Isa 7:14    Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

 

 

King Ahaz is in trouble and has a crisis of belief and is being chided by Isaiah. As Isaiah speaks to him, a prophetic word comes forth under the direction of God. Ahaz had been invited to ask for a sign for guidance but had refused. Very well, says the Lord, I'll give you a sign – a young woman will shortly give birth to a son and he will be known as ‘God's presence is with you' (Immanuel). It is likely that that son was Isaiah's, a nudge to Ahaz that God was with them, a rather low-key indicator perhaps, but one which would remind Ahaz.

 

Centuries later as Matthew records what had been happening, when he is told of Joseph's dream about being told to take Mary as his wife and the child she is carrying is God's, he immediately sees this as a fulfilment of that earlier prophetic word, yes the young woman will be a literal virgin and the baby will indeed be God with us.

 

The thing about prophetic words is that it is like God's thoughts, seen from outside of time, seem to come through in other places in history – where they will be fulfilled – but the greater fulfilment is meant for some later date, frequently to do with the coming of His Son to earth, the greatest event the world has ever seen. The whole of the events surrounding Jesus had been pre-planned in heaven and just needed the passing of time to be fulfilled. Hallelujah!