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.
Immanuel — “God with us” — is the name given to Jesus at his birth, fulfilling a promise Isaiah made seven centuries earlier. It captures the whole wonder of Christmas in a single word.
The name is a claim about who Jesus is. Not merely a prophet who speaks for God or a teacher who points to God, but God himself, come to be with us in human flesh.
This is the heart of the Christian hope: God did not stay distant. He entered our world, took on our nature, and drew near to the very people who had wandered from him.
Immanuel means you are never alone. In Jesus, God has come to be with us — with us in our joy and our grief, our ordinary days and our darkest nights. God with us, still.
See also
Prince of Peace
Isaiah's title for the coming King, whose reign of peace will never end.
The Word (Logos)
John's name for Jesus — the eternal Word through whom all things were made.
Son of God
The title declaring Jesus' unique, eternal relationship with the Father.
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