JOSEPH THE HUSBAND OF MARY
JOSEPH THE HUSBAND OF MARY
Two lines of descent from David came together in Jesus. The royal line through Solomon and the kings of Judah came through Joseph, the legal father of Jesus, giving grounds for Jesus right to the throne of David (Mat 1:1-16). The other line, through another of Davids sons, also led to Joseph (Luk 3:23-31).
Possibly, however, the genealogy in Luke is that of Mary, not Joseph. Since the genealogy preserves only the names of the males, Joseph (according to this theory) would be son of Heli only because he was married to Helis daughter; that is, he would be Helis son-in-law.
Both Mat 1:16 and Luk 3:23 emphasize that Joseph was not the natural father of Jesus. Jesus was conceived in the womb of the virgin Mary by the direct activity of Gods Spirit, without the help of any man. It is understandable that Joseph was called the father of Jesus (Joh 1:45; Joh 6:42), because legally he was, but Joseph knew that he was not the cause of Marys pregnancy. When he thought of breaking the engagement with Mary secretly (for he did not want to embarrass her), God told him that Mary was morally blameless and her pregnancy was miraculous (Mat 1:18-25; cf. Luk 1:26-35).
After the birth, Joseph showed a loving concern for both Mary and Jesus, and a readiness to act promptly when God directed him (Mat 2:13-15; Mat 2:19-23). With Mary he took the baby to Jerusalem for the ceremonies required by the Jewish law (Luk 2:22). Later they settled in Nazareth in the north (Mat 2:23), but they went each year to Jerusalem for the Passover (Luk 2:41).
Joseph was a well known carpenter in Nazareth (Mat 13:55) and he taught his carpentry skills to Jesus (Mar 6:3). Apparently he was no longer alive when Jesus engaged in his public ministry, as the Gospel writers do not mention him in references to current members of Jesus family (Mat 13:55-56; Mar 6:3; Joh 19:26-27). The brothers and sisters of Jesus were probably children of Mary and Joseph, born to them once they began sexual relations after the birth of Jesus (Mat 1:25).