A son named Emmanuel
The historical background to this passage is about 730BC when the Assyrians were starting to move in on Palestine. King Ahab of Judah (the Southern Kingdom) was fearful of an alliance of Rezin and Aram, two local kings in Palestine. Isaiah goes to assure the king that these kings are but smouldering firewood, but Ahab is doubtful.God then promises Ahab a sign: A child - a son - will be born and before the child is two years old, these two kings will have been destroyed.
The Hebrew word for "virgin" can also mean "a young woman about to be married."
The first fulfillment of the prophecy takes place in the next chapter: Isaiah takes a young wife and she gives birth to a son, who is given the name "Quick-to-the-plunder" and is a foreshadowing of the invasion of the Assyrians who overthrow all the nations in Palestine except Jerusalem and, as prophesied, Rezin and Aram are thwarted. As Isaiah describes the power of the Assyrian attack he still affirms that God is with His people (Isaiah 8:8) and so the birth of the child is associated to the presence of the Lord in the midst of trouble.
But New Testament also recognises this as a prophecy of the coming of Jesus. So it is a double prophecy: Isaiah, Ahab, Rezin, and Aram were long gone by the time Christ was born, but He came to deliver us from a far greater enemy...
700 years later (after it had had its "dress-rehearsal" in the form of Isaiah's son) the prophecy was ultimately and finally fulfilled in the birth of Jesus who was more than just a sign of God's presence with His people, but was truly God with us. Christ was also born in the midst of the threat of a foreign power (Rome) and so we discover that even when we are in trouble and experiencing hardship God is with us.
| Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son and will call him Emmanuel. (Isaiah7:14) |
