Is The Perpetual Virginity Of Mary A Biblical View?

Is The Perpetual Virginity Of Mary A Biblical View? 

Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI 

Biblical Authority Ministries, May 31, 2025 (Donate) 

Mary, the mother of Jesus, was an incredible woman. In fact, precious few women’s names could even be mentioned to give her a “run for her money.” In fact, God honored Mary in a way that all other women could only dream about. 

The Lord favored her for an event that had been long awaited since the Genesis 3:15 prophesy of the Seed of a woman (i.e., the Virgin Birth). Luke 1 describes it: 

And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”

But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”

And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.” (Luke 1:28–35, NKJV) 

Mary was a virgin who was to conceive by being overshadowed by the Holy Spirit and give birth to the Son of God. Few in Christian realms would deny Mary was a virgin and remained a virgin through pregnancy and the birth of Christ. This was the ultimate fulfillment of a prophecy from Isaiah: 

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, emphasis added) 

However, Mary’s virginity after the birth of Christ can become a heated debate in some circles. Though some may think this is a Roman Catholic versus Protestant view, it is not. Many Protestants, including people like Martin Luther and John Calvin, have held to Mary remaining a virgin for the duration of her life. Let’s look at the issues in a little more detail.     

Statue of the Holy Family, Picture by Bodie Hodge

What Does The Bible State? 

Two different Gospels accounts state Mary had other sons and daughters.[1] These accounts even give the names of the sons. 

“Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this Man get all these things?” (Matthew 13:55–56, NKJV) 

“Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?” So they were offended at Him. (Mark 6:3, NKJV) 

Some have suggested these brothers and sisters were cousins or more distant relations. If true, why didn’t the writers use the Greek term for cousins (anepsios)? The Greek word did exist and was used in Scripture (Colossians 4:10). 

If they were more distant relatives, then why not use a Greek word that meant relatives (suggenes), such as the one describing Mary and Elizabeth’s relational status in Luke 1:36? Why did Matthew and Mark use the words most commonly translated as brothers (adelphos) and sisters (adelphē)? In any other context no one would have questioned this meaning. 

A logical point concerning this passage was brought up by expositor Adam Clarke in his commentary: 

Why should the children of another family be brought in here to share a reproach which it is evident was designed for Joseph the carpenter, Mary his wife, Jesus their son, and their other children? Prejudice apart, would not any person of plain common sense suppose, from this account, that these were the children of Joseph and Mary, and the brothers and sisters of our Lord, according to the flesh?[2] 

It seems rather obvious that these Gospel accounts refer to Joseph’s and Mary’s children. Why would these people criticize Jesus by mentioning his father (as they presumed) and mother and then seemingly switch to distant relatives? 

The Apostle Paul also claimed that Jesus had at least one brother. Concerning his first trip to Jerusalem after his conversion, Paul wrote, “But I saw none of the other apostles except James, the Lord’s brother” (Galatians 1:19, NKJV). 

The first chapter of Acts tells how the disciples met to select a replacement for Judas. Luke specifically singled out Mary and the brothers of Jesus.  

Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey. And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers. (Acts 1:12–14, NKJV) 

To claim Mary was a perpetual virgin even after Christ was born is to deny the words of the Apostle Matthew, who wrote, “Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS” (Matthew 1:24–25, emphasis added). 

“Knew” was a modest way of describing sexual relations in ancient times. For example, Adam knew Eve, and she conceived Cain, and he knew her again, and she bore Seth (Genesis 4:1, 25). Cain knew his wife, and she bore Enoch (Genesis 4:17). 

If Joseph never knew Mary at all, the phrase “till she had brought forth her firstborn Son” is pointless. Obviously, Joseph did not sleep with Mary until after she gave birth to Jesus, fulfilling both parts of the prophecy (virginal conception and virgin birth, as Isaiah 7:14 states, “the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son,” emphasis added). But this means Joseph did know her after she gave birth to Jesus, so she was no longer a virgin. 

In fact, sex within marriage is not a sin but is a creation ordinance within marriage that existed prior to sin and the Curse. Jesus quoted Genesis 2:24 in Matthew 19:5–6, reiterating “the two shall be one flesh.”   

Consider that God commanded people to be fruitful and multiply in Genesis 1:28 and twice in Genesis 9 (verses 1 and 7). Malachi 2:14–15 indicates one reason for marriage is to have godly offspring. Why would Mary be disobedient to God? Since she was truly a godly woman, she would have respected His commands and honor them. Having at least two daughters and five sons would indeed be fulfilling God’s commands to be fruitful and multiply.     

The following Gospel account provides more evidence Jesus had siblings: 

While He was still talking to the multitudes, behold, His mother and brothers stood outside, seeking to speak with Him. Then one said to Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak with You.”

