Westhill Church - Auburn & Federal Way, WA

The WEekly Word

A Blog of Encouragement from our Pastors

weekly word – 12/18/2025

Isaiah 9:6-7 - A Child is Born

In Isaiah 7:14, God promised the house of David that one day, He would prove His faithfulness by causing a virgin to miraculously bear a child. After describing God’s plan to bring light to Israel in verses 9:1–5, Isaiah reveals that this virgin-born child will be the source of that light:

6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us;

And the government will rest on His shoulders;

And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

7 There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace,

On the throne of David and over His kingdom,

To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness

From then on and forevermore.

The zeal of Yahweh of hosts will accomplish this.

When we read the first line of verse 6, most Christians recognize it’s about Jesus. We’ve read this at Christmas. We’ve heard it in Handel’s popular oratorio, Messiah. We might even recognize the similarity of this line with John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…”

But why does verse 6b say “the government will rest on His shoulders” when we don’t see Him ruling today in Israel? And in verse 7, why does it say “There will be no end to the increase of His government”? This is a challenge for us because we know Jesus as a personal and spiritual Savior, not a political one.

To make sense of those promises, we should look carefully at Jesus’ triumphal entry in the last week of His life. For almost His entire ministry, Jesus repeatedly told His followers not to proclaim Him as Messiah or King (Matt 16:20; Mark 1:43-44; 5:43; 7:36; 8:30; John 6:15).

All this ended on Palm Sunday. Jesus doesn’t enter Jerusalem secretly here. He plans His triumphal entry by sending His disciples to proclaim Him as “the Lord,” then rides a young donkey to fulfill Zechariah 9:9, openly receives praise, calls it Jerusalem’s “time of visitation,” and then enters the Temple to judge (Luke 19:29-46).

Jesus was declaring Himself to be Jerusalem’s rightful King in line with Isaiah 9:6–7. But Israel rejected and crucified Him instead.

So while Jesus is indeed the promised Child, He will not reign politically unless Israel receives Him as their Messiah. What remains in this passage is yet to be seen until Jesus returns again and His people, Israel, finally receive Him as Lord and Savior.

As Christians, we still experience and affirm the truths of verse 6, even if they aren’t seen by the rest of the world. Jesus is our Wonderful Counselor, responding to our prayers, interceding at the right hand of the Father, and guiding us through His Spirit and Word. He’s the Mighty God, incarnate in human flesh, powerfully ruling all of nature. He is our Eternal Father, giving us spiritual life as His offspring. And He’s the Prince of Peace, ready to rule the world when His Father sends Him back to us.

But notice the final line: the zeal of Yahweh of hosts will accomplish this. Two terms are significant. First, zeal refers to His militant passion to protect His covenant people. Second, Yahweh of hosts refers to God as the leader of angel armies. Just as Jesus was only able to cleanse the Temple through driving out thieves who were preventing worship (Luke 19:45), this virgin-born Child, now a glorified Man, will only come to reign on earth by destroying the nations that will lay siege to the city.

This passage is a glorious reminder of the hope we have in Jesus, the Messiah, and all the blessings we will enjoy in His second coming.

Pastor David

12/11/2025 – The Faithfulness of God – Bryan

12/04/2025 – The Storm in Grassy Creek – Ed

11/27/2025 – Isaiah 9:1-5 – David

11/20/2025 – God's Attributes: The Power of God – Bryan

11/13/2025 – The Broken Carpenter – Ed

11/06/2025 – Isaiah 8:19-22 – David

10/30/2025 – God's Attributes: The Holiness of God – Bryan

10/23/2025 – "A Light on Maple Street" – Ed

10/16/2025 – Isaiah 8:9-18 – David

10/09/2025 – God's Attributes: The Immutability of God – Bryan