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Immanuel, God With Us
(Matthew 1:18-25)
Mari Yoshino
One word we often hear during this Christmas season is “Immanuel.” It is a Hebrew word meaning “God is with us.” How have we experienced this truth throughout this past year, and even at this very moment? “God is with us” means that God knows us completely, will not leave our suffering unattended, and will always lead us to what is good. Therefore, if we can believe in “Immanuel,” we should be able to regain hope even in the midst of any suffering. Yet we are not that strong. Even so, Jesus proved that “Immanuel” is a fact. Today, I hope we can read Matthew 1:18-25 and once again take to heart the meaning of Immanuel. So, let us first read verses 18-20.
1. Pregnancy by the Holy Spirit （Genesis 1:2, Isaiah 11:2; 61:1）
18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. 20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
The New Testament, including this passage, states that Mary conceived Jesus through the Holy Spirit. I believe emphasizing this to assert that Mary was an unmarried woman and that Jesus was born without any connection to human sin (the so-called virgin birth) strays from the essential message of Scripture. The essential meaning can be understood from two perspectives. First, it signifies that God performed a new act of creation through Jesus. This meant God intervened in human history to initiate a new era. Second, it affirms that Jesus is the long-awaited Messiah, the Savior promised since Old Testament times, empowered by the Holy Spirit. Let us examine each point using passages from the Old Testament. First, Genesis 1:1-2.
(Genesis1:1-2) In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
At the time of creation, God’s Spirit was at work. Beyond this passage, the Old Testament also states that God’s Spirit or God’s breath created the world and gave us life.
In the same way, the power of the Holy Spirit worked in Mary. The conception by the Holy Spirit is a miracle that occurred only to Mary in history. It was the one and only time in history that God came into this world as a human being to intervene in human history. The birth of Jesus truly signified the beginning of a new era. What was new? The love of God, which had previously been seen only vaguely, became clearly revealed through Jesus, and our relationship with God was renewed. We are living in that new era.
Let’s read two more passages from the Old Testament. First, Isaiah chapter 11.
(Isaiah 11:1-2) A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the LORD—
This is a prophecy that a Messiah would be born from the house of David to save people. It is said that the Spirit of God would rest upon him. When Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist, the Spirit of God descended upon him, just as this word foretold.
Isaiah further prophesied what kind of Messiah this would be. It is in chapter 61.
(Isaiah 61:1) The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,
Born by the work of the Holy Spirit, Jesus was given the mission of Messiah by God. That mission is as Isaiah foretold: “To bring good news to the afflicted, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives, and release for the prisoners.”
The story of Jesus’ birth is a story of joy, announcing the beginning of a new era as God’s salvation—promised since the days of the Old Testament—is finally fulfilled. Matthew makes this even clearer through the words of the angel. Verse 21 continues:
2. Jesus = “LORD is salvation” （Isaiah 53、Jeremiah ３１）
21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
The name Jesus means “The Lord is salvation” in Hebrew. But what “salvation” means varies from person to person and from era to era. Matthew states it clearly here: “This child will save his people from their sins.”
Salvation from sin means nothing to those who don’t need it. Instead, we tend to seek a “savior” who works to our advantage. What many people in biblical times sought was a political and military leader who would rescue them from the Roman Empire. In our time, many seek leaders who will bring them economic benefit. Among such people, even if a Savior came who “brings good news to the afflicted, binds up the brokenhearted, and sets the captives free,” it might not move their hearts.
But from the days of the Old Testament, through the time of Jesus, and into our own age, there have been those who believed that healing and deliverance from sin are what we truly need—that this is what renews our lives and transforms this world. Isaiah 53:6 says:
(Isaiah 53) We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
The root cause of political corruption, endless futile wars, and the failure to correct economic imbalance and social injustice lies within each individual’s heart. Even in the days of the Old Testament, there were those who saw through this. We each walk our own way, conveniently following our own desires, and in truth, we wander lost, having lost sight of the direction we should be heading. And what we need is someone who will bear all that sin and lead us in the direction we should go. That was Jesus.
Jeremiah chapter 31 speaks of the new era brought by Jesus as follows.
