Matthew 1:21

Sunday, 28 July 2024

“And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21

“And she will bring forth a son, and you will call His name JESUS. For He will save His people from their sins” (CG).

Joseph was just told that Mary had conceived by the Holy Spirit. The messenger continues, saying, “And she will bring forth a Son.”

The words not only demonstrate the presence of God in the process, but more, they also reveal the directive hand of God. The Child will not merely be opening Mary’s womb, but the Lord is directing what type of child will be born, a Son. Understanding that, it next says, “and you will call His name JESUS.”

The words of this verse are similar to what was said to Mary –

“And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.” Luke 1:31

Mary was told this, and even if she then told it to Joseph, it is still right that the messenger would repeat it to him now. His words confirm the words of Mary, or they establish the matter for Joseph if she had not yet told him. Either way, he is informed what will come to pass concerning the Child, and he is told what the Child’s name will be.

This is not a unique event in Scripture. The names of Isaac and Ishmael were given before they were born. Josiah’s name was prophesied before he was born. Also, the name of Cyrus, King of Persia, was stated in a prophecy before he was born. In the New Testament, John the Baptist had his name designated before he was born.

Though the name of Samson was not given before he was born, details concerning him were described. Such events as this show that God is in control of the redemptive narrative, and He intervenes at key points to continue having history unfold according to a set plan.

The name Jesus in Hebrew is Yeshua. It is a shortened form of Yehoshua, Joshua. Whereas Yehoshua means The Lord is Salvation, Yeshua means Salvation, or He Will Save, coming from the verb yasha, to deliver or save. Joshua anticipated the coming of Christ through his name.

In the coming of Christ, the type is fulfilled: the Lord, Yehovah, is Salvation. Therefore, the messenger provides the reason for the selection of the name, saying, “For He will save His people from their sins.”

Thus, as happens so often in Scripture, a pun is formed, “You shall call His name Salvation, for He will save His people from their sins.”

The implication of the messenger’s word is that Christ has a group of people that will be saved. It is also implied that some will not be saved because they are “not His people.” What is also explicit is that people have sin from which they must be saved. Without this process, they remain in a state of condemnation. Jesus has come to correct this in His people.

Life application: It is not uncommon for people to argue over the name of Jesus. Some argue that His name is originally a different Hebrew name than Yeshua, deriving their opinion from one Old Testament passage or another. However, it is most commonly accepted that His name is either Yehoshua or Yeshua.

As He is the Lord, Yehovah, in human flesh, it makes less sense to call him The Lord is Salvation (Yehoshua). Rather, He is the Lord who is Salvation (Yeshua). However, fighting over this is not necessary.

Another way people argue over Jesus’ name is to insist that we should use the Hebrew name only because that is His “real” name. As Jesus isn’t the way a Hebrew would speak, it is somehow bad to them that we would say “Jesus.”

This dismisses the fact that the vast majority of people don’t pronounce any biblical name as it actually is. Some are so far from the Hebrew that when the Hebrew is heard, we don’t even know who is being referred to. To say we must pronounce Jesus’ Hebrew name would necessitate that we do so with all biblical names. It is unreasonable to hold to this view.

Languages were developed by God. They continue to change as time passes. As they do, we accommodate to the general use of names within a language. The name Yeshua is transliterated into the Greek as Iésous (ee ay soos). If God wanted us to say Yeshua today, He wouldn’t have had the New Testament given to us in Greek.

From Iésous, the English language developed through the Germanic languages. Iésous eventually became Jesus (Yesous). Germans don’t have the hard J (think of Johannes Kepler). The name then moved to the English people as Jesus with a hard J. Within English, this same name is actually pronounced quite differently depending on where you are. If you go to a southern church in the U.S., it sounds like Jayzuz. And so forth.

There are YT videos that give the name of Jesus in many languages throughout the world. Different people groups will pronounce the name differently. But in the end, our Jesus is the Christ of the nations as well as the Messiah of Israel. However you pronounce His name, do it with respect. He is our Lord. He is our JESUS.

Lord God, we stand in awe of what You have done. You have come to us in the Person of Jesus our Savior. May You be eternally praised for Your goodness to the sons of Adam for redeeming us unto Yourself. All hail the name of Jesus. Amen.