As we enter the fourth or last week of Advent, and the week of Christmas, our Old Testament Scripture from the Lectionary of the Book of Common Prayer is one of the most prominent or recognized Scriptures for the birth of the Lord Jesus. It is also a key doctrinal Scripture, as it speaks of the Virgin Birth of Jesus. Let’s take a look at this cornerstone doctrinal Scripture passage, prophesied 700 years before the birth of Jesus.
As we open our Scripture, it is best to take a look at the historical context of the passage in order to better understand what is happening. The year is around 735 BC, and King Ahaz is on the throne of the southern Kingdom of Judah. He is listed as one of the evil kings of Judah, in that he did not follow or worship Yahweh. At this time he was afraid for the safety of his throne and the kingdom, as the northern Kingdom of Israel had formed an alliance with the Kingdom of Aram (Syria), and were planning on attacking Judah and taking over the kingdom and his throne.
It was at this time that the prophet Isaiah came to King Ahaz and brought him a message from the Lord God. God was not going to let the Kingdom of Judah be conquered (at least not yet, and not by Israel and Syria). The Lord sent Isaiah to reassure Ahaz. As proof, God said that Ahaz could ask Him to perform any miracle (vs. 10-11).
By allowing this evil, unbelieving king to ask of Him a sign, God was showing Ahaz extraordinary grace. He was telling Ahaz that He would prove His faithfulness and confirm His promises to protect Judah. God does not fear scrutiny. When He offers a sign, it is to strengthen faith, not to indulge someone’s unbelief. Though Ahaz certainly did not deserve anything from the Lord, God’s faithfulness is not dependent on human worthiness.
Ahaz, however, refused to ask for a sign (vs. 12). This was not the king suddenly being humble before God. Instead it was more of a sign of his unbelief and rebellion. Ahaz was already planning on seeking the help of the powerful Assyrian Empire. Unbelief will sometimes cloak itself in religious language. However God desires obedience and not pious excuses.
Isaiah rebuked Ahaz for his response and lack of faith (vs. 13). If you notice, Isaiah shifted from saying “your God” in verse 11 to now saying “my God” in verse 13. Ahaz had distanced himself from Yahweh, but God remained faithful to His people. This rebuke was directed to the whole house of David, not just to Ahaz. The majority of the kings of Judah had forsaken the Lord, however God would act for the sake of His covenant, not Ahaz’s lack of faith.
Because Ahaz refused to ask for a sign, Yahweh Himself gave him and all mankind a sign (vs. 14). That sign was that a virgin would conceive and bear a Son, and that His Name would be Immanuel. As this verse is a cornerstone doctrine, showing the Virgin birth, the sinlessness of Christ, the incarnation, and Messianic identity, we need to look into it closely.
Modernists and those who like to twist the Word of God to mean whatever they wish and choose it to, have frequently taken this verse and torn it to shreds. The Hebrew word that is translated as “virgin” is the word “alma”. It occurs seven times in the Old Testament. In every instance it implied a young girl of child-bearing age who was a virgin. Sometime in the mid 3rd century BC (around 280 - 250 BC) ancient Hebrew scholars translated the Old Testament from Hebrew into Greek, which translation today is called the Septuagint. These Hebrew scholars agreed the word meant a virgin, which is the word they used in Greek. This was translated over 200 years before Jesus’ birth, so it is an unbiased and reliable witness.
This event that Isaiah described was supposed to be a “sign”, something out of the ordinary, something extraordinary. A young woman of child-bearing age having a baby is very common. It happened every day back then, and it happens all the time today, as well. Nothing special about that. However, a virgin having a baby is a miraculous sign! Later when Matthew was writing his Gospel, he identified this prophecy as fulfilled in the virgin birth of the Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:23). He stated that though Mary was betrothed to Joseph at the time, they had not come together (Matthew 1:18). This child was conceived without any human intervention.
Why was it necessary for Jesus to not have a human, earthly father? This miracle was a plan so that the King of the Universe could be made in the likeness of humanity without inheriting our sinful nature, which is passed on through the father’s seed.
As our passage closes, Isaiah said that one of the names of this miraculous Child to be born would be Immanuel, which as Matthew tells us, means “God with us”. Jesus is not merely a good teacher or a prophet, as some would have us believe. He is God incarnate, the wisdom of God in human form. As Christmas draws closer, let’s meditate on this sign that God gave through the prophet Isaiah some 700 years before the birth of Christ, fulfilled through the Blessed Virgin Mary when God became man, Immanuel.
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