But He answered and said to the one who told Him, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?” And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother.” (Matthew 12:46–50, NKJV) 

This event is also described in Mark 3:32–35 and Luke 8:19–21. Here Christ indicated a distinction between His fleshly brothers and mother and His spiritual brothers and mother. This account also further corroborates the idea that Jesus had brothers.  

When Did The Idea Of Mary Being A “Virgin Forever” Begin?

The idea of the perpetual virginity of Mary comes from a dubious apocryphal book written well after the New Testament. The book is called the Infancy Gospel of James, The Protoevangelium of James, or sometimes simply Protoevangelium, and it is estimated to have been written in the middle part of the second century. 

Authoritative works were those written by apostles or their close associates. A host of false teachings and books came out after the canonical books. Some were written by well-intentioned Christians, some by Gnostics (thinking they had secret knowledge of God), and others by pagans of the day. Some of these books challenged New Testament teachings while others tried to fill in information.  

Often, people tried to associate a particular writing with one of the apostles to give it a little more credibility. However, the church usually recognized easily what the apostles had written. But this didn’t stop the controversies, nor did it prevent some Christians from being led astray. Even today, people are often led astray, even Christians, by things they read concerning the Bible.  

The Protoevangelium of James is like other forgeries trying to capitalize on an apostle. James, the half-brother of Jesus, was elevated to an apostle after he believed and saw the resurrected Savior (Galatians 1:19; 1 Corinthians 15:7). So, some people thought using his name would give some much-needed credibility to the book. 

However, the church rightly recognized this book was not from the Apostle James. The early church father Origen wrote a commentary on Matthew in which he rejected the Protoevangelium of James as spurious and affirmed Mary had other children.[3] 

The concept of Mary’s perpetual virginity is conveniently explained in The Protoevangelium of James since James is viewed as an older step-brother brother of Jesus being a child of Joseph and his first wife, prior to his marriage to Mary. 

However, there are a number of mistakes in this book and statements which contradict the Bible that an apostle writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit would not make. 

Table of some contradictions between The Protoevangelium of James and the Bible: 

	Protoevangelium of James[4]	The Bible
1	Gabriel is called an archangel (Chapter 9:22), which was a common designation for Gabriel in apocryphal literature written after the first century. (For example, see Revelation of Paul, The Book of John Concerning the Falling Asleep of Mary, and The Apocalypse of the Holy Mother of God.)	The Bible never identifies Gabriel as an archangel, but Michael is described as an archangel in Jude 1:9. The idea of Gabriel as an archangel seems to be a misconception that began in the second century.
2	Mary’s response to the angel is different than what is recorded in Scripture. “What! Shall I conceive by the living God, and bring forth as all other women do?” (Chapter 9:12).[5]	Luke 1:34 states, “Then Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I do not know a man?’”
3	Elizabeth fled the Bethlehem region with her son John (the Baptist) to the mountains because of Herod’s wrath when he decided to kill all the baby boys around and in Bethlehem (Chapter 16:3).	Concerning John the Baptist, Luke 1:80 states, “So the child grew and became strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.” It was Joseph, Mary, and Jesus who fled from Bethlehem because of Herod (Matthew 2:13–15).
4	Jesus was born in a cave outside the city of Bethlehem (Chapters 12:11–14:31).	Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the town of David, according to Luke 2:4, 11 and Matthew 2:1.
5	The angel of the Lord, when speaking to Joseph in a dream, said to take Mary but does not mention having her as a wife. The priest chastised Joseph and accused him for taking Mary as a wife secretly by the priest. Joseph takes her home but is reluctant to call her his wife when they go to Bethlehem (Chapters 10:17–18, 11:14, 12:2–3).	Matthew 1:19 reveals that Joseph was already Mary’s husband (they were betrothed) before the angel visited him in a dream. Matthew 1:24 points out that after the angel visited Joseph, he kept her as his wife.
6	Mary wrapped Jesus in swaddling cloths and hid him in a manger at the inn to keep him from the massacre by Herod’s men (Chapter 16:2).	Mary and Joseph were warned of Herod’s plot by an angel, and they fled to Egypt (Matthew 2:13–14).
7	Wise men came to Bethlehem and inquired of Herod where the Child was born (Chapter 21:1–2).	Wise men came to Jerusalem to inquire where the child king was (Matthew 2:1).

Conclusion

The Protoevangelium of James contains the first known mention of Mary’s continual virginity. Likely, this book influenced subsequent people to write of the perpetual virginity of Mary. 

But the book was not the work of the Apostle James, the brother of Christ. The work’s demotion by the early church, especially its non-inclusion with other books of the canon due to its numerous errors, is further verification it was not authentic. 

Keep in mind that no passage of Scripture states Mary perpetually remained a virgin and many state the opposite. So to make a case for the perpetual virginity of Mary, one must use ideas that come from outside the Bible and then reinterpret Scripture with some wild hermeneutical gymnastics. This would be appealing to fallible, sinful ideas that originate in the minds of mankind—not God. 

