In this paper I would like to examine the Christian teaching that His Majesty King Yeshua was born of a virgin. In this study, I draw heavily from the lessons of my beloved teacher, Hakham Dr. Yoseph ben Haggai.
Since His Majesty King Yeshua is the living Torah, and because His Majesty obeyed the Torah, it follows that His Majesty would honor the Torah’s words and would not change them. His Majesty confirmed this position in:
Matityahu
(Matthew) 5:17 Think not that I
am come to destroy the law (Torah), or the prophets: I am not come to destroy,
but to fulfil.
Therefore, we know that His Majesty could not contradict Moses and His Torah. With this in mind, lets look at the Torah to gain some insight into some terms which are often misunderstood.
According to both Matityahu and Luqas, in Christian theology, Yeshua was born of a virgin. This claim makes it impossible, however, for Christians to insist that Yeshua was king of the Jews. This is because tribal lineage is traced only through a person's father. This is clearly stated in Numbers 1:18.
Bamidbar (Numbers) 1:17 And Moses and Aaron took these men that are pointed out by name. 18 And they
assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month, and they declared their pedigrees after
their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names,
from twenty years old and upward, by their polls.
From the above passage we see that you are called a descendant of David because of a direct blood line. Mashiach has to be a direct descendent of David, and therefore, Yeshua is of the “house of David” (בית דוד), because of his father, as in the following passage:
Luqas (Luke) 1:26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of
Galilee, named Nazareth, 27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was
Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.
To sum this up: If Mashiach does not have an earthly father, then He could NOT be a king in Israel! A virgin birth automatically disqualifies a man from being a king in Israel.
Hakham Shaul reitterates this connection to physical descendency:
Romans 1:1-4 Paul, a
servant of Yeshua Mashiach, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel
of God, 2 (Which he had promised afore
by his prophets in the holy scriptures,) 3 Concerning his Son Yeshua Mashiach our Lord,
which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; 4 And declared to be the Son of God with power,
according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection
from the dead:
To put it another way:
Thus we see that Yeshua’s father was a descendent of King David, setting the stage for Mashiach to be king in Israel:
Luqas (Luke) 2:4 And
Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, to
the city of David, which is called Bethlehem,
because he was of the house and family of David;
5 to enrol himself with Mary, who was
betrothed to him, being great with child.
Finally, If Yeshua was virgin born, then HaShem’s promise to king David would become void:
2 Divrei Hayamim (Chronicles) 21:7 Howbeit HaShem would not destroy the house of David, because of the covenant that he had
made with David, and as he promised to give a light to him and to his sons for
ever.
With this a starting point, hopefully the reasons against a virgin birth will become more apparent.
His Firstborn Son
Some have said that since His Majesty is His “only begotten son”, therefore they say he must be divine, He must be HaShem (yod-hay-vav-hay) or a manifestation of HaShem. To address this issue, lets examine what Moses said about this:
Shemot
(Exodus) 4:22 And thou shalt say
unto Pharaoh, Thus saith
From the above pasuk we learn that HaShem called Israel His
son, His firstborn son. Now, since
Now, the Prophets have written about this son called
Hosea
11:1 When
Here again the Prophet declares that
Matityahu
(Matthew) 2:13-15 And when they
were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his
mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for
Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the
young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: And was there
until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the
Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called
my son.
What makes the above passage so interesting is that we have
suddenly connected His Majesty with
So, when we read in the Nazarean Codicil that His Majesty was the only begotten of HaShem, we know that this term does not make its owner G-d, as some Christians would say:
Yochanan
(John) 3:16 For G-d so loved the
world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him
should not perish, but have everlasting life.
