An Example of the Near-Far Approach to Prophecy

More than a thousand pages have been published about Isaiah 7:14. It's an exciting and hotly debated verse, mainly because Matthew quoted it (from the LXX) about being filled by the birth of Jesus. 

"Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign: See, the virgin will conceive, have a son, and name in Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14, CSB). 

I can say with great assurance that this verse was fulfilled when Mary was engaged to Joseph but became pregnant from the Holy Spirit. Her husband (Joseph) was righteous but going to divorce her quietly. But then an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and told Joseph that the baby was from the Holy Spirit. Joseph was told not to be afraid and that he must name the baby Jesus. Jesus, Joseph was told, will save his people from their sins. (See Matthew 1:18-21.) How do I know? Because Matthew said "all this" referring to what I just told you, "took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet." Then he quotes Isaiah 7:14. 

Beyond what Matthew says, there are a lot of questions. 

First, the boy was NOT named Immanuel (neither was any newborn in the book of Isaiah), so in what way was 7:14 fulfilled? This tells me the fulfillment was not about the name itself but something more. 

Second, in Isaiah 7:14, the virgin named the child. In Matthew, Joseph was commanded to name the child. Furthermore, Matthew says, "they will name him Immanuel." Who is the "they"? His parents on the 8th day of his birth, or others? Is this about giving him his name or identifying him as Immanuel (which means "God with us" or "God is with us.") And then Joseph names Mary's baby Jesus, which is the Greek way to say Joshua, meaning "God is salvation," "God is deliverance," or "God saves."

Third, the prophetic statement was a sign to Ahaz about something he was to see so he would know to trust God (which he wasn't doing). God gave that prophecy through Isaiah sometime around 734-735 BC. If verse 15 means that before the boy eats solid foods (customarily the foods of the Promised Land), Aram and Israel would be destroyed, it's worth noting that Assyria sacked both those cities just a couple of years later. It's also helpful to consider that Isaiah 7:14 had to be fulfilled in some way during the life of Ahaz, or it calls God's reliability into question.

Fourth, it's rather curious that Isaiah and the prophetess (most likely his wife) gave birth to a child, and this is stated immediately following the prophetic sign to Ahaz. But God didn't tell Isaiah to name him Immanuel (like the situation with Joseph). Instead, he called him Maher-shalal-hash-baz (Isaiah 8:3-4). That name means "hurry spoil, be swift plunder." Before this child could speak, The king of Assyria would have the spoils of Damascus and Samaria. This looks a lot like a fulfillment (although maybe not the ultimate fulfillment) of Isaiah 7:14. Furthermore, we don't have Scripture or extra-biblical material where a prophet's wife is called a prophetess, unless she was indeed a called prophetess. We don't have anything suggesting Isaiah was married to a prophetess or that she was saying anything recorded in the Bible. HOWEVER, some commentators believe Isaiah saw her as the fulfillment of the Word of God and, thus, a living prophetess by example and act. 

Fifth, Isiah's wife wasn't a virgin like Mary, was she? How could she be the near fulfillment if she wasn't a virgin? Some suggest that she may have been a virgin at the time of the prophecy. Others point out the strange and challenging translation issues between the Hebrew and the Greek Septuagint. The Hebrew was a bit more ambiguous. The translators of the LXX went with an unambiguous word, "virgin," in 132 B.C. The word fits within the range of meaning, but it was on the fringes. However, it ended up being exactly right in reference to Mary. 

It's worth noting that there are many child references in this section of Isaiah. (7:3, 8:1-5, 8:18, 9:6-7; 10:19; 11:6, and 11:8) Why? Why is God using children and children being born as illustrations? Why are they signs? 

It's also worth noting that the issue in Isaiah had everything to do with trusting the Lord. Two strong nations were baring down on Judah. They were doomed to destruction. Yet God was calling his people to trust him. He would be with them. He would bring their salvation. Indeed, Matthew may have been tying destruction and salvation to the fulfillment, but just in case we missed it, a virgin would have a baby, and THEY would call him "God is with us." 

A couple of weeks ago, we discussed the near-far views of prophecy. This prophecy is an excellent example of near and far fulfillment. Isaiah and Ahaz were likely amazed by the near fulfillment and never realized there was a more wonderful far fulfillment. We get the benefit of seeing how God used the near fulfillment as an illustration and further explanation to help us understand the far fulfillment.