Why not trust God when He speaks? After all, it would not be a sin for Mary to have sexual relations with her husband Joseph, but it would have been sinful for her to withhold herself from him throughout their marriage (1 Corinthians 7:3–5). There is no biblical or logical reason why Mary would have needed to remain a virgin following the birth of Christ. 

The issue is quite simple: should we trust the imperfect sources and traditions that come from outside of Scripture and contradict it or should we trust God’s Word?  

Originally here: https://answersingenesis.org/bible-characters/is-the-perpetual-virginity-of-mary-a-biblical-view/; Republished by permission.  

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[1] Some have suggested that Joseph may have died before fathering children with Mary so that these sons and daughters were the children of Mary and another husband. However, it seems unlikely that Jesus would have been called “the carpenter’s son” if His earthly father had died some 20–30 years earlier. Furthermore, even the people in Capernaum (roughly 20 miles from Nazareth) recognized Him as “the son of Joseph” and claimed to “know” (present tense) His father and mother (John 6:42). Although the Bible does not record Joseph’s death, it likely happened prior to the Lord’s Crucifixion since Jesus entrusted John with the care of His mother (John 19:27).

[2] Adam Clarke, Clarke’s Commentary, electronic edition (New York: Carlton & Phillips, 1853), Matthew 13:55.

[3] Origen's Commentary on Matthew in Ante-Nicene Fathers Volume IX. http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf09.xvi.ii.iii.xvii.html. 

[4] Quotations are from The Protoevangelium of James, translated by Alexander Walker, Esq., in Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, The Ante-Nicene Fathers, electronic ed., (Garland, TX: Galaxie Software, 2000).

[5] Another translation of this work is available at http://ministries.tliquest.net/theology/apocryphas/nt/protevan.htm. Mary’s reply is rendered differently in this version, in which she replied, “What! By the living God, shall I conceive and bring forth as all other women do?” The angel responded, “Not so, O Mary, but the Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” This version makes better sense, since the angel corrects her thinking that this would occur via natural means. Walker’s translation (cited in the table) makes little sense. Mary assumes it would be a supernatural conception, and then the angel “corrects” her by telling her it would be supernatural. However, both versions of The Protoevangelium of James have Mary knowing more at this point than she does in the biblical account. In the Bible Mary wonders how she could become pregnant since she was a virgin. In The Protoevangelium of James, she seems to guess right away that this would be a supernatural event.

Joseph

What happened to Joseph, the one thought to be Jesus’s father?

Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

Biblical Authority Ministries, November 21, 2024 (Donate)

After Jesus was born, there wasn’t much said of Joseph but a few things can be ascertained from the Scriptures. 

We know Joseph was a carpenter (Matthew 13:55) and surely taught Jesus a fair bit about carpentry during His youth (Mark 6:3). These same two passages (Matthew 13:55 and Mark 6:3) reveal that Jesus had other brothers and sisters such as James, Joses, Simon, and Judas.  Therefore, Joseph and Mary had other children after Jesus. [1]

We are not told how many sisters Jesus had, but the plural “sisters” in Mark 6:3 suggests at least two. Assuming there were at least two sisters and four brothers, Joseph surely lived several years after Jesus’s birth to have fathered at least six children with Mary (in obedience to Genesis 1:28 and 9:7) and to have trained Jesus in carpentry. There is no indication that these children were twins or triplets either.

With Jesus being the oldest and having younger siblings, as well as other relatives and acquaintances, it makes sense why Mary and Joseph failed to realize where Jesus, their perfect child, was when He stayed behind at the Temple during His first phase of adulthood (Luke 2:42-45).

Joseph was not wealthy. He did honest work as a carpenter. When Mary and Joseph presented sacrifices for Mary’s purification after she gave birth to Jesus, they offered a sacrifice of turtledoves or pigeons (Luke 2:22-24).

It was common for young men in Israel who had used their savings to prepare a place for their bride (e.g., a bridal chamber) and to pay the bride price to the bride’s family. The young groom would often use his remaining funds for basic living expenses to take a year off, in keeping with Deuteronomy 24:5, which says:

When a man has taken a new wife, he shall not go out to war or be charged with any business; he shall be free at home one year, and bring happiness to his wife whom he has taken. (NKJV)

According to the Law of Moses if someone could afford it, they were to bring a lamb for sacrifice but due to their lowly and modest status, they brought turtledoves or pigeons (Leviticus 12:1-6) at least during the early and poorer stages of their marriage. They were truly without riches.