In fact, since we know that
Yochanan (John) 3:16
For G-d so loved the world, that he gave His firstborn son
The implications of this substitution are quite profound! For
example, The Jewish Sages teach us that the sacrifice of
Yitzhak, and therefore his son
G-d
Many Christians claim that His Majesty is G-d, that is HaShem (see also the study titled: Conundrum). They see His Majesty as part of a trinity. His Majesty worked rather diligently to dispell this idea. His Majesty suggested that being the son of G-d did not make him divine:
Yochanan (John) 10:30-36 I and [my] Father are one. Then the Jews
took up stones again to stone him. Yeshua answered them, Many good works have I
shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? The Jews
answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and
because that thou, being a man, makest thyself G-d. Yeshua
answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye
are G-ds? If he called them G-ds, unto whom the word of G-d came, and the
scripture cannot be broken; Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and
sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of G-d?
Tehillim
(Psalms) 82:6 I have said, Ye
[are] G-ds; and all of you [are] children of the most High.
So, some of HaShem’s firstborn son are also called G-ds, therefore it should come as no surprise that His Majesty was also called the Son of G-d.
For those not familiar with Rabbinic literature, the phrase “Son
of G-d” is a title for the judges of Israel, those who administer justice in
the Batae Dinae (courts) of
Just as a judge is not HaShem, they are not divine, surely, we can see that His Majesty is not HaShem, He is not divine, because He is the Son of G-d. Son of G-d is a title for a Judge of Israel. With this background, lets begin examining the detailed accounts, in the Nazarean Codicil,[1] of His Majesty’s birth:
Mattityahu
(Matthew) 1:18-25 Now the birth of Yeshua Mashiach was
on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused
to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the
Holy Ghost. Then Joseph her husband, being a just [man], and not willing to
make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily. But while he
thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is
conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and
thou shalt call his name YESHUA: for he shall save his people from their sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled
which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be
with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel,
which being interpreted is, G-d with us. Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and
took unto him his wife: And knew her not till she had brought forth her
firstborn son: and he called his name Yeshua.
Lets see how the Greek word, translated “they came together” is defined by Strong’s and used elsewhere in the Nazarean Codicil:
4905 sunerchomai, soon-er'-khom-ahee; from 4862 and 2064; to convene, depart in company with, associate with, or (spec.) cohabit (conjugally):- accompany, assemble (with), come (together), come (company, go) with, resort.
+-------------------------------------------------+
This term, sunerchomai, is used in 32 verses. Lets look at them so that we can begin to understand the contextual use of the word.
Matityahu
(Matthew) 1:18 Now the birth of Yeshua Mashiach was
on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused
to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the
Holy Ghost.
Marqos
(Mark) 3:20 And the multitude cometh
together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.
Marqos
(Mark) 6:33 And the people saw
them departing, and many knew him, and ran afoot
thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came
together unto him.
Marqos
(Mark) 14:53 And they led Yeshua
away to the high priest: and with him were assembled
all the chief priests and the elders and the
scribes.
Luqas
(Luke) 5:15 But so much the more
went there a fame abroad of him: and great multitudes came together to
hear, and to be healed by him of their infirmities.
Luqas
(Luke) 23:55 And the women also,
which came with him from
Yochanan
(John) 11:33 When Yeshua
therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the
spirit, and was troubled,
Yochanan
(John) 18:20 Yeshua answered him,
{I spake openly to the world; I ever taught in the synagogue,
and in the temple, whither the Jews always resort;
and in secret have I said nothing.}
II
Luqas (Acts) 1:6 When they
therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou
at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?
II
Luqas (Acts) 1:21 Wherefore of
these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Yeshua
went in and out among us,
II
Luqas (Acts) 2:6 Now when this
was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded,
because that every man heard them speak in his own language.
II
Luqas (Acts) 5:16 There came
also a multitude [out] of the cities round about unto Jerusalem,
bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they
were healed every one.
II
Luqas (Acts) 9:39 Then Peter
arose and went with them. When he was come, they brought him into the
upper chamber: and all the widows stood by him weeping,
and shewing the coats and garments which Dorcas made, while she was with them.
II
Luqas (Acts) 10:23 Then called he
them in, and lodged [them]. And on the morrow Peter went away with them, and
certain brethren from Joppa accompanied him.
II
Luqas (Acts) 10:27 And as he
talked with him, he went in, and found many that were come together.
