Certain lyrics from Silent Night have often been misunderstood: people have heard “round young virgin” and “run young virgin.” In the Christmas classic Olive, the Other Reindeer, there is a character named “Round John Virgin.” It would seem the beautiful carol Silent Night has caused some confusion about the virgin birth of Jesus.
The virgin birth is a foundational, non-negotiable belief and is a part of all Christian creeds. It is certainly a mystery and considered a scientific impossibility. Yet in a poll conducted by Pew Research in 2013, 73% of American adults believe Jesus was born of a virgin, including 1/3 of Americans with no specific religious affiliation. 97% of evangelicals believed, but only 70% of mainline Protestants. According to Pew Research, in 2017 the percentages for evangelicals and mainline Protestants dropped just a bit, but there was a decline among the religiously unaffiliated with only 17% believing. Interestingly, according to the Pew data, only 83% of Catholics believed.
The Prophecy – Isaiah 7:10-17
Then the LORD spoke again to Ahaz, saying, “Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God; make it deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, nor will I test the Lord!” Then he said, “Listen now, O house of David! Is it too slight a thing for you to try the patience of men, that you will try the patience of my God as well? Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel. He will eat curds and honey at the time He knows enough to refuse evil and choose good. For before the boy will know enough to refuse evil and choose good, the land whose two kings you dread will be forsaken. The Lord will bring on you, on your people, and on your father’s house such days as have never come since the day that Ephraim separated from Judah, the king of Assyria.”
The year is approximately 734BC and Ahaz is king over Judah. Judah’s northern brethren (Ephraim) have been attacking Judah with Syrian allies. Jerusalem was making a sort of last stand and had allied itself with the Assyrians in Nineveh, rather than trusting God. Ahaz was not a good guy. 2 Chronicles 28:19 tells us that Ahaz was wicked, even sacrificing some of his own children. Ahaz was worried that Jerusalem would be overrun, but Isaiah told him it would not happen, even stating that Ephraim would cease to exist in 65 years.
So if Ahaz was such a bad guy, why was God showing mercy via Isaiah’s prophecy? God made promise to David about his kingdom and Israel was conspiring to usurp the Davidic kingdom. God keeps His promises. Therefore, He told Ahaz to ask for a sign. Ahaz did not utter a noble proclamation here even though he was quoting Scripture (Deuteronomy 6:16). Ahaz was trying to justify a decision already made about the alliance with Assyria. Also, if Ahaz had faith he would not have needed a sign. He was actually offending God, which was ultimately a test of God, anyway: Would Ahaz’ continued sinfulness keep God from acting?
But God did give a sign through the prophet. Charles Spurgeon called this one of the most difficult passages in the Bible. The Hebrew word for virgin is almah, and it is used seven times in the Old Testament. It can mean virgin or maiden. The Greek Septuagint (the early Greek translation of the Old Testament) was created by seventy Hebrew Scholars in the first century when Hebrew was very much a spoken language. They translated the word “virgin,” which is parthenos in Greek. However, it still could have carried the meaning “maiden.” It could have both meanings because, like many Old Testament prophecies, there could have been an immediate and a future fulfillment.
We don’t know what the immediate fulfillment was. Hezekiah, the son of Ahaz, had already been born. Isaiah had another son after this, Maher, but his wife was not a virgin or young maiden. Perhaps a young princess married and gave birth as a sign that the dynasty would continue. Ahaz and his contemporaries would have recognized the immediate fulfillment when they heard this prophecy. The prophecy states that the boy would know right from wrong. There are debates about the “age of accountability,” but within twelve years the northern coalition was defeated, certainly enough time for a boy to grow to know right from wrong. However, there was still much devastation wreaked on Judah as it was caught between Assyria and Egypt. Eating curds and honey may have been all the food they had as the land was ravaged (v. 21-22).
The long-term fulfilment is, of course, the birth of Jesus, which we’ll discuss below from the passage in Matthew. This was not a new prophecy. As early Genesis 3:15, God tells us there will enmity between the serpent and the woman, between your seed and her seed. There is no reference to Adam or a man, which carries implications of a virgin birth, but certainly presages God’s action to redeem people. Additionally, we find a confusing verse in Jeremiah 31:22: How long will you waver, O faithless daughter? For the LORD has created a new thing on the earth: a woman encircles a man.” This can be literally translated as “a woman encompasses a man.” Many scholars believe this refers to the Incarnation when a woman, Mary, enclosed in her womb, “the mighty one” or “warrior” which is the translation of the word “man.”
The Announcement – Luke 1:26-38
Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God. “And behold, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. “For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
Gabriel an archangel and seemingly the primary messenger God uses, appeared to Mary, a virgin. Joseph was descended from David, but so was Mary, as we see in Luke’s genealogy in chapter 3. Mary was betrothed to Joseph, which was much more binding than a modern engagement. It was a legal contract between families that essentially considered the man and woman to already be joined, although not yet formally married.
Gabriel referred to Mary as “O favored one.” This is not literally the “full of grace” reference we see in the King James but means “encompassed with favor.” Mary was greatly troubled – ya think? Angels always seem to say “Fear not!” when they appear so they must be pretty imposing figures. But there was more to this – it’s an unusual greeting and indicates something else is coming.
Mary was, if nothing else, a very practical girl. She was troubled but also puzzled. She basically asked Gabriel, “Who are you and what do you want?” The angel repeated that she is favored, that she has found favor. He went on to give her the completely unexpected and seemingly impossible news: You will conceive in your womb.
