Husband

[MARRIAGE]

I.e., the "house-band," connecting and keeping together the whole family. A man when betrothed was esteemed from that time a husband (Matthew 1:16, 20; Luke 2:5). A recently married man was exempt from going to war for "one year" (Deuteronomy 20:7; 24:5). 1. (n.) The male spouse or (v. t.) To direct and manage with frugality.

2. (n.) A cultivator; a tiller; a husbandman.

3. (n.) One who manages or directs with prudence and economy; a frugal person; an economist.

4. (n.) A married man; a man who has a wife; -- the correlative to wife.

5. (n.) The male of a pair of animals.

6. (v. t.) To direct and manage with frugality; to use or employ to good purpose and the best advantage; to spend, apply, or use, with economy.

7. (v. t.) To cultivate, as land; to till.

8. (v. t.) To furnish with a husband.

HUSBAND

huz'-band ('ish; aner): In the Hebrew household the husband and father was the chief personage of an institution which was regarded as more than a social organism, inasmuch as the family in primitive Semitic society had a distinctively religious character and significance. It was through it that the cult of the household and tribal deities was practiced and perpetuated. The house-father, by virtue of being the family head, was priest of the household, and as such, responsible for the religious life of the family and the maintenance of the family altar. As priest he offered sacrifices to the family gods, as at first, before the centralization of worship, he did to Yahweh as the tribal or national Deity. We see this reflected in the stories of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and in the Book of Job. This goes far to explain such records as we have in Genesis 31:53; Genesis 32:9, and the exceptional reverence that was paid the paternal sepulchers (1 Samuel 20:6). Abraham was regarded as being the father of a nation. It was customary, it would seem, to assign a "father" to every known tribe and nation (Genesis 10). So the family came to play an important and constructive part in Hebrew thought and life, forming the base upon which the social structure was built, merging gradually into the wider organism of the clan or tribe, and vitally affecting at last the political and religious life of the nation itself.

The husband from the first had supreme authority over his wife, or wives, and children. In his own domain his rule was well-nigh absolute. The wife, or wives, looked up to him as their lord (Genesis 18:12). He was chief (compare Arabic sheik), and to dishonor him was a crime to be punished by death (Exodus 21:15, 17). He was permitted to divorce his wife with little reason, and divorces were all too common (Deuteronomy 22:13, 19, 28, 29 Isaiah 50:1 Jeremiah 3:8; Jeremiah 5:8 Malachi 2:16, etc.). The wife seems to have had no redress if wronged by him. Absolute faithfulness, though required of the wife, was apparently not expected or exacted of the husband, so long as he did not violate the rights of another husband. In general among Eastern people women were lightly esteemed, as in the Japhetic nations they came to be. Plato counted a state "disorganized" "where slaves are disobedient to their masters, and wives are on equality with their husbands." "Is there a human being," asks Socrates, "with whom you talk less than with your wife?" But from the first, among the Hebrews the ideal husband trained his household in the way they should go religiously, as well as instructed them in the traditions of the family, the tribe, and the nation (Genesis 18:19 Exodus 12:26; Exodus 13:8 Deuteronomy 6:7, etc.). It was due to this, in part at least, that, in spite of the discords and evils incident to polygamy, the Hebrew household was nursery of virtue and piety to an unusual degree, and became a genuine anticipation of the ideal realized later in the Christian home (1 Corinthians 7:2 Ephesians 5:25 1 Peter 3:7).

Used figuratively of the relation (1) between Yahweh and His people (Isaiah 54:5 Jeremiah 3:14 Hosea 2:19 f); (2) between Christ and His church (Matthew 9:15 2 Corinthians 11:2 Ephesians 5:25 Revelation 19:7; Revelation 21:2).

George B. Eager

JOSEPH, HUSBAND OF MARY

1. References in New Testament:

(For etymology, etc., of Joseph, see JOSEPH): Joseph, the carpenter (Matthew 13:55), was a "just man" (Matthew 1:19 the King James Version), who belonged to Nazareth (Luke 2:4). He was of Davidic descent (Matthew 1:20 Luke 2:4), the son of Heli (Luke 3:23) or Jacob (Matthew 1:16), the husband of Mary (Matthew 1:16), and the supposed father of Jesus (Matthew 13:55 Luke 3:23; Luke 4:22 John 1:45; John 6:42).

(1) Before the Nativity.

