Investigation: The Sign of Immanuel
Isaiah 7:14 in Ahaz's crisis, in Hebrew, Greek and Matthew, and in Jewish and Christian reading
About 735 BC Rezin of Damascus and Pekah of Israel march on Jerusalem to force Judah into their anti-Assyrian alliance and put a puppet, "the son of Tabeal," on the throne (7:6). Ahaz's heart shakes "as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind" (7:2). Isaiah meets him at the conduit of the upper pool with his son Shear-jashub, "a remnant shall return" (7:3).
"If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established" (7:9). Isaiah offers a sign "either in the depth, or in the height above"; Ahaz piously refuses. The answer: "the Lord himself shall give you a sign." A child will be born and named Immanuel, "God with us"; before he knows to refuse evil and choose good, the lands of the two kings Ahaz fears will be deserted (7:14–16). Then comes a threat: Assyria itself will come (7:17–25).
In chapter 8 Isaiah's own son Maher-shalal-hash-baz is born, with a similar time limit (8:4), and the Assyrian flood reaches "the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel" (8:8), and "God is with us" (immanu el) is shouted against the nations (8:10). Damascus fell to Tiglath-pileser in 732 BC, within a few years of the sign.
| Word or form | Witness | Evidence | Classification |
|---|---|---|---|
| ha-almah, "the young woman" | Masoretic Text; 1QIsa-a (same word) | Almah: a young woman of marriageable age (Gen 24:43; Exod 2:8; Ps 68:25; Prov 30:19; Song 1:3; 6:8) | Hebrew text |
| harah, "pregnant" or "will conceive" | Masoretic Text; 1QIsa-a (same word) | An adjective; time is from context (compare Gen 16:11; Judg 13:5, 7) | Grammar |
| veqarat / veqara | MT "she (or you) will call"; 1QIsa-a "he (or one) will call" | A one-letter difference | Manuscript variant |
| parthenos | Greek Isaiah (library: Giguet's French "la Vierge") | Usually "virgin," but used of Dinah after her rape (Gen 34:3 Greek) | Translation |
| neanis, "young woman" | Aquila, Symmachus, Theodotion (2nd century AD; reported by Irenaeus and others) | Later Greek translators | Translation (later) |
| "they shall call" | Matthew 1:23 | Matches neither the Hebrew nor the Greek exactly | Later quotation |
| virgo | Vulgate | Jerome defended virgo, arguing almah meant a hidden (secluded) girl | Translation |
A sign for Ahaz in 735–734 BC: a child to be born soon, whose name expresses God's presence, and whose early years will see Damascus and Samaria ruined. Proposals for the mother: a young woman of the royal house (perhaps Ahaz's wife, the child Hezekiah, though Kings' chronology makes Hezekiah already born on some reckonings); Isaiah's wife (8:3); any young woman then pregnant; or a figure whose identity was left open. The definite article ("the" young woman) suggests someone known to the hearers.
Jewish interpreters read the child as Hezekiah (attested in Justin Martyr's Dialogue with Trypho, mid-2nd century AD, chs. 43, 67, 71, and in later midrash) or as Isaiah's son (Rashi, 11th century, on 7:14 and 8:3). Jewish readers stress the time limit (7:16) and the Hebrew almah. The verse plays little role in Jewish messianic expectation.
Matthew 1:22–23 presents Jesus' virginal conception as fulfilling the Greek form of the verse and translates Immanuel, "God with us." Matthew reads Isaiah 7–9 as a unit (he quotes 9:1–2 at 4:15–16) and frames his Gospel with God's presence (1:23; 28:20, "I am with you always"). Luke 1:31 echoes the wording without citing Isaiah. No other New Testament book cites 7:14.
Early Christians (Justin, Irenaeus) argued for parthenos against Jewish readers and against the later Greek versions' neanis. Later Christian interpreters have read the verse as direct prediction, as double fulfillment (a sign in Ahaz's day and a fuller one in Christ), or as typology (Matthew discerning a pattern). The 1952 Revised Standard Version's "young woman" provoked public controversy in the United States. Many translations now use "virgin" with a note, or "young woman" with a note.
Almah and betulah
Almah occurs nine times in the Hebrew Bible (counting 1 Chronicles 15:20 and Psalm 46 heading, which are musical terms). Where its referent is clear, it means a young woman of marriageable age, usually unmarried (Rebekah, Gen 24:43; Miriam, Exod 2:8). The common Hebrew word for a virgin is betulah, which itself can need clarification ("a virgin, neither had any man known her," Gen 24:16; Joel 1:8 of a widow). The words overlap in use; neither alone settles the question. (R. G. Bratcher, 1958.)
Why the Greek says parthenos
The Greek translator of Isaiah (2nd century BC) chose parthenos. Elsewhere the Greek Bible renders almah as neanis (Exod 2:8; Ps 68:25). Whether the translator meant "virgin" in the strict sense or simply "maiden" is debated; parthenos was the usual word for an unmarried girl. The choice shows how a Jewish translator before Christianity read the verse, but not that he expected a miraculous birth.
The scroll
1QIsa-a reads "YHWH himself will give you a sign" for "the Lord (Adonai) himself," ha-almah exactly as the Masoretic Text, and the verb ve-qara, which can be read "and he will call" or "and one will call." Read in Abegg's transcription (D check).
What the evidence shows
- The Hebrew of Isaiah 7:14 reads ha-almah.
- Almah specifically means "virgin." It denotes a young woman; virginity is not specified by the word itself.Source: R. G. Bratcher, "A Study of Isaiah 7:14," The Bible Translator (1958) ↗
- The Greek translation (2nd century BC) reads parthenos. Library's Greek (Giguet) "la Vierge"; C check against Ziegler open.
- Matthew 1:23 quotes the verse in its Greek form.
- The sign had a meaning for Ahaz's time. 7:16 sets a time limit within a few years.
- Isaiah 7:14 predicted Jesus' virgin birth. Matthew's reading, held by Christian tradition; Jewish tradition reads it otherwise.
Continue the journey
Journey of a PassageIsaiah 7:14–16: Almah, parthenos and Immanuel"Behold, a virgin (ha-almah, 'the young woman') shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." Hebrew almah, Greek parthenos, Latin virgo; the Masoretic Text "she (or you) will call," the Great Isaiah Scroll "he (or one) will call," the Greek "you will call," Matthew 1:23 "they will call." The sign's time frame (vv.More from this lesson
Why this matters to the rest of Scripture
- Matthew's account and citation.
- "O Immanuel"; "God is with us."
- The Syro-Ephraimite war and Ahaz's appeal to Assyria.
- Genesis 16:11; Judges 13:5The same birth-announcement form.