disputed Messiah prophecies

The Greatest Offer in History – Turned Down

King Ahaz knew the reputation of Isaiah who had prophesied to two previous kings, his father King Jotham and grandfather King Uzziah.^[1] When the prophet spoke, Ahaz was fully aware that Isaiah was speaking directly for God, yet the King turned down the greatest offer ever made by God to a man.

Ten generations earlier, the House of David was split by God as a punishment for worshiping pagan gods Sidonian goddess Astarte, Moabite god Chemosh and Ammonite god Milcom.^[2] God retained the city, Jerusalem, and split off 10 tribes of Israel whom He promised to bless if they followed God like David had done.^[3]

King Rehoboam, son of Solomon, ruled the nation of Judah from Jerusalem while 10 tribes followed Jeroboam, son of Nebat from the tribe of Ephraim, who became their King of the nation Israel.^[4] Themselves becoming enemies, the two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim, split off from Israel warring with each other.^[5]

During the reign of Ahaz, King Pekah of Ephraim allied with King Rezin of Syria (Aram or the Arameans) to attack Judah and besieged Jerusalem. Inside the city, Ahaz and the people were greatly distressed.^[6]

In an effort to calm their fears, God sent Isaiah promising protection to Jerusalem and King Ahaz. God even foretold Ephraim as a nation would be eliminated within 65 years.^[7]

Assuring the shaken King of God’s promise of protection, Ahaz was given the unprecedented opportunity to ask for a miraculous sign with boundless limitations – any sign between Heaven and Hell to prove His promise was indisputable:

^{Is 7:11} “Ask a sign for yourself from the LORD your God; make it deep as Sheol or high as heaven.”_(NASB)

Unbelievably, King Ahaz refused to take the offer! He said to Isaiah, “I will not ask, nor will I test the LORD!”^[8]

Knowing the true reason for Ahaz’ response and not taking kindly to this attitude, Isaiah’s response from God certainly didn’t ease the King’s anxieties: “Is it too slight a thing for you to try the patience of men, that you will try the patience of my God as well?”^[9]

No longer speaking just to the King, Isaiah’s response addressed a much broader audience, “Listen now, O house of David!”^[10] Isaiah’s response to Ahaz’ attitude was, in effect, “now let me tell the whole kingdom of David about God’s marvelous sign!”

Unequivocal parameters of the sign had already been established with God’s offer by raising the bar to the highest possible level offered to the King. Now, the sign had to be even greater than between Heaven and Hell, one so fantastic, so exceptional, it would be impossibly miraculous:

^{Is 7:14:} “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” _(NKJV)

Three explicit details make the Isaiah 7:14 prophecy precise. The prophesied female would be a specific virgin, “the virgin,” terminology only used this one time since the Law was given to Moses.

Only twice previously, before the Law, was a virgin specifically identified – Rebekah, the virgin bride of Isaac, and Miriam, the virgin sister of Moses.^[11] Isaiah also foretold the gender of the virgin’s child to be a boy and he was named by God, a Biblical rarity.

Various rationalizations are asserted claiming Isaiah 7:14 is not a Messiah prophecy. Some argue the prediction was really about an unidentified young female who was present with King Ahaz and Isaiah, even going so far as to say the female was already pregnant.^[12]

Jewish sage Rabbi Rashi espoused the prophecy was about Manoah’s wife, mother of Sampson, the Biblical strongman.^[13] Various contend the Christian Bible is a mistranslation, a misinterpretation, or an error.^[14] A few go so far as to accuse Christians of a conspiracy to intentionally change the text as a false means to support beliefs of Christianity.

Science discoveries and technology advancements debunk some of these charges, especially the Christianity accusations. Qumran discovery of the complete Great Isaiah Scroll, written in ancient Hebrew in 125 BC a century before Jesus of Nazareth was born, contains the Isaiah 7:14 Hebrew words ha-almah, “the virgin.”^[15]

King Ahaz declined the opportunity to choose any sign between Heaven and Hell. God responded with an even greater prophetic sign, one that was seemingly impossible – a virgin birth.

