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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadInternational Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Virgin; Virginity
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vuÌ‚r´jin; vuÌ‚r-jin´i-ti: (1) בּתוּלה, bethuÌ„laÌ„h, from a root meaning “separated,†is “a woman living apart,†i.e. “in her father's house,†and hence “a virgin.†BethuÌ„laÌ„h seems to have been the technical term for “virgin,†as appears from such a combination as na‛ăraÌ„h bhethuÌ„laÌ„h, “a damsel, a virgin,†in , , etc. An apparent exception is , “Lament like a virgin (bethuÌ„laÌ„h)...for the husband of her youth,†but the word is probably due to a wish to allude to the title “virgin daughter of Zion†(the translation “a betrothed maiden†is untrue to Hebrew sentiment). and the use of “virgin†for a city (, etc.; compare ; ) probably means “unsubdued,†though, as often, a title may persist after its meaning is gone (). The King James Version and the English Revised Version frequently render bethuÌ„laÌ„h by “maiden†or “maid†(, etc.), but the American Standard Revised Version has used “virgin†throughout, despite the awkwardness of such a phrase as “young men and virgins†(). For “tokens of virginity†(“proofs of chastityâ€) see the commentary on ff. (2) עלמה, ‛almaÌ„h, rendered in the Revised Version (British and American) by either “damsel†(), “maiden†(so usually, , etc.), or “virgin†with margin “maiden†(; ; ). The word (see OHL) means simply “young woman†and only the context can give it the force “virgin.†This force, however, seems required by the contrasts in , but in “virgin†throws the accent in the wrong place. The controversies regarding are endless, but Septuagint took ‛almaÌ„h as meaning “virgin†(partheÌnos). But in New Testament times the Jews never interpreted the verse as a prediction of a virgin-birth - a proof that the Christian faith did not grow out of this passage. See IMMANUEL; VIRGIN BIRTH. (3) παÏθεÌÏ…Ï‚, partheÌnos, the usual Greek word for “virgin†(Judith 16:5, etc.; , etc.). In the word is masculine. In ff the Revised Version (British and American) has explained “virgin†by writing “virgin daughter†in -38. This is almost certainly right, but “virgin companion†(see Lietzmann and J. Weiss in the place cited.) is not quite impossible. (4) νεᾶνις, neaÌnis, “young woman†(Sirach 20:4). (5) Latin virgo (2 Esdras 16:33).
The Old Testament lays extreme emphasis on chastity before marriage (), but childlessness was so great a misfortune that death before marriage was to be bewailed (, ). Paul's preference for the unmarried state ( if) is based on the greater freedom for service (compare ), and the Greek estimate of virginity as possessing a religious quality per se is foreign to true Jewish thought (such a passage as Philo Mund. opif., section symbol 53, is due to direct Greek influence). Some have thought to find a trace of the Greek doctrine in . But 144,000 lst-century. Christian ascetics are out of the question, and the figure must be interpreted like that of (reversed).