Who Was Joseph?
“Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah…” (Matthew 1:16)
We all know the Christmas story. Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a virgin who conceived of the Holy Spirit and gave birth to Jesus, the Messiah.
But who was Joseph?
Joseph seems to get left out of the limelight. A necessary figure in the Manger scene, but more like the plastic figure than the real-life man that he was.
Joseph was a young man with a “problem” to solve. His betrothed, Mary, was with child before they had joined together. But Joseph was a righteous young man—which meant divorce: he could not marry. But as a righteous man, he had to follow God’s leading, which told to him by an angel, meant marrying his betrothed: “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 1:20). Joseph was a young man who solved his “problem” righteously.
Joseph was a husband and father with a “job” to do. He had the “job” of ensuring a safe birth for the Savior: “She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). He had the “job” of protecting the Savior from those who sought to harm Him: “An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to destroy Him” (Matthew 2:13). And he had the “job” of providing the nurture of a faithful father: people in His hometown asked, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers? Is not this the carpenter’s son?” (Matthew 13:54–55).
Who was Joseph? A righteous man of faithfulness to his God-given tasks—a great example for those who follow the Savior his wife delivered for us.
Gwen Allen, Human Resources Director
