Isaiah 7:14
Encyclopedia
Isaiah 7:14 is a verse of the Book of Isaiah
(Hebrew Bible
and Christian Old Testament
) in which the prophet Isaiah
, addressing king Ahaz
of Judah (reigned c.732/731-716/715 BC), promises the king a sign that his oracle is a true one. The Early Christians interpreted it as a prophecy of Jesus
as the Messiah
, and it remains a point of contention between Christians and Jews.
The translation and meaning of this verse is a subject of debate, especially between Jewish and Christian scholars. An English translation of this verse with the contentious Hebrew words transliterated and the several meanings under debate provided is:
concerning the Syro-Ephraimite War
. In the 8th century BC, Assyria
was a great regional power. The smaller nations of Syria
(often called Aram), ruled by king Rezin
, and the Kingdom of Israel (often called Ephraim
because of the main tribe), under king Pekah
, had been vassals of Assyria, but in 735 BC decided to break away. Ahaz
, the king of Judah
, was loyal to Assyria and refused to join them, so Rezin and Pekah prepare to depose him and install their own choice of king.
In the face of the invasion Ahaz and his court and all the people are afraid, but Isaiah tells Ahaz that his enemies will not succeed. Ahaz is reluctant to accept the prophecy, and is told to ask God for a sign showing that the oracle is a true one. Ahaz refuses to ask for a sign, saying he will not put God to the test, but Isaiah replies that he will have his sign whether he asks for it or not:
(who lived many centuries before Jesus). Isaiah wanted King Ahaz to wait for God to give him support in this troublesome time instead of making alliances with Assyria.
Moreover, Jews observe that there is no indication that Immanuel will be the Messiah, whatever the timing of his birth.
Isaiah's original Hebrew, reads (transliterated): Hinneh ha-almah harah ve-yeldeth ben ve-karath shem-o immanuel. The word almah is part of the Hebrew phrase ha-almah hara, meaning "the almah is pregnant." Since the Hebrew imperfect tense is used in ve-yeldeth ("give birth") and ve-karath ("call"), it is argued by some, such as rabbi Alfred J. Kolatch (1985) that the young woman was already pregnant and hence not a virgin. As such, the verse cannot be cited as a prediction of the future. However the Jewish Publication Society (JPS)
(1917) version reads "Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: behold, the young woman shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."
The Jewish tradition has never considered Isaiah 7:14 as a messianic prophecy. Jewish scholars argue that this is a Christian misinterpretation.
in verses where a reference to a virgin is clearly intended (see Genesis 24:16, Exodus 22:16-17, Leviticus
21:14, and Deuteronomy
22:13-21) and that almah is more correctly translated as "young woman."
Jewish tradition states that the "young woman" was in fact Isaiah’s wife and the birth of the child is recorded later in Isaiah 8:3, although that child is not named "Immanuel" but "Maher-shalal-hash-baz
".
As an example of how [almah] is used, in Proverbs
30:18-20:
In this context it is argued, "the way of a man with a young woman," [almah] does not appear to have the connotations of a virgin.
Christian apologists have sometimes argued that the translation as "virgin" in many Christian translations of Isaiah 7:14 is justified by pointing to the Septuagint version of Isaiah, and arguing that the Septuagint, which was translated by Jews, used the word virgin, so the original must have been understood to mean virgin.
This argument has problems: one, the Letter of Aristeas
, which dates to second century BC, says that the Septuagint was a translation by Jews only of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Josephus Flavius similarly states that, at least under Ptolemy Philadelphus, only the Law was translated, and something similar is stated in the Talmud. However, historians clearly agree about the Septuagint original's Jewish authorship.
) however believe that its use here means that the young woman was present to the conversation, and thus render “ha-almah’” as “this young woman”. That is taken to refer to either a member of the royal family or the “prophetess” mentioned in Isaiah 8.
. The name itself, meaning “God [is] with us”, Judaism argues while noble, does not imply a divine nature of the boy. Such theophoric names are common in the Hebrew Bible.
, in 383 AD, wrote in "Adversus Helvidium" that Helvidius
misunderstood just this same point of confusion between the Greek and the Hebrew.
