Genesis 24:16. "The girl was very beautiful, a virgin, never having had sexual relations with any man. She went down to the spring, filled her jug and came up." She was a young woman unveiled. Her good manners and courtesy set her apart to the man on his mission; everything he had hoped for.
Exodus 22:15(16) "If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged to be married and sleeps with her, he must pay the bride-price for her to be his wife." A law relating to social obligation.
Leviticus 21:3. "he may also make himself unclean for his virgin sister who has never married and is therefore dependent on him." A priest could become unclean. For his kindred which are near to him. These were for his mother, father, son, daughter, brother and virgin sister.
Leviticus 21:12-13. "He may not leave the sanctuary then or profane the sanctuary of his God, because the consecration of the anointing oil of his God is on him; I am ADONAI. "'He is to marry a virgin;" The high priest shall take a wife in her virginity. (He's representing Jesus.)
Leviticus 21:14. "he may not marry a widow, divorcee, profaned woman or prostitute; but he must marry a virgin from among his own people"
Deuteronomy 22:14. "brings false charges against her and defames her character by saying, 'I married this woman, but when I had intercourse with her I did not find evidence that she was a virgin';" If a man tries to divorce his wife by falsely accusing her of not being a virgin because of his selfish desires, then her father and mother shall bring the proof of her virginity to the elders of the city. It was a custom in Jewish law for her parents to take the first night spotted bedclothes to prove her. (It might save her life.)
Deuteronomy 22:19. "and fine him two-and-a-half pounds of silver shekels, which they will give to the girl's father, because he has publicly defamed a virgin of Isra'el. She will remain his wife, and he is forbidden from divorcing her as long as he lives."
Deuteronomy 22:23. "If a girl who is a virgin is engaged to a man, and another man comes upon her in the town and has sexual relations with her;" Raping a betrothed woman in the street carried a death penalty.
Deuteronomy 22:28. "If a man comes upon a girl who is a virgin but who is not engaged, and he grabs her and has sexual relations with her, and they are caught in the act,"A man who was married couldn't put away his wife for doing this act. He must remain faithful. The unbetrothed virgin will be paid for the indignity.
Judges 11:39-40. "After two months she returned to her father, and he did with her what he had vowed; she had remained a virgin. So it became a law in Isra'el that the women of Isra'el would go every year for four days to lament the daughter of Yiftach from Gil'ad." A vow was fulfilled by her perpetual virginity and became a new custom for Israel because it denied her a part in bringing Messiah into the world. "
Judges 19:24. "Here's my daughter, who's a virgin, and his concubine. I'll bring them out. Mistreat them, do what you want to them, but don't do such a degrading thing to this man." No excuse for a father to sacrifice his daughter to such demon possessed men. Would have been far better to die fighting the purity of womanhood.
2 Samuel 13:2. "Ammon became so obsessed with his sister Tamar that he became ill, for she was a virgin, and Amnon thought it would be impossible to approach her." Another evil story. Virgins weren't allowed into the company of men even close relatives being kept in seclusion. Ammon's problem was working out a way to get her into his contact.
1 Kings 1:2. "His servants said to him, "Let us try to find a young virgin for my lord the king. She can wait on the king and be a companion for him, and she can lie next to you, so that my lord the king will get some heat." Probably advisors looking after the king's health suggested a virgin as wife to wait on him, cherish and lie with for warmth.
2 Kings 19:21. "Here is ADONAI's answer concerning him: 'The virgin daughter of Tziyon despises you; she laughs you to scorn. The daughter of Yerushalayim shakes her head at you." Virgin daughter is a conventional way of referring to a royal city, nation or people personified as a woman.
Isaiah 23:12. "He has said, "Exult no more, oppressed virgin daughter of Tzidon. Arise, cross to Kittim; even there you will find no rest." As above but a personification of Sidon this time.
Isaiah 37:22-23. "Here is ADONAI's answer concerning him: "'The virgin daughter of Tziyon despises you; she laughs you to scorn. The daughter of Yerushalayim shakes her head at you. Whom have you taunted and insulted? Against whom have you raised your voice and haughtily lifted your eyes? The Holy One of Isra'el!"
Isaiah 47:1. "Come down, and sit in the dust, you virgin daughter of Bavel! Sit on the ground, not on a throne, daughter of the Kasdim! No longer are you to be called dainty and delicate." Bavel is Babylon.
Jeremiah 14:17. "You are to give them this message: 'Let my eyes stream with tears night and day, unceasingly, because the virgin daughter of my people has been severely broken; she has been dealt a crushing blow." Literally the virgin of the daughter of my people.
Jeremiah 18:13. "Therefore, ADONAI says this: 'Ask among the nations who has heard anything like this. The virgin Isra'el has done a most horrible thing."
Jeremiah 31:3(4) "Once again, I will build you; you will be rebuilt, virgin of Isra'el. Once again, equipped with your tambourines, you will go out and dance with the merrymakers." Calling attention to Israel, to those who didn't rebel found grace in His sight and were rebuilt when returning to obedience.
Jeremiah 31:12(13) "Then the virgin will dance for joy, young men and old men together; for I will turn their mourning into joy, comfort and gladden them after their sorrow." After they have been delivered from Satan and Antichrist at Armageddon will come and sing in Zion, flow together and be blessed by Yahusha.
Jeremiah 31:20(21) "Set up road signs, erect guideposts, pay attention to the highway, the path on which you traveled. Come back, virgin Isra'el, come back to these cities of yours!" Same as verse 4 above.
