# Jesus, the Mighty God of Isaiah 9:6: Yahweh Incarnate or One Among Many?

- Link: https://lordjesuschristreigns.blog/2025/08/30/jesus-the-mighty-god-of-isaiah-96-yahweh-incarnate-or-one-among-many/
- Published: 2025-08-30T06:00:00-07:00
- Author: LordJesusChristReigns

There are passages in the Hebrew Scriptures that indicate the Messiah is Yahweh,
God, coming to redeem His people. One such passage is found in the book of Isaiah:

> “But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he 
> brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the
> latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan,
> Galilee of the nations. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
> those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined… 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 Wonderful Counselor, **Mighty God**, Everlasting 
> Father, Prince of Peace. 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 9:1-2, 6-7

Isaiah says that a child is born who is also a Son that shall be called the **Mighty
God**. Many Jewish rabbis believed that this passage refers to the Messiah, interpreting
it as a Messianic prophecy.

 * “The prophet saith to the house of David, ‘A child has been born to us, a son
   has been given to us; and he has taken the law upon himself to keep it, and his
   name has been called of old, Wonderful counselor, Mighty God, He who lives forever,
   the Anointed one (or **Messiah**), in whose days peace shall increase upon us.'”
   —
   The Targum of Isaiah, J.F. Stenning, editor and translator [Oxford: Clarendon,
   1949], p. 32
 * “Another explanation: He said to him: ‘I have yet to raise up the Messiah,’ of
   whom it is written, _‘For a child is born to us’_ (Isa. IX, 5).”
    —Midrash Rabbah
   Deuteronomy, Rabbi Dr. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon, editors: Rev. Dr. J. Rabbinowitz,
   translator [London: Socino Press], I.20, p. 22
 * “And why is he called Gabriel, a name made up of the words _Gapri_ (‘My means
   whereby I prevail’) and _‘El_ (‘God’)? Because it is written of Judah _For Judah
   prevailed (gabar) above his brethren_ (I Chron. 5:2), and it is also written 
   of a scion of Judah _And his name is called ‘Wonderful in counsel is God the 
   Mighty (El Gibbor)’_ (Isa. 9:5).”
    —Pesikta Rabbati, William G. Braude, translator[
   New Haven: Yale University, 1968], Volume II, Piska 46.3, p. 793

The New Testament uses the language of Isaiah 9 in connection with the birth and
mission of the Lord Jesus:

> “Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. And 
> leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of
> Zebulun and Naphtali, so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:‘
> The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan,
> Galilee of the Gentiles–the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light,
> and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has 
> dawned.’ From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom
> of heaven is at hand.’”
> —Matthew 4:12-17

> “And the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor 
> with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall
> call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.
> And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will 
> reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’
> And Mary said to the angel, ‘How will this be, since I am a virgin?’ And the angel
> answered her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High
> will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son
> of God.’”
> —Luke 1:30-35

Thus, Isaiah provides evidence both for God being a multi-personal Being and for
the perfect Deity and humanity of the Messiah, that the Messiah would be both divine
and human.

Not content with allowing the Scriptures to say what in fact they do say regarding
God’s Triunity and the Messiah’s perfect Deity, anti-Trinitarian groups try to find
anything they can to refute these biblical doctrines. These groups often appeal 
to the following passages to show that calling the Messiah the Mighty God doesn’t
prove that he is Yahweh God in the flesh.

> “The mighty chiefs (eley gibborim) shall speak of them, with their helpers, out
> of the midst of Sheol: ‘They have come down, they lie still, the uncircumcised,
> slain by the sword.’”
> —Ezekiel 32:21

It is to be noted that the words “mighty chiefs” (eley gibborim) literally mean “
gods of the mighty” or “mighty gods.” Some anti-Trinitarians assert that these men
are in the very same category of “mighty ones” or “gods” that the Messiah is. Another
place where a person is called “god” is in the following passage:

> “I will give it into the hand of a **mighty one** (el) of the nations. He shall
> surely deal with it as its wickedness deserves. I have cast it out.”
> —Ezekiel 31:11

Here, again, is a passage that identifies someone as a mighty one or a god without
implying that the person is Yahweh God. The anti-Trinitarians, in appealing to these
passages, think that they have found a way of refuting the doctrine of the Trinity
and the perfect Deity of the Lord Jesus.

The aim of this paper is to address these passages and demonstrate that they do 
nothing to undermine the perfect Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ, nor do they call
into question the biblical basis for the Trinity.

First, even if we take for granted that there are other so-called mighty gods, this
in no way undermines the fact that the Messiah is Yahweh God. The assumption here
is that if the anti-Trinitarian can show that there are beings who are called mighty
gods, then Jesus automatically falls within this same category. This is a non-sequitur,
as there can be individuals who are called mighty gods without this making them 
Yahweh, and without this changing the fact that Jesus is the Yahweh God.

Second, these so-called mighty gods are the Gentile leaders and kings of the nations,
as the surrounding context shows:

> “In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the fifteenth day of the month,
> the word of the LORD came to me: ‘Son of man, wail over the multitude of Egypt,
> and send them down, her and the daughters of majestic nations, to the world below,
> to those who have gone down to the PIT: Whom do you surpass in beauty? Go down
> and be laid to rest with the uncircumcised.’ They shall fall amid those who are
> slain by the sword. Egypt is delivered to the sword

## The Fall of the Pretenders: When Kings Mistake Themselves for Gods

### The Graveyard of Arrogance

The Scriptures are unambiguous: the rulers of the nations—no matter how mighty—are
not gods. They are men. Mortal. Fallible. And ultimately, accountable.