The Christian interpretation of Immanuel in Isaiah 7:14 is based on the following scriptures in the Christian New Testament where the conception and birth of Jesus Christ are described:
Book of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
(Hebrew Bible
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible is a term used by biblical scholars outside of Judaism to refer to the Tanakh , a canonical collection of Jewish texts, and the common textual antecedent of the several canonical editions of the Christian Old Testament...
and Christian Old Testament
Old Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
) in which the prophet Isaiah
Isaiah
Isaiah ; Greek: ', Ēsaïās ; "Yahu is salvation") was a prophet in the 8th-century BC Kingdom of Judah.Jews and Christians consider the Book of Isaiah a part of their Biblical canon; he is the first listed of the neviim akharonim, the later prophets. Many of the New Testament teachings of Jesus...
, addressing king Ahaz
Ahaz
Ahaz was king of Judah, and the son and successor of Jotham. He is one of the kings mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew....
of Judah (reigned c.732/731-716/715 BC), promises the king a sign that his oracle is a true one. The Early Christians interpreted it as a prophecy of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
as the Messiah
Messiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
, and it remains a point of contention between Christians and Jews.
Isaiah 7:14
The Hebrew text of Isaiah 7:14 is:The translation and meaning of this verse is a subject of debate, especially between Jewish and Christian scholars. An English translation of this verse with the contentious Hebrew words transliterated and the several meanings under debate provided is:
"Therefore, my Lord Himself shall give you a sign: behold, ha-almah [the young woman or virgin] harah [is pregnant or is about to become pregnant or shall conceive], and bear a son, and qarat [she shall call or (female) you shall call] his name Immanuel."
Context
Isaiah 7:14 is found in a long section of the Book of IsaiahBook of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
concerning the Syro-Ephraimite War
Syro-Ephraimite War
The Syro-Ephraimite War took place in the 8th century BC, when Assyria was a great regional power. The smaller nations of Syria and the northern Kingdom of Israel formed a coalition in defense against the oncoming threat. They had previously been tributary nations to Assyria, and they finally...
. In the 8th century BC, Assyria
Assyria
Assyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
was a great regional power. The smaller nations of Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
(often called Aram), ruled by king Rezin
Rezin
King Rezin of Aram or Rasin of Syria in DRB ruled from Damascus during the 8th century BC. During his reign he was a tributary of King Tiglath-pileser III of Assyria....
, and the Kingdom of Israel (often called Ephraim
Ephraim
Ephraim ; was, according to the Book of Genesis, the second son of Joseph and Asenath. Asenath was an Egyptian woman whom Pharaoh gave to Joseph as wife, and the daughter of Potipherah, a priest of On. Ephraim was born in Egypt before the arrival of the children of Israel from Canaan...
because of the main tribe), under king Pekah
Pekah
Pekah was king of Israel. He was a captain in the army of king Pekahiah of Israel, whom he killed to become king. Pekah was the son of Remaliah ....
, had been vassals of Assyria, but in 735 BC decided to break away. Ahaz
Ahaz
Ahaz was king of Judah, and the son and successor of Jotham. He is one of the kings mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew....
, the king of Judah
Kingdom of Judah
The Kingdom of Judah was a Jewish state established in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. It is often referred to as the "Southern Kingdom" to distinguish it from the northern Kingdom of Israel....
, was loyal to Assyria and refused to join them, so Rezin and Pekah prepare to depose him and install their own choice of king.
In the face of the invasion Ahaz and his court and all the people are afraid, but Isaiah tells Ahaz that his enemies will not succeed. Ahaz is reluctant to accept the prophecy, and is told to ask God for a sign showing that the oracle is a true one. Ahaz refuses to ask for a sign, saying he will not put God to the test, but Isaiah replies that he will have his sign whether he asks for it or not:
- 11
- 'Ask a sign from the LORD thy God, from lowest SheolSheolSheol |Hebrew]] Šʾôl) is the "grave", "pit", or "abyss" in Hebrew. She'ol is the earliest conception of the afterlife in the Jewish scriptures. It is a place of darkness to which all dead go, regardless of the moral choices made in life, and where they are "removed from the light of God"...
or from highest heaven.'