The Gospels of Matthew and Mark alone give any detailed reference to Joseph and the birth of Jesus, and their accounts vary in part. Luke begins with the Annunciation to Mary at Nazareth (Luke 1:26-38). Overwhelmed with the tidings, Mary departed "with haste" "into the hill country,.... into a city of Judah," to seek communion with Elisabeth, with whom she had been coupled in the Annunciation by the angel Gabriel (Luke 1:39-55). After abiding with her about three months she returned "unto her own house" (Luke 1:56 the King James Version). The events recorded in Matthew 1:18-24 probably took place in the interval between this return and the birth of Jesus. During Mary's visit to Elisabeth, Joseph had likely remained in Nazareth. The abrupt and probably unexplained departure of his espoused wife for Judah (compare the phrase "with haste"), and her condition on her return, had caused him great mental distress (Matthew 1:18-20). Though his indignation was tempered with mercy, he was minded to put her away "privily," but the visitation of the angel in his sleep relieved him from his dilemma, and he was reconciled to his wife (Matthew 1:24). The narrative is then continued by Luke. While Joseph and Mary still abode in Nazareth, "there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be enrolled" (Luke 2:1). "And all went to enroll themselves, every one to his own city" (Luke 2:3). Being of the house and lineage of David, Joseph went up with Mary, who was "great with child," from Galilee, "out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem" (Luke 2:4, 5), and there Jesus was born (Luke 2:7; compare Matthew 2:1).

(2) After the Nativity.

(a) Luke's Account:

The two accounts now diverge considerably. According to Luke, the Holy Family remained for a time at Bethlehem and were there visited by the shepherds (Luke 2:8-20). After a sojourn of 40 days for the purification (compare Luke 2:21, 22 Leviticus 12), Joseph departed with his wife for Jerusalem "to present" the infant Jesus "to the Lord" and to offer up sacrifice according to the ancient law (Luke 2:24). There he was present at the prophesying of Simeon and Anna concerning Jesus, and received the blessing of the former (Luke 2:34). After "they had accomplished all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city Nazareth" (Luke 2:39). Every year, at the Passover, they made this journey to Jerusalem (Luke 2:41). The care and solicitude of Joseph and Mary for the boy Jesus and their grief at His temporary loss aye also recorded (Luke 2:45, 48, 51). There is evidence that, though Mary "kept all these things in her heart," Joseph at least had no understanding then of the Divine nature of the charge committed to his care (Luke 2:50).

(b) Matthew's Account:

But according to Matthew it was from the Wise Men of the East that Jesus received homage at Bethlehem (Matthew 2:1-11). There is no further mention of the dedicatory journey to Jerusalem, or of the return to Nazareth. Instead, it is stated that on the departure of the Wise Men from Bethlehem, Joseph was warned in a dream of the impending wrath of Herod, and escaped with his wife and the infant Jesus into Egypt (Matthew 2:13, 14). Upon the death of Herod, an angel appeared to Joseph, and he returned to the land of Israel (Matthew 2:19-21). His original intention was to settle once more in Judea, but on learning that Archelaus, the son of Herod, was ruler there, "he withdrew into the parts of Galilee, and came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth" (Matthew 2:22, 23).

(c) The Proper Sequence of the Two Narratives:

The narrative of Matthew would thus imply that the Holy Family had no connection with Nazareth previous to their return from Egypt. It has, however, been suggested by Ramsay that Matthew merely reports what was common knowledge, and that Luke, while quite cognizant of this, supplemented it in his own Gospel with details known only to the Holy Family, and in part to the mother alone (compare Sir W. Ramsay, Was Christ Born at Bethlehem? 78-79). A comparison of the two Gospel narratives makes it clear that the visitation of the Wise Men fell on a later date than that of the shepherds. The latter took place immediately after the Nativity (compare Luke 2:11, 15, 16, "is born.... this day," "let us now go," "and they came with haste"). On the other hand, when the Wise Men came to Jerusalem, Christ was already born (compare Matthew 2:1). Time was required for this journey to Jerusalem and the consultation of Herod with the chief priests (Matthew 2:4); and during this interval the events recorded in Luke 2:8-39 had taken place. That there was sufficient time for this is attested also by the fact that Herod's decree was directed against children up to two years of age (Matthew 2:16). Thus it was after the return of the Holy Family to Nazareth, and on a further visit to Bethlehem, implied by Matthew but not recorded by Luke, that the infant Jesus received the adoration of the Wise Men. Jesus being born in 6 B.C., this took place in 5 B.C., and as Herod died in 4 B.C., Joseph may have missed only one of the Passovers (compare Luke 2:41) by his flight into Egypt. (For a full discussion, compare Ramsay, op. cit.) As no mention is made of Joseph in the later parts of the Gospels where the Holy Family is referred to (compare Matthew 12:46 Luke 8:19), it is commonly supposed that he died before the commencement of the public ministry of Christ.

