How Islam can Help Christianity Understand the True Significance of the Virgin Birth - Debunked

In 2021, the Review of Religions  posted the article, How Islam can Help Christianity Understand the True Significance of the Virgin Birth. Here is a detailed analysis and rebuttal from a mainstream Christian perspective regarding the points raised. 

The Argument on Miraculous Signs & Prophethood

Article Claim: The article posits that the virgin birth was merely a general miraculous sign to demonstrate Jesus' truthfulness as a prophet, similar to miracles attributed to other prophets like Muhammad or the births of Isaac and Samuel. 

Rebuttal:

• Unique Nature of the Sign: Christian theology asserts that the virgin birth is categorically different from the births of Isaac, Samuel, or John the Baptist. In those cases, the miracle was the restoration of natural reproductive abilities to barren couples (Abraham/Sarah, Zechariah/Elizabeth). The virgin birth was a creative act without a human father, signaling not just a prophet, but the Incarnation of the pre-existent Son of God.

• Category Error: Comparing the virgin birth to general miracles (like earthquakes or extinguishing fires mentioned in the text regarding Muhammad) reduces a fundamental ontological event (the Word becoming flesh) to a mere external attestation of authority. For Christians, the virgin birth is the mechanism of the Incarnation, not just a badge of office.

The Argument on Sonship and Original Sin

Article Claim: The text suggests that Christians wrongly use the virgin birth to prove Jesus' "divine sonship" or his purity from original sin. It implies that if lack of a father prevents sin, then Adam or Melchizedek should be considered even more divine. 

Rebuttal:

• Federal Headship: Mainstream Protestant theology relies on the concept of "Federal Headship" (Romans 5:12-19), where Adam represents humanity. Sin is imputed through the paternal line of Adam. By having no human father, Jesus is disconnected from the federal guilt of Adam while remaining fully human through Mary.

• Divine Sanctification: The text ignores the specific biblical explanation in Luke 1:35: "The Holy Spirit will come on you... So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God." This indicates a specific sanctifying work of the Spirit that preserved Jesus' holiness, distinct from the creation of Adam from dust.

The Argument on Prophecy (Isaiah 7:14)

Article Claim: The article argues that the virgin birth fulfills prophecies only in a general sense or perhaps unknown prophecies, citing sources that claim Jews never expected a Messiah born of a virgin and that Isaiah 7:14 refers to a "young woman," not a virgin. 

Rebuttal:

• The Septuagint Evidence: The article cites the absence of Jewish expectation, but overlooks the Septuagint (LXX). Jewish translators, centuries before Jesus, translated the Hebrew almah in Isaiah 7:14 into the specific Greek word parthenos (virgin). This demonstrates that pre-Christian Jewish scholars did indeed see a "virgin" meaning in the text, contrary to the claim that it was a later Christian invention.

• The Sign Magnitude: Isaiah 7:14 describes the birth as a sign as deep as Sheol or high as heaven. A young woman conceiving naturally is a common event, not a miraculous sign. The Christian view holds that only a true virgin birth fits the dramatic scope of the prophecy.

The Argument on the "Transfer of Prophethood"

Article Claim: The article's executive summary claims the virgin birth indicated the "transfer of prophethood from the Israelites to the Ishmaelites" (referring to Prophet Muhammad) and the end of Jewish kingship. 

Rebuttal:

• Supersessionist Imposition: This is an external theological imposition found nowhere in the biblical text. The New Testament explicitly describes Jesus as the fulfillment of the Jewish law and prophets, not their termination.

• The Eternal Throne: In the very announcement of the virgin birth, the angel Gabriel promises that God will give Jesus "the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever" (Luke 1:32-33). This directly contradicts the article's claim that the birth signaled the end of the Jewish lineage or kingship; rather, it established its eternal continuity through Christ.

Conclusion

The article attempts to reframe the virgin birth within a strict Unitarian monotheism that accommodates Jesus as a prophet while denying his divinity. It does so by:

1. Reducing the Incarnation to a "sign" of prophethood.

2. Using historical-critical arguments against Isaiah 7:14 that ignore the Septuagint.

3. Imposing an Islamic "supercession" narrative (transfer to Ishmael) that directly contradicts the biblical text's promise of an eternal Davidic kingdom.