- 'Ask a sign from the LORD thy God, from lowest Sheol
- 12
- But Ahaz said: 'I will not ask, and I will not test the LORD.'
- 13
- And he retorted: 'Listen, house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of men? Will you also try the patience of my God?
- 14
- Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: a maiden is with child and she will bear a son, and will call his name Immanuel. (The literal translation of the original Hebrew words reads: "Therefore shall-give my-lord he [himself] to you sign behold the-young-woman conceived (is pregnant) and-bears son and-you call name-his God-with-us.")
- 15
- By the time he learns to reject the bad and choose the good, he will be eating curds and honey.
- 16
- For before the child knows to reject the bad and choose the good, desolation will come upon the land of the two kings the land whose two kings before whom you now cower.
- 17
- The LORD will cause to come upon you, and your people and your ancestral house such days as have not been seen since Ephraim broke away from Judah - the king of Assyria'.
Translations
The following table provides the English translations of this verse from several versions:| Source | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|
| King James Version, 1611 | Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. | shall call: or, thou, O virgin, shalt call |
| NRSV, 1989 | Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman* is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.* | Comment : *or virgin *That is, God with us |
| JPS Hebrew-English Tanakh Jewish English Bible translations Jewish English Bible translations are English translations of the Tanakh according to the masoretic text, in the traditional division and order of Torah, Nevi'im, and Ketuvim... |
Assuredly, my Lord will give you a sign of His own accord! Look, the young woman is with child and about to give birth to a son. Let her name him Immanuel. | Comment on "Immanuel": Meaning "with us is God." |
| ArtScroll Tanach, Stone Edition Jewish English Bible translations Jewish English Bible translations are English translations of the Tanakh according to the masoretic text, in the traditional division and order of Torah, Nevi'im, and Ketuvim... |
Therefore, my Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the maiden will become pregnant and bear a son, and she will name him Immanuel. | Commentary notes that either Isaiah’s (per Rashi Rashi Shlomo Yitzhaki , or in Latin Salomon Isaacides, and today generally known by the acronym Rashi , was a medieval French rabbi famed as the author of a comprehensive commentary on the Talmud, as well as a comprehensive commentary on the Tanakh... ) or Ahaz Ahaz Ahaz was king of Judah, and the son and successor of Jotham. He is one of the kings mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew.... ’ (per Radaq) young wife will bear a son and, through prophetic inspiration, will give him the name Immanuel, which means "God is With Us," thus in effect prophesying that Judah will be saved from the threat of Rezin Rezin King Rezin of Aram or Rasin of Syria in DRB ruled from Damascus during the 8th century BC. During his reign he was a tributary of King Tiglath-pileser III of Assyria.... and Pekah Pekah Pekah was king of Israel. He was a captain in the army of king Pekahiah of Israel, whom he killed to become king. Pekah was the son of Remaliah .... . |
| Koren Jerusalem Bible Jewish English Bible translations Jewish English Bible translations are English translations of the Tanakh according to the masoretic text, in the traditional division and order of Torah, Nevi'im, and Ketuvim... , Koren Publishing |
Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: Behold, the young woman is with child, and she will bear a son, and shall call his name 'Immanu-el'. | |
| Judaica Press Tanach Jewish English Bible translations Jewish English Bible translations are English translations of the Tanakh according to the masoretic text, in the traditional division and order of Torah, Nevi'im, and Ketuvim... |
Therefore, the Lord, of His own, shall give you a sign; behold, the young woman is with child, and she shall bear a son, and she shall call his name Immanuel. | Detailed commentary agrees with ArtScroll Tanach commentary |
| Soncino Press Tanach Soncino Books of the Bible The Soncino Books of the Bible is a set of Hebrew Bible commentaries, covering the whole Tanakh in fourteen volumes, published by the Soncino Press. The first volume to appear was Psalms in 1945, and the last was Chronicles in 1952. The series was edited by Rev. Dr... |
Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, the young woman is with child, and she will bear a son, and shall call his name Immanu-El. |
Verb tense and time of pregnancy
Thus Jews understand that God indicated he was sending a "sign" in the days of AhazAhaz
Ahaz was king of Judah, and the son and successor of Jotham. He is one of the kings mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew....
