“18 Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant from the Holy Spirit. 19 Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to divorce her quietly. 20 But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
23 “Look, the virgin shall become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.” 24 When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife 25 but had no marital relations with her until she had given birth to a son, and he named him Jesus”
Matthew 1:18-25.
We learn two important facts about Mary and Joseph that set up the plot for this scene. First, Mary was betrothed to Joseph. Betrothal is very different from modern-day engagement. Betrothal was the first stage of a two-stage marriage process in ancient Judaism. At betrothal, a man and woman would consent to marry before witnesses, and they would be considered legally married at this point, but they did not yet begin to live together. The wife would remain with her parents for up to one year before the second stage of marriage, known as the “coming together.” This is when the wife would come to live with her husband and the marriage would be consummated.
Matthew explicitly tells us that Mary and Joseph are at the first stage of marriage, that is, betrothal, and that Mary conceived before they lived together—in other words, before the second stage of marriage. Nevertheless, betrothed couples were considered legally married. Therefore, when Mary was found with child through the Holy Spirit, this caused a great dilemma for Joseph. The description of Joseph as a righteous man tells us that he would be very careful to obey the Jewish law. In the Old Testament an adulteress was to be stoned. Deuteronomy 22:13–24 specifically approves stoning when a betrothed woman committed adultery or a betrothed woman was found not to be a virgin when the marriage was consummated. In the first century, however, when the Jews were under Roman rule, capital punishment was prohibited and divorce with a public trial became the standard practice in these situations.
The angel’s address to Joseph as son of David calls attention to Joseph’s own royal heritage and his crucial role of passing on David’s descent to Jesus. Much is at stake if Joseph leaves Mary and does not accept this child. The angel, therefore, tells him, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home—a reference to the second stage of marriage (the coming together under one roof), which Joseph is about to abandon through his quiet divorce. The angel assures Joseph that Mary’s pregnancy did not come about by another man, but through the Holy Spirit, affirming the child’s divine origins. Furthermore, Joseph has an important role to play for this child: you are to name him. To name a child is to claim the child as one’s own. Thus Joseph is being instructed to accept this child as his own son.
The astonishing part of the angel’s announcement at this point, however, is that the angel goes on to say to Joseph that he is to name the child Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins. This is remarkable, first, because of who will bring salvation and, second, because of the kind of salvation he will bring. Joseph is the first person in Matthew’s Gospel to obey God’s command. He did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him.
Now we often think of religion as our human search for God. But Matthew’s opening chapter shows us that Christianity is more about God’s search for us. God’s plan from the beginning of time has been to unite us to him in a communion of love. After Adam and Eve sinned, however, they “hid themselves from the LORD God”
(Genesis 3:8) as they turned away from his love. The rest of salvation history is the story of God ardently seeking us out to heal this broken relationship and gradually restore his presence among us.
In your prayer today consider the “Hound of Heaven” — Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit who is constantly seeking us out to follow Christ and to live faithful lives. Pray that you will live your life — following Christ!
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner.
From the Bible:
“For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps” 1 Peter 2:21.
“Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” Matthew 16:24.
“Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” John 8:12.
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