From: Ben Crick (ben.crick@argonet.co.uk)
Date: Mon Dec 22 1997 - 21:34:06 EST
On Mon 22 Dec 97 (09:22:44), rhutchin@aol.com wrote:
> Is it clear in Luke 3:23 that Luke intends to convey the information
> that Joseph was not the father of Jesus so that Jesus was not the
> physical son of Joseph and that Jesus was the physical grandson (at the
> least) of Heli? Or is such a conclusion subject to one's interpretation
> of the Greek?
The genealogies in Matthew 1 and Luke 3 are both ostensibly of Joseph, not
of Mary. But whereas Matthew 1:16 gives Jacob as the father of Joseph, Luke
3:23 states that Joseph was the son of Heli.
We know that Mary had a sister (John 19:25), but nowhere is a brother
mentioned. So if Heli had no son, according to the precedent set by the
daughters of Zelophehad, his inheritance would pass to his nearest male
relative, in this case his son-in-law (Numbers 27:1-11), provided he was
of the same tribe (Numbers 36:1-9). Therefore, we should read in Luke 3:23
that Joseph was *son-in-law* of Heli. The Greek says simply IWSHF TOU hHLI,
not IWSHF _hUIOS_ TOU hELI.
So Heli was *Mary's* father, and Mary was descended from David. Gabriel's
words to Mary "the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father
David" (Luke 1:32) would seem to confirm this.
The purpose of the biblical genealogies is to prove the right of a king to
rule, or of a priest to officiate. This was very important at the time of
Ezra after the Exile. In modern Israel, a Jew is one whose mother is a Jew.
It is interesting that although paternity is the norm, when it comes to the
Kings of Judah (as opposed to the kings of the Northern Kingdom), the king's
mother's name is also given. This increases the likelihood that Luke's
genealogy is that of Mary.
Church-traditional Mariology gives Joachim and Hannah as the parents of Mary,
but this is extra-biblical and legendary.
-- Ben Crick <ben.crick@argonet.co.uk> ZFC S Acorn RiscPC 700, 37 MB, not yet StrongArm, USR 14.4 Coming to you from Birchington near Margate in Kent.
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