Wed, Sep 21, 2011 Exegesis in The Genesis of Jesus Christ: Matthew 1:1-2:23 One of the thing that

strikes me, when I read from the Matthews Gospel Ch. 1, is from this verse:
Matthew 1:25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS. Matthew 1:25 kai. ouvk evgi,nwsken auvth.n e[wj ou- e;teken to.n ui`o.n auvth/j to.n prwto,tokon\ kai. evka,lesen to. o;noma auvtou/ VIhsou/n
BYZ KJV

gi,nwsken verb indicative imperfect active 3rd person singular from ginw,skw
[GING] ginw,skw ginw,skw1. know, come to know Mt 13:11; Lk 12:47f; J 8:32; 14:7; Ac 1:7; 19:35; 1 Cor 3:20; 13:9, 12; 2 Cor 5:16; 1 J 4:2, 6; it struck me Mt 25:24. Imperative ginw,skete you may be quite sure Mt 24:33, 43; J 15:18.2. learn (of), ascertain, find out Mt 9:30; Mk 6:38; 15:45; Lk 24:18; J 4:1; Ac 17:20; 21:34.3. understand, comprehend Mk 4:13; J 8:43; 10:6; Ac 8:30; 21:37; 1 Cor 2:8, 11, 14; have the law at one's fingertips Ro 7:1.4. perceive, notice, realize Mk 5:29; 7:24; Lk 8:46; J 6:15; Ac 23:6.5. acknowledge, recognize Mt 7:23; J 1:10; choose 1 Cor 8:3; Gal 4:9. 6. euphemistically, of sex relations know Mt 1:25; Lk 1:34. [pg 39]

e[wj adverb from e[wj

[GING] e[wj e[wj1. temporal conjunction till, until Mt 2:9; Mk 6:10; Lk 21:32; J 21:22f; Ac 2:35; 1 Cor 4:5; 2 Th 2:7; Hb 10:13. As long as, while Mk 6:45; Lk 17:8; J 9:4.2. functions as prep. w. gen.: of time until, up to Mt 11:13; 27:64; Mk 14:25; Lk 23:44; Ac 1:22; 1 Cor 1:8. e[wj ou- until Mt 13:33; Ac 21:26; 25:21. e[wj po,te how long Mt 9:19; J 10:24; Rv 6:10. Of place as far as, to Lk 2:15; Ac 1:8; 2 Cor 12:2. e[wj e`pta,kij as many as seven times Mt 18:21f. e[wj e;sw right into Mk 14:54. ouvk e;stin e[wj e`no,j there is not even one Ro 3:12. [pg 83].

prwto,tokon adjective accusative masculine singular superlative from prwto,tokoj

[GING] prwto,tokoj prwto,tokoj, on firstborn1. lit. Mt 1:25 v.l.; Lk 2:7; Hb 11:28.2. fig. of Christ Ro 8:29; Col 1:15, 18; Hb 1:6; Rv 1:5; 2:8 v.l.Of people Hb 12:23.* [pg 174]1

Bible Works 7

After reading this verse, according to the translation, we may think that the Mother of God had intimate relation with St. Joseph and after Lord Jesus we may think that other children were born too! But before we jump into any conclusions, lets ponder about two things first:

