Isaiah 7:14 — "Virgin or Young Woman"

Presbyterian theology affirms Isaiah 7:14 as a messianic prophecy whose fulfillment is recorded in Matthew 1:23. The passage reads, 'Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel' (KJV). The Westminster Shorter Catechism (Q&A 21) teaches that 'Christ, the Son of God, is the seed of the woman, and that he bruised the head of the serpent; he is the second Adam, the federal head of his people, acting in their stead, and representing them in all things.' This text is interpreted as directly prophesying the virgin birth of Jesus, with the Hebrew word 'almah' translated as 'virgin' in the Septuagint and fulfilled in the New Testament accounts of Jesus' birth.

The virgin birth doctrine is foundational to Presbyterian Christology and soteriology. If Christ had a human father, the logic goes, he would have inherited Adam's sin-nature and could not serve as the sinless mediator and redeemer of his people. Matthew's direct citation of Isaiah 7:14 (Matthew 1:23) is understood as apostolic confirmation that Jesus' supernatural conception fulfills the Old Testament prophecy. This interpretation has been standard in the Reformed tradition since Calvin and is reaffirmed in all major Presbyterian confessions.