Isaiah 9:6 NIV For 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.
Matthew 1:23 NIV“ The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
Luke 2:10-11 NIV But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
What does it mean that Jesus is our Wonderful Counselor (Isaiah 9:6)?
When Isaiah wrote his prediction of the coming of the “Wonderful Counselor” (Isaiah 9:6), he was spurring Israel to remember their Messiah was indeed coming to establish His Kingdom (Isaiah 9:7).
- Isaiah was writing nearly 800 years before Christ.
- This period of history was tumultuous as the Assyrians were on the march, taking people into captivity by droves.
- Isaiah’s prophecy gave the people of God a hope they so desperately needed: a Child would be born to fulfill the Davidic Covenant,
- He would bear the titles “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
- The Child was Christ; the prophecy will reach its consummation at Christ’s second coming.
We experience Christ by the Holy Sprit
- John 14:15-18 NIV “If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
- Romans 8:26-28 NIV In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
That Isaiah calls the Messiah the “Wonderful Counselor” indicates the kind of character this coming King has. The word wonderful in this passage literally means “incomprehensible.” The Messiah will cause us to be “full of wonder.” The word is much weightier than the way it’s used in normal conversation today—we say things are “wonderful” if they are pleasant, lovely, or the least bit likable. Jesus is wonderful in a way that is boggling to the mind.
- 1 Corinthians 2:9-10 NIV However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him— these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.
Jesus demonstrated His wonderfulness in various ways:
- His conception in the womb of a virgin (Matthew 1:23).
- He showed He is the “wonderful” One in His power to heal (Matthew 4:23),
- His perfect life (Hebrews 4:15),
- His resurrection from the dead (Mark 16:6).
Jesus taught many wonderful things that are counterintuitive to the human mind:
- “Blessed are those who mourn” (Matthew 5:4).
- “Rejoice and be glad” in persecution (Matthew 5:11–12).
- “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you” (Luke 6:27).
- Jesus’ kind of wonderful is awe-inspiring and superior to any other kind, for He is perfect in every way (Matthew 5:48).
The second part of the Messiah’s title is the word counselor. In ancient Israel, a counselor was portrayed as a wise king, such as Solomon, giving guidance to his people (1 Kings 4:34; Micah 4:9). Isaiah uses this word again in 28:29 to describe the LORD: “This also comes from the LORD of hosts; he is wonderful in counsel and excellent in wisdom.” Jesus is a wise counselor. “He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person” (John 2:25). He is able to advise His people thoroughly because He is qualified in ways no human counselor is. In Christ is “hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3),
- Colossians 2:2-3 NIV My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Jesus always knows what we are going through, and He always knows the right course of action (Hebrews 4:15–16).
- Hebrews 4:15-16 NIV For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Christ’s position as our Wonderful Counselor means:
- We can trust Him to listen to our problems and guide us in the right direction (Proverbs 3:6).
- We can be sure He is listening because He told us to pray to Him about our worries (Philippians 4:6; James 1:5).
- We can be certain He has our best interests at heart because He loves us (1 John 4:19).
- And His love is so wide and deep (and wonderful) that we cannot fully understand it (Romans 5:8).