Fourth Sunday of Advent; 18 December 2022; Advent 4A (RCL); Isaiah 7:10-16; Psalm 80:1-7, 16-18; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25.
So much hinges on a dubious (ancient) translation, and some verb tenses. In the reading from Isaiah, the prophet is giving Ahaz a sign that Israel and Syria will be desolate before they can carry out their plot to overthrow Judah (Judah refused to enter their alliance against Assyria). Isaiah notices a young, pregnant woman (his wife? Ahaz’s wife?) and says that by the time the child is old enough to know right from wrong (3yrs? 5 yrs?), Assyria will have conquered Israel and Syria.
Continue reading “Immanuel”