JOSEPH CAREFULLY CONSIDERED HIS ACTIONS: GOD SENT AN ANGEL WITH ANSWERS
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged in marriage to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and was unwilling to disgrace her publicly, he resolved to divorce her quietly.
Matthew 1:18-19
SUSIE: In the Jewish culture of that day, parents chose a mate for their children, sometimes while they were still quite young. From that point, they were considered engaged. When they came of age, a date was set for the wedding and the man began preparing a place for his bride to live. At this point they were considered “betrothed” and if they decided not to marry, the man would need to divorce his wife. With the assumption that Mary had been unfaithful to her betrothed husband, Joseph could have had her publicly humiliated and even STONED TO DEATH as an adulteress! So, Joseph was going to do an extremely kind thing in divorcing her quietly and sending her away from the prying eyes of their hometown.
SUSAN: Joseph was merciful even though he did not yet know the true origin of Mary’s baby. He knew he was not the father, so the only logical assumption was that she had been unfaithful. Joseph was upright in heart and a man of integrity, but he did not assume a “holier than thou” position. Note that throughout Matthew’s narrative, Joseph is seen pondering, thinking things through, rather than behaving rashly with a knee-jerk reaction.
SUSIE: Even though this was an arranged marriage, I believe Joseph already loved Mary, his bride to be.
But after he had pondered these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to embrace Mary as your wife, for the One conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name JesusG2424, because He will save His people from their sins.”
Matthew 1:20-21
SUSIE: God sent an angel to explain the situation to Joseph in a dream. I’m sure Mary had tried to give Joseph an explanation, but he probably found it hard to believe.
SUSAN: The angel announcer of Heaven was probably Gabriel who had previously appeared to both Zacharias and Mary, now sent to let Joseph know not to fear going ahead with marrying Mary because it was part of God’s redemptive plan.
SUSIE: He let Joseph in on a bit of the divine masterplan. He reminded Joseph that he was descended from David as was Mary. Then he pointed out that Mary’s pregnancy was orchestrated by the Holy Ghost, making the baby the Son of God, the long-awaited Messiah.
SUSAN: The angel instructed Joseph to name the baby Jesus meaning “Jehovah is generous, Jehovah saves” because He would save His people from their sins. Jesus would later declare, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6)
G2424. Ἰησοῦς Iēsoús; gen. Iēsoú, masc. proper noun transliterated from the Hebr. Yēshūʿa (3091), Jehovah his help. Jesus, Jehoshua, contracted to Joshua (Neh. 8:17).
(I) Jesus means Savior (Matt. 1:1, 16, 21). In the gospels, our Savior is designated by the name of Christ alone in nearly 300 passages; by the name of Jesus Christ or Christ Jesus less than 100 times, and by the name of the Lord Jesus Christ less than 50 times. Prior to His resurrection, He was designated as Jesus Christ; after His resurrection, He is often referred to as Christ Jesus (Acts 19:4; Rom. 8:1, 2, 39; 1 Cor. 1:2, 30; Gal. 3:26, 28; Eph. 2:6, 7, 10, 13; Phil. 3:3, 8, 12, 14; Col. 1:4, 28; 1 Tim. 1:12, 14, 15; 2 Tim. 1:1, 2, 13; 1 Pet. 5:10, 14).
Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2000).