Isaiah 7:14

This, to me, is one of the most amazing prophecies concerning the Messiah. I wonder what Isaiah was thinking as God had him speak these words. I wonder what the people thought as they heard it: “A virgin with child? Impossible!” Yet God said it would be a sign—a marker, if you will—indicating exactly who He was talking about. As a reminder, nothing is impossible with God.

I also wonder if Joseph was aware of this prophecy when he found out Mary was pregnant. It doesn’t appear that it was the first thing that came to mind as he tried to figure out how to quietly nullify their betrothal. Even after the angel appeared to him, did he fully realize the important role he and Mary had been given in history?

Yet Joseph followed through with what the angel told him. He took Mary as his wife, and when the baby was born, he named Him Jesus.

I love that one of the Lord’s many names is Immanuel, meaning “God is with us.” What it must have been like to walk with Jesus—to know His humanity and then to discover His deity. We know from Scripture that, aside from Mary and perhaps Joseph, His siblings had a hard time accepting Him. In fact, I am sure there were lingering questions in their minds about who His father really was. He endured ridicule from them, and yet at least two of His brothers, James and Jude, came around in the end and wrote their own accounts in Scripture.

A single reading of both James and Jude reveals a no-nonsense approach to the gospel, indicating that they must have experienced profound conversions—but not until after Jesus was crucified. I wonder if they felt remorse for not taking their older brother seriously while He was with them. Perhaps that remorse helped drive them to do everything they could to spread the message after Jesus’ death.

So many questions remain, and yet we cannot escape the truth that Jesus was born of a virgin as a sign to the world. This truth is accompanied by many other confirmations: angels appearing to shepherds, wise men seeing His star and traveling up to two years to find Him, and later, during His ministry, the miracles that took place.

God is true to His word, no matter how long fulfillment takes. Isaiah did not live to see the fulfillment of this prophecy, and he likely faced ridicule as well. Such is often the burden of those with the prophetic gift—they are compelled to speak what God reveals, but only those with eyes to see will understand. The rest, sadly, remain in the dark.

Yet in fulfillment of another prophecy found in Isaiah 9:2:

“The people who walk in darkness will see a great light.
For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine.”

A sign to the world and a light indeed shone in Jesus—so much so that we are still talking about Him and celebrating His birth two thousand years later.