The Virgin Birth​—Should You Believe It?

SO WE come to the questions: Was Mary a virgin when she gave birth to Jesus? Did she need to be? Why did Jesus not have a human father? We are helped to answer these questions by examining who Jesus was and what was his mission on earth.

The apostle John explains that before Jesus was born on earth he lived in the spirit realm as the firstborn Son of God and was called the Word. In due time “the Word became flesh and resided among us.” (John 1:1-14) Or, as expressed elsewhere in the Bible: “God sent forth his Son, who came to be out of a woman.” (Galatians 4:4) Jesus himself acknowledged that “on coming into the world: ‘[God] who wanted no [animal] sacrifice or oblation, prepared a body for me.’”​—Hebrews 10:5, Jerusalem Bible.

There were strong reasons for Jesus’ becoming a human, “coming into the world” of mankind. High on the list was the redemption of the human family from slavery to sin, imperfection and death. The apostle Paul explained: “Through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men because they had all sinned.” (Romans 5:12) As to how Almighty God would cope with that situation, Paul says: “There is one God, and one mediator between God and men, a man, Christ Jesus, who gave himself a corresponding ransom for all.”​—1 Timothy 2:5, 6; compare 1 Corinthians 15:21, 22.

Yes, death came to all humans through the rebellion of our forefather Adam, and justice required the life of another perfect man, not more, not less, to provide the ransom that would buy back the possibility of everlasting life for us. No imperfect human could possibly provide that. (Psalm 49:6, 7) Someone would have to step down from the heavenly realm. Appropriately, the one to do this was the firstborn Son of God. He had to become a perfect man and yet not lose his continuity of life. His life-force was not to be extinguished but would be transferred to the ovum of the virgin girl, Mary. She, ‘overshadowed by the protective power of the Most High,’ could produce a perfect body for the babe Jesus.​—Luke 1:35.

This explains also why the life-force could not come through an imperfect human male in the normal way. An imperfect Jesus could not have become the ransom. Nor could he have become such as an incarnation or God/​man.

Jehovah selected a virgin to be the earthly mother of Jesus so that it would be clear that he was the son, not of an imperfect human father, but of God. Had a married woman been given this great honor there would always have been doubt about this.

We can thus see that the virgin birth of Jesus was essential to the outworking of Jehovah God’s original purpose to have a perfect human family live forever on a paradise earth. (Genesis 2:7-9, 15-17) Out of his love he would provide a ransom. His justice would be satisfied. His wisdom would triumph.

Hence, we should conclude that the Bible account of the virgin birth of Jesus Christ ought not to lose credibility because of the scorn of the skeptic or because of unscriptural and extravagant religious embellishments. It stands as a basic fact, essential to Christian faith. And it is intimately tied in with our prospects of everlasting life.​—John 17:3.