colcerex, www.sxc.hu/photo/293654
Matthew writes in chapter 1, verse 23 that Jesus was born to a virgin in order to fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah, “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel” (v. 7.14). He also establishes that Immanuel means “God with us.” However, the contextual point of the story is the fulfillment of prophesy, not the meaning of the name. There is a beautiful depiction of what Immanuel means to us in Isaiah.
Isaiah prophesies of the coming invasion of Assyria into Judah (vv. 8.6-10). In the middle he cries out, “O Immanuel” (v. 8.8) or O God with us. It is very clear based on the context of this passage, immediately proceeding the messianic prophecy in chapter 7, that he intended to recognize that the Lord Immanuel was not only with them, but that he was also the messiah which was to come.
The Old Testament makes up the majority of the Bible. We can go through it and see repeated instances where Israel is walking away from God, but God has his hand upon them still, because he is ‘with them’. Being that our Lord is their Lord, remember that Jesus is always ‘with us’. As Christians we must always remain in perspective. When things go wrong, it is not that Jesus has abandoned us, because he is Immanuel, rather that we have abandoned him and we need only to return in obedience to receive the comfort we need.
The Name of Immanuel
