God gave King Ahaz and the people of Judah and Jerusalem a sign. He told them of the coming of the Messiah. This prophecy has both a “near” fulfillment and a “far” fulfillment. It tells of both the first coming and the second coming of the Messiah. This short study will deal with the first coming. What were signs by which the people of Israel could recognize Emmanuel?
1. He would be born of a virgin. “Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son.” (Isaiah 7:14a)
We see the fulfillment of this in Matthew chapter one, “20) But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. 21) And she shall bring forth a son… 22) Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23) Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son….” (See verses 20-22)
2. His name would be Immanuel, “and shall call his name Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:20b)
The fulfillment of this can also be seen in Matthew chapter one, “21) And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. 22) Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23) Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel….” (Matthew 1:21-23a) The name “Emmanuel” has a special meaning. Matthew 1:23 ends by saying, “they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” We understand that this is God the Son, the Savior that came to call sinners to repentance. I Timothy 3:16 explains that “God was manifest in the flesh.” Also, John 1:14 says, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” Also, in Luke 1:35, “the angel answered and said unto her [Mary], The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.”
3. Emmanuel would be born into a poor family and would eat that which was available in the land. “Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.” (Isaiah 7:15) In the near prophecy of this verse, the land would be taken over by the enemy, but there would be milk and butter and honey. That is what the remnant would eat that were left in the land (see verse 22). They would eat what was available to them because that is what they had. Jesus would also be born into a poor family. Remember, when Joseph and Mary went to the temple to have Jesus circumcised? They had to offer the offering of those who were poor – a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons. (See Luke 2:25). Jesus was always good. He was the sinless Son of God. But, Jesus had to grow up like any other child. Luke 2:40 & 52 say, “40) And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him. 52) And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.”
There is likely more to this prophecy than what is explained here, but that is all that I was able to find in my study to this point. We do see that honey was readily available in Jesus’ time because his cousin John the Baptist ate locusts and wild honey as he lived in the wilderness.
4. While the child is still very young, the land that was abhorred would be forsaken of both its kings. “For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings.” (Isaiah 7:16)
There are many “theories” regarding what it means that the land would be forsaken of both its kings. Many commentaries seem to indicate that this is referring to the king of Judah and the king of Israel. This, of course, would be the near prophecy. But that does not make sense. This was a prophecy given to king Ahaz, who was the king of Judah. He was told that the land that he abhorred would be forsaken of both her kings. King Ahaz would not be abhorring his own land. Also, the verse indicates that both kings would be from the same land, “the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of bother her kings.” This would refer to Ahaz' enemies, the people whom he abhorred.
Regarding the prophecy of Emmanuel, one thought is that this prophecy refers to Herod and Archelaus. This seems to make sense. Herod the Great was king when Joseph took Jesus and Mary and fled into Egypt. There they stayed until Herod died. They came back into the land of Israel but were afraid when they heard that Archelaus reigned as king in his father’s stead. It was but a few years before Archelaus was deposed by the Romans. All this took place while Jesus was still a young child.
In addition to the prophesies mentioned above, the last half of Isaiah chapter seven also seems to have prophecies that contain an anti-type; that is, a prophecy of the false Messiah, the anti-Christ. Also, it seems to talk about the millennial kingdom. I do not understand the correlation enough to expound on it so will just leave this part as is.