A straightforward test of truth is based on the parameters of God’s own definition – would this promised virgin female’s conception of a baby boy rise to the level of an unparalleled, matchless sign of God; a Messiah prophecy?

Updated January 6, 2024.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:

[1] 2 Chronicles 26.22-23; 27:1-2; 2 Kings 15:32-34, 38; Isaiah 1:1; 7:1.
[2] I Kings 11:4-8, 33; I Chronicles 3:10-13.
[3] I Kings 11:26-49.
[4] I Kings 12:16-20, 26.
[5] I Kings 14:30. Isaiah 9:21.
[6] Isaiah 7:2.
[7] Isaiah 7:2, 8. “Special Offer|Exclusive.” FreePNGimg.com. photo. 2022. <https://freepngimg.com/download/special_offer/12-2-special-offer-picture.png>
[8] Isaiah 7:12. NASB, NKJV.
[9] Isaiah 7:13.
[10] NKJV.
[11] Isaiah 7:14. Bible Hub. Hebrew text. <https://biblehub.com/text/isaiah/7-14.htm> Genesis 24:43. Bible Hub. Hebrew text. <https://biblehub.com/text/genesis/24-43.htm> Exodus 2:8. Hebrew text. BibleHub. <https://biblehub.com/text/exodus/2-8.htm>
[12] Nahigian, Kenneth E. “A Virgin-Birth Prophesy?” Skeptic Tank Files. n.d. <http://www.skeptictank.org/files/sr/2virgi93.htm> Cramer, Robert Nguyen. “The Book of Isaiah.” The BibleTexts.com.. 1998 <http://www.bibletexts.com/verses/v-isa.htm> Cline, Austin. “Who Was Virgin Mary, Mother of Jesus? Was She Really a Virgin?” About.com|Agnosticism/Atheism. n.d. <http://atheism.about.com/od/biblepeoplenewtestament/p/MaryVirgin.htm> Yosef, Uri. “Isaiah 7:14 – Part 1: An Accurate Grammatical Analysis.” The Jewish Home. 2011. <http://thejewishhome.org/counter/Isa714_1.pdf> Bratcher, Dennis. “Isaiah 7:14: Translation Issues.” The Voice. 10 Feb. 2014. <http://www.crivoice.org/isa7-14.html> The Complete Jewish Bible with Rashi Commentary. Yeshayahu- Isaiah 7:14. <https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/15938/showrashi/true> “Who is the Almah’s son?” Teshuvas HaMinim. 2011. <http://web.archive.org/web/20120425022737/http://www.teshuvashaminim.com/isaiah714.html>
Robinson, B.A. “Isaiah 7:14 “Behold, a virgin shall conceive…”” Religious Tolerance. 2007 <http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_proi.htm> Gill. John Gill’s Exposition of the Whole Bible. Isaiah 7:14 commentary. <https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/isaiah-7.html>
[13] The Compete Jewish Bible- with Rashi Commentary. Isaiah 7:14, CR Judges Chapter 13.
[14] Nahigian. “A Virgin-Birth Prophesy?” Cramer. “The Book of Isaiah.” Cline, Austin. “Who Was Virgin Mary, Mother of Jesus? Was She Really a Virgin?” Yosef, Uri. “Isaiah 7:14 – Part 1: An Accurate Grammatical Analysis.” Bratcher, Dennis. “Isaiah 7:14: Translation Issues.”
[15] “Isaiah 7:14-Deception In The Name Of Jesus.” Agnostic Review of Christianity. n.d. <http://agnosticreview.com/isaiah7.htm> Miller. Fred P. “The Translation of the Great Isaiah Scroll.” Book of Isaiah. Column VI Isa 6:7 to 7:15. 2001. <http://www.moellerhaus.com/qa-tran.htm> Miller. Fred P. “Commentary on Isaiah – In-depth verse-by-verse study of Isaiah.” Moellerhaus Publisher. 1999. <http://moellerhaus.com/7-8.htm> Isaiah 7:14. Bible Hub. Hebrew text. <https://biblehub.com/text/isaiah/7-14.htm> Isaiah 7:14 BibleHub.com. Interlinear Bible Hebrew text “5959 [e] hā·‘al·māh”. <http://biblehub.com/interlinear/isaiah/7-14.htm> Orthodox Jewish Bible (OJB) translation for Isaiah 7:14. <https://biblehub.com/ojb/isaiah/7.htm>

