Was Mary a "virgin" or did it get mistranslated in Greek?

Question

1. The virgin birth (Isaiah 7:14)
This verse is part of a prophecy that Isaiah relates to King Ahaz regarding the fate of the two kings threatening Judah at that time and the fate of Judah itself. In the original Hebrew, the verse says that a "young woman" will give birth, not a "virgin" which is an entirely different Hebrew word. The young woman became a virgin only when the Hebrew word was mistranslated into Greek.

This passage obviously has nothing to do with Jesus (who, if this prophecy did apply to him, should have been named Immanuel instead of Jesus).

Answer 1

It is widely held in Christian academia that it is indeed a mistranslation from the Septuagint. The Hebrew word "almah" does not mean virgin, but young unmarried woman. Virgin is implied at best.

Answer 2

It's possible for a prophecy to have more than one fulfillment.

This is what I think: the prophecy originally referred to an incident other than the birth of Jesus. The Hebrew Bible was subsequently translated into Greek, with "young woman" mistranslated into "virgin". However, the Holy Spirit inspired Matthew to see that Isaiah quote in a new light: a virgin young woman gives birth to God the Son who is with us.

In spite of the mistranslation, I believe Mary, a young woman, was a virgin. Betrothed Hebrew women usually were.

Answer 3

another translation uses the word "maiden" which means one who is not married and a virgin.matt:1:23 the virgin will becme pregnant and will be name Immanuel which means God is with us.Luke 1:34 But mary said to the Angel How is to be since I am having no intercourse with a man? It wasn't meant for him to be called literally Immanuel but it was a title and the people would know that God was with Jesus or the Nation of Israel when Jesus began his miraculous healings and by the things he taught,
How did a virgin get pregnant? Jehovah transferred the life of Michael the Arch Angel in heaven into the uterus of Mary. Jehovah made sure it was a y Chromosone. It was done the same way doctors today perform invitra fertilization.Luke 1:35 shows that Holy Spirit came upon Mary which protected Mary during her pregnancy and screened off any imperfections from Mary's genes from reaching the fetus. Doctors today can do selected Genes procedures. Such as hair color and eliminate any disease carrying Gene.

Answer 4

The short answer is "yes", Jesus was conceived by the Virgin Mary, which was a virgin.

You're going about the disproving the wrong way. Emmanuel means "son of God" which Jesus is and was called. The old Testament was written in Ancient Hebrew (different than modern Hebrew) and the New Testament original manuscript was written in Greek.

Answer 5

Isaiah 7:14 (Hebrew)

Hebrew Word: hmlu

Transliteration: `almah

Phonetic Pronunciation: al-maw'

Root: from

Cross Reference: TWOT - 1630b

Part of Speech: n f

Vines Words: Virgin

Usage Notes:

English Words used in KJV:

virgin 4
maid 2
damsels 1
[Total Count: 7]

1) virgin, young woman

1a) of marriageable age
1b) maid or newly married

There is no instance where it can be proved that this word designates a young woman who is not a virgin. (TWOT)



Luke 1:27 (Greek)

Greek Strong's Number: 3933

Greek Word: parqeno"

Transliteration: parthenos

Phonetic Pronunciation: par-then'-os

Root: of unknown origin

Cross Reference: TDNT - 5:826,786

Part of Speech: n f

Vines Words: Daughter, Daughter-in-law, Virgin

Usage Notes:

English Words used in KJV:

virgin 14
[Total Count: 14]

1) a virgin

1a) a marriageable maiden
1b) a woman who has never had sexual intercourse with a man
1c) one's marriageable daughter

2) a man who has abstained from all uncleanness and whoredom attendant on idolatry, and so has kept his chastity

2a) one who has never had intercourse with women

Answer 6

Is Jesus' name "Immanuel" or "Jesus"?

In Isaiah 7:14 the Bible gives a prophecy of the name of Jesus. It says, "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel."1 If we go to Matt. 1:21, it says, "And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins." (See also, Matt. 1:25; Luke 1:31; 2:21). Is this a contradiction? No. It is not.
In ancient times names were often given as representations of the hopes and dreams of the parents or even of recognition of divine assistance. Names in the Old Testament had understandable meanings. For example: Abram means "exalted father," but Abraham means "Father of a multitude." Some names could even be translated into complete sentences as in Uzziel (‘God is my strength’ - Ex. 6:18), Adoniram (‘my lord is exalted’ - 1 Kings 4:6), and Ahimelek (‘my [divine] brother is king’ - 1 Sam. 21:1).2
So names are more descriptive in the Hebrew and Greek then they are in English. They often refer to the character, purpose, etc., of the one being named. The closest we come to understanding this is in Native American culture. We are familiar with such names as "Running Bear," or "Pretty Eagle, "or "White Owl" as names. These names meant something and were far more descriptive than "Bob," or "Tom," or "Sue."
When we come to Isaiah 7:14, we encounter a prophecy about the Messiah stating that his name will be Immanuel. Immanuel literally means "God is with us." This is a significant because Jesus is God in flesh:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God....and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us..." (John 1:1,14).

For in Him [Jesus] all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form" (Col. 2:9).

THE NAME JESUS

So, we can see that a prophecy of Jesus being "Immanuel" is dealing with him being God, the word, in flesh. This was fulfilled in the birth of Jesus when the Word, known as the Son, second person of the Trinity, became flesh. We call this the incarnation.
When it came time to name the Lord, an angel the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and told Joseph to call his new son "Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins" (Matt. 1:21). The word "Jesus" means "Jehovah is salvation." This is appropriate since Jesus is Jehovah, second person of the Trinity, who became flesh and is our salvation.

_____________________

1.All scripture quotes are from The New American Standard Bible, (La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation) 1977. (Back to place in text.)

2. Achtemeier, Paul J., Th.D., Harper’s Bible Dictionary, (San Francisco: Harper and Row, Publishers, Inc.) 1985, [Online] Available: Logos Library System. (Back to place in text.)


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Answer 7

Mary is at that time and was a virgin. It is not mistranslated. Mary was a godly young woman. Mary's age is a factor. That passage has to do with Jesus because "Immanuel" means "with us is God or God with us".

Answer 8

Mary and Joseph came from a very devout families. Mary was very young. the angel told her she would have the CHRIST child.

she had to be a virgin so that there would be no mistake that the babe was the MESSIAH and that it was GOD that overshadowed her.

Joseph was also warned so he would not think Mary was a loose woman. he was okay after that.

my facts of who was warning them may be off a little. facts are same. it's been a long time since i read it.

Answer 9

You can't have a baby without having sex, dude...and no God is going to come down and inject his gametes into some poor little human when he can just make one appear himself.

Jesus is ********, Mary was a virgin, and it probably didn't get mistranslated because people wanted you to believe she was a virgin.

Answer 10

No she wasn't. Her and Joesph were having a trial marriage. It was very common in those days. They had sex before the trial period was over. When translating it for lack of a better word they use virgin birth. Know one really knows why they use that wording.
But it's causing a lot of grief.