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Isa 9:5-7 Of The Increase of His Government and Peace There Shall Be No End

Isa 9:5  For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.
Isa 9:6  For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Isa 9:7  Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

As always we want to make the connections which the scriptures themselves make. In this case the first word of today's study connects our verses for today with last week's verses. So let's put them all together and see what we are being told:

Isa 9:2  The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
Isa 9:3  Thou hast multiplied the nation, and [...] increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.
Isa 9:4  For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of [the battle of] Midian.
Isa 9:5  For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.
Isa 9:6  For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Isa 9:7  Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

That is our message with all the verses put together. What we are being told is that "great light has [been] seen [only by] the people who [have been made to know they] walked in darkness. Only upon those who 'dwell in the shadow of death has this light shined', and it has brought them great joy "according to the joy in harvest and as men rejoicing when they divide the spoil" of a great battle.  It is through this great battle, that the "yoke... the staff and the rod of [our] oppressor... has been broken" by the Lord Himself. It is broken by a spiritual battle which is typified by symbolic "burning and fuel of fire", as opposed to the "confused noise, and garments rolled in blood", which typify a physical battle of literal warriors. This great battle is capable of being waged "with burning and fuel of fire [because] unto us a child is born... and the government shall be on His shoulder, and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

Christ has made it clear that it is of utmost importance that we realize that the light of God comes only to those who have been brought to know they are blind and in deep darkness. He makes that very clear by telling us, and the man who was born blind and whom He had healed of that blindness, these words:

Joh 9:39  And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
Joh 9:40  And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
Joh 9:41  Jesus said unto them, If ye [realized you] were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Now, through the prophet Isaiah and the apostle Paul, Christ tells all of us:

Act 26:16   ...rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;
Act 26:17  Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee,
Act 26:18  To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power [the lies] of Satan unto [the truths of] God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

To those who have been given to realize they were born blind, Christ has multiplied His kingdom, and He increases the joy of all those who have received His kingdom within them. We are told that the joy we have in Him and in His kingdom within us is the joy that is experienced in the harvest and in taking the spoils of a great battle against a great oppressor. That oppressor is the great darkness we are given to understand we are in while we are living in and by the false doctrines of the great harlot and her many daughter harlots, who have long ago let it be known they fear and want to please men more than God.

Both 'the harvest' and 'the battle' are Biblical types of the day of our judgment and the destruction of the kingdom of our rebellious, dying man of sin, our old man:

Rev 14:15  And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.
Rev 14:16  And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.

Rev 16:14  For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

Only after "the battle of that great day" is engaged does our 'earth' (Jer 22:29) begin to be harvested.

A different kind of battle

Isa 9:5  For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.

"The battle of that great day of God Almighty" will be different from all other physical battles. Here is the difference in the form of the weapons of our warfare and the weapons of those who "war after the flesh":

2Co 10:3  For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
2Co 10:4  (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) ["with {spiritual} burning and fuel of {spiritual} fire"]
2Co 10:5  Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

Paul repeats this message in:

Eph 6:10  Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
Eph 6:11  Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Eph 6:12  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Eph 6:13  Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
Eph 6:14  Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
Eph 6:15  And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
Eph 6:16  Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
Eph 6:17  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
Eph 6:18  Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" describes the type of battle which "is [not] with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but [is] with burning and fuel of fire." Ours is a spiritual battle conducted "with burning and fuel of fire". The fuel which feeds that "burning... fire" is all the "wood, hay, and stubble", which are the sinful pulls of our dying flesh, along with all the false doctrines of the "beast [which] comes up out of the earth [with] two horns like a lamb, and [speaking] as a dragon" and demanding that we worship the beast which "came up out of the sea".  The fire which consumes all of our "wood, hay and stubble" is the exact same fire with which Christ baptizes us (Mat 3:11). It is the exact same fire which is in the mouths of God's elect witnesses (Rev 11:3-5). It is also the same fire which will be in the mouths of "the righteous" whose words are the fire of the lake of fire (Isa 33:14-15). That "fire" is the word of God (Jer 5:14):

Isa 33:14  The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?
Isa 33:15  He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

