The Virgin Birth Controversy
The Virgin Birth Controversy One of the most debated examples of how translation can shape theology is the interpretation of Isaiah 7:14 and its later use in the New Testament virgin birth narrative. In the original Hebrew text, the word used is almah , a term that generally means a “young woman” of marriageable age and does not explicitly require virginity. By contrast, Hebrew possesses another term, betulah , which is the more specific and commonly used word for a virgin, particularly in contexts emphasizing sexual inexperience. Critics therefore argue that if the author of Isaiah intended to unmistakably predict a miraculous virgin conception, betulah would have been the clearer and more natural word choice. However, when the Hebrew Scriptures were translated into Greek in the Septuagi...