Jeremiah 46:11. "Go up to Gil'ad for its healing resin, virgin daughter of Egypt. You try many medicines, all in vain; for you there is no cure." Personification of Egypt. There is no healing!
Ezekiel 23:3. "who were whores in Egypt—even as young girls they were whores. There they let their breasts be caressed, and there their virgin nipples were fondled." Two branches (Judah & Samaria) of the same stock even committed whoredom before Mosaic covenant. Fruitful when obedient, unfruitful when not.
Ezekiel 23:8. "She did not give up the whoring she had begun in Egypt, where men had sex with her, fondled her virgin nipples and flooded her with their fornication." Israel's entire history was marked with unfaithfulness because of her attachment to Egypt.
Joel 1:8. "Lament like a virgin wearing sackcloth for the husband of her youth!" The community is addressed here. Pledged to be married - the husband/wife relationship - although still a virgin. Sackcloth for a husband who died before marriage was consummated.
Amos 5:2. "The virgin of Isra'el has fallen; she will not rise again. She lies abandoned on her own soil with no one to lift her up." Personification of Israel deserted. Left like a dead body on the open field.
Lamentations 1:15. "All the strong men within my walls ADONAI has rejected. He has set a specific time for crushing my young men. ADONAI has trodden, like grapes in a winepress, the virgin daughter of Y'hudah." Personification of Judah as in 2 Kings 19:21. In a winepress refers to being trampled.
Lamentations 2:13. "What can be said to you, what can be compared with you, daughter of Yerushalayim? What example can I give to comfort you, virgin daughter of Tziyon? For your downfall is as vast as the sea; who can heal you?" Personification of Jerusalem.
There are 5 (of the 35) in the New Testament.
Matthew 1:22-23. "All this happened in order to fulfil what ADONAI had said through the prophet, "The virgin will conceive and bear a son, and they will call him 'Immanu El." (The name means, "God is with us.") That particular virgin destined for that distinction.
Luke 1:27. "to a virgin engaged to a man named Yosef, of the house of David; the virgin's name was Miryam." As above. Isaiah 7:14 states she will be a virgin so there's no reason to doubt this verse.
Luke 1:34. "How can this be," asked Miryam of the angel, "since I am a virgin?" A question of information not unbelief.
1 Corinthians 7:37. "But if a man has firmly made up his mind, being under no compulsion but having complete control over his will, if he has decided within himself to keep his fiancee a virgin, he will be doing well." In verse 34 above it means to keep pure, Holy and devoted in both body and spirit so there is no distraction to the things of Yehweh (Father). Here, if the father finds it unnecessary to change his plans and the virgin isn't inclined to marry then he will keep her back from marriage.
2 Corinthians 11:2. "For I am jealous for you with God's kind of jealousy; since I promised to present you as a pure virgin in marriage to your one husband, the Messiah;" Signifying special care of virgins, educated to remain pure unto marriage. Also, Paul was jealous to keep his converts like a chaste virgin unto Yahusha. Each man even today must rejoice in his own. Look at each brief description I give and ask Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) to speak to you.
A picture must be building up here of the character, purpose and purity of a virgin before Yahusha (Jesus). It is assumed that the virgin will be pure, Holy and devoted. She will also be mentioned as such even when she has fallen into whoredoms, etc.
There are 13 mentions of virgins in the Complete Jewish Bible. I will just refer (below) to one of these. Thus:
Revelation 14:4. "These are the ones who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins; they follow the Lamb wherever He goes; they have been ransomed from among humanity as firstfruits for God and the Lamb;" To discern purity of character made up of both men (from the preceding statement and women from the following. Haven't corrupted themselves with the Great Whore immoral religion which is coming.
It is also interesting to note that the Matthew 25 (Wise & Foolish Virgins) passage isn't in here. David H. Stern in the Complete Jewish Bible being used here uses the term Bridesmaids rather than Virgins for this passage. Unfortunately, he leaves no description for it in his New Testament Commentary for me to use here. The only other Bible I have which does this is the New Living Translation (NLT). In CJB this is the only passage in the entire Bible where bridesmaids are used. In the NLT, however, there is a reference to the bride and her bridesmaids. Psalms 45:13-15 states: "The bride, a princess, (h1323) looks glorious in her golden gown. In her beautiful robes, she is led to the king, accompanied by her bridesmaids (h1330). What a joyful and enthusiastic procession as they enter the king’s palace!" It sounds quite similar to the Matthew 25 passage doesn't it? I looked up the two terms Bride and Bridesmaid in Strong's Bible for their meanings. It's quite illuminating.
h1323 refers to a daughter (used in the same wide sense as other terms of relationship, literally and figuratively): — apple (of the eye), branch, company, daughter, x first, x old, + owl, town, village.
h1330 refers to a feminine passive participle of an unused root meaning to separate; a virgin (from her privacy); sometimes (by continuation) a bride; also (figuratively) a city or state: — maid, virgin.
Is this referring to the virgins or bridesmaids in Matthew 25 and Revelation 14? It bears closer scrutiny than I'm giving it here. What a thought, though. Look through each word to see what they mean. The bridesmaids knew what they were supposed to do - to participate in the wedding and have themselves and their lamps ready when the bridegroom came. We also know what we are supposed to do. We are to have ourselves ready and our tasks ready when Christ comes. The bridesmaids did not have a huge task and neither do we. But we must be ready. AMaN.