Wonderful Counselor, Might God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace

Have you considered what Messiah, our Lord Jesus, is called in Isaiah 9:6?

“….Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6b ESV)

As Wonderful Counselor, Jesus Christ is the prophet who speaks the counsel of God to us. Wonderful in Judges 13:17,18 is a name for the Lord. In Judges 13 Samson’s parents asked the angel, “What is your name?” The angel replied, “Why do you ask my name? It is wonderful.” This aspect of incomprehensibility means he is God, Deity. The Hebrew word here for wonderful implies beyond understanding. The word for counselor is used with the word king as a necessity of the king’s ministry. The combination of these two words raises the nature of an earthly king’s ministry to the very heights of heaven. This wonderful counselor of Isaiah’s prophecy is indeed characteristic of God Himself.
Is Jesus a wonder to you? Have your eyes been opened to the person of Jesus Christ? He is wonder, especially to his people. He is Wonder of wonders.

Not only that, he is Counselor. In ancient times, kings, such as David, had counselors, such as Ahithophel. Even today our political leaders need counselors. But this One does not need any counselor. He is the Counselor and does all things according to the counsel of his own will. What he plans, he always fulfills.

As Mighty God He is the powerful Deliverer of His people from His enemies, an aspect of His being King. The Hebrew here is “El Gibbor”, it contains one of the names of God. As it is used, divinity is implicit in this very name, “Mighty God”. Jesus declared his divine nature in the miracles he performed. He used his miraculous works to substantiate his claims. The apostle John links this Godly nature of Jesus with the prophecies of Isaiah. Then he adds in John 12: 41: “Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him.” “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). This God/man is Mighty God. Do you confess him as such? Has he conquered you?

As Everlasting Father, He is not God the Father in the Trinity, but the human replacement of Father Adam who disobeyed bringing guilt and condemnation to all his children. Jesus, the last Adam, obeys for us and fulfills the covenant Adam broke and so brings justification to us who are in covenant with Christ, (Romans 5:12-19). The implication of the phrase means “Father of Eternity”. E. J. Young in his commentary suggests that paraphrasing “One who is eternally a Father” might bring out the thought “Is this not the work of our Lord Jesus Christ?” Now and forever He guards His people and supplies their needs.

As Prince of Peace, Christ is again seen as a king and also a priest who sacrificed for the people. After a sacrifice the priest pronounced a benediction of peace upon sinners who had come to the Lord in God’s ordained way, (Numbers 6:22-27). In contrast to the mighty conquests of warrior emperors, kings and princes, ours is a Prince of Peace. And His kingdom advances peacefully. Since the peace of His kingdom is eternal, it is clear that this peace includes more than a temporary cessation of hostilities among nations. There must be removed the cause of war which is human sin. When this cause of war is removed, then there can be true peace. For human sin to be removed, however, there must be a state of peace between God and man. Paul would tell us in Romans 5:1 that in our “being justified by faith, we have peace with God through out our Lord Jesus Christ”. True peace comes to us because a Child was born. That Child, and He alone, is the Prince of Peace. If we would have peace, it is to Him that we must go.