A. Descriptions of the Virgin Birth of Christ in Prophecy

1. Description in Gen. 3:15

2. Description in Isa. 7:14.

 B. Descriptions of the Virgin Birth of Christ in the Gospels

1. Description in Luke

2. Description in Mathew

3. Description's inherent credibility 

• Chapter I

• Chapter III

• Chapter IV

• Chapter V

CHAPTER II

 DESCRIPTIONS OF THE VIRGIN BIRTH OF

 CHRIST IN THE BIBLE

            The main descriptions concerning the virgin birth occur in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke (Matt. 1:18:-25; Luke 1:26-38), and the doctrine of the virgin birth is based upon these two explicit Biblical descriptions. There are two important prophecies concerning the virgin birth in Gen. 3:15 and Isa. 7:14.  There are other passages in the New Testament which some have argued refer to or at least allude to or presuppose the virgin birth of Christ. In this section, the writer is dealing with the descriptions of the virgin birth of Christ in the Old Testament prophecy, and the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. 

A. Descriptions of the Virgin Birth of Christ in Prophecy

 The prophecies about Christ do not have a parallel in the life of anyone who ever livid upon the earth. No one can write a history about an unborn person. All history narrates the story of events and persons discerning their merits and demerits. But the distinctive character of the history of Jesus is that it was revealed hundreds of years before His birth. Prophetic reference to the virgin birth of Christ is found in Gen. 3:15 and Isa. 7:14.

 1. Description in Gen. 3:15

 The first prophecy concerning the coming of Christ is Gen. 3:15, and it has a reference to the virgin birth of Christ. In this, God says that the seed of woman shall crush the head of the serpent. Thus, the Deliverer would come of the woman's seed, not of man's seed as is biologically accepted. The seed who should destroy the serpent is described emphatically as the woman's seed. It was the woman through whom sin had entered the race; by the seed of the woman would salvation come. The promise to Abraham was that in his seed the families of the earth would be blessed; there the male is emphasized; but here it is the woman.²⁹ Regarding Gen 3:15, Paul Enns rightly says:

 There will be enmity between Satan and Messiah, here identified by the phrase, "her seed." The phrase "her seed" concerns  Mary alone and points to the virgin birth; Messiah is born of Mary alone.³⁰

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 2. Description in Isa. 7:14.

 Isa. 7:14 is a more clear prophecy about the virgin birth of Christ. It states that "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and shall bring froth a son, and call his name Immanuel." This is very specifically referring to the virgin birth of Christ. This verse has been interpreted differently by the scholars. Therefore this prophecy needs to be analyzed.

             a. Background of the passage. In 735 B.C. Ahaz ascended the throne. Tiglath- Pileser, king of Assyria , had been occupied in the far east for the preceding two years. Rezin, the king of Syria and Pekah, the king of Israel formed an alliance and used the occasion to launch an invasion against Judah, an adventure they would not have dared had Uzziah still been alive. Rezin, marched down the eastern side of the Jordan and conquered Edom. Pekah swept over Judah and defeated the armies of Ahaz in one great battle, slaughtering 120,000 Judeans and carrying off 200,000 captives along with a large amount of spoil (2 Chro. 28:5; 2 Kings 16:5).  Their motive was probably vengeance against Ahaz for refusing to enter into an alliance with them against Assyria. It is no wonder that Ahaz was afraid that his enemies would prevail, end the kingdom of Judah, and annihilate the family of David.

             In his distress Ahaz was about to appeal to Assyria for military help.  However, Assyria was selfish, conquering power, and an alliance with them could have been purchased only at the price of Judah's independence. Isaiah met Ahaz to assure him that God would deliver Jerusalem, and to warn him against a disastrous entanglement with Assyria. As proof that Isaiah was not a false prophet and that God actually had the power to deliver Judah, Ahaz was told to ask for a confirmatory sign, anything he could conceive of from heaven above to sheol below (7:10-11), and yet he refused (7:12). After rebuking Ahaz, Isaiah continued his message, and it is a prophecy about a virgin- conception.³¹ 

            b. Etymology of the term ALMAH. The verb form ALAM occurs 26 times in the Old Testament and it always means "to hide" or "to conceal."³²  Jerome  had  applied this root meaning to ALMAH and says:

 Almah is not applied to girls or virgins generally, but is used emphatically of a hidden and concealed virgin, who is never accessibly to the look of the male, but is with great care watched by the parents.³³

             Clarke rightly rejects this application and he cites examples in the Old Testament where young, unmarried women drew water, kept sheep, and gleaned publicly in the fields. He says:

 A virgin was not called Almah because she was concealed by being kept at home in her father's house, which is not true; but literally and physically, because as a woman she had not been uncovered she had not known man.³⁴

             This then is in full accord with the application of ALMAH to Mary: "How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?" (Luke 1:34 cf Matt. 1:23).

