Throughout the rest of December, I'm blogging about the beautiful name of Jesus. The verse we're considering this Advent season is the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah 9:6, written 700 years before Jesus birth:
Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given;
and the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God,
Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace.
The Messiah's "name" consists of a four-fold designation, the first of which is "Wonderful Counselor." This name literally translates “a wonder of a counselor.” But what does it mean? Let’s break it down into its two parts.
“Wonderful.” The first is the word “wonderful.” The Hebrew word pala indicates “something uncommon or out of the ordinary.” It reflects “a phenomenon lying outside the realm of human explanation; that which is separated from the normal course of events; some-things which cannot be explained.”
The same Hebrew word is used in Psalm 139:6, which reads, “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain it.” It is something miraculous. The problem is, we tend to have a low view of the miraculous. A high-school student comes out of a classroom holding her exam paper which bears a mark in the nineties--and so she exclaims to her friend, “This is a miracle! I didn’t think I was anywhere near ready for that test.” Or a guy asks a girl out on a date, and when she responds in the affirmative, he thinks to himself, “She actually said `Yes’ -- it’s a miracle!”
In reality, however, these things are not miracles. They can all be explained, though some may take a little more effort to explain than others.
A real wonder is something beyond human explanation. And the prophet Isaiah declared that the coming Child and Son would be a wonder. This not only describes what He does, but who He is. He is wonderful! A wonderful what?
“Counselor.” The second part of this compound description of the coming Messiah is “Counselor.” In its historical Hebrew usage, the word is used to picture a king giving counsel to his people. For instance, the prophet Micah declared the dilemma of the captives in Babylon this way: “Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in your midst? Has your counselor perished?” (4:9).
Long before the Christ-child was born, Isaiah foretold that God was planning to send a Counselor for the broken-hearted of the world. In our study of First Corinthians, we read in 1 Corinthians 1:30 that Christ “became for us wisdom from God.” When you take all that we know about Christ, it adds up to a marvelous truth--He is the God who is, and who is called, a “Wonder of a Counselor.”
What is the significance of “Wonderful Counselor” to believers today? How does this “Wonder of a Counselor” give us help? How does He impart unto us His wisdom, and how should we seek it? Through the Word of God. The Old Testament is His story. The New Testament Gospels are the record of His conversations with the people of His day, who had needs not altogether different from ours. The letters of the rest of the New Testament represent the practical application of His teaching to life. The Lord guides us through His written Word. “Thy Word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path” (Ps. 119:105). “Thy testimonies are my delight; They are my counselors” (Ps. 119:24).
- God guides us through prayer. “But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him” (Jam. 1:5).
- God guides us through people. Proverbs 11:14 says there is safety in a multitude of good counselors. The wise person listens to the advice of other godly, mature Christians.
- God guides us through our circumstances. C. S. Lewis is the one who perceptively wrote: “God speaks to us in our pleasures and shouts to us in our pain.”
Psalm 32:8 says, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you.” God sees what you’re going through, and He uses life’s circumstances to lead you along the path of righteousness for His name’s sake.
Christ, however, is able to give us the needed direction for life. Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on yur own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” How thankful we should be that Isaiah spoke of a “Wonderful Counselor.”
Do you regard Jesus as such? Is He your Counselor?