Isaiah Messiah Prophecies – Any Exceptions?

Isaiah is the greatest of all the prophets, according to the Jewish Encyclopedia, and regarded by many Rabbi sages as second in importance only to Moses.^[1] Prophecies of Isaiah, who lived 300 years after the reign of King David, foretell of the Messiah throughout his writings.

Many of Isaiah’s prophecies are referenced in the Babylonian Talmud reinforcing their significance.^[2] In tractate Sanhedrin 98 alone, six Rabbis make 11 references to Isaiah’s Messiah prophecies.^[3]

Dead Sea Scrolls discoveries in 1947 yielded one of the most treasured finds, the Great Isaiah Scroll. Dated to about 125 BC, it is the oldest known, nearly complete Hebrew text of the Book of Isaiah.^[4]

In Jerusalem, the scroll is secured in the Israel Museum. It is 1000 years older than the Masoretic texts which primarily serve as the source for today’s Jewish Bible, the Tenakh.^[5]

Ancient Hebrew text translating has its challenges. Consisting of an alphabet with only 22 letters, all consonants, used to form a root word which often times can either be a noun or a verb.

Translators must then rely on the broader context to fill in the vowels, tenses and other words to form a complete sentence in English.^[6] Subjective translations obviously opens the door to variation.

In turn, variations in translations can impact interpretations of a prophecy’s meanings.^[7] No surprise, Judaism interpretations are not always in agreement with Christianity, some differences are less clear than others.^[8]

Jonathan Targum (targum means “translation”) is known as the “Official Targum to the Prophets” an Aramaic translation of the Tenakh with roots going back to about 200 BC.^[9] According to the Jewish Encyclopedia, it was written “more freely, in harmony with the text of the prophetic books.”^[10]

Scrolls were not broken down into chapter and verse when they were written. A section of verses on a specific topic are known as a parashah or pericope, such as Isaiah 52:13 – 53:12 about “My Servant.”

Opening the Isaiah 52-53 parashah, Jonathan Targum reads, “Behold my servant Messiah shall prosper…” Towards the end of the parashah it reads, “…so as to cleanse their souls from sin: these shall look on the kingdom of their Messiah…”^[11]

Most Christians believe Isaiah’s 52-53 parashah depicting of the life, torment, death and satisfaction in life-after-death of My Servant is a prophecy about the Messiah fulfilled by the trial, crucifixion, burial and Resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. Judaism generally regards the parashah as a metaphor of a man, the nation of Israel and the house of Jacob ; however, not all Jewish authorities agree – Rabbi Rashi commented it refers to the biblical strongman, Sampson.^[12]

Hours before his arrest during his final Passover meal with his Disciples, Jesus pointed out a prophecy written about himself that was soon to be fulfilled. Quoting from the parashah, Isaiah 53:12, he said:

^{LK 22:37} “It is written: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors’; and I tell you that this must be fulfilled in me. Yes, what is written about me is reaching its fulfillment.””_(NIV)

Preeminent Jewish Scriptures authority Rabbi Maimonides once asked a rhetorical question, “What is to be the manner of Messiah’s advent, and where will be the place of his first appearance?” Answering his own question, the Rabbi quoted two prophecies from the parashah; Isaiah 53:2, regarding the Messiah’s unheralded arrival, and Isaiah 52:15, explaining how kings would be “confounded at the wonders” the Messiah would perform.^[13]