However, one can’t help but miss that Mary and Joseph did bring to the Temple the perfect and infinite Lamb of God who would later be sacrificed. Any sacrifice, prior to the actual sacrifice, must be examined to be sure it is without blemish. In one sense, Jesus’ inspection by the Simeon at the Temple, being filled with the Holy Spirit, affirmed His perfection when he said in Luke 2:29-32:

 “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word; For my eyes have seen Your salvation Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, A light to [bring] revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.” (NKJV)

The sacrifice of the perfect Christ was prepared by a perfect God in advance, and here He was. Of course, the rich gifts given by the wise men surely helped fund the trip to Egypt which soon followed. Returning to Joseph:

Now Jesus Himself began [His ministry at] about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) [the] son of Joseph, [the son] of Heli. (Luke 3:23, NKJV)  

In Luke 3:23, Jesus began his ministry when he was about 30 years old.  In the latter portion of the verse, it indicates that people thought He was the son of Joseph. The verb used in the Greek is in the present indicative implying that Joseph was still alive at this time.  

So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?” (Luke 4:22, NKJV)

Later in Luke 4:22, when Jesus was speaking with great wisdom, the people asked, “isn’t this Joseph’s son?” The verb form translated here indicates that it was also a present event implying that Joseph was still alive at this time and people knew who he was in that area.  

And they said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” (John 6:42, NKJV)

Also, in John 6:42, it is translated as present tense when referring to Joseph. This was when Jesus was revealing that he came down from heaven after Jesus began his ministry, contradicting their belief that He was Joseph's biological son.

After these events, nothing else is directly revealed from the Bible. It is highly probable that Joseph died during Jesus’s ministry for a couple of reasons.

The first is so that the people wouldn’t be confused to whom Jesus was speaking on the cross, when He said “Father forgive them for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). The centurion and others recognized this was not His earthly father but referring to God the Father and believed. Had Joseph been there, there may have been confusion to whom Jesus was speaking.

Mary was present at the Cross and there is no reason Joseph wouldn’t have been there for such an ordeal, unless he had already passed on. Also, Mary is recorded immediately after this in Acts 1:14 without reference to Joseph being present. Since Joseph was not with her when she met with the apostles [and Jesus’s brothers] in Acts 1, it could be an indication that Joseph had indeed passed into glory.

Furthermore, the apostle John (the disciple that Jesus loved) was tasked to take care of Mary (John 19:25-27), implying Joseph was no longer alive to have such duties. Those duties would have passed to Jesus, the eldest, who was then in charge of assigning her into John’s care.

Recall, Jesus was about 30 when He went into ministry (Luke 3:23) and early in Jesus’s ministry, Joseph is mentioned in the present tense (e.g., John 6:42). Many of his younger siblings were surely old enough to be living on their own—perhaps involved in carpentry themselves.

In light of this information, consider another passage that has Joseph conspicuously missing. After Jesus had been in ministry an interesting situation arose that we sometimes don’t ask why it happened. It is recorded in parallel in Matthew 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-34, and Luke 8:19-21. The account in Luke is repeated below:

19  Then His mother and brothers came to Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd. 20  And it was told Him by some, who said, “Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You.” 21  But He answered and said to them, “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it.”  (NKJV)

Often commentators speak about the spiritual significance of the passage and rightly so—that should not be neglected. However, I have often pondered why they needed to see Jesus so bad as to interrupt His preaching to a multitude of people in another town no less. What was so urgent that Christ’s mother and some grown brothers are willing to interrupt Him?   

Why was Jesus’ family assembled together and be so bold as to interrupt His preaching? Who was absent? Joseph. Is it possible that Joseph had died and therefore Christ’s family reunited together and came to inform Jesus? Was that the urgent desire? It is indeed possible.

Not long after, was when Mary was put into John’s care at the Cross by Jesus, which means Jesus, the eldest son, was clearly responsible for Mary’s care at this point. This means Joseph was no longer on the scene and likely had died and these passages seem to give a possible reason why. Take note that Jesus’s brothers did not believe in Him when He died on the Cross (John 7:5). Later at least two brothers believed— the book of Jude and James are written by the half-brothers of the Lord.

But I saw none of the other apostles except James, the Lord’s brother. (Galatians 1:19, NKJV)

James, the brother of Jesus, was later called an apostle by Paul in Galatians 1:19. There were other apostles like Barnabas (Acts 14:14) and Paul but they are not to be confused with the Twelve. At the Cross, Jesus’s brothers were not believers yet so Jesus put Mary into the care of John and rightly so—it was His duty. Consider the words revealed in the church for caring about widows.

“If any believing man or woman has widows, let them relieve them, and do not let the church be burdened, that it may relieve those who are really widows.” (1 Timothy 5:16 NKJV) 

One needed to be a believing man or woman to be in their care. Since Jesus brothers were not believing at the time and Mary needed care, she was entrusted to a believing man—John the apostle.

There is a debatable letter from Mary written in response to John’s disciple Ignatius recorded in the writings of Ignatius (early church father writings). Both are below:

THE EPISTLE OF IGNATIUS TO THE VIRGIN MARY

Her friend Ignatius to the Christ-bearing Mary.

