Mathhew 1:23

“’Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel’, which is translated, ‘God with us’.” (Mt. 1:23, NKJV) The apostle was actually quoting here a prophecy of Prophet Isaiah (Is. 7:14) which was fulfilled in Lord Jesus Christ. Since it was foretold that the name of the Son, Jesus Christ, would be called Immanuel, meaning “God with us,” believers in the deity of Christ conclude that Christ is God. ASCRIBING THE NAME Immanuel (“God is with us”) to Christ does not imply that Christ Himself is God who is with us. The meaning of one’s name does not denote one’s nature or state of being. For instance, a lady may be named Rose or Daisy but this doesn’t mean that she is a literal flower. We can cite so many names of biblical characters whose meanings do not in any way denote the state of being of the persons bearing them. Apostle Peter’s name means rock (Jn. 1:42) but he is not a literal stone. Christ gave the brothers James and John the name “Boanerges” meaning the sons of thunder (Mk. 3:17) but they were not literally born to a thunder. The last of the 13 sons born to King David was named Eliphelet meaning “the God of deliverance” (Smith’s Bible Dictionary, p. 167) but this doesn’t mean that David’s son is the God of deliverance himself. Christ’s being called Immanuel only signifies that God is with us through the Lord Jesus Christ. God is in Christ and through Him, we have been reconciled to God: “Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, “That is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.” (II Cor. 5:18-20, NKJV) And by obeying Christ’s teachings, man will receive the love of the Father and the promise that God and Christ will dwell in him: “Jesus answered him, ‘Whoever loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and my Father and I will come to him and live with him’.” (Jn. 14:23., TEV) God is with us through Christ. Thus, anyone who is separate from Christ is without God: “Remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners top the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.” (Eph. 2:12, NIV) Hence, the name Immanuel does not in any way prove the alleged deity of Christ. It simply means that God is with us through the Lord Jesus Christ.