The Virgin Birth

The Virgin Birth (v 18)

There is not a lot know about Mary.

It is likely that she was a native of Nazareth and that she came from a relatively poor family.

From Mark 15:40, Matthew 27:56, and John 19:25 we see that she has a sister named Salome who was the Mother of James and John (which means they were Jesus’s 1st cousins)

It is also likely that Marry was still very young when she became the betrothed to Joseph.

Most likely she was around 13 to 14.

And Joseph was around 17 to 19.

This was the normal age to become bound in marriage to another person for their time in history and culture.

We do know that Mary was a Godly women who was sensitive and submissive to the Lords will.

After Gabriels announcement that she would be the mother of the Son of God her response was recorded in Luke 1:38

Luke 1:38 ESV

38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

The birth of Christ had to be accomplished through the Holy Spirit because if it was not then Jesus would have been born in the sin of Adam just like us.

This would not have made it possible for Him to die as the prefect sacrifice for our sins.

The Virgin Birth Confronted (vv 19-20)

The amount of information that we know about Mary is vast compared to the information we know about Joseph.

We know that:

He was a Carpenter

He was from Nazareth

He was a Just and righteous Man.

This is one of the most important things to know about him because it brings to light His thoughts and reasonings in verses 19-20.

Because he was a righteous man he had a double problem.

First:

Because he was a righteous man he knew he should not go through with the marriage because of Marys pregnancy.

He knew he was not the father and assumed that marry had been unfaithful to him with another man.

Second:

Because of his righteous love and kindness he could not bear the thought of shaming Marry publicly.

Much less demanding her death as commanded under the Law. Deut 22:23-24

Deuteronomy 22:23–24 ESV

23 “If there is a betrothed virgin, and a man meets her in the city and lies with her, 24 then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones, the young woman because she did not cry for help though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbor’s wife. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.

There is no sign that Joseph had any bitterness or anger or resentment toward Marry.

He was not wanting to disgrace her by public exposure of her supposed sin.

Because of the love that he had for her he was going to separate from her in secret.

While he had all these feelings and thoughts swirling around in his head he had a dream in which an angel came to him and told him what was going on.

The angel addressed him as “son of David” which gave authority to Jesus having the right to rule on the throne of David because His earthly father was in the royal line of David.

The angel also confirmed to Him what the angel had already told Marry that this was a child conceived by the Holy Spirit.

It was the testimony of the Holy Angel from the Lord God Himself.

The Virgin Birth Clarified (v 21)

The Angel would tell Joseph that Marry was going to have a son.

He as also told to name this son Jesus. Just like Zacharias was told to name His son John. Luke 1:13

Luke 1:13 ESV

13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.

The meaning of Johns name is never made clear but the Name of Jesus is very clear.

Jesus in Hebrew is Joshua, Jeshua or Jehoshua which means: “Jehovah (Yahweh) will save”

All the other men in the Bible with this name testified by their names to the Lords salvation.

But this one who would be born to Mary not only would testify of Gods salvation, but would Himself be salvation.

By His own work He would save His people from their sins.

The Virgin Birth Connected (vv 22-23)

Matthew goes to great lengths to connect His Gospel to the Old Testament making sure that there can be no doubt that Jesus is the one the Old Testament was talking about coming to save the world.

He uses 22-23 to show that Jesus is the one that Isaiah predicted was coming.

Matthew uses the phrase “might be fulfilled” over ten times in his gospel to indicate ways in which Jesus and events related to is earthly ministry were fulfillments of the Old Testament prophecy.

The basic truths and happenings of the New Testament were culminations, completions, or fulfillments of revelations God had already made.

Isaiah 7:14 ESV

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.

This prophecy was given during the regin of a wicked King named Ahaz and he was under attack from three different kingdoms around him and God used Isaiah to speak to the king to tell him that even His wickedness and pagan beliefs could not derail the plan of God.

Isaiah was telling the wicked king that no one would destroy the people of God or the royal line of David.

The greatest thing in Verse 23 is the name given to Jesus “Immanuel” which means God with us.

Not God is with us, but God with Us.

That name is used more as a title or description than a proper name.

In His incarnation Jesus was, in the most literal sense, “God with us”

The Old Testament repeatedly promises that God is present with His people, to secure their destiny in His covenant.

The Tabernacle or the Temple were intended to be symbols of that divine presence.

Isaiah was the instrument through which the word of the Lord announced that God would dwell among men in visible flesh and blood incarnation.

more intimate and personal than the Tabernacle or Temple in which Israel had worshiped.

The Virgin Birth Consummated (vv 24-25)

The angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream.

This unique and direct communication from God was used on other occasions to reveal scripture: Gen 20:3, 31:10-11, Num 12:6, 1 Kings 3:5, Job 33:14-16.

It should be noted that all six New Testament occurrences are in Matthew and concern the Lord Jesus Christ. 1:20, 2:12-13, 19, 22, 27:19

We know nothing of Josephs reaction, except that he immediately obeyed, doing as the angel had told him to do.

Not only would he be able to take Mary as his wife but he was given care of the son of God while He was growing up.

That fact alone would indicate the depth of Josephs godliness.

It is inconceivable that God would entrust His son into a family where the father was not totally committed and faithful to Him.

As a final act of obedience to Gods instruction through the angel Joseph called His name Jesus, indicating that He was to be the Savior.