2. Character:

If a type is to be sought in the character of Joseph, it is that of a simple, honest, hard-working, God-fearing man, who was possessed of large sympathies and a warm heart. Strict in the observance of Jewish law and custom, he was yet ready when occasion arose to make these subservient to the greater law of the Spirit. Too practical to possess any deep insight into the Divine mysteries or eternal significance of events which came within his knowledge (compare Luke 2:50), he was quick to make answer to what he perceived to be the direct call of God (compare Matthew 1:24). Originally a "just man" (the King James Version), the natural clemency within his heart prevailed over mere justice, and by the promptings of the Holy Spirit that clemency was transferred into a strong and enduring love (compare Matthew 1:24). Joseph is known to us only as a dim figure in the background of the Gospel narratives, yet his whole-hearted reconciliation to Mary, even in the face of possible slanderings by his neighbors, his complete self-sacrifice, when he left all and fled into Egypt to save the infant Jesus, are indicative that he was not unworthy to fulfill the great trust which was imposed upon him by the Eternal Father.

3. References in Apocryphal Literature:

The Gospel of the Infancy according to James, a work composed originally in the 2nd century, but with later additions (compare Hennecke, Neutestamentliche Apokryphen, 47-63), gives a detailed account of the marriage of the aged Joseph with Mary, of their journey to Bethlehem, and of the birth of Jesus. A similar gospel, reputed to be by Thomas the philosopher, of later origin and Gnostic tendency (compare Hennecke, 63-73), narrates several fantastic, miraculous happenings in the domestic life of the Holy Family, and the dealings of Joseph with the teachers of the youthful Jesus. Other legends, from Syriac or Egyptian sources, also dealing with the Infancy, in which Joseph figures, are extant. The chief is The History of Joseph the Carpenter (compare Hennecke, Handbuch der neutestamentlichen Apokryphen, 95-105). This contains an account of the death and burial of Joseph at the age of 110, and of the entreaties of Mary to Christ to save him. Its aim was to show forth Christ as the Saviour, even at the last hour, and the rightful manner of Christian death. Joseph has received a high place in the Calendar of the Roman Catholic Saints, his feast being celebrated on March 19.

C. M. Kerr

5362. philandros -- loving men, (of a wife) loving her husband
... loving men, (of a wife) loving her husband. Part of Speech: Adjective Transliteration:
philandros Phonetic Spelling: (fil'-an-dros) Short Definition: loving ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5362.htm - 7k

2384. Iakob -- Jacob, the son of Isaac, also the father of Joseph ...
... Jacob, the son of Isaac, also the father of Joseph, Mary's husband. Part of Speech:
Proper Noun, Indeclinable Transliteration: Iakob Phonetic Spelling: (ee-ak ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2384.htm - 6k

435. aner -- a man
... Noun, Masculine Transliteration: aner Phonetic Spelling: (an'-ayr) Short Definition:
a male human being, a man Definition: a male human being; a man, husband. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/435.htm - 7k

5220. hupandros -- under the power of or subject to a man
... to a man. Part of Speech: Adjective Transliteration: hupandros Phonetic Spelling:
(hoop'-an-dros) Short Definition: subject to a husband, married Definition ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5220.htm - 6k

1203. despotes -- lord, master
... 1203 (from , "husband") -- properly, an authority figure ("master") who
exercises complete jurisdiction (wields unrestricted power). ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1203.htm - 7k

4632. skeuos -- a vessel, implement, pl. goods
... a vessel, implement, equipment or apparatus (literally or figuratively (specially,
a wife as contributing to the usefulness of the husband)) -- goods, sail ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4632.htm - 6k

367. Ananias -- Ananias, the name of three Israelites
... of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: Ananias Phonetic Spelling:
(an-an-ee'-as) Short Definition: Ananias Definition: Ananias, (a) husband of Sapphira, ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/367.htm - 6k