Most controversial is the prophecy Isaiah 7:14 viewed by Christianity as being fulfilled by the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. Masoretic text translates`almah as meaning “young woman” while nearly all Christian Bibles translate `almah as “virgin.”^[14] Making the controversy more provocative are some Christian Bible versions inconsistently translating Isaiah 7:14 as “young woman,” then translating it differently in Matthew as “virgin.”^[15]

Jesus of Nazareth caused a stir, according to Luke, when he read from Isaiah to begin his ministry. Jesus read from Isaiah 61:1-2:^[16]

^{IS 61:1-2} “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn…”_(NKJV)

Jesus had identified Isaiah’s prophecies as the basis for people to see that he is the fulfillment of those prophecies. Later, Jesus said the prophesies written by the prophets about the himself had to be fulfilled.^[17]

Can some of the prophesies found in the Book of Isaiah be discarded or are they all to be regarded as pr0phecies about the Messiah?

Updated June 13, 2024.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:
[1] “Isaiah.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/8235-isaiah>
[2] Jones, Dennis A. “Jewish Messianic Texts.” The Emmanuel Church of the Web. n.d. <http://fecotw.tripod.com/id88.html> The Babylonian Talmud. Trans. Michael L. Rodkinson. 1918. http://www.sacred-texts.com/jud/talmud.htm#t08> Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Ed. Rabbi Isidore Epstein. 1935 – 1948. <https://israelect.com/Come-and-Hear/tcontents.html>
[3] Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Sanhedrin 98a & b footnotes: Isaiah XLIX:7, XXIX:21 I:25, LIX:19, LIX:20, LX:21, LIX:16, XLVIII:11, LX:22; LIII.4. Also 38a, footnote #9 to Isaiah 8:14. <https://israelect.com/Come-and-Hear/sanhedrin/sanhedrin_98.html>
[4] “The Great Isaiah Scroll.” 2018. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. <http://dss.collections.imj.org.il/isaiah> Miller. Library of Congress (United States). n.d. “Scrolls From the Dead Sea.” <https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/scrolls/late.html> Israel Antiquities Authority. 2012. “The Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library.” <https://www.deadseascrolls.org.il/explore-the-archive/search#q=’Isaiah‘> Fred P. The Great Isaiah Scroll. 1998. “Qumran Great Isaiah Scroll.” <http://www.moellerhaus.com/qumdir.htm> Abegg, Jr., Martin G., Flint, Peter W. and Ulrich Eugene Charles. The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible: the oldest known Bible translated for the first time into English. 2002. p 281. <http://books.google.com/books?id=c4R9c7wAurQC&lpg=PP1&ots=fQpCpzCdb5&dq=Abegg%2C%20Flint%20and%20Ulrich%2C%20The%20Dead%20Dead%20Sea%20Scrolls%20Bible%2C&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q=Isaiah&f=false> “Dead Sea Scrolls.” Archaeology. 2018. <http://www.allaboutarchaeology.org/dead-sea-scrolls.htm> “The Dead Sea Scrolls.” National Endowment For The Humanities. image. 2015. <https://essentials.neh.gov/sites/default/files/DeadSeaScroll_v1.jpg>
