spread and overtake the night. A day of Shalom is coming.
Unto us a Child is Born
And it is all because of the birth of Jesus. All of the wonderful promises in this passage have an adequate cause: the birth of a child. Verse 6, the verse Handel made famous:
6For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
The word “for” is very important here. It’s the word that connects this verse with everything that comes before it. And it’s saying that it is because of the birth of a child, this gift of a son, that this promise of light defeating darkness and overwhelming Shalom is possible.
Isaiah wrote these words under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit about 800 years before the first Christmas. He didn’t know Jesus’ name. And yet, it is clearly Jesus that he is talking about.
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given...”
God was promising to send a Messianic Ruler, born as a little human baby–born full of hope and promise. And this little child would be a gift. A gift, Isaiah says, “to us.” Now, originally that “us” was Israel. But John tells us that God so loved “the world” that He gave His One and Only Son. So this child was born to all of us. And He was born to give us hope.
Verse 6 says that He would have several great names. These are titles that would be appropriate for this coming child. Not His mother’s name for Him. It’s not like she would yell out the kitchen window, “Hey, Wonderful Counselor Mighty God Everlasting Father Prince of Peace, come in for dinner!” Not like that. But these four titles would accurately express who this child would become and what He would accomplish.
I could do a whole sermon series on these names. Or certainly base an entire sermon around them. But for now, let’s just glance at each one quickly:
“Wonderful counselor.” Usually when we use the word “counselor” we think of the therapist type: a dapper fellow in a nice sweater who carefully listens to our personal problems and then helps us to solve them with his soothing voice dispensing advice.
But the kind of counselors we know weren’t around in the 8th century before Christ. The kind of counselors everyone listened to then were what we would call “Military Advisors” or “Military Strategists.” These were men who understood the enemy and understood battle tactics. They were rough and tumble men who had what it takes to give you a plan to win a war.
Isaiah says that the Messiah would be a “Wonderful Counselor.” His plans, His strategies, His advice, His counsel would be like nothing ever seen before! It would be “wonderful!” Full of wonders. And therefore, anyone who took His counsel would not fail.
Or, again, He will be called “Mighty God.” I wonder what Isaiah must have thought when the Spirit led Him to put those words down on paper! Israel had very strict rules about misusing the name or image of God. The idea that Almighty God could become a baby boy would be mind-blowing stuff.
We’re too used to it because we sing the Christmas Carols every year. And we’ve gotten used to Christmas pageants and Christmas Cards. But 800 years before Jesus no one was thinking that the God of the Universe would be coming to earth as a human being, let alone as a helpless baby—and yet that is precisely what Isaiah was told to prophesy.
This is where hope comes from. It comes from the Almighty God lying in a manger.
Or, again, He will be called “Everlasting Father.” Now, Jesus is not God the Father. This is not a reference to His oneness with God the Father. And humanly speaking, Jesus never married or had any children as a human father. But that’s not the kind of Father this is talking about. This is more like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. People we call the “Fathers of our nation.” They were the foundational leaders of our nation who led and guided it. And the Messiah was to be a Father to His people.
Now, not everyone has had a great father. But that word, “Father” is supposed to conjure up connotations of care and wisdom and authority and strong leadership. This is the ideal Father that everyone longs for and all good earthly fathers aspire to be like: loving, sacrificial, and strong.
Verse 6 also says that the “government will be on his shoulders.” He would shoulder the government! That’s a big responsibility, calling for very big shoulders. If you are a father, you understand what that feels like to suddenly have the weight of a family resting on your shoulders. Well, the weight of the world would rest on the shoulders of this child. That’s what it would mean for Him to be “Father” for His people.
But He wouldn’t just be Father. He’d be Everlasting Father! His Fatherhood, His loving leadership would be a never-ending-never-stopping-always-coming-through kind of leadership!
Where earthly fathers (all of them, all of us) will fail, this One never will!
And, then, “Prince of Peace.” The Messiah’s rule will be characterized, not just by the absence of war (though that will be amazing!) but by the presence of harmony, justice, righteousness, and peace.
Shalom, as I described it earlier. And Shalom forever! Look at verse 7:
7Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
This peace began when Jesus was born, but it has not come fully yet. The Kingdom has been inaugurated but has not been fully consummated. When Jesus was born, the angels sang, “Peace on Earth, Goodwill to Men.” Because the Son had come!
But His first coming was about securing our salvation at the cross. He began His Kingdom in the church, but He has not yet acted to destroy all war and evil in the world. But when He comes again, He will establish this Kingdom that will never end.
One day, coming soon, the whole world will be filled with peace. Justice and righteousness will flow like mighty waters. And of the increase of his government (resting on His mighty shoulders) and His peace–there will be no end.
While we work at that now, we long for that day! This is our hope. And it is a hope that is certain because the main part of this prophecy, the really important part, the adequate cause upon which everything else rests, has already happened. The child has been born. The son has been given.
Because of the birth of Jesus, hope is possible in this dark world.
One last line—the final line of the prophecy: “The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.” The headlines can be overwhelming. The trials and hardships you face on a daily basis can get you down. It’s easy to feel hopeless.
But God is jealous to see His glory manifested in the New Creation! He has committed Himself to this, and He will not fail to bring it about! “The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.”
We can count on that!
And all because a child has been born–to us.
Given to us.