II
Luqas (Acts) 10:45 And they of
the circumcision which believed were astonished, as
many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles
also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
II
Luqas (Acts) 11:12 And the Spirit
bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six
brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man's house:
II
Luqas (Acts) 15:38 But Paul
thought not good to take him with them, who departed from them from Pamphylia,
and went not with them to the work.
II
Luqas (Acts) 16:13 And on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake
unto the women which resorted [thither].
II
Luqas (Acts) 19:32 Some therefore
cried one thing, and some another: for the assembly was confused; and the more
part knew not wherefore they were come together.
II
Luqas (Acts) 21:16 There went
with us also [certain] of the disciples of Caesarea, and brought with them one
Mnason of
II
Luqas (Acts) 21:22 What is it
therefore? the multitude must needs come together: for they will hear
that thou art come.
II
Luqas (Acts) 25:17 Therefore,
when they were come hither, without any delay on the morrow I sat on the
judgment seat, and commanded the man to be brought forth.
II
Luqas (Acts) 28:17 And it came to
pass, that after three days Paul called the chief of
the Jews together: and when they were come
together, he said unto them, Men [and] brethren, though I have committed
nothing against the people, or customs of our fathers, yet was I delivered
prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans.
1
Corinthians 7:5 Defraud ye not
one the other, except [it be] with consent for a time,
that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer;
and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.
1
Corinthians 11:17 Now in this
that I declare [unto you] I praise [you] not, that ye come together not
for the better, but for the worse.
1
Corinthians 11:18 For first of
all, when ye come together in the church, I
hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.
1
Corinthians 11:20 When ye come
together therefore into one place, [this] is not to eat
the Lord's supper.
1
Corinthians 11:33 Wherefore, my
brethren, when ye come together to eat, tarry one for another.
1
Corinthians 11:34 And if any man
hunger, let him eat at home; that ye come not together unto
condemnation. And the rest will I set in order when I come.
1
Corinthians 14:23 If therefore
the whole church be come together into one place, and all speak with
tongues, and there come in [those that are] unlearned, or unbelievers, will
they not say that ye are mad?
1
Corinthians 14:26 How is it then,
brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue,
hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto
edifying.
Now that we have examined all of the places where sunerchomai is used, we can see that the usage of the word sunerchomai seems to be a general “coming together” for a meeting or for a meal. It is only used once, out of the thirty-two times, to suggest sexual union. This word sunerchomai can NOT, therefore, be used to prove that Miriam and Yoseph had not previously had relations. In fact, the most common usage would suggest that that Miriam was found to be with child before they began to live together in the same house, or came together for the chupa (wedding canopy).
So, let’s retranslate a bit:
Mattityahu (Matthew) 1:18
Now the birth of Yeshua Mashiach was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was
espoused to Joseph, before they had a common house, she was found with child of
the Holy Ghost.
What does it mean to be found with child “of the Holy Ghost”?
Matityahu is written in Midrashic style. So, when we search the Midrash we find that there were other women who were with child by the Holy Spirit, namely, Tamar:
Midrash Rabbah - Genesis LXXXV:9
AND HE SAID: WHAT PLEDGE SHALL I GIVE THEE? AND SHE SAID: THY SIGNET AND THY
CORD, AND THY STAFF THAT IS IN THY HAND (XXXVIII, 18).
R. Hunia said: A holy spirit was enkindled within her. THY SIGNET alludes to
royalty, as in the verse, Though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were
the signet upon My right hand, etc. (Jer. XXII, 24); AND THY CORD (PETHIL -
EKA) alludes to the Sanhedrin, as in the verse, And that they put with the fringe of each corner a thread (pethil) of blue, etc.
(Num. XV, 38) AND THY STAFF alludes to the royal Messiah,
as in the verse, The staff of thy strength the Lord will send out of Zion (Ps.