Ezekiel 32 paints a haunting picture of Pharaoh’s descent into Sheol, joining the
ranks of other fallen rulers. These “mighty ones” (_giborim_)—Assyria, Elam, Meshech-
Tubal, Edom—are all laid low, stripped of their power, and buried among the uncircumcised.
Their terror in the land of the living is replaced by shame in the land of the dead.

> “They lie uncircumcised with those who are slain by the sword, and bear their 
> shame with those who go down to the pit.”
>  —Ezekiel 32:30

### Tyre’s Delusion of Divinity

Ezekiel 28 continues this theme with the prince of Tyre, who dares to claim divinity:

> “You are but a man, and no god, though you make your heart like the heart of a
> god.”
>  —Ezekiel 28:2

The rebuke is sharp. His wisdom and wealth have led him astray, and his fate is 
sealed—not as a deity, but as a man slain and cast into the pit.

### Babylon’s Cosmic Fall

Isaiah 14 offers a poetic and chilling lament for the king of Babylon, who aspired
to ascend above the stars of God:

> “I will make myself like the Most High.”
>  —Isaiah 14:14

But instead of heavenly glory, he finds himself among maggots and worms. The kings
of the nations mock him: “You too have become as weak as we!”

### The Echo of “I Am”

Repeatedly, these rulers echo the divine phrase **“I am, and there is no one besides
me”** (Isaiah 47:8; Zephaniah 2:15). But unlike Yahweh, their declarations are hollow.
Their cities become desolate. Their names become warnings.

---

## Reflection: Who Do We Worship?

This isn’t just ancient history. It’s a timeless warning. When power seduces, and
pride blinds, even the greatest empires crumble. The Scriptures remind us that no
human authority—no matter how exalted—can claim the throne of divinity.

Let us not be deceived by earthly grandeur. Let us remember who truly reigns.

## God’s Judgment on Babylon and Assyria

God destroys the King of Babylon for thinking that he could be like God, and brings
him down to the pit to be where the other heathen kings are. Elsewhere in Isaiah,
Babylon is rebuked for claiming the prerogatives of Yahweh:

> “… Now therefore hear this, you lover of pleasures, who sit securely, Who say 
> in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one besides me…’”
>  —Isaiah 47:8-10

Assyria was another nation which thought it was a god:

> “And he will stretch out his hand against the north and destroy Assyria… What 
> a desolation she has become…”
>  —Zephaniah 2:13-15

> “Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out… Has any of the gods of the nations delivered
> his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria?”
>  —Isaiah 36:13-20

> “The Rabshakeh returned… Where is the king of Hamath…?”
>  —Isaiah 37:8-13

Hezekiah prays and God responds to the taunt of the Assyrian king:

> “Hezekiah received the letter… And the angel of the LORD went out and struck down
> a hundred and eighty-five thousand…”
>  —Isaiah 37:14-20, 33-38

Hezekiah beseeches Yahweh to save his people from the Assyrians in order to show
that he alone is God. Thus, as far as the biblical writers are concerned, there 
are no other gods which exist alongside Yahweh.

### Irony in Ezekiel

In light of the foregoing, it is quite evident that Ezekiel 32:21 and 31:11 are 
not saying that these heathen rulers were actually gods. From the overall context
of the Scriptures, we can safely conclude that these kings are called gods in irony—
rulers wrongly considered divine who died shamefully like mortals.

## The Monotheism of Isaiah and Jesus

To reiterate our point above regarding Yahweh being the only God there is, here 
are some verses from Isaiah:

> “‘You are my witnesses,’ declares the LORD… Before me no god was formed…”
>  —Isaiah
> 43:10-11, 13

> “Thus says the LORD… besides me there is no god…”
>  —Isaiah 44:6-8

> “I am the LORD, and there is no other…”
>  —Isaiah 45:5-6

> “Remember the former things of old… I am God, and there is none like me…”
>  —Isaiah
> 46:9-11

> “See now that I, even I, AM, and there is no god beside me…”
>  —Deuteronomy 32:
> 39

Recall that both the kings of Babylon and Assyria used the very same language to
describe themselves. They were claiming to be gods in the same sense that Yahweh
is God.

### The Messiah as Mighty God

Now for Isaiah to call the Messiah the Mighty God in light of his explicit monotheism
means that the prophet truly believed that the Messiah is Yahweh God. This becomes
even more obvious in light of the fact that all the titles of the Messiah are used
elsewhere by Isaiah in reference to Yahweh:

> “For to us a child is born… Mighty God (El Gibbor)…”
>  —Isaiah 9:6

> “A remnant will return… to the mighty God (El Gibbor).”
>  —Isaiah 10:20-21

> “O LORD, you are my God… you have done wonderful things…”
>  —Isaiah 25:1

> “This also comes from the LORD of hosts; he is wonderful in counsel…”
>  —Isaiah
> 28:29

## The Divine Identity of the Messiah

> “I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace (shalom), and create evil:
> I the LORD do all these things.”
>  —Isaiah 45:7 KJV

> “For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity (ad), 
> whose name is Holy: ‘I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who
> is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive
> the heart of the contrite.’”
>  —Isaiah 57:15

> “For you are our Father (ab), though Abraham does not know us, and Israel does
> not acknowledge us; you, O LORD, are our Father (ab), our Redeemer from of old
> is your name.”
>  —Isaiah 63:16

Hence, the Messiah is not a mighty god like the heathen kings, but is **THE Mighty
God** in the same sense that Yahweh is—since he is Yahweh God incarnate. A careful
examination of the entire context of Isaiah, as well as the overall context of the
Scriptures, proves this beyond any reasonable doubt.

_All Scripture citations taken from the English Standard Version (ESV), unless stated
otherwise._

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