MARY IS PREGNANT!

MARY IS PREGNANT!

Mary Was Engaged to Joseph (Matthew 1:18)

Destined to become companions for life, Joseph and Mary would have come to know each other well as cousins[1] growing up in the small town of Nazareth.[2] Although the Scriptures do not specify the age of Mary or Joseph when they betrothed,[3] such marriage engagements typically took place when about eighteen years old.[4] Ten or twelve months usually passed between the time a couple officially promised themselves to one another and the wedding celebration.[5] Meanwhile, Mary would have lived with her parents in anticipation of the appointed day Joseph would take her to his own home as his wife.

The legal ramifications of a marriage engagement among the ancient Jews differed from those of our society. Once engaged, the betrothal legally bound both parties, even though they would not consummate the marriage until the wedding day. Conditions of the pledge demanded that the woman’s possessions immediately become the legal property of the husband-to-be, a type of guarantee and dowry. Moreover, cancellation of a marriage engagement required a formal, legal divorce.

Joseph Planned to Separate from Her (Matthew 1:19)

Upon returning to Nazareth from her visit with Elizabeth,[6] Mary would have shown physical signs of pregnancy as she entered her second trimester, a first opportunity for Joseph to notice her condition. Agonizing as he discovered his fiancée apparently had intimate relations with another man, Mary’s explanation must have sounded ridiculous to him. Angered, grieved, and humiliated, Joseph contemplated how to proceed.

Termination of a betrothal required a legal divorce and Hebrew law classified sexual breach of a marriage engagement as adultery, punishable by death through stoning.[7] In spite of the situation, Joseph still cared for Mary’s welfare. He planned to end their relationship discreetly instead of making a public example of her, which demonstrated his kind and sensitive spirit.

Joseph’s righteous disposition stands out against the hypocritical actions of Judah, which appear in the Old Testament book of Genesis.[8] Judah found his widowed daughter-in-law, Tamar, pregnant but unmarried. Unlike Joseph, Judah promptly pronounced the severest punishment upon Tamar, unaware that he, himself, had fathered her child in a bizarre twist of events.

Joseph Did as Commanded (Matthew 1:24-25)

After Joseph decided to end his marriage commitment, God sent an angel to intervene. Through a dream, the angel confirmed to Joseph, “Do not be afraid to accept Mary as your fiancée, because that which is in her has been created through the Holy Spirit.”[9]

Complex circumstances challenge wisdom, strain relationships, stir emotions erratically, and put faith to the test. Yet, Joseph’s faith endured. He obeyed God and accepted Mary as his fiancée,[10] exactly as instructed.

All for Jesus,

cbagby@BurningHeartBibleStudies.com
www.BurningHeartBibleStudies.com

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[1] Jewish civil law permitted first cousins to marry. God never prohibited such marriage in His Scriptures. For a list of intimate relationships forbidden by God for the Israelites, read Leviticus 18:5-24. For additional information regarding the family relationship of Joseph and Mary, see the book Born to Die (by Chuck Bagby), “Chapter 2 – Kings & Scoundrels: Jesus’ Ancestors,” heading “Jacob Fathered Joseph (Matthew 1:16),” subheading “Overlapping Family Lines.”

[2] Luke 1:26-27; 2:4-5

[3] A betrothal refers to a marriage engagement.

[4] New Edition of the Babylonian Talmud, Volume 1, Translated by Michael Rodkinson, New Talmud Publishing Company, 100 Boylston St., Boston, MA, USA, (1896, p. 133, Tract Aboth, Tosephtha-Aboth of R. Nathan, Mishna EE)

[5] Genesis 24:55; Deuteronomy 20:7; Judges 14:7-8

[6] Luke 1:5-56

[7] Deuteronomy 22:23-24

[8] Genesis 38:1-26

[9] Matthew 1:20 Bagby Translation

[10] Joseph “did as the angel of the Lord had commanded” and accepted Mary as his fiancée, instead of separating from her as he had planned (Matthew 1:24 Bagby Translation). They did not become husband and wife at that time, for Luke notes they remained “engaged” some time later when they departed for Bethlehem (Luke 2:4-5 New American Standard - Updated).