CX, 2). AND HE GAVE THEM TO HER... AND SHE CONCEIVED BY HIM-men mighty like
himself and righteous like himself. AND JUDAH SENT THE KID OF THE GOATS
(XXXVIII, 20). R. Judah b. Nahman quoted in the name of R. Simeon b. Lakish: Laughing in His habitable earth, laughing always before
him (Prov.VIII, 31, 30). The Torah laughs at men. The Holy One, blessed be He,
said to Judah: ' Thou didst deceive thy father with
a kid of goats; by thy life! Tamar will deceive thee with a kid of goats.’
One of the things that makes this passage so interesting is that Tamar, too, is founding the Messianic line directly through Yehudah!
Now, let’s look at a second passage from the Nazarean Codicil which speaks of the birth of His Majesty:
Luqas
1:26-35 And in the sixth month
the angel Gabriel was sent from G-d unto city of Galilee, named Nazareth, To a
virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of
the house of David; and the virgin's name [was] Mary. And the angel came in
unto her, and said, Hail, [thou that art] highly favoured, the Lord [is] with
thee: blessed [art] thou among women. And when she saw [him], she was troubled
at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with
G-d. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth son, and
shalt call his name Yeshua. He shall be great, and
shall be called the Son of the Highest: an the Lord G-d shall give unto him the
throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house
of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary
unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel
answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power
of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which
shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of G-d.
Is Miriam (Mary) a virgin? To answer this question, we need to examine the Greek word parthenos which is translated virgin. Strong’s gives the following definition:
3933
parthenos, par-then'-os; of unknown or.; a maiden; by impl. an unmarried
daughter:-virgin.
Strong’s says that this word means a maiden (“virgin” is how the KJV translates this word, but that is not the meaning). Now Matityahu gives us an additional clue by quoting from the Prophets:
Matityahu
(Matthew) 1:23 Behold, a virgin
shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name
Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, G-d with us.
Matityahu is quoting Isaiah:
Isaiah
7:13-14 And he said, Hear ye now,
O house of David; [Is it] a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary
my G-d also? Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin
shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
The Hebrew word for Virgin is:
Isaiah
7:14 Therefore the Lord himself
shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son,
and shall call his name Immanuel.
+------------------------------------------------+
5959
`almah, al-maw'; fem. of 5958; a lass (as veiled or private):-damsel, maid,
virgin.
---------------
Dictionary Trace ------------
5958
`elem, eh'-lem; from 5956; prop. something kept out of sight [comp. 5959], i.e.
a lad:-young man, stripling. ^ `olam. See 5769.
Again, Strong’s indicates that this word merely means a young woman, a maid, a damsel. An Almah is a girl between the ages of 12 and 16. Miriam was about 14 years old when she concieved His Majesty King Yeshua. The verse should be translated as:
Isaiah
7:14 Therefore the Lord himself
shall give you a sign; Behold, a young woman
shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
What makes this verse so interesting as proof that His Majesty was not born of a virgin, is that if He was, then so also was there ANOTHER virgin who bore a son in the days of King Ahaz, according to Isaiah 7! It is worthwhile to read this whole passage to see that this prophecy was clearly fulfilled in the days of King Ahaz. This means, that if there was a virgin birth in the days of King Ahaz, then there is a possibility that His Majesty could have had a virgin birth. However, the Sages understand that it was a young woman who bore a son, not a virgin.
Keep in mind that His Majesty King Yesua did not fullfil Yeshayahu 7:15-16. One implication of this is that we must remember that Matityahu is written at the Midrashic level. This means that the reference, in Matityahu, to Yeshayahu 7:13-14, should be understood in a parbolic manner.
Suffice it to say, this prophecy clearly shows that a young woman, not a virgin, is to bear a child in the days of King Ahaz and also, a young woman, not a virgin, is to bear His Majesty King Yeshua. By implication, if one says that His Majesty is divine because He was born of a virgin, then we would have to say that the son born in the days of King Ahaz was also divine. This clearly was not the case.
An attempt was made by the early Christians to justify the virgin birth story by referring to Isaiah 7:14. The word employed in the Septuagint was parthenos. But a reference to the original Hebrew yields the word almah. Both parthenos and almah did not necessarily mean a virgin as we understand it, a woman who had never had intercourse. In Greek it could mean youth, the state of unmarriage, or even a person who is first married. In Hebrew, it could mean beside the usual meaning, an immature girl who could not conceive because she had not yet started to menstruate (Now that’s an interesting thought).
