Almah: Virgin or Maiden?

"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive
and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel" Isaiah 7:14

Does the Hebrew word "almah" in Isaiah 7:14 (above) mean "virgin" or "young woman"? Let's look at every occurence of the word "almah" in the Bible. The English translation of each occurence of "almah" is highlighted below in bold (all passages quoted are from the New King James version):

Genesis 24:43 'behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass that when the virgin comes out to draw water, and I say to her, "Please give me a little water from your pitcher to drink..." '
Exodus 2:8 And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Go." So the maiden went and called the child's mother.
Psalm 68:25 The singers went before, the players on instruments followed after; Among them were the maidens playing timbrels.
Proverbs 30:19 The way of an eagle in the air, The way of a serpent on a rock, The way of a ship in the midst of the sea, And the way of a man with a virgin.
Song of Solomon 1:3 Because of the fragrance of your good ointments, Your name is ointment poured forth; Therefore the virgins love you.
Song of Solomon 6:8 There are sixty queens And eighty concubines, And virgins without number.
Isaiah 7:14 "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.

Based on the context of the word "almah" in all of the verses above, the word, as a minimum, means "young, unmarried woman" in the Bible. The clues that verify that the word means "virgin" are in Isaiah 7:14 itself:

Isaiah 7:14 says "...the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the [almah] shall conceive..." Since the Lord is sinless, the signs He gives lack sin. If "almah" means "young, unmarried woman", and if her conception is a sign from the Lord, then she conceives as a virgin. Otherwise, the Lord's sign involves sin, which is against the Lord's nature.
The Lord Himself is giving a sign. What kind of sign from God is a pregnant young woman? Pregnant young women are common. This verse only makes sense if the young woman is a virgin.

In conclusion, the full Biblical meaning of the Hebrew word "almah" means "young, unmarried virgin." According to the gospel accounts, Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a young, unmarried virgin betrothed (engaged) to Joseph at the time the Holy Spirit caused her to conceive.

Note: Another Hebrew word that means "virgin" is "b'tulah". It is found in 14 places in the Old Testament, including Genesis 24:16, "Now the young woman was very beautiful to behold, a virgin; no man had known her. And she went down to the well, filled her pitcher, and came up." The word translated "young woman" in this verse is "na-ar-ah", one of several Hebrew words that means "girl" or "young woman."

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