THOU oughtest to have comforted and consoled me who am a neophyte,

and a disciple of thy [beloved] John. For I have heard things wonderful to

tell respecting thy [son] Jesus, and I am astonished by such a report. But I

desire with my whole heart to obtain information concerning the things

which I have heard from thee, who wast always intimate and allied with

Him, and who wast acquainted with [all] His secrets. I have also written to

thee at another time, and have asked thee concerning the same things. Fare

thou well; and let the neophytes who are with me be comforted of thee,

and by thee, and in thee. Amen.

 

REPLY OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN TO THIS LETTER.

The lowly handmaid of Christ Jesus to Ignatius, her beloved fellow disciple.

THE things which thou hast heard and learned from John concerning Jesus

are true. Believe them, cling to them, and hold fast the profession of that

Christianity which thou hast embraced, and conform thy habits and life to

thy profession. Now I will come in company with John to visit thee, and

those that are with thee. Stand fast in the faith, and show thyself a man;

nor let the fierceness of persecution move thee, but let thy spirit be strong

and rejoice in God thy Savior. Amen.

If this is accurate, this is significant. This show that Mary was still in the care of John and apparently even accompanied him on some trips after Jesus’ ascension.

Though I’m not adamant that Matthew 12:46-50, Mark 3:31-34, and Luke 8:19-21 were directly related to Joseph’s death, it is highly possible and makes a lot of sense of Joseph’s absence. I would like to see theologians and historians hash this out more. 

 

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[1] http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2011/05/31/perpetual-virginity-mary

Mary The Favored One

Mary—The Favored One

Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

Biblical Authority Ministries, July 19, 2022 (Donate)

No doubt, Mary was amazing! Let’s explore a few aspects of Mary that often go overlooked. First let’s start with some Scripture.

Selected Passages About The Marian Account (NKJV) 

Matthew 1:18-25

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19  Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.

20  But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21  “And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.” 22  So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:

23  “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”

24  Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, 25  and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.

Luke 1:26-38

26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27  to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.

28  And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” 29  But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.

30  Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31  “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. 32  “He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33  “And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

34  Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” 35  And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.

36  “Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. 37  “For with God nothing will be impossible.”

38  Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. 

Parallels Between Mary and Eve 

Although there are many parallels that can be drawn from Adam, the first man who led man into death and Jesus who is called the Last/Second Adam who rescues man from death (e.g., 1 Corinthians 15:45), some also draw parallels between Eve and Mary.

Eve was the mother of all the living (Genesis 3:20), Mary was the mother of Jesus (Acts 1:14) who is The Life (e.g., John 14:6) and Creator of all life who became flesh (e.g., John 1, Hebrews 1, Colossians 1).

Sometimes we miss a simple connection that Mary is a direct descendant of Eve and both are made in the image of God (hence, people have eternal value because man is made in God’s eternal image). And we all share these commonalities with Mary in that we are descendants of Adam and Eve and made in the image of God. 

Church fathers and commentators uniformly believed that Eve was a virgin when she and Adam fell into sin—which was very soon after their creation. Based on this, there are some parallels that follow. Consider both Eve and Mary in this state when they made the decision to either follow the Word of the Lord or go against it.

Early church father Justin Martyr (~AD 100-165) writes in his Dialogue with Trypho, chapter 100:

“…and that He became man by the Virgin, in order that the disobedience which proceeded from the serpent might receive its destruction in the same manner in which it derived its origin. For Eve, who was a virgin and undefiled, having conceived the word of the serpent, brought forth disobedience and death. But the Virgin Mary received faith and joy, when the angel Gabriel announced the good tidings to her that the Spirit of the Lord would come upon her, and the power of the Highest would overshadow her: wherefore also the Holy Thing begotten of her is the Son of God; and she replied, ‘Be it unto me according to thy word.’”

Irenaeus (~AD 130-202), the Bishop of Lyons and early church father, in his book Against Heresies chapter 22 relates that Mary followed the Word of the Lord where Eve neglected it. One virgin was drawn into disobedience where the other was drawn to obedience according to Irenaeus. Recall that Eve sinned (Genesis 3) prior to the Bible telling us that she knew (i.e., having sexual relations with) Adam, which did not occur until Genesis 4:1.

Adam and Eve had perfect bodies and should have had no problem conceiving on the first try. Yet they sinned prior to conceiving their first child Cain.

Both Eve and Mary saw a personal taste of the Lord’s command in Genesis 3:16 that there would be pain and sorrows in childbearing—not just with childbirth, but each saw one of their children put to death. For Eve, it was Abel murdered by Cain and for Mary, it was obviously the crucifixion of Jesus.

The Hebrew terms for pain and sorrows in childbearing also includes grieving and worrisome anguish which is directly related to the excruciating pain a parent feels seeing one of their own children die.

Mary’s Features Are Largely Unknown

We are given very little about Mary’s actual physical appearance. With Jesus, the Old Testament prophesied a little about His appearance in human form:

For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. (Isaiah 53:2-3, NASB)

She was surely a young lady—yet clearly old enough to bear children and be betrothed and married per parental permission. This means she was properly beyond the “Flower of Age” or “Flower of Youth” (e.g., 1 Corinthians 7:36).