The idea of a virgin as a
premenstrual girl allows her to have children and still be a young woman. If
she were to conceive from her very first ovulation, she would not have
menstruated but would be a mother and still not a virgin. If she conceived at
the first ovulation after the birth, she could not be a virgin mother of two children of different ages. Since Jewish girls often
married before menstruation, in Joel 1:8 an almah's
husband is mentioned, mothers who had not menstruated, were not unusual. Now
Mary was described as betrothed to Joseph implying that she was a minor
under the age of twelve and a half. After that age
she could become his wife. Thus Mary could have given birth.
If she did, the truth was misunderstood in the Gentile
world of the
When the translators of the Septuagint were translating the Hebrew writings into the Greek Septuagint, they converted the Hebrew word almah as the Greek equivalent of our English word for young woman. Almah appears nine other times in the Tanach (Old Testament); in each case it means young woman. When the scriptures referred to a virgin (and they do so over 50 times) they always used the Hebrew word bethulah. So, Isaiah appears to have referred to a young woman becoming pregnant.
Some English translators are accurate to the original Hebrew:
Revised English Bible: "...a young woman is with child..."
Revised Standard Version: "...a young woman shall conceive..."
James Moffatt Translation: "...a young woman with child..."
New Revised Standard Version: "...the young woman is with child..."
Aside from this, the Torah does, in fact, have an explicit word for virgin (bethulah), which is always used where the context requires virginity. The fact that Yeshiahu (Isaiah) did not use the word bethulah lends credence to the understanding that he did NOT intend to convey that a virgin birth was involved.
Solomon uses this same word to speak of the way of a man and a maid:
Mishle
(Proverbs) 30:18-19 There be three [things which] are too wonderful for me, yea, four which I know not: The way of an eagle in the air; the
way of a serpent upon a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and
the way of a man with a maid.
What connect the four items in our passage above, is that they all leave no trace of their passage. Now if the maid had been a virgin she would have left a trace of blood. This verse implies that this maid is no virgin!
No virgin birth is insinuated or intimated in Yeshayhu 7:13-14! If it was, then there must have been a virgin birth in the days of King Ahaz. Now what would that do for the proponents of a virgin birth? At most, all we can read into this text from a Midrashic perspective is that the precedent is, as the Abarbanel points out, a young (adolescent) woman of the Royal Family or, one who married into the Royal Family, will give birth to a son to show that HaShem is with us (the Jews)!
Testimonies
of the Nazarean Codicil
Hakham Shaul speaks of His Majesty as though he has an earthly father:
Romans
1:1-3 I Paul, a servant of Yeshua
Mashiach, called to be an apostle and separated onto the gospel of
G-d...concerning his Son Yeshua Mashiach our Lord, which was made of the seed (sperma – male sperm) of David according to the flesh.
Sperm is the father’s contribution to a child. If Yeshua was the sperma of David, then he had a father from the descendants of David who contributed sperm to the birth of Yeshua. Luqas also describes Joseph as the father of His Majesty:
Luqas (Luke) 3:23 And Yeshua himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (by law) the son of Joseph, which was [the son] of Heli,…
The concept of the virgin birth actually works against the Christian argument, because Mashiach has to be of the tribe of Yehudah (Judah), as it is written:
Bereshit
(Genesis) 49:10 The sceptre shall
not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until
Now, while Jewish descent is confirmed through the mother's ancestry, tribal lineage goes through the father's, as it is written:
Bamidbar
(Numbers) 1:18 And they assembled
all the congregation together on the first [day] of the
second month, and they declared their pedigrees after their families, by
the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty
years old and upward, by their polls.
