Day Twenty Two : 19th December

Isaiah 7

13 Then Isaiah said: "Hear then, O house of David!
Is it too little for you to weary mortals, that you weary your my God also?

14 Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign.
Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son,
and shall name him Immanuel.

Brueggemann, p 70:

'…the crucial element of the sign concerns the child whose name is "Immanuel" that is, God is with us. … this child's freighted name is positive and reassuring, for it asserts the entire affirmation of Davidic theology rooted in the ancient oracle of 2Samuel 7. The child is to be a visible, physical, concrete reassertion of the core conviction of royal Israel that God is present in and with and for Israel as defender, guardian, and protector, so that Israel need not be afraid.