(who lived many centuries before Jesus). Isaiah wanted King Ahaz to wait for God to give him support in this troublesome time instead of making alliances with Assyria.
Moreover, Jews observe that there is no indication that Immanuel will be the Messiah, whatever the timing of his birth.
Isaiah's original Hebrew, reads (transliterated): Hinneh ha-almah harah ve-yeldeth ben ve-karath shem-o immanuel. The word almah is part of the Hebrew phrase ha-almah hara, meaning "the almah is pregnant." Since the Hebrew imperfect tense is used in ve-yeldeth ("give birth") and ve-karath ("call"), it is argued by some, such as rabbi Alfred J. Kolatch (1985) that the young woman was already pregnant and hence not a virgin. As such, the verse cannot be cited as a prediction of the future. However the Jewish Publication Society (JPS)
Jewish English Bible translations
Jewish English Bible translations are English translations of the Tanakh according to the masoretic text, in the traditional division and order of Torah, Nevi'im, and Ketuvim...
(1917) version reads "Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: behold, the young woman shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."
The Jewish tradition has never considered Isaiah 7:14 as a messianic prophecy. Jewish scholars argue that this is a Christian misinterpretation.
Adjective “harah ” and time of pregnancy
The adjective “harah ” is used predicatively. From the narrator’s perspective, some Jewish scholars argue that this generally means a past, or present, or imminent future pregnancy. With that in mind, the translation of Isaiah 7:14 may also be rendered as either “the [or this] young woman is pregnant” or “the [or this] young woman will soon be pregnant”.Meaning of “almah’”
Jewish scholars argue that the word betulah is used instead of almahAlmah
The Hebrew term almah or plural: alamot is a Hebrew feminine noun, for a girl who has reached puberty but is still under the shielding protection of her family; she is a young, marriageable girl. In Bibles, almah is typically translated as virgin, maiden, young woman, damsel or girl...
in verses where a reference to a virgin is clearly intended (see Genesis 24:16, Exodus 22:16-17, Leviticus
Leviticus
The Book of Leviticus is the third book of the Hebrew Bible, and the third of five books of the Torah ....
21:14, and Deuteronomy
Deuteronomy
The Book of Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible, and of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch...
22:13-21) and that almah is more correctly translated as "young woman."
Jewish tradition states that the "young woman" was in fact Isaiah’s wife and the birth of the child is recorded later in Isaiah 8:3, although that child is not named "Immanuel" but "Maher-shalal-hash-baz
Maher-shalal-hash-baz
Maher-shalal-hash-baz - "Hurry to spoil!" or "He has made haste to the plunder!" - was the second mentioned son of the prophet Isaiah. The name is a reference to the impending plunder of Samaria and Damascus by the king of Assyria. Maher-shalal-hash-baz is mentioned in the Bible in , which section...
".
As an example of how [almah] is used, in Proverbs
Book of Proverbs
The Book of Proverbs , commonly referred to simply as Proverbs, is a book of the Hebrew Bible.The original Hebrew title of the book of Proverbs is "Míshlê Shlomoh" . When translated into Greek and Latin, the title took on different forms. In the Greek Septuagint the title became "paroimai paroimiae"...
30:18-20:
- 18 There are three things which are too wonderful for me, yea, four which I know not:
- 19
-
- The way of an eagle in the air; the way of a serpent upon a rock;
- the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and the way of a man with a young woman.
- 20
-
- So is the way of an adulterous woman;
- she eateth, and wipeth her mouth, and saith: 'I have done no wickedness.'
In this context it is argued, "the way of a man with a young woman," [almah] does not appear to have the connotations of a virgin.
Christian apologists have sometimes argued that the translation as "virgin" in many Christian translations of Isaiah 7:14 is justified by pointing to the Septuagint version of Isaiah, and arguing that the Septuagint, which was translated by Jews, used the word virgin, so the original must have been understood to mean virgin.