Mat 3:11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

1Co 3:11  For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
1Co 3:12  Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
1Co 3:13  Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14  If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15  If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

Rev 13:1  And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
Rev 13:2  And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
Rev 13:3  And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

Rev 13:11  And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

Rev 13:16  And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
Rev 13:17  And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
Rev 13:18  Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man [Greek: anthropos - mankind]; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

Speaking specifically of "every man", we are told "...he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire". The fiery word of God burns up the wood, hay and stubble of the kingdom of our old man, and through that destruction "every man... shall be saved... by fire". That explains the word "For" connecting the "battle... with burning and fuel of fire" and with our next verse. Let's keep them together so we can make that connection.

Here again is verse 5:

Isa 9:5  For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.

And here is verse 6 beginning with the connecting word, "For":

Isa 9:6  For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

The word 'For' connects a battle fought "with burning and fuel of fire" to the birth of a child upon whose shoulders all government shall rest. That this is a prophecy of Christ and His doctrine is clear because "his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

So what does the coming of Christ have to do with a "battle [being waged] with burning and fuel of fire"? The coming of Christ to this earth has everything to do with a battle being waged "with burning and fuel fire" for this reason, which reason is given to us by the man who was sent by God to prepare the way for the coming of the "Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." These are the words of John the baptist describing for us how Christ will perform the work His Father sent Him to accomplish:

Mat 3:11  I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire.

Christ tells us he came into this world for judgment, and that judgment is our baptism with the holy spirit and with fire, just as Isaiah has already informed us:

Isa 4:4  When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.

"The holy spirit and... fire" are one and the same because:

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

Joh 6:63  It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

It is the Word of God which baptizes all who know Christ. That is the 'fire' which will 'purge... Jerusalem'. It is the fire which is the Word of God which will cause the loss suffered by the kingdom of our old man, and in the process of that destruction that same  "fire" will save "every man" (1Co 3:13-15).

Let's take very close note of the various names given to our Lord: "...His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

"Wonderful, Counselor" tells us that Christ knows how to deal with and work with His people, and He is giving His Christ to be His own 'wonderful counsellors' by giving them to know Him and His Words:

Isa 28:27  For the fitches are not threshed with a threshing instrument, neither is a cart wheel turned about upon the cummin; but the fitches are beaten out with a staff, and the cummin with a rod.
Isa 28:28  Bread corn is bruised; because he will not ever be threshing it, nor break it with the wheel of his cart, nor bruise it with his horsemen.
Isa 28:29  This also cometh forth from the LORD of hosts, which is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working.

While we are the first to point out that "to us there is one God, the Father" (1Co 8:6), and that Christ is the first of God's creation (Rev 3:14), let  us never be guilty of denying that Christ is also "the Mighty God", as Isaiah tells us here and as Christ called Himself and as He also called us:

Joh 10:24  Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly.
Joh 10:25  Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me.
Joh 10:26  But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.
Joh 10:27  My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
Joh 10:28  And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
Joh 10:29  My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.
Joh 10:30  I and my Father are one.
Joh 10:31  Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.
Joh 10:32  Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?
Joh 10:33  The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.
Joh 10:34  Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?
Joh 10:35  If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken;
Joh 10:36  Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?

Is Christ "the mighty God"?

Those are Christ's own words. He defended His sonship in the same way He defends our own sonship. "Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods." So Jesus is indeed 'God', and this is how He tells us His Father wants us to think of Him:

Joh 5:22  For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son:
Joh 5:23  That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him.

Col 1:15  Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
Col 1:16  For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
Col 1:17  And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
Col 1:18  And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
Col 1:19  For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;

Do you want to please the Father? If indeed you want to please the Father, then "honor the Son, even as you honor the Father". Do not hesitate to call the Son "the everlasting Father", or for that matter, do not hesitate to call Christ "the Almighty". Here is what Christ told Abraham:

Gen 17:1  And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.

