Then Isaiah said, “Listen well, you royal family of David! Isn’t it enough to exhaust human patience? Must you exhaust the patience of my God as well? All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’). By the time this child is old enough to choose what is right and reject what is wrong, he will be eating yogurt and honey. For before the child is that old, the lands of the two kings you fear so much will both be deserted.

Isaiah 7:13-16

King Jotham became powerful because he was careful to live in obedience to the LORD his God.
2 Chronicles 27:6

• King Ahaz of Judah is facing a severe crisis. 
• The Northern Kingdom of Israel (Ephraim) and Syria (Aram) have formed an alliance and are threatening to attack Jerusalem.
• Ahaz and his people are "shaken as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.” They are terrified.
• God sends the prophet Isaiah to Ahaz with a message of reassurance: "Be careful, keep calm and don't be afraid. Do not lose heart..." (Isaiah 7:4 NIV).
• God tells Ahaz that the plans of Rezin (Syria) and Pekah (Israel) will not stand.
• God offers Ahaz a sign: "Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights" (Isaiah 7:11 NIV).
• Ahaz, in feigned piety, refuses: "I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test" (Isaiah 7:12 NIV). In reality, he likely preferred to rely on his own political alliances, specifically with Assyria.
• Because of Ahaz's unbelief, God gives the sign anyway: "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14 NIV).
• "Immanuel" means "God with us." This is the core of the sign.
• The immediate fulfillment involved a young woman in Isaiah's time giving birth, and before the child was old enough to know right from wrong, the threat from Israel and Syria would be gone (Isaiah 7:15-16). This provided immediate reassurance to Judah.
• This prophecy finds its ultimate and most profound fulfillment in the birth of Jesus Christ, as confirmed in Matthew 1:23. Jesus is the ultimate "God with us."
• Just as God was with Ahaz in his fear, He is with us in our own moments of anxiety and uncertainty.

• Ahaz's refusal to trust God's explicit offer of a sign highlights how our unbelief can lead us to seek solutions apart from God, often with disastrous long-term consequences…Ahaz eventually brought Assyria upon Judah.
• Even when Ahaz refused to trust, God still provided the sign and fulfilled His purposes. God's plan does not depend on our perfect faith, though our lives are certainly better when we align with it.
• "Immanuel" isn't just a name; it's a profound theological truth. God is not distant or uninvolved. He is actively "with us" – in our joys, our sorrows, our struggles, and our triumphs.
• Jesus as the Ultimate Immanuel: The Incarnation – God taking on human flesh in Jesus – is the ultimate demonstration of "God with us." He understands our weaknesses, bore our sins, and offers us eternal life and constant companionship.

Remember that Immanuel isn’t just a name. God is with us…through everything!