This argument has problems: one, the Letter of Aristeas
Letter of Aristeas
The so-called Letter of Aristeas or Letter to Philocrates is a Hellenistic work of the 2nd century BCE, one of the Pseudepigrapha. Josephus who paraphrases about two-fifths of the letter, ascribes it to Aristeas and written to Philocrates, describing the Greek translation of the Hebrew Law by...
, which dates to second century BC, says that the Septuagint was a translation by Jews only of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Josephus Flavius similarly states that, at least under Ptolemy Philadelphus, only the Law was translated, and something similar is stated in the Talmud. However, historians clearly agree about the Septuagint original's Jewish authorship.
Article in “ha-almah’”
The word “ha” is generally translated as the definite article “the”. Some interpreters (e.g. the authors of the New English TranslationNew English Translation
The New English Translation is a free, "completely new" on-line English translation of the Bible, " with 60,932 translators’ notes" sponsored by the Biblical Studies Foundation and published by Biblical Studies Press....
) however believe that its use here means that the young woman was present to the conversation, and thus render “ha-almah’” as “this young woman”. That is taken to refer to either a member of the royal family or the “prophetess” mentioned in Isaiah 8.
Naming of Immanuel
The form of the verb "qarat " seems to be the second feminine singular, but most translations render as the third feminine singular "she shall call" except Septuagint and VulgateVulgate
The Vulgate is a late 4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. It was largely the work of St. Jerome, who was commissioned by Pope Damasus I in 382 to make a revision of the old Latin translations...
. The name itself, meaning “God [is] with us”, Judaism argues while noble, does not imply a divine nature of the boy. Such theophoric names are common in the Hebrew Bible.
Jewish objections to Jesus as the fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14
Jewish objections to Jesus as the fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14:- If Christians claim that the virgin birth of was fulfilled twice, who then was the first virgin having a baby boy in 732 BC? If they insist that the word ha'almah can only mean virgin, are they claiming that Mary was not the first and only virgin to conceive and give birth to a child?
- What does the "butter and honey" refer to?
- Why is Jesus, who was sinless from birth in the traditional Christian understanding, described as having to learn to refuse the evil and choose the good?
- What age did the baby Jesus mature?
- Which were the two kingdoms during Jesus' lifetime that were abandoned?
- Who dreaded the Kingdom of Israel during the first century AD when there had not been a Kingdom of Israel in existence since the seventh century BC?
- Jesus' name is Yahshua ("YHWH [is] salvation"); his name is not Emmanuel.
- The word "parthenos" (declination "parthenon") is employed in the Septuagint in Genesis 34:3, where DinahDinahAccording to the Hebrew Bible, Dinah was the daughter of Jacob, one of the patriarchs of the Israelites and Leah, his first wife. The episode of her abduction and violation by a Canaanite prince, and the subsequent vengeance of her brothers Simeon and Levi, commonly referred to as "The Rape of...
is called "parthenos" (or "parthenon") even after she has been raped. Therefore, it is not necessary that the word "parthenos" from Matthew 1:23Matthew 1:23Matthew 1:23 is the twenty-third verse of the first chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. Joseph has just been informed of the nature of Jesus by an angel and in this verse the author of Matthew relates this to a quote from the Old Testament....
be translated as "virgin".
Christian perspectives
The Jewish view is often disputed by Christians, and has been a point of contention between Jews and Christians since the formation of the modern Church. JeromeJerome
Saint Jerome was a Roman Christian priest, confessor, theologian and historian, and who became a Doctor of the Church. He was the son of Eusebius, of the city of Stridon, which was on the border of Dalmatia and Pannonia...
, in 383 AD, wrote in "Adversus Helvidium" that Helvidius
Helvidius
Helvidius was the author of a work written before 383 against the belief in the perpetual virginity of Mary.Helvidius maintained that the mention in the Gospels of the "sisters" and "brethren" of our Lord was proof that the Blessed Virgin had subsequent issue, and he supported his opinion by the...
misunderstood just this same point of confusion between the Greek and the Hebrew.
The Christian interpretation of Immanuel in Isaiah 7:14 is based on the following scriptures in the Christian New Testament where the conception and birth of Jesus Christ are described: