The Sign of the Virgin

“The Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.”
Isaiah 7:14

What kind of sign is this? Babies are born every day. There were 700 years between the giving of the sign and the birth of Christ. Christmas was a sign of … what? I’ll be glad to answer that question this morning.

Ahaz was an Eighth Century B.C. king of Judah, and one of the worst. How bad was he? He was so bad that when he died they didn’t even bury him in the same area with David and the other kings of Judah. He was ungodly and yet at the same time was very religious. He was the kind of man who was willing to worship anyone and anything - except the Lord. He sacrificed one of his own children to a pagan idol. When Isaiah 7 was written he had trouble with a coalition of nations that were on the march toward Jerusalem. Two large armies were coming for Ahaz, and it’s tempting to think that it couldn’t happen to a more deserving bad guy. The Lord is rich in mercy, however, and promised to defeat both invaders but it was important for God to receive the credit for the victory. A sign was needed.

There are a number of times when the Bible describes an event as a sign. It’s something tangible people can see or hear that confirms a spiritual truth. For example, when a paralyzed man was brought to Jesus He said, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” The forgiveness of sins is a spiritual reality. No one who was there that day could see sins flying away. However, the Lord next told him, “Arise, take up your bed.” When the paralyzed man did just that everyone understood that not only could Jesus heal, He really did have the authority to forgive sins. The healing became a sign.

In the case of the Lord’s rescue of Jerusalem, it may have been possible to credit their successful defense to brave soldiers, the deal Ahaz was making with Assyrians or even plain luck. So God gave Ahaz the privilege of choosing any sign to provide clear evidence that God was saving His people. He could ask God to change the weather, for example, perhaps a blizzard in Jerusalem in the middle of July. That should do it. But Ahaz was not willing to even name a sign. It’s not that he had such high regard for the Lord, but he simply didn’t think the Lord was worth the trouble.

So the Lord designated the birth of Jesus as a sign, even though He would not be born for centuries. How could that be a sign that would apply to the problem Ahaz was facing? Go back to verse thirteen where the prophet said, “Hear now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will you weary my God also?” It’s important to note that when God gave His sign in verse fourteen the word “you” is plural in Hebrew. The offer was originally given to Ahaz, but the sign was given, not to him alone, but to all the descendants of David. When Jesus was born it was evidence that the defeat of these two armies really was the result of divine intervention.

The amazing sign was that a virgin would conceive and bear a son. You may remember that in Matthew 1:23 this verse is used as evidence that Mary really was a virgin when she was expecting Jesus. The phrase, often translated “the virgin shall conceive”, may give the impression that a girl who is now a virgin will conceive at some point in the future, as if it’s part of the verb. Not so. In Hebrew it’s actually an adjective that describes the virgin. The sign is the miracle of a pregnant virgin and the birth of a son who would be Immanuel, God with us.

The birth of Jesus was a miracle but even more than that it was a sign. It is proof that God’s limitless mercy is so great it will even rescue the worthless hide of a pagan king. It is tangible evidence that God does care about people here on earth. It is confirmation that God is mighty to save any sinner who will turn to Him.