But if any man thinks he is behaving improperly toward his virgin, if she is past the flower of youth, and thus it must be, let him do what he wishes. He does not sin; let them marry. (1 Corinthians 7:36, NKJV)

Mary’s physical features were likely similar to Jewish ladies from Israel 2,000 years ago such as long hair (e.g., 1 Corinthians 11:15) with respectful and modest apparel (consider 1 Timothy 2:9-10). But that then begs the question about cultural features—what did Jewish ladies look like back then in their physical traits?

If we to look at people in Nazareth or Bethlehem today it is different from back then. Today, many Israelites that have returned to Israel had been gone from their homeland since about AD 70 to other places. Though, some had sprinkled their way back to the land of Judea/Israel since the first century, most have been re-migrating there since World War II. After the Jewish War with Rome in the AD 60s-70s, there were two places that Jews ended up. They are:

·       Germany and the regions surrounding it to escape the Romans (what we call Germania was largely descendants of Noah’s great grandson Ashkenaz) and Jews who lived in that region are still called the Ashkenazi Jews. They fled there since Rome’s grip hadn’t conquered many parts of Germany when the Jews went to war against Rome about 2,000 years ago in the latter part of the first century.

·       Sephardic Jews who were largely taken into captivity to Spain, Portugal, and North Africa by the Romans after the Jewish War with Rome about AD 70.  Many Jews were expelled from Spain due to the Alhambra Decree in 1492 due to Roman Catholicism. Some returned to Israel at that point

In both cases, there has been some intermixing with locals over 2,000 years. Hence, many Ashkenazi Jews have many physical features that are similar to Europeans and many Sephardic Jews have physical features similar to the places they were at as well (e.g., Spain, etc.).

Nevertheless, it is possible to have features common to many Middle Eastern persons today—especially those who claim descent from Abraham, like the Israelites, Arabs, etc. But that also gives you a bigger range than you might realize as Abraham’s descendants have mixed with hosts of people throughout the Middle East too!

The point is that we cannot be certain as to how Mary looked but she was certainly modest and respectful in her decorum.

Early Image Of Mary

First Known Image of Mary is the title of the earliest surviving image we have of Mary. It is in a fragment of the fresco from the catacomb of Priscilla, which is in Rome. Its origin is estimated at AD 150-170.

In the image, Mary is holding baby Jesus in her lap and wearing what experts suggest is a woolen matron garment and a dedicated virgin veil. Many images of Mary later on also have her sporting a virgin veil when depicted with the baby Jesus. Perhaps this was a carryover from even earlier times!

Although the detail is significantly lacking we can still learn a lot from this. She was indeed modest in her clothing, as would be expected due to Scripture.

Mary’s Lineage

Jesus is a physical descendant of Mary, even though she was overshadowed by the Holy Spirit to remain a virgin for the miraculous conception. Take note that it is a miraculous conception/fertilization, not a miraculous birth. The birth was normal, outside of the fact that Mary was still virgin when giving birth.  

Why do Jesus’ lineages listed in the Bible both link to Joseph (Jesus’ supposed father) in Matthew 1:16 and Luke 3:23?

Matthew 1:16
And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.

Luke 3:23
Now Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, the son of Heli.

The obvious answer is that one of these lineages is Mary’s line and the reason Joseph is listed this way is to reveal her legal genealogy—which is listed as the husband (i.e., the male).

Before we dive into to the details, a few preliminary comments need to be addressed. Luke’s genealogy is complete, and Matthew’s is merely a selected one. Matthew’s genealogy was not meant to be complete according to Matthew 1:17, where it is specifically broken into groups of 14.

The two genealogies trace through two of David’s sons, and both trace to Abraham. Matthew focuses on the kingly relationship through David and, ultimately, to the Jewish patriarch Abraham. However, Luke doesn’t stop there. He continues to trace Christ’s genealogy back to Adam. Luke focuses more on the humanity of Christ going back to Adam, where sin and death first entered into creation—hence the need for a Savior in the first place.

Another note is that both genealogies are aware of Mary’s virgin birth. For example Matthew says: “Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom (feminine) was born Jesus.” Luke is more obvious in that he says: “being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph.”

With regards to the alleged “two fathers” of Joseph, the explanation of the differences between Matthew 1 and Luke 3 is quite simple. Luke traced Christ’s lineage through Mary, while Matthew traced it through Joseph.

Matthew’s Genealogy

One of the main reasons Matthew is recording Joseph’s lineage is due to Jeconiah (variant spellings: Jechonias, Jehoiakim). He is listed in Matthew 1:11. Because of Jeconiah’s actions, a prophecy came down that none of his descendants would ever sit on the throne of David. Jesus, who forever sits on this throne, could not have been a physical descendant of Jeconiah (Jeremiah 22:30). A virgin birth would obviously prevent this.

