When Ahaz son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it. Now the house of David was told, “Aram has allied itself with Ephraim”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.
Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub, to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field. Say to him, ‘Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid. Do not lose heart because of these two smoldering stubs of firewood—because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah. “Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it.” Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “ ‘It will not take place, it will not happen... If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.’ ”
“Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.”
But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.”
Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. He will be eating curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, for before the boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste. The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.”
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Isaiah 7 is where the author of the Gospel of Matthew found a prophecy for the virgin birth of the messiah. Christmas is just a little over a month away. The shops are playing Christmas music and the decorations are popping up everywhere. While Christmas is becoming less about Christ and more about retail sales, for the Church Christmas is celebrated with the manger scene. In that manger is the little babe, born of the Virgin Mary, lying upon the hay.
Many doubt the immaculate conception. I don't doubt that the creator of the universe has the power to defy biological norms and produce a miracle birth. Recently friends of mine celebrated the marriage of their daughter. She was a miracle baby. Her mother had tubal ligation surgery to prevent pregnancy. Yet she became pregnant anyway. The chances of that happening are extremely slim, but it happened. It was beyond the norm. Virgin birth, however, is a completely different story. There was no human father. The Holy Spirit impregnated Mary.
What I find interesting is not the debate over whether God can bring about virgin birth, but rather how early Christians were able to read Isaiah 7:14 as a prophecy of the messiah.
The situation for Israel at the time of Isaiah's oracle is the threat of military invasion from a joint army of Ephraimites and Arameans. The Ephraimites are brothers to the people of Judah and Jerusalem. They are fellow Hebrews! Yet at this time in history Judah was isolated from the rest of the tribes. Only the small tribe of Simeon was allied with Judah. The other ten tribes of Israel broke away from serving the sons of David at Jerusalem.
King Ahaz, from the line of David, was terrified of the impending invasion, so God sent an encouraging message to the king through the prophet Isaiah. God told Ahaz not to be afraid, but to stand firm in faith. God will send the Assyrians and Egyptians to wage war in the region and destroy Aram and Ephraim both. The Assyrian invasion of northern Israel was devastating. The once proud nation that defied Jerusalem came to an end, never to return. The ten tribes were scattered in exile and the remainder in the land was intermixed with foreigners imported to the region. These became known as Samaritans.
Once announcing the good news to Ahaz, God offers to give a sign proving this prophecy to be trustworthy. Ahaz could name it, but Ahaz was afraid to do that. In humility he dared not test God by requesting a specific sign. In exasperation Isaiah then gave Ahaz the sign that he would see. A boy would be born to a young woman, and before the child could know either from wrong, about 2-3 years, Arameans and Ephraimites world be no more.
The NIV, and several other English translations, use in Isaiah 7:14 the word virgin, but the Hebrew word can also be rendered young woman. The point of Isaiah's prophecy is not the means by which the boy comes into the world. That is not the sign. It is merely a time period that is signified by the child coming to know right from wrong. The message is simply that threat of invasion will pass within 2-3 years.
After the Assyrians conquer northern Israel, God promises a time of great abundance and peace for Judah, the likes of which has not been seen since the days of Solomon. This portion of the prophecy does point to messianic hopes. For under the messiah, the kingdom will enjoy peace and plenty. Yet there's nothing about a messianic king bringing such a time. Rather it is God's use of Assyria and Egypt which will bring peace. So I find Matthew's use of Isaiah 7:14 very curious.
The Greek Septuagint translates the Hebrew word amlah as parthenos. Whereas amlah can mean girl, young woman, or unmarried woman, the Greek word
parthenos can only mean virgin. It's not a stretch for a Hebrew to assume a young unmarried woman is a virgin. That would be the norm since fornication, sex outside of marriage, is forbidden. Since the New Testament authors were reading the Greek translation I can see why they saw Jesus' birth prophecied here is Isaiah 7:14. I am assuming that the circumstances of Jesus' birth is what opened up their eyes to this new interpretation. Some scholars, however, prefer to believe that Matthew made up the virgin birth story as a way to communicate the divine nature and origin of Jesus. You have to decide for yourself. As I've already stated, I don't doubt God's ability.
In the end, none of this controversy matters. The sexual activity of the young woman is not in question in Isaiah's mind. His only point is that the threat of military invasion will pass before the young boy knows right from wrong, which is a period of about 2 to 3 years, in the Jewish mind.
His name "Immanuel" means "God with us." The fall of the armies of Aram and Ephraim would be the sign that God is with Judah.
After Jesus appeared to His disciples, and taught them with godly insight, wrought miracles, and cared for the poor and outcasts with compassion, they knew that God was with them in the flesh. It's not hard for me to understand why Matthew might read Isaiah 7:14 in the light of Jesus, for He is God with us. Jesus is Immanuel.
The main message of Isaiah to us really isn't the virgin birth of the messiah. It's that we should not be afraid when threats come our way. Remember that God of with us! Consider the words of the prophet to Ahaz as delivered to you.
Isaiah 7:9b NIV
If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.
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