4801. suzeugnumi -- to yoke together
... Mk 10:9). 4801 ("closely-yoked") is only used for marriage in the NT --
a in which a husband and wife , . ["The word for 'joined ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4801.htm - 7k

3774. Ourias -- Uriah, a Hittite
... Hittite. Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: Ourias Phonetic Spelling:
(oo-ree'-as) Short Definition: Uriah Definition: Uriah, husband of Bathsheba ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3774.htm - 6k

2205. zelos -- to have warmth of feeling for or against, to be ...
... From zeo; properly, heat, ie (figuratively) "zeal" (in a favorable sense, ardor;
in an unfavorable one, jealousy, as of a husband (figuratively, of God), or an ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2205.htm - 7k

2993. yabam -- husband's brother
... 2992, 2993. yabam. 2994 . husband's brother. Transliteration: yabam Phonetic
Spelling: (yaw-bawm') Short Definition: brother. ... husband's brother. From (the orig ...
/hebrew/2993.htm - 6k

2992. yabam -- to perform the duty of a husband's brother
... 2991, 2992. yabam. 2993 . to perform the duty of a husband's brother.
Transliteration: yabam Phonetic Spelling: (yaw-bam') Short Definition: brother. ...
/hebrew/2992.htm - 6k

3941. Lappidoth -- husband of Deborah
... 3940, 3941. Lappidoth. 3942 . husband of Deborah. Transliteration: Lappidoth
Phonetic Spelling: (lap-pee-doth') Short Definition: Lappidoth. ...
/hebrew/3941.htm - 6k

2860. chathan -- daughter's husband, bridegroom
... daughter's husband, bridegroom. Transliteration: chathan Phonetic Spelling:
(khaw-thawn') Short Definition: bridegroom. bridegroom, husband, son in law ...
/hebrew/2860.htm - 5k

4248. Machlon -- the first husband of Ruth
... 4247, 4248. Machlon. 4249 . the first husband of Ruth. Transliteration: Machlon
Phonetic Spelling: (makh-lone') Short Definition: Mahlon. ...
/hebrew/4248.htm - 6k

2545. chamoth -- husband's mother
... 2544, 2545. chamoth. 2546 . husband's mother. Transliteration: chamoth Phonetic
Spelling: (kham-oth') Short Definition: mother-in-law. Word Origin fem. ...
/hebrew/2545.htm - 6k

2860a. chathan -- daughter's husband, bridegroom
... 2860, 2860a. chathan. 2860b . daughter's husband, bridegroom.
Transliteration: chathan Short Definition: bridegroom. Word Origin ...
/hebrew/2860a.htm - 5k

2524. cham -- husband's father
... 2523, 2524. cham. 2525 . husband's father. Transliteration: cham Phonetic
Spelling: (khawm) Short Definition: father-in-law. Word ...
/hebrew/2524.htm - 6k

2859. chathan -- make oneself a daughter's husband
... 2858, 2859. chathan. 2860 . make oneself a daughter's husband. Transliteration:
chathan Phonetic Spelling: (khaw-than') Short Definition: son-in-law. ...
/hebrew/2859.htm - 6k

458. Elimelek -- "God is king," the husband of Naomi
... 457, 458. Elimelek. 459 . "God is king," the husband of Naomi. Transliteration:
Elimelek Phonetic Spelling: (el-ee-meh'-lek) Short Definition: Elimelech. ...
/hebrew/458.htm - 6k

Whether it is Lawful for a Husband to Put Away his Wife on Account ...
... OF THE IMPEDIMENT THAT SUPERVENES TO MARRIAGE AFTER ITS CONSUMMATION, NAMELY
FORNICATION (SIX ARTICLES) Whether it is lawful for a husband to put away his wife ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/aquinas/summa theologica/whether it is lawful for 22.htm

Whether the Husband is Bound by Precept to Put Away his Wife when ...
... OF THE IMPEDIMENT THAT SUPERVENES TO MARRIAGE AFTER ITS CONSUMMATION, NAMELY
FORNICATION (SIX ARTICLES) Whether the husband is bound by precept to put away his ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether the husband is bound.htm

Whether Husband and Wife are Equal in the Marriage Act?
... OF THE THINGS ANNEXED TO MARRIAGE, AND FIRST OF THE PAYMENT OF THE MARRIAGE DEBT
(TEN ARTICLES) Whether husband and wife are equal in the marriage act? ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether husband and wife are 2.htm