This indicates that Matthew’s genealogy is Joseph’s, and this confirms the significance of the feminine verbiage. When Matthew mentioned Joseph’s wife, Mary, at the end of the genealogical list, he used the feminine form for the parent of Jesus. This reveals that Jesus was indeed Mary’s son and not Joseph’s.

Luke’s Genealogy

When looking at Luke 3, the genealogical list is strictly men from Jesus to Adam, whereas in Matthew’s list, some women were included, such as Tamar, Ruth, and so on. So, if this were a genealogy of Mary, then she would be listed.

Joseph, when he married Mary, became the son of Heli according to the Law of Moses and could legally be included in the genealogy. Hence, this lineage is the legal genealogy.

Moreover, in the genealogy, Heli is listed as the father of Joseph, who had 2 daughters. The first is Mary, and the other was the wife of Cleopas also rendered Mary (John 19:25).[1] When there were no sons to preserve the inheritance in accordance with the Law of Moses (Numbers 27:1–11; Numbers 36:1–12), the husband would become the son upon marriage to keep up the family name. Therefore, Joseph, when he married Mary, became the son of Heli according to the Law of Moses and could legally be included in the genealogy in the all-male listing.

Also, in Luke’s genealogy the form is different from that of Matthew’s. Matthew’s list gives the father and who they begot (Greek gennao). In Luke the form is different, where X is the son of Y. But more precisely, the word son is absent in Greek, but only inserted into English so we can better understand it. The only place where son is used in the Greek is in verse 23 where Jesus was the supposed son of Joseph, of Heli, of Matthat, of Levi, and so on.

Luke is being very precise. Jesus was thought to be the son of Joseph, who was of Heli. Notice that Luke never said that Joseph was the son of Heli in the Greek. This reduces any alleged contradiction to nothing and shows that Luke’s genealogy is Mary’s—with Joseph’s name listed due to inheritance laws—and Matthew’s genealogy is Joseph’s.

Mary’s Family and Home 

Mary’s father was Heli (Luke 3:23) a variation of the name Eli (Likewise, Mary is a variation of the name Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron). Heli, Mary’s father, is listed in the legal genealogy of Jesus in Luke 3 where Joseph’s name is listed as the legal son or as we say today “son-in-law” (since it is all males listed in the legal genealogy). Yet Joseph’s partial genealogy lists his father in Matthew 1.

Joseph’s father was Jacob (Matthew 1:16). One can’t help but see the parallel to Jacob of old having a son named Joseph—one of his twelve sons (and one daughter Dinah per Genesis 34:1).

Mary had a large extended family that included Elizabeth but many others who we are not given the details (Luke 2:42-45). Technically, all of Israel is related, going back to Israel (AKA Jacob) but even so, Joseph and Mary both were related to many in Bethlehem directly and indirectly. Both have lineages to David and hence they went to the city of David, which is Bethlehem to register for the census (Luke 2:1-5)

Mary and Joseph lived in Nazareth, then lived in Bethlehem, then lived in Egypt, then lived back in Nazareth and Jesus later lived in Capernaum (Matthew 4:13) when he began his ministry. Mary may have lived there for a time when in Jesus’ care prior to Jesus putting her into John’s care on the cross. 

Mary also had a sister (e.g., John 19:25). Furthermore, we are not revealed what Mary’s mother’s name is either. There are traditions that Mary’s parents’ names were Joachim and Anne but we need to be careful about these names since biblically, we can know that Heli was the father of Mary. 

Marriage Customs And Betrothal 

Marriage has always been a big deal since God created that institution with His formation of Adam and Eve supernaturally [from dust and from Adam’s rib respectively]. Sadly in our culture, marriage has been attacked, demoted, denigrated, and reinterpreted.

These are all part of the modern war on marriage (since the 1960s) by secular humanists and others who neglect God and His Word as the supreme authority and elevate man to be greater than God. But by what authority can anyone object to the absolute authority of God, and by extension His Word? Only by a lesser authority—this is called a faulty appeal to authority fallacy. Our culture is wrong and marriage is between a man and a woman and God’s standard reigns supreme regardless of what any person on the planet may try to argue. 

With that said, understanding marriage 2000 years ago in Israel is much different than today. Even going back to the days of Moses (about 1500 BC), there were stipulations on marriage including a bride price. The potential husband or the groom’s family would pay a bride price to family of the bride (e.g., Exodus 22:16-17 mention it).

Some marriages were done for love while others were arranged by the family. And in many cases, it was both! At the instruction of the father, women of Israel were given in marriage. Even prior to the Flood of Noah (e.g., Luke 17:27) and after the Flood (Genesis 29:28) since the time of Moses (e.g., Judges 12:9) brides and grooms were given in marriage by their parents—namely the father. 