If His Majesty King Yeshua had no
human Jewish father, then he had a great
supernatural Father but was himself of no tribe and hence cannot have been Mashiach! One might accuse me of nitpicking, since
descent from HaShem is far better than descent from
Moshe Rabbenu, Moses our teacher, was adopted by Pharaoh’s daughter, yet he remained a Levite and a Jew. He did not become an Egyptian. He did not inherit a tribe from his adopted parents, but rather he inherited his tribe from his biological father.
In Jewish law, parents who adopt a child are merely caretakers, not true parents. If the parents are Jews and the child is a Gentile, he would still have to convert after bar mitzva age, in order to become a Jew.
Jewishness
flows through the mother as it did with Sarah and Yitzchak,
and tribal inheritance flows through the biological
father.
HaShem is the only one who can adopt and by a miracle make a child who was not his own, his very own by means of teshuva (normally translated repentance), returning, and by conversion. This miraculous power is not given to any human being. Further, Hakham Shaul in the Nazarean Codicil makes it vary clear in Romans that the power and prerogative of "ADOPTION" is exclusively the domain of Israel:
Romans
9:3-5 For I could wish that
myself were accursed from Mashiach for my brethren,
my kinsmen according to the flesh: Who are Israelites;
to whom belongs the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants,
and the giving of the law, and the service [of G-d], and
the promises; Whose [are] the fathers, and of whom as
concerning the flesh Mashiach [came], who is over all, G-d blessed for ever.
Amen.
When a convert is adopted into Israel,
it is by means of brit mila, tevilah,
and Bet Din (circumcision, immersion, and a Jewish court). This means that Gentiles do not adopt
There is no scripture or even a hint of scripture which
suggests that an adopted man can become king in
Kohelet
(Ecclesiastes) 1:9 The thing that
hath been, it [is that] which shall be; and that which is done [is] that which
shall be done: and [there is] no new [thing] under the sun.
Scripture is clear that tribal membership is determined by the biological father's ancestry. (One might just as easily claim that the adopted son of a High Priest is qualified to succeed him as High Priest, even though High Priests must be of Aaron's lineage [Bamidbar 18].)
The Genealogical
Hints
I noticed an interesting juxtaposition: The only two accounts of His Majesty’s birth are found in the the only two books (Matityahu 1 and Luqas 3) which also contain a genealogy of His Majesty. It is almost as though the writer were anticipating the issue of a virgin birth and therefore went out of their way to use the genealogy to prove that it was NOT a virgin birth.
Another interesting observation: The Jewish leaders understood that Joseph was the father of His Majesty:
Yochanan
(John) 6:42 And they said, Is not
this Yeshua, the son of Joseph, whose father and
mother we know? how is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven?
In the sod level book of Yochanan, we see a bit of a dichotomy. We see a heavenly origin and an earthly origin. Clearly His Majesty’s soul came down from HaShem while His body was assembled on earth by His parents. There are other verses which make sense ONLY if Joseph had fathered Yeshua:
Matityahu
(Matthew) 1:1 The book of the
generation of Yeshua Mashiach, the son of David,
the son of Abraham.
Matityahu
(Matthew) 1:20 But while he
thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear
not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of
the Holy Ghost.
Matityahu
(Matthew) 9:27 And when Yeshua departed thence, two blind
men followed him, crying, and saying, [Thou] son
of David, have mercy on us.
Matityahu
(Matthew) 12:23 And all the
people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David?
Matityahu
(Matthew) 15:22 And, behold, a
woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have
mercy on me, O Lord, [thou] son of David; my daughter is grievously
vexed with a devil.
Matityahu
(Matthew) 20:30 And, behold, two
blind men sitting by the way side, when they heard that Yeshua passed by, cried
out, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, [thou] son of David.
Matityahu
(Matthew) 20:31 And the multitude
rebuked them, because they should hold their peace: but they cried the more,
saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, [thou] son of David.
Matityahu
(Matthew) 21:9 And the multitudes
that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of
David: Blessed [is] he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the
highest.
Matityahu
(Matthew) 21:15 And when the
chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things
that he did, and the children crying in the temple,
and saying, Hosanna to the son of David; they were sore displeased,
Matityahu
(Matthew) 22:42 Saying, What
think ye of Mashiach? whose son is he? They say
unto him, [The son] of David.
