In Isaiah 9:1-7, the prophet's famous words regarding the birth of Christ employ a term that is used twice here and nowhere else in the Old Testament: misrah, "government".
6 For unto us a child is born,
unto us a son is given,
and the government will be upon His shoulders.
And He will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of His government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on the throne of David
and over his kingdom,
to establish and sustain it
with justice and righteousness
from that time and forevermore.
unto us a son is given,
and the government will be upon His shoulders.
And He will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of His government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on the throne of David
and over his kingdom,
to establish and sustain it
with justice and righteousness
from that time and forevermore.
Misrah means "rule" or "dominion". I'm no Hebrew scholar, but as far as I can tell "government" is a fair and accurate translation.
The problem is that "government" is kind of a dirty word in modern American culture. It is a punchline, a term conjuring the opposite of respect. Even back in the 80s, I remember my dad cringing at government officials being called "public servants".
But government is necessary. And it can be done well.
To govern simply means "to rule over by right of authority".
This is a large part of what Jesus came to do. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Isaiah saw it clearly.
But it's certainly not an aspect of the Christmas story we tend to highlight.
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