The betrothal period was also very serious (e.g., Deuteronomy 20:7). It is different from today’s engagement. Upon a betrothal, that was essentially the first stage of marriage and to get out of it required a divorce, which was a very disrespectful thing and a result of the hardness of hearts (e.g., Deuteronomy 24:1-4, Matthew 19:8). If a woman was with another man during her betrothal, she could legally be put to death if found guilty. Betrothal was a big deal.  

During the betrothal period a groom would prepare a place for his bride (such as a bridal chamber) in the same way Christ prepares a place for His church, His bride (e.g., John 14:2-3, 2 Corinthians 11:2, Revelation 19:7–9, 21:1-2). Christ will return for His bride. The bridegroom should be earning enough money for the bride price and to take a year off to please his bride (Deuteronomy 24:5). Note the differences in classical biblical marriages customs and modern marriage customs.

With a wedding, there was a wedding feast with a master of the feast (e.g., John 2:1-10) and they required plenty of wine and food to feast on. It was an embarrassment if such provision were not met. This was at the situation at Cana’s wedding feast where Jesus turned water into wine.

Misconceptions About Mary 

Sadly, there are also a lot of misconceptions about Mary. Though we cannot address them all, here are a few prominent ones that need to be discussed in brief.

·       Some have elevated her to be perfect and sinless—which goes against Scripture (e.g., Romans 3:23).

·       Some have suggested she is a “co-redemptix”—don’t let the fancy name scare you—in other words, those in this camp believe that one can be saved through Mary in a similar way that one can be saved through Jesus. However, no one comes to the Father except through Christ (e.g., John 14:6, Acts 4:12). When someone adds Mary as a “second Savior”, it is without basis and an attack on Scripture.

·       Some pray to Mary which neglects that there is one mediator and one intercessor between God and man (e.g., 1 Timothy 2:5, Hebrews 7:25-28). God instructs us to pray to Him (e.g., Psalm 50:15, Matthew 6:9-13).

·       Marian Apparitions—supposed appearances of Mary throughout history into modern times—are dubious. Yet there are those who hold to them as though they were gospel truth. Most of them have been rejected, but some leaders, particularly in Roman Catholicism, hold to certain ones as legitimate where Protestants do not. These alleged private revelations, visions, and prophetic messages are to be viewed as suspect. Though some Christians may respectfully disagree with me, Daniel 9:24-27 indicated that after the Messiah comes and is cut off (crucified) vision and prophecy would be sealed up when holy city (Jerusalem) and the sanctuary (the Temple) were destroyed. This aligns with an older prophecy of Asaph in Psalm 74:1-9 about prophecy ceasing (no more prophets) once the sanctuary (the Temple) is destroyed (consider 1 Corinthians 13:8-10). These things happened in the first century.[2]  So, there should be no visions and prophecies from then until the consummation (Daniel 9:27) thus the canon of Scripture was sealed and sufficient with 66 books in the first century.

·       Some see Mary as a perpetual virgin, which again violates Scripture. She had other children according to the Bible (e.g., Matthew 13:55, Mark 6:3). It is interesting to what the mental gymnastics of adherents [of this view] trying to reinterpret these verses to be cousins, distant relations, adopted children, children of Joseph with another woman, and so on. When people do this, they are elevating their perpetual virgin belief to supersede the plain meaning of the Scriptures to reinterpret God’s Word. In other words, people are erring by demoting God and His Word to be lesser than man’s fallible imperfect opinions. For a detailed refutation of this view please see Is the Perpetual Virginity of Mary a Biblical View?

My hope is that some of these thoughts are a blessing to you. 

 

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[1] Though both are rendered Mary in our English translations there are variations in the name such as Miriam (Hebrew form), Mariam (Greek form), Maria (Greek form) and simply Mary. All can rightly be written as Mary.

[2] If one argues that this was in reference to the first time the Temple and Jerusalem was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, then we have bigger problems because Daniel, Ezekiel, Joel, Jeremiah and Obadiah were still prophesying and having visions before, during, and after that. And there were plenty of prophets that followed after them as well. Furthermore, the Messiah had to come and be cut off first per Daniel and the items in the Temple had to be destroyed (Psalm 74:3) with perpetual desolations. With Nebuchadnezzar, the Temple items carried off and they were later returned when the Temple was rebuilt. The Temple in the Hoy City of Jerusalem (e.g., Nehemiah 11:1, Isaiah 52:1, Matthew 4:5) existed in the Messiah’s Day and is mentioned a number of times in the New Testament and was once measured by John (Revelation 11:1-2). The Romans took the items and destroyed them in the first century and desolations of the Temple remained for nearly 2,000 years now having the Dome of the Rock (a Muslim mosque) in its place—so the first century destruction matched the prophecies. As a point of note, some Christians may disagree with my position and are okay with vision and prophecy not being sealed up but continuing to this day. Other Christians agreed vision and prophecy close but reopen in the last century (Latter rain movement from the early 1900s). These positions have a potential open canon where it is possible to add to the 66 books of the Bible with alleged new prophecies.