Re: Q&A: Why Jesus linked John with Mary at the Cross
开云体育Hi Ray,
?
Thank you for continuing to “feed” us with gems from the Bible.
?
I’ve never considered the reason why Jesus chose John rather than his
half-brothers, to take over the role of caring for his mother. As you so aptly
pointed out, John was the only person who could do it. Like your surmise, I
believe John was given a long life because he was faithful to Jesus’ charge to
care for Mary. As long as she was alive, John would also be alive.
?
I was very moved by your email, and thank you for the time you give to us
to expand such things.
Blessings to you and all,
Merlene
? From: Ray via groups.io
Sent: Friday, May 6, 2022 1:51 PM
To: [email protected] ; Marian Plant ; Wayne Weiler
Subject: [b4uc] Q&A: Why Jesus linked John with Mary at the
Cross ?
G'day
all, While
the U3A course R09 "What the Bible is about" is on hiatus, our discussion board
is still available to discuss biblical issues. As we approach Mother's Day,
a
question came up in the course of some emails that I'd like to share with you.
QuestionWhy did Jesus give
custodianship of His mother, Mary, to his disciple John, instead of to his
brother(s)? One
of the "throw-away" facts included in the New Testament that tends to pass
without analysis is John 19:26-27 where Jesus, on the cusp of death on the
Cross, directed the Apostle John, His (first) cousin, to take of His mother,
Mary, despite the fact that Mary had at least four living sons per Matthew
13:55.?
John, as the youngest of the Twelve, would likely have been younger than at
least some, if not all, of Mary's sons.
The
Roman Catholic Church doesn't have a problem with this since they declared Mary
ever-virgin (this is a topic in itself) and assigned Jesus' half-brothers to a
mother or mothers other than Mary, either a sister of Mary or an earlier wife or
wives of Joseph. However, with their focus on sola scriptura (the Bible
as the sole authority), the Protestant reformers recognized that scripture only
required belief in the virgin birth, but was silent on perpetual
virginity.? Some early reformers like Luther and Zwingli who had been
Catholic priests held on to the idea of perpetual virginity, but Protestantism
largely rejects it.
I'll
address this question from the scriptural (Protestant)
perspective.
John 19:26-27 states, "When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, 'Woman, behold your son!'? Then He said to the disciple, 'Behold your mother!' And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home."
RationaleThe majority of Protestant commentators suggest Jesus,
Mary's first-born son, established the relationship re-alignments noted in John
19:26-27 because none of Mary’s other sons were Christians at the time.? As
an aside, this is supported by the Bible Codes, where equidistant letter
sequence (ELS) codes that underlay Isaiah 53 (a prophecy of His trial and
crucifixion) include all names noted in the New Testament to be present at the
crucifixion but exclude the names of His brethren James, Joses, Simon, and Judas
(Jude) (Matthew 13:55).
Mary was already a widow; it is probable from reading the Gospels that Joseph was no longer living and that Jesus her firstborn had been her primary support.? Thus from the Cross Jesus was transferring His duty to maintain His Mother into the care of John, the only disciple still standing by Him (others would return later).? This was a tremendous honour to John, as he well knew being “the disciple whom Jesus loved.”? “Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old.” (Proverb 23:22) In addition, Jesus’ brothers were not as yet believers and thus were not suitable for assuming Jesus’ role.? Furthermore, although at least James and Jude became believers after the Resurrection (see the Books of James and Jude and 2 John 1:4), James was to be murdered well before Mary’s death.? Witness the prophecy of Isaiah 51:18, “There is none to guide her among all the sons whom she hath brought forth; neither is there any that taketh her by the hand of all the sons that she hath brought up.” In the end, Mary stayed in John’s house, first in Jerusalem and later in Ephesus, as may be observed in the Second Epistle of John, which is a loving letter from John to his “mother”, the Elect Lady in Ephesus.? “Grace be with you, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.” (2 John 1:3)? What comfort these words would have been to Mary, reminding her of God’s special gift to her those many years ago, but also reminding her of her duty to posterity. While some
speculate that Jesus knew that John would be the only disciple (or brother) to
live longer than Mary, may I speculate that perhaps his caring role for Mary was
the reason why he lived so long?? In brief, without Jesus’ act spelled out
in John 19:26-27, the full New Testament Canon would not have been complete, and
2 John could not have been written. Please enjoy your
Mothers' Day 2022 this Sunday,
Blessings, Ray
Ray Sarlin, Tutor U3A
R09 |
Merlene