The brethren of the Lord may have been brethren of a different kind (e.g., adoptive brothers or stepbrothers) without being half-brothers through Mary. When Mary came to visit Elizabeth, who was 6 month into her pregnancy, John leaped in her womb being. New Testament word choice is especially difficult to build arguments from since it involves a mixture of Jewish and non-Jewish word preferences. Elizabeth was also the cousin of Mary, mother of Jesus. Arguments from word choice (i.e., “Why this word instead of this other word?”) are rarely decisive. In a few places the New Testament does use anepsios, but this does little to argue that the brethren of the Lord were sons of Mary. But whether she was an aunt, a cousin, or a more distant relation cannot be determined from the word. All we can tell from the word suggenes is that Elizabeth was some kind of female relative of Mary’s. It tells us nothing about her exact relation within the extended family. The word used in Luke 1:36 to describe Elizabeth is suggenes (pronounced su-gen-ace), which simply means kinswoman or relative. Other Bible verses also point to the fact of Judah being the tribe of Jesus’ heritage, as the rightful Messiah and Savior of all (Hebrews 7:14 Revelation 5:5).The New Testament does not say that Elizabeth is Mary’s cousin, the Greek word for which is anepsios. Regardless of Mary’s specific lineage, that Jesus is a descendant of David and Judah is beyond doubt. ![]() The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David” (Luke 1:32, NLT). In addition, the angel Gabriel affirmed Jesus’ Judean lineage, telling Mary that “he will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. Luke’s genealogy shows that Heli, whom we assume to be Mary’s father, was a direct descendant of Judah, not Levi. Conversely, Mary’s mother may have been a Levite and kin to Elizabeth’s family, while Mary’s father was of Judah. Elizabeth’s father was a Levite, making her a Levite by birth, but her mother may have been of Judah. Even if Elizabeth and Mary were close relatives, it was still possible for them to be of different tribes, as women were identified with their father’s tribe, not their mother’s. However, the English word cousin does not have to imply a close relation, and other versions of the Bible translate the word as “relative” (NKJV, ESV, CSB, BSB). Here are only a few examples: Martin Luther (1483-1546), On the Divine Motherhood of Mary, wrote: In this work whereby she was made the Mother of God, so many and such great good things were given her that. Some translations, such as the KJV, do state that Mary was the “cousin” of Elizabeth (Luke 1:36). The protestant reformers affirmed their belief that Mary, while remaining every-virgin, was truly the Mother of God. An argument sometimes put forward by those who deny the credentials of Christ is that, if Mary was Elizabeth’s “cousin,” then Mary must also have been a Levite. Mary and Joseph are there at the Temple because they have brought their newborn son Jesus for the customary ceremony. Luke says that Mary was related to Elizabeth, who was in the tribe of Levi (Luke 1:5, 36). Luke 2:10–11).Īnother issue relating to Mary’s lineage is her relation to Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. Descended from the line of Aaron, Elizabeth was a cousin of Mary, Mother of Jesus. This fits with Luke’s purpose as he wrote to Gentiles and emphasized that Jesus is the Son of God who came to save all people (cf. Heres my condensed version of the story from Luke. Significantly, Luke traces Mary’s lineage all the way back to Adam (verse 38). She was also a descendant of Boaz (verse 32) and David (verse 31). Some notable points in Mary’s lineage are that she was a descendant of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Luke 3:34) she was specifically of the tribe of Judah (verse 33). ![]() Joseph was a “son” of Heli by virtue of his marriage to Mary, who would have been the daughter of Heli (Matthew 1:16 lists Joseph’s biological father as Jacob). This comment affirms the truth of Jesus’ virgin birth (see Luke 1:29–38). She is also the cousin of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. ![]() She took Mary into her care at a time when both women felt vulnerable and lonely, and the. It begins this way: “ was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph, the son of Heli” (Luke 3:23). In it, Elizabeth is married to Zechariah, a priest of the Temple in Jerusalem. Elisabeth provided spiritual, physical, and emotional support to Mary. Mary’s lineage, as recorded by Luke, does not mention Mary, but that’s to be expected-including women’s names in genealogies was not standard practice. This means that Mary’s lineage is recorded in the Gospel of Luke. Most conservative Bible commentators explain the difference by holding that Jesus’ genealogy in Matthew 1:1–16 is traced through Joseph’s line to show Jesus’ royal right to the Davidic throne correspondingly, the genealogy in Luke 3:23–38 traces Jesus’ ancestry through Mary’s line. It is common knowledge that the genealogies contained in Matthew and Luke differ.
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