Marqos (Mark) 10:47 And when he heard that it was Yeshua of
Marqos (Mark) 10:48 And
many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great
deal, [Thou] son of David, have mercy on me.
Marqos
(Mark) 12:35 And Yeshua answered
and said, while he taught in the temple, How say the scribes that Mashiach
is the son of David?
Luqas
(Luke) 1:32 He shall be great,
and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord G-d shall give unto
him the throne of his father David:
Luqas
(Luke) 3:31 Which was [the son]
of Melea, which was [the son] of Menan, which was [the son] of Mattatha, which
was [the son] of Nathan, which was [the son] of David,
Luqas
(Luke) 18:38 And he cried,
saying, Yeshua, [thou] son of David, have mercy on me.
Luqas
(Luke) 18:39 And they which went
before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the
more, [Thou] son of David, have mercy on me.
Romans
1:3 Concerning his Son Yeshua Mashiach our Lord,
which was made of the seed of David according to
the flesh;
What About Luqas One?
The second passage used to justify a virgin birth is found in Luqas chapter one:
Luqas
(Luke) 1:26-37 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a
city of Galilee, named Nazareth, To a virgin espoused
to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name
[was] Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, [thou that art]
highly favoured, the Lord [is] with thee: blessed [art] thou among women. And
when she saw [him], she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what
manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not,
Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in
thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Yeshua.
He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God
shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for
ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel,
How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said
unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest
shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of
thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she
hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her,
who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.
Miriam askes a question, “How can this be, seeing that I know not a man (my husband)?” Miriam is asking how can she bear a son before her chupa (wedding canopy). The answer: Have intercourse before the chupa. Having intercourse before marriage is a valid Torah method for marrying a woman!
Now, before you get too riled up, there is a second possibility. Remember that an almah is a girl between the ages of 12 and 16. Now, not all girls of 12 years, have menstruated. Therefore, if Miriam was in this group, she may have been delaying the chupa for her menses to start. In this case, the Angel Gabriel is telling her to go to her chupa before menses This would have Miriam going to her chupa before her menses, then cohabiting with Yoseph, after the chupa. Miriam’s surprise is now quite understandable. How can I possibly have a child, seeing that I have NOT had my menses, I have not had a chupa, and even if I lay with a man I can not possibly conceive! So, just as in Yeshayhu 7:13-14, Miriam will have her chupa, her man, and her son, and it will be a miracle.
There is also a third possible answer to Miriam’s question. If Yoseph was either divorced or widowed, and knew that he could not father children, then Miraim’s question would be: “How can this be, seeing that I know not a (fertile) man (my husband)?” The obvious connection with Bereshit 18 would be stunning:
Bereshit
(Genesis) 18:11-12 Now Abraham
and Sarah [were] old [and] well stricken in age; [and] it ceased to be with
Sarah after the manner of women. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself,
saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?
Note also how similar this is to Boaz:
Ruth
3:8-10 And it came to pass at
midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay
at his feet. And he said, Who [art] thou? And she
answered, I [am] Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for
thou [art] a near kinsman. And he said, Blessed [be] thou of the HaShem, my daughter: [for] thou hast shewed more
kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst
not young men, whether poor or rich.
The Sages teach us that Ruth was forty and that Boaz was at least eighty. However, I do think that the parallel between 1 Luqas 1:34-35 and the story of Ruth offer many parallels:
1. The husband is said to be much older than the woman, and
2. Both produce son of the royal line, and
3. Intimated here of course is not that Ruth was infertile but rather that Boaz due to age could well have been, and HaShem produced a miracle so that Boaz could have a child.
Note too that the scriptures never talk about either Avraham or Boaz having sex with their wives. Never the less, both conceived and bore sons.
To sew this together, lets look at one more passage:
Matityahu
1:24-25 Then Joseph being raised
from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden
him, and took unto him his wife: And knew her not till she had brought forth
her firstborn son: and he called his name Yeshua.