             The masculine derivative ELEM "Young man", is used in 1 Samuel 17:42, 56.³⁵  Here David is described as "a youth, and ruddy, and withal of a fair countenance".  The word ALUMIM means "Youth", or "Youthful vigour" (Job 20:11; 33:25; Ps. 89:46).³⁶  Its most significant and illuminating usage is in Isa. 54:4-5 where the word essentially means to be "unmarried" and "without children."

             There is no etymological evidence to support the frequently aired claim that ALMAH can refer to a young married woman or an unmarried woman who had intercourse.  The root `LM suggest quite the opposite view and supports the traditional understanding of "Young virgin" as a suitable rendering for the term.

             c. Word study on ALMAH.

             (1). Old Testament usage. The word ALMAH appears nine times in the Old Testament Twice it is used as a musical term, and in seven other times, it refers to young women.

             The word ALMAH as a musical term occurs in 1 Chron. 15:20, and also in the title of psalm 46. Cuthbert Lattey states in Catholic Biblical Quarterly that the word in 1 Chron. 15:20 would signify the normal key for most teenage girls and could be translated "set to young women's voices." It is the same in the case of Psalm 46. At any rate, no determination can be made from these passages regarding either the virginity or the marital status of the women involved. Since the procession of Chron. 15:19-24 was a sacred occasion, it would be expected that at the very least they would be morally pure.³⁷

             Gen. 24:43; Exodus 2:8; Ps. 68:25; Prov. 30:19; Song of Sol. 1:3;6:8 and Isa. 7:14 are the seven passages in which ALMAH is used in the sense of a "Young woman." The references to ALMAH as a young woman always refer to a young, unmarried woman, and never to a married woman. At least the context of Gen. 24:43 demands that the young woman be a true virgin. The other references to ALMAH as a young woman make no special point of girls virginity, but seem to imply it.³⁸

             (2). Septuagint usage. The Septuagint is the first and foremost ancient translation of the Hebrew Old Testament into Greek. It was compiled in Egypt during the second and third centuries B.C. It was done at Alexandria, in Egypt by seventy Jewish scholars sent from Jerusalem by the high-priest at the request of Ptolemy Philadelphus (285- 247 B.C.). It most likely arose to meet the need of the Greek-speaking Jews of Alexandria.³⁹

             LXX⁴⁰ translated ALMAH in Isa. 7:14 by the Greek word PARTHENOS.  There can be no question about the scholarship of these Jewish Scribes and their knowledge of the Hebrew language. They translated one Hebrew word by one Greek word. They were more close to the days of Isaiah than the ancient or modern critics of the LXX. They did their work nearly three centuries before the birth of Jesus. They could not have been moved by any sort of Pre-conceived idea. They simply translated the text that was before them. One can not be sure of their discernment about the mysterious meaning of the passage. They must have seen clearly that a tremendous miracle was promised to Ahaz by Isaiah and that this required ALMAH to be translated by the specific Greek word which meant virgin.⁴¹

             (3). Qumran literature's usage. Qumran literature is made up of pre-christian materials and, antedates previous Old Testament copies by nearly one thousand years and is of tremendous importance to biblical studies in confirming the authenticity of the Hebrew Bible. Technically these are referred to as Qumran materials, since the various caves in which these discoveries were found are located near the canyon of the wady Qumran, along the northwest coast of the dead Sea. These discoveries are also called Dead Sea Scrolls.⁴²

             The consistent usage of PARTHENOS in Greek material to refer to ALMAH is found in this literature. This is an ancient authority to support the assertion that ALMAH is most naturally to be translated as virgin.⁴³

             (4). Matthew's usage. Matthew has used PARTHENOS in place of ALMAH in the quotation of Isa. 7:14 (Matt: 1:23). The Greek term PARTHENOS is used 14 times in the New Testament and it speaks not only of chaste females but also of chaste males (II Cor. 11:2; Rev. 14:4).⁴⁴. PARTHENOS is always translated and interpreted as virgin.⁴⁵  Matthew has quoted Isa. 7:14 from LXX, and its able translators used PARTHENOS to reflect the proper translation of ALMAH.

             d. Interpretation of Isaiah's prophecy.

