Who is the 'Mighty God' mentioned in Isaiah 9:6?

Proponents of Christ-is-God theology either misinterpret the verses of the Bible or basing on inaccurate translation of the verses to back up their contentions. Do not be deceived. Make a careful study. 
Examine and investigate.

ON ISAIAH 9:6

“WHO IS THE 'MIGHTY GOD' MENTIONED IN ISAIAH 9:6?”

THE VERSE ISAIAH 9:6 indeed is a prophecy about the “Son,” our Lord Jesus Christ. However, Jesus Christ is not the “Mighty God” referred to, nor does this prophecy indicate His alleged divinity. Isaiah 9:6 reads:

“For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6 NKJV)

(1) THE “MIGHTY GOD” IS THE “EVERLASTING FATHER”

We could clearly notice here that the “Mighty God” referred to is none other the “Everlasting Father” Himself. The words of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself prove that He is different from the “Father,” thus He is not the “Everlasting Father”:

“You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.' If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I.” (John 14:28 NKJV)

The “Mighty God” mentioned in Isaiah 9:6 is the “Everlasting Father.” The “Everlasting Father” is NOT the Lord Jesus Christ for He Himself declared that “My Father is greater than I.” Therefore, the Lord Jesus is not the “Mighty God” referred to in Isaiah 9:6.

(2) JESUS CHRIST  IS THE “SON” OF THE “MIGHTY GOD”

Let us also take into consideration the biblical fact that the Lord Jesus Christ is “Son” of the Almighty God according to the “Everlasting Father” Himself:

“When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:16-17 NKJV)

The Bible explicitly declared that the Lord Jesus Christ is the “Son of the Living God”:

“Simon Peter answered and said, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’” (Matthew 16:16 NKJV)

“You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David.” (Luke 1:31-32 NIV)

If the Lord Jesus Christ is the “Mighty God” mentioned in Isaiah 9:6, but the Mighty God Himself declared that He has a Son (He Himself said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased”), and the “Son” the Mighty God referring to is Jesus Christ (the Bible declared, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God”), then there will be two “Jesus” – the “Mighty God” and the “Son of the Mighty God.” Thus, it is wrong to say that Jesus is the “Mighty God mentioned in Isaiah 9:6.

                

(3) THE “MIGHTY GOD” MENTIONED IS PART OF THE “ONE LONG NAME”

Isaiah 9:6 said, “And HIS NAME will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” The verse did not said, “And HE IS the Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of peace.”

This rendering of Isaiah 9:6 seems that the verse mentions a series of names. However, it is evident that this is not a series of names but just one long name. Since Isaiah 9:6 was originally written in Hebrew, it would be of help to consult the Jewish Publication Society of America, for instance, on how it renders the verse:

“For a child is born unto us. A son is given unto us; And the government is upon his shoulder; and his name is called Pele-joez-el-gibborabi-ad-sar-shalom.” (The Holy Scriptures According to the Masoretic Text, 1917 edition)

The Hebrew name Pele- joez-el-gibbor-abi-ad-sar-shalom is translated in the footnote as, “Wonderful  in counsel is God the Mighty, the everlasting Father, the Ruler of Peace.” The name mentioned in Isaiah 9:6 is not a series of names but one long name. This is the reason why other versions of the Bible translated the verse as follows:

“For a child is born to us, a son is given to us; And the government will be upon his shoulders; and his name will be called ‘Wonderful Counselor is God Almighty, Father forever, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6, Smith-Goodspeed)

                                   

Because what Isaiah 9:6 actually said is “And HIS NAME will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace,” and not, “And HE IS the Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of peace,” thus, Isaiah 9:6 doesn’t prove that Christ is the “Mighty God” but that His name is called “Wonderful  in counsel is God the Mighty, the everlasting Father, the Ruler of Peace.” The “Mighty God” mentioned in Isaiah 9:6 is just a part of the “one long name.”

(4) ONE’S STATE OF BEING IS NOT BECESSARILY DETERMINE BY THE MEANING ATTACHED TO HIS NAME

It is worthwhile to note that one's state of being is not necessarily determined by the meaning attached to his name,  much  less by the meaning of the title of the  government or authority he holds.

Simon the Apostle was named “Cephas” or “Peter” which means rock (John 142). However, it doesn’t mean that Peter is himself a “rock”.

Moreover, the names Daniel (which means “God is my Judge”) and Elijah (“Yah is God”) both contain the word “God” in the meaning of their names, and the “God” in  the meaning of their names refer to God Himself, but it doesn’t mean that these persons are “God.”

                                                    

Going back to Isaiah 9:6, this is how Jewish scholars in the book Jewish Study Bible, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Betler, explain this verse:

“The Mighty God…This long sentence is the throne name of the royal child. Semitic names often consists of sentences that describe God; thus the name Isaiah in Hebrew means, ‘The Lord saves’; Hezekiah, ‘The Lord strengthens’…these names do not describe that person who holds them but the god whom the parents worship. Similarly, the name in this v. [Isa. 9:6] does not describe that child or attribute divinity to him, contrary to classical Christian readings of this messianic verse.” (p. 802)

Another scholar also testify that the “name” in Isaiah 9:6 is “but one which will be descriptive of his (Christ) office”:

“This son is not to have a name which will be for a sign, like the names of Isaiah's sons (cf. 7.3;   8.1), but one which will be descriptive of his office.” (Isaiah 1-39, by John Mauchline,  p. 113.)

James Moffatt in his translation of the Bible, he rendered the “name” in Isaiah 9:6 as “title”:

“For a child is born to us, a son is given to us; the royal dignity he wears, and this the title that he bears --

“A wonder of counselor, a divine hero, A father for all time, a peaceful prince.” (Isaiah 9:6, Moffatt)

Thus, it is clear that “Pele-joez-el-gibbor-abi-ad-sar-shalom” is the “name” or the “title” of the authority or government, and, as Jewish scholars put it, the “throne name” which “does not describe the child or attribute divinity to him” but, as another scholar puts it, “descriptive of his (Christ) office” given to Him by the Father (cf. Matt. 28:18; 11:27).

CONCLUSION

The verse Isaiah 9:6 indeed is a prophecy about the “Son,” our Lord Jesus Christ, but He is not the “Mighty God” referred to, nor does this prophecy indicate His alleged divinity because:

(a) the “Mighty God” in Isaiah 9:6 is also the “Everlasting Father”, while the Lord Jesus Christ Himself explicitly said that “My Father is greater than I”; (b) the Bible explicitly said that Jesus Christ is the “Son of the Living God,” so if Jesus is the “Mighty God” in Isaiah 9:6, then there will be two “Jesus Christ” – the “Mighty God” and the “Son of the Mighty God”; (c) Isaiah 9:6 said, “And HIS NAME will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace,” and not, “And HE IS the Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of peace”; (d) the “Mighty God” mentioned in Isaiah 9:6 is just a part of the “one long name”; and (e) one's state of being is not necessarily determined by the meaning attached to his name,  much  less by the meaning of the title of the  government or authority he holds.

Thus, Isaiah 9:6 doesn’t prove that Christ is the “Mighty God” but that His “name” is called “Wonderful  in counsel is God the Mighty, the everlasting Father, the Ruler of Peace,” the “title” of His authority or government as rendered by Moffatt, the “throne name” which “does not describe the child or attribute divinity to him”as Jewish scholars put it, and “descriptive of his (Christ) office” given to Him by the Father as another scholar puts it.

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ISAIAH 9:6