“The government will rest on His shoulders.”

“For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.  There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace. On the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this.”  Isaiah 9: 6 – 7

I love this prophecy about Jesus.  “The government will rest on his shoulders.”  I am not sure how those who read this in Isaiah’s times understood it. Maybe they believed that the Messiah would become the king or head of an independent Israel, as their revered King David had been.  They probably believed that a strong king with immense financial and military power would emerge, lower his shoulder to take on the challenge to lift the nation of Israel to be the hope of all nations.  They longed for a person to lead them out of their oppression.  They probably interpreted the prophecy of Isaiah that we are now considering to be that kind of a ruler. Is it possible that I could have that idea of the reign of the Messiah?  Hopefully not.

From my point of view, as I read and ponder this promise, I am excited about the fact that the Messiah will govern my life like a benevolent ruler would govern a nation.  He would lower his shoulder to allow me to shift the governance of my live over to him, if I acknowledge him as my Savior and Lord and make him so.

Allow me to pose a paraphrase for me in particular. “The government of my life shall be on his shoulder!”  Jesus told us that if we are yoked with Him the yoke is light. No doubt because Jesus is carrying the majority of the load. In this prophecy, it goes a bit further, Jesus carries all the weight, all on his shoulder, and I am humbled and overjoyed because he is doing so or should be doing so in my life.   My delight is knowing that.