[5] Benner, Jeff A. “The Great Isaiah Scroll and the Masoretic Text.” Ancient Hebrew Research Center. 2017. <http://www.ancient-hebrew.org/bible_isaiahscroll.html> “Masoretic Text.” Encyclopædia Britannica. n.d. <https://www.britannica.com/topic/Masoretic-text> “Jewish Concepts: Masoretic Text.” Jewish Virtual Library. 2018. <https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/Masoretic.html> “Masoretic Text.” Textus-Receptus.Com. 2016. <http://textus-receptus.com/wiki/Masoretic_Text> “Masoretic Text.” New World Encyclopedia. 2014. <http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Masoretic_Text> Zew, Moshe. “The Numeric System of the Bible.” 27 Dec. 2013. WorldWide Witness by Moshe Zew. <http://www.kolumbus.fi/gematria/numeric.htm>
[6] “The Hebrew Language.” MyJewishLearning.com. n.d. <http://www.myjewishlearning.com/culture/2/Languages/Hebrew.shtml>
“History of the Hebrew Language.” B’NAI ZAQEN. 2005. <http://www.zaqen.info/hislangu.htm> Benner, Jeff A. “Introduction to the Ancient Hebrew Vocabulary.” Ancient Hebrew Research Center. 2013. <https://www.ancient-hebrew.org/introduction.htm> Benner, Jeff A. “Introduction to the Hebrew Bible.” Ancient Hebrew Research Center. 2017. <https://www.ancient-hebrew.org/introduction.htm>
[7] Benner. “Introduction to the Hebrew Bible.”
[8] Neubauer and Driver. The Fifty-third Chapter of Isaiah According to the Jewish Interpreters. “Introduction.” pp. xxix- lxv. <https://books.google.com/books?id=YxdbAAAAQAAJ&pg=PP1&hl=en#v=onepage&q=introduction&f=false> Sullivan, Charles A. “A History of Chapters and Verses in the Hebrew Bible.” 2012. <http://charlesasullivan.com/2693/a-history-of-chapters-and-verses-in-the-hebrew-bible>
[9] Neubauer, Adolf. And Driver, Samuel Rolles. The Fifty-third Chapter of Isaiah According to the Jewish Interpreters. 1877. “Thargum of Yonathan (Jonathan Targum)” pp. 5-7. <https://books.google.com/books?id=YxdbAA
[10] “Targum.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. AAQAAJ&pg=PP1&hl=en#v=onepage&q=Thargum&f=false >
[11] Neubauer. The Fifty-third Chapter of Isaiah According to the Jewish Interpreters. “Thargum of Yonathan.” pp. 5-7.
[12] The Complete Jewish Bible with Rashi Commentary. Isaiah 53:3. Rashi commentary. Soncino Babylonian Talmud. n.d. Sotah 14a. <https://israelect.com/Come-and-Hear/sotah/sotah_14.html#14a_1> Crispin, Moshe Kohen ibn. “Sefer ha-Musar.” Neubauer, Driver & Rolles. The Fifty-third Chapter of Isaiah According to the Jewish Interpreters. pp. 99-101. <http://books.google.com/books?id=YxdbAAAAQAAJ&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q=advent&f=false> The Compete Jewish Bible- with Rashi Commentary. Isaiah 7:14. CR Judges Chapter 13.
[13] Mangel, Nissen. “Responsa.” Chabad.org. 2018. <http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/107783/jewish/Responsa.htm> Maimonides, “Letter to the South (Yemen)”. p 374. Neubauer and Driver. The Fifty-third Chapter of Isaiah According to the Jewish Interpreters.
[14] Isaiah 7:14. The Complete Jewish Bible with Rashi Commentary. Isaiah 7:14. Jewish Publication Society Bible. <http://www.breslov.com/bible/Isaiah7.htm#14 > “Mishneh Torah, Virgin Maiden 1. “Sefaria.org. n.d. <https://www.sefaria.org/Mishneh_Torah%2C_Virgin_Maiden.1.5?lang=bi>> Mishneh Torah, Forbidden Intercourse 17.” Sefaria.org. Footnotes #48 & 49. n.d. <https://www.sefaria.org/Mishneh_Torah%2C_Forbidden_Intercourse.17.13?lang=bi&with=Navigation&lang2=en>
[15] Good News Translation; Net Bible Translation.
[16] Luke 4:16-21; Isaiah 61:1-2a.
[17] Luke 24:44-48.