The prophet Baalam, who King Balak, the king of Moab, hired to curse Israel, saw "the Almighty" God:

Num 24:4  He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:

Most Christians believe that "the Lord" and "the Almighty" in the Old Testament speak of the Father instead of Christ. But is that what Christ tells us? No, it is not. This is what Christ does tell us:

Joh 1:18  No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

But didn't some in the Old Testament at least hear the voice of the Father? What is the doctrine of Christ concerning that question? This is the doctrine of Christ:

Joh 5:37  And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.

That is the doctrine of Christ because He knows He was the One who had spoken to and appeared to so many people in the Old Testament, including all the elders of Israel who came up out of Egypt.

Deu 5:24  And ye said, Behold, the LORD our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth.

And that is why Christ tells us this:

Luk 10:22  All things are delivered to me of my Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him.

No one knows "who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal Him." Can you and I see the Father? Only if we "honor the Son" as [we] honor the Father:

Joh 14:8  Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.
Joh 14:9  Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?

Christ tells us plainly in Revelation that He is "the Almighty".

Rev 1:8  I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

Rev 1:18  I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.

Just to be completely clear, we can believe that Christ is the Lord of the Old Testament, He is the Everlasting Father, the Almighty God, and still we can confess that we believe with the apostle Paul:

1Co 8:6  But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.

We can agree with this statement of Paul and also agree that Christ is "the Almighty God" because we know that Christ is the Almighty over all but the throne of His Father, as is revealed to us in the story of Joseph being made king over all Egypt. Joseph had all power over all Egypt and was superior to all in Egypt. "Only in the throne" was Pharaoh greater than Joseph.

Gen 41:38  And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?
Gen 41:39  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art:
Gen 41:40  Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.
Gen 41:41  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt.

Is Christ "the Everlasting Father"

It is generally understood that Christ, as "the Son of God", is also our elder brother, since we, too, are called "the sons of God".

1Jn 3:1  Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

But Isaiah clearly tells us that one of Christ's names is "the Everlasting Father". So is there a second scriptural witness that calls Christ the Father of His children? It just so happens there is such a statement, in a "line upon line, and precept upon precept" manner in scripture for those who have the eyes to see it.

This is what we are told of who is our father:

Rom 4:12  And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised.

Rom 4:16  Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,

Then who does Abraham symbolize in these verses? There is no room for doubt because it is the same person whom Isaiah tells us is to be called "the Everlasting Father". This is who gave Abraham his faith, and this is "who is the [True] Father of us all".

Gal 3:29  And if ye be Christ's [children], then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

We are even told that we, in Christ, are "counted for a generation":

Psa 22:30  A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation.
Psa 22:31  They shall come, and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be born, that he hath done this.

Abraham is just the type and shadow of Christ because "the law is not of faith".

Gal 3:12  And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them.

Christ is the true "Father of us all", and He is also "a Son... [whose] name shall be called... the Everlasting Father."

The greatness of His government over His kingdom will never end

Isa 9:7  Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

It is clearly established that those who are Christ's in this age will sit with Him in His Father's throne and will rule both this world, and then afterwards they will also rule angels in the lake of fire:

1Co 6:2  Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
1Co 6:3  Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

Christ promised this honor to all His apostles:

Mat 19:28  And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

This is all repeated as a promise to "he that overcometh" in Revelation 2.

Rev 2:26  And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Rev 2:27  And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

But there is a widely accepted misunderstanding of what Isaiah 9:7 actually teaches us. Several Christian denominations use the phrase, "Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end" to mean there is no end to the growth of His kingdom. I personally believed that doctrine while in an organization which taught that the universe was limitless for the very purpose of fulfilling that verse of scripture. The doctrine was that everyone who was saved would, in time be made a Christ over his own planet and would be sent to die for the sins of the inhabitants of his particular planet. This scenario was to be repeated over and over for all eternity, because the scriptures teach "Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end".

There is one problem with this doctrine. The fact is that the Hebrew word translated as 'increase' in the KJV is marbeh^H4766, and this Hebrew word appears only one other time in the scripture, which is:

Isa 33:23  Thy tacklings are loosed; they could not well strengthen their mast, they could not spread the sail: then is the prey of a great^H4766 spoil divided; the lame take the prey.

This doctrine of an ever-increasing kingdom denies that there will ever be an end to "the last enemy... death", since death would necessarily continue forever if "increase of His government" means limitless or for all eternity.

