“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given. And the government shall be upon his shoulder,  and his name shall be called…Everlasting Father…Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.”

Isaiah 9:6-7

God’s people longed for a king ever since the days of the judges, when Israel endured a vicious cycle created by their own sinful rebellion. They chased after the false gods of the people that surrounded them, which always led to their enslavement and oppression. At their lowest points, they remembered the God they had forsaken and cried out to him for rescue. He answered their pleas by raising up a judge to deliver them out of slavery. In their gratitude, the people followed God once more and swore their faithfulness to him again. But their fealty never lasted. Within a generation or two, they were serving false gods again. The cycle continued.

A king represented lasting protection and strength. Unlike the judges who were raised up for specific times and purposes, kings sat on the throne and ruled for generation after generation. The people longed for this seamless reign. So they went to the prophet Samuel and demanded a king to rule over them.

Samuel warned them that this earthly king would come at a price. He would take the best of everything for himself: the best land, the best vineyards, even their sons and daughters. His rule and protection would come at a great cost to the people. After receiving this warning, the people still demanded, “There shall be a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.” (1 Samuel 8:19) 

So God gave them what they wanted, and their kings did exactly what he said they would do. If you read through the Old Testament you will see the price that the people paid. Their kings open their country up as prey to the surrounding nations, murder the prophets, and oppress the people. During the time of Isaiah, Ahaz is king over Judah. Listen to how he is described: “Ahaz…did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord his God…He even burned his son as an offering, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.” (2 Kings 16:1-3)

As the people of God suffer under their evil kings, Isaiah speaks these words of comfort: your  Everlasting King is coming. His reign will know no end. His throne will be established in justice and righteousness. He will usher in a reign of peace and protect you from your enemies.

But what kind of king will he be? Will he use and oppress them like the kings that came before him? No. He will be a Father to his people. He will be slow to anger, abounding in love, and full of compassion for his children. He will remember their weakness and treat them with gentleness. He will keep his promises, because he could never turn his back on his people. (Psalm 103:8-19) He will be a Father who protects those who are weakest and most vulnerable. (Ps. 68:5) When he disciplines, he won’t punish in anger, but correct in love. (Prov. 3:11-12) He will be a tender and kind Father who loves to his own hurt.

When King Jesus came, he showed us the heart of his compassionate Father. He was a king who came not to be served, but to serve and offer himself up for us. He healed our diseases, touched our broken bodies and washed our dirty feet. He associated with the vulnerable and outcasts, with people the world had written off as disposable trash. He was full of compassion for the weak, the hurting, the sinful and the abused. And unlike the selfish kings who had gone before him, Jesus loved his people to his own hurt. He kept the promises of God, at great cost to himself. 

We’re not all that different from the people of God from long ago. We too long for a protection we can see. We desire kings that can fight our battles and establish what we think is right. We ignore the warning signs and embrace their rule over us, to our own hurt. 

God knows the insecurities and fears of our hearts. He sees the way we scan the horizon looking for threats. He feels the anxiety welling up within us as we wait for rescue. He knows our weak little frames and he remembers that we are fragile humans. To our insecure and frail hearts, he makes a promise: I will be an Everlasting Father to you. I will never leave you or forsake you. I will defend you to the end because you are mine. You belong to me. 

This Christmas, let’s celebrate the Everlasting King who sits on the throne of his father, David. Let’s rejoice together that he rules in compassion and mercy, strength and justice. Let’s bow before the king who has shown us the heart of his Father, and embrace his rule and protection.

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth…For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God—the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.”

John 1:14, 16-18