7 NAMES OF JESUS
Five of our
Saviour’s names are disclosed in the magnificent and majestic words
of Isaiah 9.6,
“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given:
and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called
Wonderful, Counseller, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of
Peace“
1. Wonderful:
“His Name shall be
called Wonderful.” When Christ was born the shepherds marveled at the glorious
circumstances. During His earthly ministry all were astounded at the miracles
He wrought, and in Luke 11.14 it is recorded, “… and the
people wondered.”
This very same
name, or title, was used when the Angel of the Lord appeared to Manoah, the
father of Samson. When Manoah inquired of the Angel of the Lord what His name
was, He answered, “Why asketh thou thus
after My name, seeing it is secret (‘pil'iy’ :‘wonderful’ )” (Jud 13. 18 -19) This account is just one of many OT ‘theophanies’, the Angel of the Lord being none other than a pre-incarnate
appearance of Christ Himself.
2.“Counsellor.”
To all who would hear and heed He gave divine counsel. He who was “full of grace and truth” (John 1.14) spoke with authority, “And it came to pass,
when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at His
doctrine: For He taught them as one having authority, and not as
the scribes……And they were astonished at His
doctrine: for He taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes” (Matt 7.28-29; Mark 1.22). Even the unbelieving officers,
returning to the Pharisees who had sent them to arrest Christ, answered their
superiors, saying, “Never man spake like
this Man” (John 7.46)
In the Hebrew this same word is used
in Isaiah 11.2, “And the Spirit of the
LORD shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of
counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD”; while the two words, “wonderful” and “counsels” are found together in Isaiah 25.1,“O LORD,
Thou art my God; I will exalt Thee, I will praise Thy Name; for Thou
hast done wonderful things; Thy counsels of
old are faithfulness and truth”
3.“The Mighty God.”
Christ is
God! He was in the bosom of the Father from eternity, “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is
in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him” (John 1.18) and He is revealed as the Jehovah of the Old Testament, for He
and the Father are One (10.30).
In the Hebrew text,
“El” is God, the last syllable
of “Immanuel.” “El” is contrasted with man in Hosea 11.9, “I will not execute the fierceness of mine anger,
I will not return to destroy Ephraim: for I am God,
and not man; the Holy One in the midst of thee: and I will
not enter into the city”, while “mighty” is used of God in Deuteronomy 10.17, “For the LORD your
God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a
terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward” and elsewhere in the Scriptures.
4.“The Everlasting
Father.”
A better translation of this would, be, “the Father
of the Ages.” Our Lord Jesus Christ is eternal and before His incarnation all
things were created by Him and for Him, “All things were made
by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made….. For by Him were
all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and
invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or
powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him” (John 1.3; Col 1.16) and by Him the ages were fitted together. He is the Architect of
the Ages, the Designer of all created things.
There is a twofold
revelation in this name, “For thus saith the
High and Lofty One that inhabiteth
eternity, whose Name is Holy; I dwell in the high and
holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble
spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the
contrite ones” (Isa 57.15)He inhabits and possesses eternity and He is loving,
tender and compassionate, the all-wise Instructor, Trainer and Provider.
All things find
their coherence and continuity in Him! “And He is before all things, and by Him
all things consist” (Col 1.17)
5.“The Prince of
Peace.”
A just and lasting peace which so many sincere men seek today
will never be realized until “the Prince of
Peace” comes to the earth a second time. In
that day He will not come as a Child, but in power and great glory, “When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy
angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory…….Which in His times He shall shew, who is the Blessed
and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords….” (Matt 25.31; 1 Tim
6.15); not as the Lamb to die, but as the Lion of the tribe of Judah
to reign in righteousness, “And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold,
the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the
book, and to loose the seven seals thereof…..” (Rev 5.5).
Our Lord Jesus
Christ is “the Prince of
Peace” for no one can have “peace with God” except through
genuine faith in the Son of God who died on the cross for our sins and rose
again, thereby freely providing salvation and peace for the believing sinner, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through
our Lord Jesus Christ:…..And, having made peace through the blood of His cross,
by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by him, I say,
whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven” (Rom 5.1; Col
1.20)
6. The sixth name of
our Saviour is disclosed in the familiar words of Isaiah 7.14, “Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a
sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His Name
Immanuel”
“Immanuel.” This Hebrew name
means “God with us.” To those who witnessed Christ’s miracles and heard
His gracious words, it was evident that God was indeed among men!
7. This seventh name
of our Saviour is revealed in Matthew 1.21, “And
she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call His Name JESUS: for He shall
save His people from their sins”
