Why the Registration by Genealogy From Joseph?
ANSWER
This question was asked and answered by Saint John Chrysostom: “How is it declared that Christ is from the posterity of David? since he was not born of a man but from a woman only; and the posterity of the Virgin was not counted?…… and what is the objective in that the evangelist mentioned Joseph who was not a cause for the Nativity of Christ?”
It was mentioned in the gospel that “the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth , to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary” (Luke 1: 26-27). According to the law, it was not permitted that one could marry from a tribe which is not his own tribe (Num. 36: 7-9).
Since Joseph is from the house of David and from his relatives, it was not possible for him to take Mary as a wife from another tribe than his tribe, and from another ethnic group than his.
What would happen if he had disobeyed the law in that matter?
The gospel testified to him that he was “a just man” (Matt. 1:19).
Why is it according to the genealogy from Joseph and not from the Virgin?
It was not a custom among the Jews, to count the genealogy from women. Therefore he was silent about the mention of her grandfathers, and he counted the genealogy of Joseph. If he had counted the genealogy from a virgin, he would have invented an innovation. And if he had been silent about the genealogy of Joseph, we would not have known the grandfathers of the Holy Virgin……..
Also it was because he did not want to manifest before the time, to the Jews, that Christ was born of a Virgin…since in that, there is a deliverance of the Virgin from a malignant accusation…lest the Jews would have lapidated the Virgin with stones.
Since after numerous miracles, they called Him the son of Joseph (Matt. 13:55), how would they have believed before His miracles, that He is the son of a virgin?!