             (1). Interpretation of modern commentators and RSV. Modern commentators⁴⁶ and translators of Revised Standard version⁴⁷ of the Bible translate ALMAH as "Young woman". They held that the distinctive Hebrew word for "virgin" is BETULAH. They assert that if Isaiah had intended to announce the miraculous conception and birth without the loss of virginity, he could have used the technical Hebrew term BETULAH.⁴⁸  Based on their translation of ALMAH as "young woman", they interpret the prophecy of Isa. 7:14. Those who translate it as young woman also vary in their identification of that "young woman". She is identified as the wife of Isaiah⁴⁹ or as the wife of Hezekiah⁵⁰

             But BETULAH does not itself guarantee by its usage that its reference is in fact a virgin. In Deut, 22:19 and Joel 1:8, BETULAH refers to a married woman. Moreover, if Isaiah wished to use a word that would exactly express his intention, the use of ALMAH would better signify virginity than would the more common term BETULAH. ⁵¹ Hanke has given a valuable observation about the use of these terms and it is another critique to the Revised Standard version:

 The evidence indicates also that had  Isaiah wished to say "Young woman" he would have chosen the term Na'arah, the term which the RSV usually translates as "young woman".⁵² 

            (2). Interpretation of Matthew. Matthew has quoted Isa. 7:14 and stated that it is fulfilled in the birth of Jesus Christ. His contextual usage of HINA PLEROTHE is almost certainly indicative of his understanding of the Isaiah passage to contain a definitely predictive element (Matt. 1:22). His recognition of the prophecy as coming from God shows that he felt his interpretation of it was also of God. It is also possible that Matt. 1:22-23 is not at all the narration of Matthew, but the recorded quotation of the angel's reassuring declaration to Joseph. It is very clear from the Scripture that Matthew was taught in the interpretation of messianic prophecy by Jesus Himself (cf. Luke. 24:24-27, 44-47).  Therefore Matthew's recorded interpretation of the Isaiah passage as being predictive is of the highest probability of correctness.⁵³

             (3). Interpretation of Apostles. Though there is no clear statement of interpreting the virgin birth in Isa. 7:14 other than Matthew's indication, there are many references to the virgin birth of the Messiah. In I pet 1:10-11, Peter states that when the prophets wrote of Christ, they did know that he should come, suffer, and afterward be glorified. He states that the only thing they were not certain about was the time of these events, as to when they should happen and for what duration. John 1:14; Rom 8:3; Phil. 2:7; 1 Tim 3:16 and Rom. 1:2-4 clearly point that the New Testament writers accepted Jesus' birth as a virgin birth bringing deity into the human race by means of the incarnation.

             e. Significance and scope of Isaiah's prophecy. Matthew is very careful to point out that the birth of Jesus was the fulfilment of Isa. 7:14 (cf. Matt. 1:21-25). There is absolutely no doubt that Isaiah's prophecy was aimed at the birth of Christ. Both Matthew and Luke make it plain that Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ, was a virgin. "Virgin" is not merely a chaste woman or a young woman or even an unmarried woman, but a young woman who has had no sexual experience with a man. Mary was such a woman when Jesus was born of her.⁵⁴

             Several conservative scholars believe that Isa. 7:14 has a dual fulfilment. The use of the Hebrew ALMAH is to accommodate an immediate or near fulfilment of a sign to Ahaz, and a distant or ultimate fulfilment of the birth of the Messiah. ALMAH applies to Isaiah's wife, the "Prophetess" cf. ch. 8:3.⁵⁵ But  ALMAH as "virgin" (cf. Gen. 24:43) applies exclusively to Mary. Mahershalalhashbaz which means "speed spoil, hurry prey" or simply "hasten destruction", was a sign given to Ahaz to assure him of the destruction of Syria and Samaria which had taken counsel to invade. The fulfilment of this sign to Ahaz was the guarantee to him of the fact that "God is with us" ⁵⁶

             Isaiah speaks of himself and his children as signs and wonders in Israel (8:18). While the sign of Isaiah's son consisted in assuring Judah of God's presence with them in the face of trouble, the sign of the ultimate fulfilment consisted in the fact that Jesus Christ is "God with us" (cf Lk.2:34).

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 B. Descriptions of the Virgin Birth of Christ in the Gospels

            Descriptions in the Gospels are the clear crystal evidences for the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. The records of the early chapters of Matthew and Luke find their simplest and most satisfactory explanation in the actual fact that Jesus was born of a virgin.

