God Assured Joseph
TRANSLATION
(18) Now the birth of Jesus Christ happened this way. When his mother, Mary, had been betrothed to Joseph, before they became intimate, she was found to be pregnant by the Holy Spirit. (19) And Joseph, her husband, being a righteous man and not willing to make her a public example, was inclined to divorce her privately. (20) But while he was considering these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary to be your wife, for that which is conceived in her is by the Holy Spirit. (21) And she will give birth to a son, and you will call him ‘Jesus,’ for it is he that will save his people from their sins.”
(22) Now all this happened so that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled: (23) “Behold, the virgin will become pregnant and will give birth to a son, and they will call his name ‘Immanuel’ which means, ‘God with us.’”
(24) And Joseph rose from his bed and did what the angel of the Lord commanded him to do. He took Mary to be his wife (25) but was not intimate with her until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name “Jesus.”
OBSERVATIONS
Several repetitions are found in Matthew’s account of Jesus’ birth. The names, “Jesus” (vss. 18, 21, & 25), “Mary” (vss. 18 & 20), and “Joseph” (vss. 18, 19, 20, & 24) were all mentioned more than once. “Holy Spirit” occurred twice (vss. 18 & 20). The phrases “angel of the Lord” (vss. 20 & 24), “give birth to a son/gave birth to a son” (vss. 21, 23, & 25), and “will call his name/called his name” (vss. 21, 23, & 24) were all repeated. “Wife” is also found twice (vss. 20 & 24). While Luke’s account of Jesus’ birth focused on Mary, Matthew was more concerned with Joseph’s response, showing how God through the angel’s message in a dream dealt with his concerns regarding Mary’s untimely pregnancy.
OUTLINE
I. Joseph planned to divorce Mary quietly because of her unexpected pregnancy. (18 &19)
II. God dealt with Joseph’s concerns and prepared him to become Jesus’ foster father. (20-25)
IDEA STATEMENT
Through the message of the angel, God prepared Joseph to serve both as Mary’s husband and Jesus’ foster father.
APPLICATION
Two aspects of Joseph’s admirable character were highlighted in this brief account. First, we see the depth of his concern for Mary in his unwillingness to embarrass her for becoming pregnant before they had become intimate. His plan to dissolve their betrothal was the most gracious way he could have dealt with such an embarrassing situation as a godly man. Then we see his concern to do God’s will in accepting God’s plan for the one who had been conceived by the Holy Spirit so that he could become “Immanuel, God with us.” In these opening chapters of his Gospel, Matthew made it clear that Jesus’ earthly father was a fitting marital partner for Mary as well as a good parent and role model for Jesus and his siblings as they grew up in the household he led. After Jesus began his earthly ministry, we read nothing more about Joseph who, by that time, had likely died. However, we also must assume that God had carefully chosen Joseph to be the foster father who would oversee the growth of this special son during his formative years.
One other thing to note in this segment is how Matthew constantly sought to show how Jesus’ life and ministry fulfilled Old Testament prophecies. Here he identified the miracle of Jesus’ virgin birth with the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14. We’ll find many additional references like this throughout the remainder of his Gospel.