This is critical as it points to Jesus’ humanity. But His name, which means “Jehovah is Savior” points to His divinity. He will be great (seems like an understatement), Son of the Most High (again, pointing to His divinity), and will occupy David’s throne (He is royalty, in fact, He is the King of Kings). He will rule forever and there will be no end to his kingdom. That’s a lot to take in. The pregnancy alone is significant news, but Gabriel told her so much more.
In all of that glory, Mary heard, “You’re gonna get pregnant.” Here’s our practical girl. She asked not a question of doubt, but of faith. She accepted what Gabriel said, but asked about the how. The answer is overwhelming. The Holy Spirit will cause her to become pregnant – the power of the Most High. Therefore, he will be holy, set apart, without sin. He will be the Son of God.
Then Gabriel provided news about Elizabeth and a simple statement – nothing is impossible with God. Do you believe that? Mary did. Do I believe that? Good question. If a virgin can bear a baby, if men can be raised from the dead, if my sorry sinful self can be saved, then NOTHING is impossible. But we don’t always have faith Mary did.
I absolutely love Mary’s response: “Okay, I am the Lord’s servant. Whatever you say, Lord.” What a lesson for us! You’re in the Word, in prayer, you receive clear impressions from God. Maybe it’s “Go to Africa,” or maybe it’s “talk to your co-worker,” or maybe it’s “start tithing.” How do you respond? With excuses? To God? Really? Now there is something here we can’t overlook – Mary had an angel standing in front of her. You think, “of course I would have great faith, if an angel were standing before me.” I get it, but you can have encounters with God minus angelic visitations. And you know what? Two of those three examples are already spelled out in the Bible (talk to you co-worker and start tithing, in case you’re taking notes). I would venture to say that 90% of God’s will for you is in His Word. You want Gabriel? You’re stuck with me and this blog right now. I’m not shiny or imposing like Gabriel, but I can tell you, as Gabriel would: His Word is true. Heed and obey it.
The Christian author, Madeline L’Engle wrote a beautiful little poem about Mary’s faith:
This is the irrational season
When love blooms bright and wild.
Had Mary been filled with reason
There’d have been no room for the child.
Back to the virgin birth … Luke was a physician and probably should be the most skeptical of the gospel writers about this, but he accepted it in faith and wrote about it under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It is the annunciation of the prophecy of Isaiah which was to be fulfilled soon. And so ….
The Fulfillment – Matthew 1:18-25
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. “She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.” And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.
“Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way…” This is a signal that something is different from the normal births indicated by the genealogy in the preceding verses. Matthew wrote “with child from the Holy Spirit,” which is exactly what Luke wrote. Joseph was a good man; he was willing to disassociate from Mary, but not see her punished/stoned as she would have deserved had she been unfaithful and broken the contract of betrothal. But an angel came to him in a dream and assured him conception was from the Holy Spirit. This baby was coming to ”save His people from their sins.”
The next two verses are key to our belief in the virgin birth. Matthew, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, quotes Isaiah’s prophecy and says this is the fulfillment of it. So, we can question what the verse in Isaiah means if we want to, but here is God, through Matthew, telling us Jesus’ birth is its fulfillment. You either accept the entire Word or you don’t. Jesus will be born of a virgin. The beauty of this verse is that it very simply ties the old covenant to the new. The law is fulfilled in the coming of the King. The prophecy was fulfilled and validated. In fact, Paul wrote in Galatians 4:4, “God sent forth His Son, born of a woman…” The virgin birth was accepted as fact in the early church and should be accepted by believers now.
And, once again, we encounter obedience. Joseph obeyed; it’s that simple yet it’s that hard. Matthew records no push back from Joseph. He took his wife, he did not consummate the marriage, and he named the boy Jesus. I have no doubt Joseph was a wonderful father because he was obedient to God.
So why the virgin birth?
- To fulfill prophecy.
- To point Out the uniqueness of Jesus – only begotten; one and only; no one else like him.
- To substantiate Jesus’ divinity – Psalm 5:15 tells us, “Behold, I was brought for in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.” While each of us makes the choice to sin, it is an inherited predisposition. The virgin birth, brought about by the Holy Spirit, makes null the argument that Jesus was just a man. God could have brought divinity into the world in another way, but the virgin birth validates Jesus’ divinity and speaks to the new and unusual second birth that believers experience. Read the words of Paul Colossians 1:15-20: He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions, or rulers or authorities – all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross through Him, I say, whether things on earth or in heaven.
- To substantiate Jesus’ humanity – Perhaps God could have produced a sinless human without the virgin birth, but the birth through a woman, a sinner, to one who knew no sin and became her Savior makes Jesus human. He was the perfect sacrifice, fully God and fully identifying with us as a man. Could any of us come up with such a phenomenal plan?
To call yourself a Christian and not believe in the virgin birth is disingenuous. You are calling Mary promiscuous and Jesus a liar. There are a couple of important points at play here that we must consider: Mary is not co-redemptrix with Jesus, nor is she a perpetual virgin. We should never worship Mary. The main person in the story of the virgin birth is Jesus, not Mary, however, all believers should exhibit the faith and obedience of Mary and Joseph.
What does it mean? Jesus is who he says He is – Son of God/Son of Man. If we believe that, we can believe everything about Him. Jesus lived supernaturally by performing miracles, He was raised from the dead supernaturally, and He ascended into Heaven supernaturally. Why would we not think He was born supernaturally? The virgin birth sounds impossible, but so does every miracle in the Scriptures. The virgin birth is foundational to Christian believe because it goes to the heart of the gospel, that God loved us so much that He sent His Son to pay the price for our sin that we cannot pay. The Incarnation, the birth of Jesus to a lowly virgin in a stable, is part of the purest and sweetest love story in existence. And the wonderful thing is that a believer is part of that love story and a non-believer can be. Like Mary and Joseph, it requires an exercise of faith.