 1. Description in Luke

            Six months after sending the angel Gabriel with his message to Zechariah (1:5-25) concerning the birth of John the baptist, God sent Gabriel to Mary with a message concerning the birth of Jesus (1:26-38). Mary lived in Nazareth, a town in Galilee. Mary was betrothed to Joseph at the time of the appearance of the angel. John MacArthur describes the betrothal thus:

 This  first stage was the betrothal period, mentioned in Deuteronomy 20:7... such a practice means that a betrothed  couple was constituted as legally married, even though there were no physical relationships whatever. This period, normally twelve months in duration, served as a period, of protection for the would be husband and wife so each partner's fidelity could be established. If the girl became pregnant through being unfaithful, it  would become manifest in that period.. so the betrothal was primarily a promise or contract that was made.⁵⁷

             The angel came to announce the special blessing that God had conferred on Mary. He said, "Hail, you favoured one. the Lord is with you" (Luke 1:28). She knew nothing of the previous announcement of Gabriel to Zechariah. Fear gripped her heart, but the angel spoke comforting words of peace (Luke 1:29). Gabriel announced first that Mary would be with child and give birth to a son (1:31) and this son would be named Jesus.

            Mary responded to this announcement by asking. "How shall this be. since I know not a man?" (v. 34). A physical relationship with Joseph was inconceivable because the final presentation in marriage was yet some time off. This was not a response of unbelief such as Zechariah gave to the angel's announcement. It was rather a request for an explanation as to how this birth could take place. The angel gave this explanation: "The Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and the power of the Highest overshadow you" (v.35). Jesus Christ would be conceived by the Holy Spirit. He would not have a natural father. Thus, the conception of Jesus Christ in the womb of Mary was to be by supernatural means. Luke carefully explains the unusual conception in Luke 1:27, 31,34 and 35.

             The power of the Highest that was to overshadow Mary may be compared with the brooding of the Spirit over an emerging creation⁵⁸ or as the cloud of Shekinah-glory which rested on the tabernacle of Israel in the desert.⁵⁹

             A sign of confirmation was given to Mary even though she did not ask for it. The angel told her that Elizabeth, contrary to her barrenness and age, had conceived a child and was now six months pregnant. This, Mary knew, was a supernatural work (1:36-38).  Mary had not asked for proof, but it was given to her to substantiate her faith.

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 2. Description in Matthew

             Matthew relates the description of the virgin birth of Christ from Joseph's point of view, whereas Luke describes it as it affected Mary. It should be remembered that the betrothal of a couple was just as binding among the Jews as the actual marriage, so that the laws of marriage with respect to faithfulness to each other applied from the day of betrothal.⁶⁰  In this betrothal period according to 1:18, Mary was found pregnant. Joseph considered the consummation of the marriage impossible and contemplated a quiet divorce rather than a public disclosure and scandal.

             At the beginning of the description, Matthew declares that the child is "of the Holy Spirit" (1:18) and then describes how this fact was revealed to Joseph. An angel sent by God appeared to him in a dream, addressing him as "Joseph, son of David" (1:20). He is instructed not to be afraid of taking Mary as his wife, as the child had been conceived by the Holy Spirit.  Further, Joseph is informed that when Mary's son is born, he should be called Jesus, meaning saviour, "for He shall save His people from their sins" (1:21).

             Matthew goes on to support the doctrine of the virgin birth by quoting Isa. 7:14, which prophesied that a virgin, literally, "the virgin" should bear a son whose name would be Immanuel, meaning "God with us" (1:23). Matthew clearly claimed not only that Christ was born of a virgin but that this was anticipated by the prophecy of Isaiah as being the method by which God would become man. In the light of that prophecy, it was easier for Joseph's faith to grasp the announcement of the angel. Without further question, in obedience to the angelic vision, Joseph took Mary as his wife but "knew her not" until after Jesus was born.

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 3. Description's inherent credibility 

            Though several liberal scholars doubt the descriptions of the virgin birth found in Matthew's and Luke's Gospels,⁶¹ the descriptions of the birth of Christ in Matthew and Luke are undoubtedly genuine parts of their respective Gospels.  They had been there since ever the Gospels themselves had an existence. The chapters in question are found in every manuscript and version of the Gospels known to exist except the Ebionites' Gospel of Matthew. Their Gospel was a mutilated and corrupted form of the original. The manuscripts of the genuine Gospel always had these chapters.⁶²

             These Gospels were written by apostolic men. Matthew was an apostle himself (Matt. 10:3) and Luke was an immediate associate of Apostle Paul (col. 4:14;2 Tim. 4:11; Phile. 24). These Gospels were from the first accepted and circulated in the church as trust worthy embodiments of sound apostolic tradition.

 In regard to the accounts in Matthew and Luke, Orr states that although they are told from different points of view and that they originate from different sources, they agree on one central fact:

 ....yet they both affirm, in detailed story, that Jesus, conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit, was born of a pure virgin, Mary of Nazareth, espoused to Joseph, whose wife she afterwards became. The birth took place at Bethlehem, whither Joseph and Mary had gone for enrolment in a census that was being taken. The announcement was made to Mary beforehand by an angel, and the birth was preceded, attended, and followed by remarkable events that are narrated (birth of the Baptist, with annunciations, angelic vision to shepherds, visit of wise men from the east, etc.).⁶³

             In these descriptions, one finds more remarkable agreements rather than discrepancies, and these agreements themselves are witnesses to the inherent credibility of the descriptions.

             Every reason ever advanced for denying the historicity of these Gospels has carried with it the premise of rationalistic rejection of the supernatural and determined prejudice against the claims of Jesus Christ to be the God-Man. Faith in the accuracy of such a record induced early believers to die as martyrs rather than renounce their faith in the virgin born Son of Mary.

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END NOTES

• ²⁹James Orr, "The Virgin Birth of Christ," in The Fundamentals, Vol.II, eds. R.A. Torrey, A.C. Dixon et al. (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1972), p.251.  

• ³⁰Paul Enns, The moody Handbook of Theology, (Chicago: Moody Press, 1989), p.217.

• ³¹Richard Niessen, "The Virginity of the ALMAH in Isaiah 7:14", Bibliotheca Sacra 137 (April - June 1980):141-42.

• ³²Francis Brown, S.R. Driver, and Charles A. Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1977), p.761.

• ³³Cited by Richard Niessen, p.134.

• ³⁴Adam Clarke, Clarke's Commentary, 6 Vols. (New York: Phillips & Hunt, n.d.), 4:58.

• ³⁵Brown, Driver and Briggs, p.761.

• ³⁶Ibid.

• ³⁷Niessen, pp. 135-36.

• ³⁸Ibid.,pp. 136-41.

• ³⁹Edward E. Hindson, Isaiah's Immanuel, (New Jersey: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Co., 1978), p.67.

• ⁴⁰The Septuagint is designated LXX because it was the work of seventy (LXX) scholars.

• ⁴¹R.C.Foster, Studies in the Life of Christ, (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1979), p.251.

• ⁴²Gleason L. Archer, Jr.,A Survey of Old Testament Introduction, (Chicago: Moody Press, 1974), p.37.

• ⁴³Hindson, p.68.

• ⁴⁴Best, Christ's Kingdom is Future, p.13.

• ⁴⁵Hindson, p.74.

• ⁴⁶S.R. Driver, Alfred Plummer, and C.A. Briggs, eds., The International Critical Commentary, (Edinburgh: T & T. Clark Limited, 1975), A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Isaiah, Vol. I, By George Buchanan Gray, p.127.

• ⁴⁷Norman L. Geisler and William E.Nix, A General Introduction to the Bible, (Chicago : Moody Press, 1973), p.427.

• ⁴⁸Gray, p.127.

• ⁴⁹F. Jennings, Studies in Isaiah, (New York: Loizeaux Brothers, 1950), p.85.

• ⁵⁰G. Knight, A Christian Theology of the Old Testament, (London: SCM Press, 1964), pp. 309-10.

• ⁵¹Hindson, p.41.

• ⁵²H. Hanke, The Validity of the Virgin Birth, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1963), p.24.

• ⁵³Hindson, pp. 74-77

• ⁵⁴J. Buraga, Questions in Christian Theology Answered, (Secunderabad: B.B.C. Printers & Publisheres, 1985), p.41.

• ⁵⁵Gleason L. Archer. "Isaiah", in The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, eds. C.F. Pfeiffer and E.F. Harrison (Chicago: Moody Press, 1974), p.618.

• ⁵⁶Buraga, pp. 41-42.

• ⁵⁷John MacArthur, Jr., The Birth of the King (Panorama City, California: Word of Grace Communications, 1983), p.23.

• ⁵⁸Donald Guthrie, Jesus the Messiah, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1975), p.8.

• ⁵⁹J.W. Shepard, The Christ of the Gospels, (Grand Rapids: Wm. B.Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1946), p.24.

• ⁶⁰J.C. Macaulay, Behold Your King, (Chicago: Moody Press, 1982), p.19.

• ⁶¹Machen, The Virgin Birth of Christ, pp. 210- 37 passim.

• ⁶²Orr, pp. 254-55.

• ⁶³Ibid.

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