An article came out yesterday claiming to reveal some new information about Mary and Joseph. Although much of it is correct in light of the Bible, some things seemed to be aimed to discredit the Bible’s account.
Here are some Biblical errors that I noticed while reading the above article from the Magellan Times. I have chosen to number my comments based on the section numbers found in the article.
- Mary and Joseph probably lived with extended family
There is no proof that either Mary or Joseph lived with extended family. Although it may be true, after Mary lived with Elizabeth, the Bible reports that “Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house” (Lu. 1:56). There is no mention of others living with her, although she was probably very young and likely lived with family – even though they are never mentioned or implied. On the other hand, it may also mean that she was older than commonly believed and had “her own house.”
- Mary was betrothed to Joseph for a full year before they married
Just want to comment on this point. It is true that the argument about God being the father of Mary’s child would hardly be convincing – especially to the liberal Sadducees – because they did not believe in the supernatural. Despite common unbelief, Isaiah 7:14 clearly prophesied that a virgin shall one day conceive and that the Child’s Name (“Immanuel”) would mean that He is “God with us”: “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”
- The immaculate conception never happened
This statement is completely contradictory to the Bible and should not be believed. The very possibility that God was not Jesus’ Father destroys the entire message of the Bible and any hope for redemption from sin and of living forever with God in Heaven.
The only way that Jesus could fulfill God’s plan of becoming the Lamb of God that would be slain for the sins of the world was that He must be God and man. All men are condemned to Hell because of personal sin (Rom. 3:10 and Rom. 6:23). Jesus, however, was God – and He took on human flesh so that He could become the Sacrifice for all. There was no other way for man to be redeemed. The first chapter of the Gospel of John makes this abundantly clear: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (Jo. 1:1); and “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” (Jo. 1:14).
One more important verse that proves that Jesus was God in the flesh is found in I Timothy 3:16: “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”
The enemy of all truth – Satan – loves to discredit everything in the Bible that he can to cause people not to believe in Christ and be saved. All that the Bible says about Christ needs to be believed for salvation – whether it is provable by science or history. The Bible has never been proved wrong in either scientific or historical matters. While some things were at first thought to be an error, they were proved correct later.
- Mary gave birth to Jesus at home in Nazareth
The writer of the Magellan Times article seems to want to discredit the Bible’s account of Christ’s birth. History indicates that a taxing did occur at the time and Joseph and Mary – who both were the descendants of David – had to go to Bethlehem to pay their taxes – as the Bible indicates.
The Bible only needs to say things once to be true. Neither God the Father nor the Holy Spirit – also God – can ever lie (Titus 1:2). Jesus promised that not a jot or a tittle (equivalent to the jotting of an “i” or the crossing of a “t”) would ever be omitted from the Bible (Matthew 5:18). The King James Version has preserved the words of God accurately. Many modern versions are written and edited by people who do not believe the Bible and therefore do not care to preserve the original meaning.
- Mary was variously cast as a hairdresser and a prostitute at one point
It is hard to believe that these things were brought up at all. It is obvious that they were not brought up by believers.
I repeat, if Jesus Christ was not virgin-born – there is no Savior – we are lost in our sins. No one else was sinless and could die for the sins of others. This is why the Bible says: “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).
The greatest proof that He was Who He claimed to be is found in several things:
- His miracles
- His Words, and most importantly,
- His resurrection.
After Christ rose from the dead, He was seen by more than 500 people (I Corinthians 15:5-8). When this was written, many of the people that saw Christ after His resurrection were still alive – and could have refuted it if they wanted to – but they did not. Instead, they later risked their lives boldly proclaiming the truth that He lives!
- Mary spoke Aramaic with a Galilean twang
This is hardly likely. After Christ was crucified, Pilate wrote a sign about Jesus and hung it on the cross above Jesus’ head. He desired to ensure that people knew the truth about Christ and that he was guiltless in the death of Christ. He wrote the following words – in defiance to the Jewish leaders: “THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS” (Luke 23:38). The Bible tells us that it was written in three languages: Greek, Latin, and Hebrew – not Aramaic. Since Pilate wanted all to know, he certainly would have included Aramaic – if it were commonly spoken in that area.
Most likely, Mary may have also spoken some Greek, since it was the local trade language.
- Joseph may have fathered other children and lived to 111
Yes, Joseph and Mary had other children. The Bible indicates that they had several children after Jesus was born. One place these other children are mentioned is in Mark 6:3: “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him.”
Two of the writers of the Bible books that bear their names – James and Jude – were the children of Joseph and Mary – the half-brothers of Christ. They did not get saved until after Christ rose from the dead.
There is no mention in the Bible of Joseph having any children before marrying Mary. As far as Joseph living to 111 – it is doubtful since he is not mentioned in Bible passages where Mary is later mentioned.
- Mary may have been a firebrand
Highly doubtful. She submitted herself to God and her husband.
- Jesus had a very close relationship to his mother
In this paragraph in the article, it is stated that Jesus learned compassion for the poor from His mother. Although she did have this worthy trait, it is not true that He learned it from her. Because He was God and had existed forever, He merely maintained these same traits after He became human.
If you want to know more about what the Bible says about the Lord Jesus Christ, you can purchase my booklet called “Identifying the Real Christ of the Bible: Do You Really Know What the Bible Says about Him?” Follow this link to learn more.