(Isa. 9:6–7; Luke 2:10–11)
We know that the government was not placed on Christ’s shoulders during his first coming, but it will be when he comes the second time to fulfill his complete messianic role. When he came as a baby, it was important for his believers to know what his overall role would be. As Gabriel told Mary, ‘the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: and … of his kingdom there shall be no end’ (Luke 1:32–33; reiterated by Zacharias in Luke 1:69–74. Inspired people have always kept Christ’s overall ministry in mind to comprehend the full nature of his earthly mission (see Luke 1:33, 68–71).
(Keith A Meservy, Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4, ed. Kent P. Jackson [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 99.)
One of the beautiful reminders in this magnificent passage … is the gentle declaration that through all of his power and majesty, Christ is still “the Son”—the Son as taught by Abinadi and other Book of Mormon prophets… . We are reminded here that he is, gloriously, the Son of God, a child of heaven.
The fact that the government would eventually be upon his shoulders affirms what all the world will one day acknowledge–that he is Lord of lords and King of kings and will one day rule over the earth and his Church in person… . All can take comfort from the fact that because the government–and the burdens thereof–will be upon his shoulders, they will be lifted in great measure from our own. This is yet another reference in Isaiah to the Atonement, the bearing away of our sins (or at very least in this reference, our temporal burdens) on the shoulders of Christ.
As “Wonderful Counselor,” he will be our mediator, our intercessor, defending our cause in the courts of heaven… .
Of course, as noted by Isaiah, Christ is not only a mediator but also a judge… . It is as if the judge in that great courtroom in heaven, unwilling to ask anyone but himself to bear the burdens of the guilty people standing in the dock, takes off his judicial robes and comes down to earth to bear their stripes personally. Christ as merciful judge is as beautiful and wonderful a concept as that of Christ as counselor, mediator, and advocate.
“Mighty God” conveys something of the power of God, his strength, omnipotence, and unconquerable influence …
“Everlasting Father” underscores the fundamental doctrine that Christ is a Father—Creator of worlds without number, the Father of restored physical life through the Resurrection, the Father of eternal life for his spiritually begotten sons and daughters, and the One acting for the Father (Elohim) through divine investiture of authority…
Lastly, with the phrase “Prince of Peace,” we rejoice that when the King shall come, there will be no more war in the human heart or among the nations of the world.”
(Jeffrey R. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1997], 80–81.)
Some scholars believe that the leader promised by Isaiah in chapter 9 was Hezekiah. Hezekiah was indeed a righteous king, for he both helped bring Judah to a higher spiritual plane and brought a partial peace to the land. Hezekiah listened to the counsel of Isaiah and tried to follow it. He seems particularly righteous when contrasted with his father, Ahaz, and his son Mannaseh. Still, Isaiah was merely using Hezekiah as a type, a figure of the future Messiah… . When the Israelites heard of Isaiah’s prophecy, they knew it applied to Hezekiah and that they would enjoy a period of peace, but some of them also knew that its full realization would come only in the birth and life of the Messiah, the perfect king.
(Victor L. Ludlow, Isaiah: Prophet, Seer, and Poet [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1982], 155.)