(Jeremiah 31:33-34) “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts.…I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
The people of Israel should be God’s people, but here it is stated that those who accept the new covenant God gives will become His people. This new covenant is not written in letters, but engraved on our hearts. It is God’s love, etched into our hearts through Jesus’ death on the cross. Jesus died for our sins and also died to forgive us. If we receive that love and live by it, we are God’s people.
“…you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
The meaning of Jesus’ name, “The Lord is salvation, He saves us from sin and makes us His people,” is God’s salvation already offered to us through Jesus’ cross.
3. The fulfillment of prophesy （Isaiah 7:14)
Matthew further explains in verses 22-23:
22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
The original prophecy is found in Isaiah 7:14. Let’s read it.
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
The key point of this prophecy is the birth of the Savior who would be called Immanuel. Isaiah did not prophesy a virgin birth, nor do I believe Matthew quoted this prophecy to emphasize that. Explaining why would take too long today, so I’ll skip it, but at least we can say Isaiah used chapters 7 through 11 to prophesy about Immanuel, and Matthew surely had the entire Isaiah 7-11 in mind here. Therefore, I believe what Matthew wanted to convey was that the Immanuel, the Savior awaited by Isaiah and the people of his time, was fulfilled in Jesus.
This is evident from the edit Matthew made to the words of Isaiah. It’s difficult to grasp in Japanese, but becomes clear when read in English. In Isaiah, it states, “(She) will call him Immanuel”, but Matthew changes this to “They will call him Immanuel”. Though a minor edit, it likely reflects Matthew’s unique interpretation, knowing that Jesus would later teach many about Immanuel and be called by that name by many.
Moreover, in the flow of the narrative, it feels somewhat unnatural to insert the prophecy “He shall be called Immanuel” immediately after the angel instructs Joseph to “name the child Jesus.” But perhaps Matthew wanted to convey that the meaning of the name ‘Jesus’—meaning “the Lord is salvation”—is the same as Immanuel, meaning “God is with us.” The salvation Jesus brought is salvation through God being with us. Forgiving our sins, healing our wounds, and living with us—this was God’s desire and His promise to us. Jesus’ birth, His life, and His death fulfilled God’s promise, marking the beginning of a new era where God is with us forever.
So what does it mean for us to live in this new reality? Let’s read the final verses, 24-25.
4. Immanuel=“God with us” (Matthew 28:20)
24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
Joseph accepted the reality that his fiancée had become pregnant without his knowledge—a situation that would normally seem like nothing short of a nightmare. It was not what he had desired, and he even considered it a disgrace, yet it was a reality beyond his control. Even though an angel appeared to him in a dream, and even though Joseph decided to trust God and accept it, it’s hard to imagine Joseph was 100% filled with joy and hope.
Perhaps believing in Immanuel within our own realities resembles Joseph’s situation. Even in circumstances where it seems impossible to believe God is with us, we entrust our path to Him—not relying on our own strength, but expecting through the reality of Jesus’ cross and the Holy Spirit’s help what God will do.
The Lord Immanuel, who is with us, is the One who became human for our sake, becoming a helpless infant who could not live without human aid. He is the One who tasted the loneliness on the cross that followed human wickedness and betrayal, endured physical suffering, and experienced the despair of being forsaken even by God. He knows our weaknesses, forgives our sins, and gives us the hope of resurrection beyond physical death. There is no weakness or suffering of ours unknown to Him. His name is Jesus, Immanuel, our salvation.
Finally, let us conclude by reading the words of Jesus recorded at the end of the Gospel of Matthew.
(28:20) And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
(Prayer) Lord Jesus, You know each of our hearts well. Please help us to welcome You into our hearts, so that we may follow Your will, not our own. Help us to entrust our suffering to You, trusting in what You will do, even in difficult realities that differ from our own thoughts and are hard to accept. When our hearts grow weak, when our bodies grow weak, teach us to recognize that You are right beside us. Pour out Your Spirit upon us for this purpose. And grant us the certainty and hope that You are good. Lord Jesus, we pray in Your name. Amen.
Summary
The birth of Jesus fulfilled the long-awaited promise from the days of the Old Testament. Through Jesus, God revealed His desire to bring His justice and love to this world. At the same time, He showed us that He knows how we humans are wounded by our own weakness and sin, and that He walks with us, bearing that burden together. Let us daily affirm “Immanuel”—God is with us.
For Discussion
1) What is the salvation of Jesus?
2) When did you feel “Immanuel” most deeply this year?