You find two names:” Jesus” and “Immanuel = Emmanuel” and the question comes, why? And then what is the difference?
First of all, in the context of scripture, you must conclude that Joseph was told to name Him Jesus: Mat 1:20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. Mat 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. Mat 1:22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Mat 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. Mat 1:24 Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: Mat 1:25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.
Second, “Jesus” means Yahweh saves actual name Yeshua, = “Jesus” “Immanuel” means God with us. Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Third, around Christmas, we hear the word incarnation uses more often. It means God came into our world as “Jesus”. John describes for us, Joh 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. Joh 1:15 John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me. Joh 1:16 And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. Joh 1:17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
God clothed in human flesh as The Son of Man/The Son of God. Supporting verses that give insight, Heb 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; Heb 2:15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. Heb 2:16 For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Heb 2:17 Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. Heb 2:18 For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted. Also, John 3:13-16 ties together Jesus The Son of Man and Jesus the Son of God as One: And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Fourth, Jesus, Emmanuel will always be with us. He will always bear the wounds of His humanity. After His resurrection He told Thomas, “……Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. Jesus told Thomas to believe in Him: “And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.”
And Jesus says to us: “….. blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” Believed What? Thomas saw Jesus after His resurrection and believed in Him. We have not seen Him and Jesus said: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” And by believing in Him you have the everlasting life that He promised. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
What is meant by Mat? 1:21 “……For he shall save his people from their sins?” [1]Most people think Matt 1:21 is saying essentially the same thing as Jesus Himself said in John 3:16. While it is certainly true that Jesus indeed gives everlasting life to all who believe in Him, that is not the point of this Christmas text. His people are referring to Israel. There is a world of prophecy to be understood here. The Nation of Israel will be delivered at the end of the tribulation at the S.C. of Christ.
The reason Israel was dispossessed for nearly 2,000 years and the reason that it is a minor world power today is because of her sins. There were cycles of sin of Israel all through the O.T. They would sin and repent and then fall back. Time and time again the same cycle. But when Israel is delivered from Gentile domination at His S.C. At the end of the Tribulation, all surviving Jews will be believers in fellowship with God. At that point, the whole nation will be delivered from God’s wrath never to fall again into sin.
The Time of This Deliverance Is Still Future. Matthew 1:21 is a prophecy. The angel is telling us what this baby in a feeding trough will one day do. A day is coming when Israel will be the world power, greater than the U.S. or Russia or China or any other country. That day will come when Israel believes in her Messiah and is in fellowship with Him. That will be the end of the Tribulation. We do not believe in replacement theology: the Church will not replace Israel in God’s eternal plan. His people are referring to Israel. His people are not a synonym for the word world.
This text says that He came to” save” His people, which is Israel, from their sins, not to save the world from its sins. There is a world of prophecy in this text. Jesus is the national liberator of Israel which will take place at His Second coming. Mat. 1:21 He will save His people from their sin and in John 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. Jesus took away the sin of the world at Calvary [ of every person Jew and Gentile] but He did not take away the sin of the Nation of Israel until His S.C.
As a nation, they were offered the Kingdom on Palm Sunday. Prophesied in Zechariah 9:9, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. This happened in 33 AD {A.D is not after death but the Year of our LORD] in Jesus triumphal into Jerusalem: Joh 12:12 On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, Joh 12:13 Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord. Joh 12:14 And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written, Joh 12:15 Fear not, daughter of Sion: behold, thy King cometh, sitting on an ass's colt. [in the other gospels, Mat. 21:8, Mark 11:8; Luke 19:35,36]Zechariah 9:10 has not been fulfilled yet, And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. That will be fulfilled at His S.C. There are more than Two Thousand years between those two verses. Had the Nation of Israel received Him on Palm Sunday then the 70th week of Daniel’s prophecy would have started. Israel’s salvation would have occurred very soon after Jesus’ death with no long wait.
Israel rejected her Messiah, Joh 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not. The fulfillment of the prophecy of Matthew 1:21 is yet future, And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. And until then, Israel is not delivered. As Paul says in Romans 11:26, “Then all Israel will be saved.”
Now let us go to Daniel 9:24-27 [remember the prophecy clock runs with Israel] Dan 9:24 Seventy weeks [490 years] are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
Dan 9:25 Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, [49 years] and threescore and two weeks: [434 years] the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
Dan 9:26 And after threescore and two weeks [7weeks plus 62 weeks = 69 weeks or 483 years] shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: [ Christ was crucified, the prophecy clock quit running, the church age started for around 2,000 years] and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. [ The rapture of the church, the signing of the peace treaty, The church age ends and the prophecy clock began to tick again. This is yet future we are still in the Church age looking for the return of Christ]
Dan 9:27 And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: [7 years of tribulation] and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. 49 years+434 years+ 7 years = 490 years;
Many people received the Messiah [Jesus] and believed in Him both Jew and Gentile. If it was before the Church age they will be in the resurrection of O.T. saints as Daniel will be, Dan 12:13 But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, [in death] and stand in thy lot [Stand in his resurrection] at the end of the days.
It is important to keep your thinking straight. Because Israel as a nation is set aside for judgment does not mean that individuals could not be saved. Many believed and were looking for their Messiah. In Luke 2:25-35 I believed we see two people that were looking for their Messiah: And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation [comfort and hope of Israel] of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him.[ We do not know much about this man except what is given here in the scripture]. The LORD revealed this to him 2:26 And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ. 2:27 And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law, I believe others were looking for Him. V28-35.
Then there is Anna, Luke 2:36, And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity; Luk 2:37 And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. So if she got married at 15 she would be 106 years old. What did she do? V38 And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem. At 106 she was serving God day and night. [2][There had been no prophet for hundreds of years‚ so it is noteworthy that God had raised up this prophetess.].
Mat. 1:21 does not mean that people could not believe in Jesus and be saved, Luke 2:32, A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel. People that were saved before the church age will be in the resurrection of the O.T. saints. The Church started sometime after Palm Sunday and will end at the Rapture of the Church, 1 Thess. 4:13-18 and every person saved in the Church age will be in that resurrection.
Joh 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not. The Nation of Israel rejected Him at His triumphal entry, [palm Sunday] but John 1:12 says, But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: The invitation to believe has always been opened to Jew and Gentile,
It has been 2,000 years more or less since Cross, and the Resurrection, and we are way over in the end time. Here is what I believe, 2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. He is waiting not willing that any should perish – He is waiting and people are coming to faith in Christ and He is waiting for Believers to repent and confess their sins, and He is waiting. Are you one for whom He is waiting?
And by His death on the cross, He made it possible for all who simply believe in Him to have everlasting life, John 3:16 and He made it possible for every believer to be in fellowship with Him, 1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1Jn 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. 1Jn 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: 1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
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