'Marbeh', according the Strong's, is from the Hebrew word rabah^H7235.

H4766
מַרְבֶה
marbeh
mar-beh'
From H7235; properly increasing; as noun, greatness, or (adverbially) greatly: - great, increase.

When we look up the word 'rabah', this is what Strong's tells us:

H7235
רָבָה
râbâh
raw-baw'
A primitive root; to increase (in whatever respect): - [bring in] abundance (X -antly), + archer [by mistake for H7232], be in authority, bring up, X continue, enlarge, excel, exceeding (-ly), be full of, (be, make) great (-er, -ly), X -ness), grow up, heap, increase, be long, (be, give, have, make, use) many (a time), (any, be, give, give the, have) more (in number), (ask, be, be so, gather, over, take, yield) much (greater, more), (make to) multiply, nourish, plenty (-eous), X process [of time], sore, store, thoroughly, very.

Here is an example of how the word 'rabah' is properly translated as 'increase':

Lev 25:15  According to the number of years after the jubile thou shalt buy of thy neighbour, and according unto the number of years of the fruits he shall sell unto thee:
Lev 25:16  According to the multitude of years thou shalt increase [H7235, 'rabah'] the price thereof, and according to the fewness of years thou shalt diminish the price of it: for according to the number of the years of the fruits doth he sell unto thee.

Pro 28:8  He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth [H7235, 'rabah'] his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor.

According to Leviticus 25, the value of the purchase of a piece of property depended upon how many years remained until the jubile. The value would be increased in proportion to the years remaining until the jubile. But it could not be increased without limit, or forever, as this false doctrine teaches.

Proverbs 28 states that our substance can be increased by usury and unjust gain, but in spite of how it may seem in today's world, unjust gain does have its limits, as we are just about to discover as a nation and as a planet. Sin and death do not go on forever. If that were the meaning of Isa 9:7, then these verses would be lies:

1Co 15:22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.
1Co 15:24  Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
1Co 15:25  For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.
1Co 15:26  The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
1Co 15:27  For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him.
1Co 15:28  And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

So 'marbeh' can properly be translated as 'increase', but neither 'marbeh' nor 'rabah' are ever to be understood as unending increase for all eternity.

"Then cometh the end." There is an end of the aions! The day will come when they have fulfilled their preordained purpose, and they and death will come to "the end". For death to ever be destroyed and for God to ever become "all in all", the aions (eons) must come to their prophesied consummation, and the number of those "in Adam" who will be redeemed from death must be filled up, and "come [to] the end". There would be no need for a former resurrection followed by a millennial kingdom if "of the increase of His government... there shall be no end" means that death never ends and that flesh is never destroyed. There would be no need for a "short season" of the rebellion of all the nations "in the four quarters of the earth [to be] devoured [by] fire... from heaven", followed by a great white throne judgment in the redemptive lake of fire, if there were no end to the increase of His government.

A much better translation of the Hebrew word 'marbeh' would be 'greatness', instead of 'increase', and then Isa 9:7 would accord with the sum of God's Word concerning the unending greatness of His government and His peace.

Then Isa 9:7 would read:

Isa 9:7  Of the greatness of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

His kingdom is "henceforth even for ever [Hebrew: olawm - age], not for eternity.

Lord willing, next week we will discover how that when God first begins dragging us to Himself, we do not just naturally turn to Him, as is revealed in these verses for next week's study:

Isa 9:8  The Lord sent a word into Jacob, and it hath lighted upon Israel.
Isa 9:9  And all the people shall know, even Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria, that say in the pride and stoutness of heart,
Isa 9:10  The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones: the sycomores are cut down, but we will change them into cedars.
Isa 9:11  Therefore the LORD shall set up the adversaries of Rezin against him, and join his enemies together;
Isa 9:12  The Syrians before, and the Philistines behind; and they shall devour Israel with open mouth. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
Isa 9:13  For the people turneth not unto him that smiteth them, neither do they seek the LORD of hosts.

[The study given at the Mobile, Al conference five years ago ties in with this study (thank you, Gale!). You can reference that study here.]