"The Young Lady (HaAlmah) Who Is [Now] Pregnant (Harah) Will Bear A Son" (Isaiah 7.14)
by Shmuel Playfair
[edited for easier reading]
Many claim that their god-man "Jesus" was born to his virgin mother, Mary. And they quote their version of Isaiah 7.14 regarding an alleged "virgin" as the proof text for their assertion. But "the virgin" found in these English versions is a mistranslation of the original Hebrew word, "haalmah" הָעַלְמָ֗ה. Actually, "haalmah" means "the very young lady" or "the marriageable girl". The Hebrew word "ha-almah" is used for "a young lady" who may or may not be a virgin. Also, a marriageable young lady could be considered to be an "almah" until the birth of her first child. [See Koehler and Baumgartner, Lexicon, p. 709] The Hebrew words with their literal English meaning are as follows: Heeneh = Look (Observe)! / haalmah = the young woman / harah = is pregnant / v'yoledet = and she will bear / ben = a son (הִנֵּ֣ה הָעַלְמָ֗ה הָרָה֙ וְיֹלֶ֣דֶת בֵּ֔ן). It should be noted that there is absolutely no indication here that either Isaiah or the Jews who preserved these words considered this particular pregnant young lady who conceives a male child to be a virgin.
In this chapter, God gives a sign to Ahaz, the king of Judah: "Behold! The young woman (haalmah) who is [now] pregnant will bear a son...". And before the son she bares named Immanuel (meaning God is with us) "knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, the land [of Judah] shall be abandoned by the two kings [Rezin and Pekah] that you (Ahaz) dread". The text indicates that the prophet claims that these two kings would abandon their attack against the land of Judah after the child, Immanuel, is born and "before he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right". BTW, the record of these kings attacking and besieging Jerusalem and their subsequent defeat can be found in 2 Kings 16.5-9 and 15.30. So YHVH promised the following order of events:
1) First, the already pregnant young woman (who was obviously not a virgin) would give birth to a son...
2) Then, the two kings Ahaz dreads will abandon their attack on the land of Judah...
3) Finally, the child will learn how "to reject the wrong and choose the right".
This sequence of events regarding the birth of this child and the end of the attack against Jerusalem and the people of Judah would serve as evidence that the Creator is with His people. These observable events promised to King Ahaz and company do not indicate that this "young lady" (or any other in the future) would be "a virgin" when she gives birth to a son. Whether or not any particular young lady is a "virgin" when she conceives a son is a sign which could only be appreciated by the young lady herself. The readily observed pregnancy, the subsequent birth of Immanuel along with the aggressive kings abandoning their attack before he would know how to reject the wrong and choose the right is the promised visible sign given to the king.
