The Virgin Birth of Christ in Isaiah 7:14
“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5)
The Virgin Birth of Christ in Isaiah 7:14
Jack Kettler
“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14)
The interpretation of Isaiah 7:14 holds a central place in Christian reflection on the incarnation. This study examines the linguistic, intertextual, and historical-exegetical evidence bearing on the verse to clarify its contribution to the doctrine of the virgin birth. Disagreement over the passage often turns less on decisive lexical data than on prior commitments regarding the possibility of miracles and the nature of scriptural inspiration. A naturalistic presupposition that excludes the miraculous will, of necessity, reject both the predictive force of the prophecy and its New Testament fulfillment. The controversy may therefore be described as a conflict between a high view of biblical inerrancy and approaches that do not share that premise.
Scripture remains the most reliable interpreter of itself. Cross-references, lexical analysis, and representative Reformation-era commentary therefore provide the principal lines of evidence. The discussion that follows is introductory rather than exhaustive; readers seeking a full-scale treatment are directed to J. Gresham Machen’s classic monograph “The Virgin Birth of Christ”.
The Semantic Range of ʿalmâ and Its Septuagint Rendering
The Hebrew noun ʿalmâ (עַלְמָה) may denote a young woman of marriageable age and, in context, a virgin. In Isaiah 7:14, the definite form הָעַלְמָה appears. The Jewish translators of the Septuagint rendered the term παρθένος (“parthenos”), a word whose characteristic meaning is “a virgin, a woman who has never had sexual intercourse with a man, a marriageable maiden” (Strong’s 3933). That choice is significant: it reflects an ancient Jewish understanding of the Isaianic text prior to Christian appropriation.
Lexical entry for the Hebrew term itself confirms the same range:
“a virgin הָעַלְמָה ha·ʿal·māh 5959 a young woman, a virgin fem. of ʿelem”
The New Testament writers, writing under inspiration, explicitly identify the referent as a virgin (Matt. 1:23; Luke 1:27, 34).
Canonical Cross-References
The following passages illuminate Isaiah 7:14 by placing it within the larger canonical witness:
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). (Matthew 1:23)
“To a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.” (Luke 1:27)
“And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.” (Luke 1:31)
“And Mary said to the angel, ‘How will this be, since I am a virgin?’” (Luke 1:34)
“And the angel answered her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.’” (Luke 1:35)
Additional Isaianic and prophetic texts reinforce the messianic and theophanic overtones of the name Immanuel:
“It will sweep onward into Judah, it will overflow and pass through, it will reach even to the neck, and its outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.” (Isaiah 8:8)
“Take counsel together, but it will come to nothing; speak a word, but it will not stand, for God is with us.” (Isaiah 8:10)
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)
“This shall be the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do this thing that he has spoken.” (Isaiah 38:7)
“In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’” (Jeremiah 23:6)
Mary’s question in Luke 1:34, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” functions as inspired commentary on the nature of the conception and on her own virginity.
Representative Exegetical Testimony
The following extracts from classic Protestant commentators illustrate a consistent reading of the passage as a prediction of virginal conception.
Matthew Poole
Therefore; because you despise me, and the sign which I now offer to you, God of his own free grace will send you a more honourable messenger, and give you a nobler sign. A virgin; strictly and properly so called. The Jews, that they may obscure this plain text \ldots pretend that this Hebrew word signifies a young woman, and not a virgin. But this corrupt translation is easily confuted, 1. Because this word constantly signifies a virgin in all other places of Scripture where it is used. 2. From the scope of this place, which is to confirm their faith by a strange and prodigious sign, which surely could not be that a young woman should conceive a child, but that a virgin should conceive. Immanuel; which signifies, God with us; God dwelling among us, in our nature. (1)
John Gill
“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son. this is not to be understood of Hezekiah nor of Isaiah’s wife and son \ldots but the Messiah is here meant, who was to be born of a pure virgin; as the word here used signifies in all places where it is mentioned. And shall call his name Immanuel; which is, by interpretation, “God with us,” Matthew 1:23 whence it appears that the Messiah is truly God, as well as truly man.” (2)
John Calvin
“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive. This passage is obscure; but the blame lies partly on the Jews, who, by much cavilling, have labored \ldots to pervert the true exposition. It is certain that this name Immanuel could not be literally applied to a mere man; and, therefore, there can be no doubt that the Prophet referred to Christ. For what wonderful thing did the Prophet say, if he spoke of a young woman who conceived through intercourse with a man? It would certainly have been absurd to hold out this as a sign or a miracle. Immanuel. This name was unquestionably bestowed on Christ on account of the actual fact; for the only-begotten Son of God clothed himself with our flesh.” (3)
Theological Summary
The virgin birth is not a peripheral curiosity but a doctrine of first importance. Gabriel’s reply to Mary, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (Luke 1:35), and the parallel reassurance given to Joseph (Matt. 1:20) place the conception under the immediate agency of the Spirit. Matthew’s citation of Isaiah 7:14 as fulfilled in Mary’s pregnancy provides apostolic confirmation. Paul, while using the broader phrase “born of a woman” (Gal. 4:4), likewise affirms the true humanity of the Son sent by the Father.
Notes
1. Matthew Poole, “Commentary on the Holy Bible”, vol. 2, *Isaiah* (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1985), 310–11.
2. John Gill, “Exposition of the Old and New Testaments”, “Isaiah” (Grace Works Multi-Media Labs, 2011), 113–15.
3. John Calvin, “Commentaries on the Book of the Prophet Isaiah”, vol. 1, trans. William Pringle (Grand Rapids: Baker, reprint 1979), 244–49.
For more study:
J. Gresham Machen’s The Virgin Birth of Christ is considered one of the best books ever written on the subject.
Praise for Machen’s The Virgin Birth of Christ:
“Professor Machen’s work is elaborate, learned and full. The writer possesses an acute mind and a competent knowledge of modern critical literature.” The Times
“The Author has thought all around his subject and has left no phase unconsidered. His earlier published studies show that he has been thinking about it for a quarter of a century. I am not aware of any important literature on either side of the subject that he has overlooked.” The Christian Century (USA)
“It is no doubt the most extensive book on the subject that has hitherto appeared, an impressive volume. But it is … also so earnest, so circumspect, so intelligent in its discussions, that it must be recognized unqualifiedly as an important achievement.” Theologische Studien und Kritiken
“Dr. Machen’s learning is so great and his reading exceedingly wide, so that his book will long be a repertory of information as to all angles of its subject.” The Churchman (USA)
“Professor Machen has written a book on the Virgin Birth which is certain to gain the attention of all, friends or foes, who have an interest in this perplexing subject. His work is genuinely learned; it displays a thorough mastery of relevant literature, even when rather out of the way, and is surrounded by a wider zone of scholarship than discussion of this special subject might seem to require, but one which testifies the more to the writer’s extreme carefulness.” Professor H.R. Mackintosh, in British Weekly
I recommend getting a hardcopy reprint of this book. However, you can get the complete book as a PDF at the link below.
The Virgin Birth of Christ by J. Gresham Machen
https://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/sdg/machen/virginbirth_p.pdf
Machen’s Bio:
Dr. Machen’s reputation as not only one of the world’s foremost New Testament scholars but as one of the ablest defenders of historic Christianity. His former books, ‘The Origin of Paul’s Religion’ (1921), ‘Christianity and Liberalism’ (1923) and ‘What is Faith?’ (1925), have so whetted the appetites of their thousands of readers that the announcement of a new book by Dr. Machen fills them with eager expectancy—whatever may be their theological position. It will be recalled that Mr. Walter Lippmann, whose theological position is about as far removed as possible from that of Dr. Machen’s, in his widely read book, ‘A Preface to Morals’, not only speaks of Dr. Machen as ‘both a scholar and a gentleman’ but says of his book, ‘Christianity and Liberalism’: ‘It is an admirable book. For its acumen, for its saliency, and for its wit, this cool and stringent defense of orthodox Protestantism is, I think, the best popular argument produced by either side in the current controversy. We shall do well to listen to Dr. Machen.’ Dr. Machen’s latest book, it is true, like ‘The Origin of Paul’s Religion’, moves throughout in the field of exact scholarship. It would be difficult to point to a book anywhere that is more thorough-going in its recital and examination of all that bears upon the subject with which it deals. But while this is the case, Dr. Machen writes so simply and lucidly that men and women of intelligence everywhere, whatever their standing as technical scholars, will be able to read it with understanding and profit. Certainly, no minister or Bible teacher of adults can afford to ignore this book. To the reviewer at least it is a source of much satisfaction to know that what is confessedly the most exhaustive and most scholarly book on the problem of the Virgin Birth of Christ ever published, at least in English, has been written by a man who after having acquainted himself with everything of importance that has been written on the subject since the first century, no matter in what language, holds to the historic belief of the Christian Church that its founder was born without human father, being conceived by the Holy Ghost and born of the Virgin Mary.” -Samuel Craig
Declaration
“For transparency, I note that I used Grok, an AI tool developed by xAI, and Grammarly AI for editorial assistance in drafting, organizing, and refining the manuscript’s clarity and grammar, as indicated in the article’s attribution. All theological arguments, exegesis, and interpretations are my own, and I take full responsibility for the content.” – Jack Kettler
“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5)
