Prince of Peace

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be

called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 (NIV)

Have you ever sang a song into your hairbrush microphone the way you heard it and wondered why on earth the line that doesn’t quite seem to “fit”  is even in there? For instance, a lot of people (according to the internet) sing Abba’s song “Dancing Queen” as, “You can dance, you can die.  Having the time of your life.”  I’m not sure how you have the time of your life if you’re dead, so I guess it’s a good thing that the actual lyrics are “you can jive,” not “die.” Total game changer!

Once we learn the correct word(s), it changes everything about that song for us.  Mostly, it now makes sense! It’s like that with understanding scripture too. Once we know the correct translation of a particular word, it gives new meaning to that verse. It gives a deeper understanding.

I was today years old when I learned that when Isaiah refers to the coming Messiah as “Prince of Peace,” he is not referring to Jesus as the prince of absence of conflict.  He is actually stating that the coming Messiah will be the prince of Shalom. It so happens I also learned that Shalom has a much deeper meaning than just being a way to say hello or goodbye in Hebrew.

It’s deeper meaning is completeness; soundness; wellbeing; complete reconciliation. Shalom transcends any and all temporal experiences of what we understand to be peace here on Earth. My understanding of Shalom (with the help of Google) is the state of being reconciled to God and the perfect fullness of joy, complete lack of fear, true contentment in all circumstances, and it-doesn’t-make-sense calm that being reconciled engenders because I know my salvation is real and unthreatened.

So, we now see that Isaiah was not predicting a Messiah who would BRING peace. He was predicting a Messiah who would BE peace. Jesus Himself said in Matthew 10:34 that He did not come to bring peace to the earth, but a sword. Because Jesus is not of this world, the peace He gives is not of this world.  The peace Christ is and gives exists only in and because of God.

Shalom (peace) is ours when we put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ, the Prince of Shalom. It is not temporary but eternal. It is not just for a few but for all who accept it. It does not exist only when our circumstances are good but it exists in all our circumstances.  It cannot be lost but we can lose sight of it. It may be beyond our understanding but it is not beyond our reach.

Friend, no matter what you are experiencing today, Shalom is yours. The Prince of Shalom stepped out of His world into ours and because of that we can dance, we can jive.

Shalom!