What does it mean when it says that Yoseph took Miriam as his wife? According to Jewish law, one “takes a wife” when he has provided a woman with food from his money, with clothes from his money, and with cohabitation. There is no other way. The chupa is merely sanctifying the union in a formal manner. It still must be executed with food, clothing, and sex. Therefore, I suggest that Yoseph took Miriam to the chupa, then to his bedroom. After this consumation, he had no more relations till after His Majesty King Yeshua was born.
My Reconciliation
The virgin birth story was inspired by the Tanach:[2] Throughout the Tanach, we hear of unusual births: The Sages say that Sarah did not have a womb until she was ninety years old. The birth of Yitzchak was truly a miracle:
Bereshit
(Genesis) 11:30 But Sarai was
barren; she [had] no child.
Rivka was barren and bore Yaakov and Esau only after much prayer:
Bereshit
(Genesis) 29:31 And when HaShem saw that Leah [was] hated, he opened her womb:
but Rachel [was] barren.
Samson’s mother was barren and conceived only after an angelic visit:
Shoftim
(Judges) 13:2 And there was a
certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name [was] Manoah;
and his wife [was] barren, and bare not. And the angel of HaShem appeared unto
the woman, and said unto her, Behold now, thou [art] barren, and bearest not:
but thou shalt conceive, and bear a son.
Elizabeth, the mother of Yochanan, was also barren. She,
too, conceived after an angel visited her husband.
Luqas
(Luke) 1:7 And they had no child,
because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were [now] well stricken in
years.
It seems to be the pattern of HaShem, that the great women of the Tanach bore children in miraculous ways. How then does this apply to His Majesty?
I suggest that Miriam became pregnant after her first intercourse. The Sages teach us that a woman ‘never’ becomes pregnant on the first intimacy except by a miracle of HaShem:
Yevamoth 34a Surely,
no woman conceives from the first contact!
Midrash Rabbah - Genesis XLV:4
AND HE WENT IN UNTO HAGAR, AND SHE CONCEIVED (XVI, 4). R. Levi b. Haytha said:
She became pregnant through the first intimacy. R. Eleazar said: A woman never
conceives by the first intimacy.
I have already mentioned several ways that would make it hard for Joseph to understand how Miriam became pregnant on this first intimacy. His Majesty’s mother, Miriam, already set aside for Joseph, before the chupa, is found pregnant and Joseph finds out about it. He being a tzadik, decides to send her away secretly, to avoid having to turn her in to be stoned. Joseph could not, by Torah law, just put her away privately:
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 20:10 And the man
that committeth adultery with [another] man's
wife, [even he] that committeth adultery with his neighbour's wife, the
adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.
The genealogy of Mashiach has many “irregularities” that might cause one to wonder what is going on. Here are some of the irregularities that I am aware of:
Mashiach was found in Sodom
according to the Midrash. When Lot’s eldest daughter
commited incest with her father, a son named
Yahudah had a relationship with Tamar who was disguised as a prostitute. Recall that Tamar had previously married Er and Onan, the sons of Yahudah, who were killed for their sins. From Tamar came the ancestor of the Mashiach.
Ruth was a moabite and a descendant
of
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 23:3 An Ammonite or Moabite shall not
enter into the congregation of HaShem; even to their tenth generation shall
they not enter into the congregation of HaShem for
ever:
Now Boaz had an ancestor who’s name was Yehudah. So his genealogy is irregular.
Boaz and Ruth had a child who was the ancestor of Messiah.
See the study on FATHERS.
See the study on FATHERS.
Mashiach will come at an impossible time and in an impossible way. Never the less, we must hold to the impossible and to expect Him every day.
* * *
Niddah 31a There are
three partners in the production of man: The Holy One, blessed be He, the
father and the mother.[3]
* * *
This study was written by Hillel ben David
(Greg Killian).
Comments may be submitted to:
Greg Killian
1101 Surrey Trace SE
Tumwater, WA 98501
Internet address: gkilli@aol.com
Web page: http://www.betemunah.org/
(360) 584-9352
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