1. The meaning of Until e[wj First we see that in English the world until or till means 1.happening up to a particular point in time and then stopping;2 or not() until used for stating the point at which something finally happens, becomes possible, or becomes true. But the Bible was not written in English first. In the ancient languages of the Bible the word until, it does not necessarily indicate change. For example, if we see in the Scriptures on Deut 34:6, 2 Samuel 6:23, Ps 72:7; 89:2,110:1,122:2 Mt 22:42-46; 11:23; 28:20, Rom 8:22, 1 Tim 4:13, 1 Cor. 15:25 we may see that the word until e[wj and words with a similar meaning to it many times means eternity. Like in NAS 1 Corinthians 15:25 For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. So the Lord will stop reign after he put his enemies under His feet? Or what about JV Matthew 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen. Does it mean that after the end of the world the Lord will abandon us? NAS Psalm 72:7 In His days may the righteous flourish, And abundance of peace till the moon is no more. So after the moon is no longer The Lords righteousness and abundance will disappeared too? KJV Psalm 123:2 Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy upon us. Does it mean that after the Lord be gracious and show mercy to us we take away our eyes from the Lord? NAS Mark 12:36 "David himself said in the Holy Spirit, 'The Lord said to my LORD, "Sit at My right hand, Until I put Thine enemies beneath Thy feet.'" Does it mean that the Lord after he put His enemies under His Feet that He will no more sit at the right of God? At JV 2 Samuel 6:23 Therefore Michal the daughter of Saul had no child unto the day of her death. Does it mean that Michal have children after she died? At KJV Genesis 8:7 And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth. Did the crow return back to the Ark of Noah after the waters dried up?3
As the Blessed Jerome was angry with Helvidius who with many others argue that the Holy Mary and the Betrothed Joseph after the birth of Jesus Our Lord had sexual relations as a ordinary couple, so she had from him children that they called them the brothers and sisters of our Lord in the Gospels. ." But the word "until" does not signify that Mary remained a virgin only until

a certain time.4
St. John Chrysostom continues: "In such a manner having become a mother, and having been counted worthy of a new sort of travail and a childbearing so strange, could that righteous man ever have endured to know her and kept her in the place of a wife?" [John Chrysostom, Homily 5 on Matthew] Saint Basil believed in Mary's perpetual virginity and claimed that "until" could be used indefinitely. "Lovers of Christ cannot hear that the Theotokos ever ceased to be a virgin." [PG, 31, 1468A]5

2 3

Macmillan English Dictionary, for advanced learners http://www.goarch.org/ourfaith/ourfaith/9174 The ever Virginity of the mother of God by Fr. John Hainsworth 4 http://orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/evervirgin.aspx*From St. John (Maxomovitch), The Orthodox Veneration of Mary, The Birthgiver of God (Platina, CA: St. Herman of Alaska Brotherhood, 1994), pp. 3133. 5 http://www.monachos.net/forum/showthread.php?1692-The-ever-virginity-of-Mary, "The Life of the Virgin Mary, The Theotokos," (Holy Apostles Convent, 1989), pp. 148-149

2. The meaning of Firstborn The Greek word prwto,tokoj, on firstborn is not exactly the same with the English word .The English word usually but not always, suggests that there more children coming after, but with the Greek word that is not the case .For example, in NAS Hebrews 1:6 And when He again brings the first-born into the world, He says, "And let all the angels of God worship Him." YZ Hebrews 1:6 {Otan de. pa,lin eivsaga,gh| to.n prwto,tokon eivj th.n

oivkoume,nhn le,gei( Kai. proskunhsa,twsan auvtw/| pa,ntej a;ggeloi qeou/

Here we talk about the Word so in that case cannot be another subsequent son! More examples we may see in KJV Romans 8:29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.;in NAS Revelation 1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us, and released us from our sins by His blood,In KJV Colossians 1:15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: V Colossians 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.;in KJV Hebrews 11:28 Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them. And in JV Hebrews 12:23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, Therefore, here the word prwto,tokoj, on firstborn has the meaning of a legal heir and does not express the order of birth, indicating that our Lord is the first in everything.6 The truth of the matter, is that this is the way that our Church stands regarding the Ever-Virginity of the Theotokos and even many times I am personally, especially encountering with different Christian denominations may I feel a kind of doubt-faith situation. But I guess after ,all is a matter of a personal relationship and life with God that make more mature more open and more rensponsible for ourselves and others as well, both for the Greeks and the Jews!

http://www.goarch.org/ourfaith/ourfaith/9174 The ever Virginity of the mother of God by Fr. John Hainsworth