Whether a Husband is Bound to Pay the Debt if his Wife Does not ...
... OF THE THINGS ANNEXED TO MARRIAGE, AND FIRST OF THE PAYMENT OF THE MARRIAGE DEBT
(TEN ARTICLES) Whether a husband is bound to pay the debt if his wife does not ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/aquinas/summa theologica/whether a husband is bound.htm

Whether in a Case of Divorce Husband and Wife Should be Judged on ...
... OF THE IMPEDIMENT THAT SUPERVENES TO MARRIAGE AFTER ITS CONSUMMATION, NAMELY
FORNICATION (SIX ARTICLES) Whether in a case of divorce husband and wife should ...
//christianbookshelf.org/aquinas/summa theologica/whether in a case of.htm

The Harmony of Husband and Wife.
... Book XIV. 2. The Harmony of Husband and Wife. So much then for the more common
understanding of the two or three whom the Word exhorts to be in agreement. ...
/.../origen/origens commentary on the gospel of matthew/2 the harmony of husband.htm

The Death of a Husband is God's Call to the Widow to Continence ...
... Book I. Chapter VII."The Death of a Husband is God's Call to the Widow to
Continence Further Evidences from Scripture and from Heathenism. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/tertullian/to his wife/chapter vii the death of a.htm

Whether Husband and Wife are Mutually Bound to the Payment of the ...
... OF THE THINGS ANNEXED TO MARRIAGE, AND FIRST OF THE PAYMENT OF THE MARRIAGE DEBT
(TEN ARTICLES) Whether husband and wife are mutually bound to the payment of ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether husband and wife are.htm

Christ the Believer's Husband
... Christ the Believer's Husband. Isaiah 54:5 " "For thy Maker is thy Husband."
Although believers by nature, are far from God, and ...
/.../selected sermons of george whitefield/christ the believers husband.htm

Whether Husband and Wife May be Reconciled after Being Divorced?
... OF THE IMPEDIMENT THAT SUPERVENES TO MARRIAGE AFTER ITS CONSUMMATION, NAMELY
FORNICATION (SIX ARTICLES) Whether husband and wife may be reconciled after being ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether husband and wife may.htm

True (305 Occurrences)
... Matthew 5:32 But I say to you that everyone who puts away his wife for any other
cause but the loss of her virtue, makes her false to her husband; and whoever ...
/t/true%20.htm - 33k

Vows (38 Occurrences)
... Numbers 30:6 "If she is married to a husband, while her vows are on her, or the
rash utterance of her lips, with which she has bound her soul, (WEB JPS ASV YLT ...
/v/vows.htm - 19k

Released (52 Occurrences)
... Romans 7:2 For the woman that has a husband is bound by law to the husband while
he lives, but if the husband dies, she is discharged from the law of the ...
/r/released.htm - 21k

Brother-in-law (5 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary (n.) The brother of one's husband or wife; also, the husband
of one's sister; sometimes, the husband of one's wife's sister. Int. ...
/b/brother-in-law.htm - 8k

Dies (71 Occurrences)
... Romans 7:2 For the woman that has a husband is bound by law to the husband while
he lives, but if the husband dies, she is discharged from the law of the ...
/d/dies.htm - 26k

Marry (48 Occurrences)
... vt) To unite in wedlock or matrimony; to perform the ceremony of joining, as a man
and a woman, for life; to constitute (a man and a woman) husband and wife ...
/m/marry.htm - 22k

Marries (20 Occurrences)
... (WEB WEY NAS RSV NIV). Mark 10:12 If a woman herself divorces her husband, and
marries another, she commits adultery." (WEB WEY NAS RSV NIV). ...
/m/marries.htm - 12k

Pledges (15 Occurrences)
... Numbers 30:7 and her husband hear it, and hold his peace at her in the day that
he hears it; then her vows shall stand, and her bonds with which she has bound ...
/p/pledges.htm - 10k

Boaz (25 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary Alacrity. (1.) The husband of Ruth, a wealthy
Bethlehemite. ... He was a kinsman of Mahlon, her first husband. ...
/b/boaz.htm - 19k

Tamar (28 Occurrences)
... Some suppose this was "Tadmor" (qv). (2.) The daughter-in-law of Judah, to whose
eldest son, Er, she was married (Genesis 38:6). After her husband's death, she ...
/t/tamar.htm - 21k

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