Matthew, with his characteristic formulaic quotations (about 60) from the Old Testament, claimed that the prophet Isaiah foretold of Jesus’ virgin birth in 1:22-23. In other words, Matthew held that the virgin birth of Jesus fulfilled Isaiah’s messianic prophecy. But evangelical and liberal scholars alike claim that Matthew is guilty of ignoring the context of Isaiah 7 and shoehorning an Old Testament passage into his story of Jesus to support his claim for the virgin birth. Was Matthew right? Or, as scholars claim, did he shoehorn Isaiah 7:14 into his story?

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