Who was Heli?
This guy gets a single mention in the Bible.
The Gospel of Luke clearly states he was the son of Jannai, the father of Joseph.
So how come so many Christians think he was the father of Mary, and not Joseph?
Hmm, so the argument appears to be that as there was "no specific Koine Greek word for “son-in-law,”" it must be the case that the author of Luke meant that when he said "son... of". Got to admit, I am not clear why the author could not say Jesus was the son of Mary who was the daughter of Heli, if he believed that it was Mary who was the daughter of Heli rather than Joseph was the son of Heli.
Besides noting the fact that Mary is not even mentioned in Luke's genealogy, it is also worth pointing out that:
A genealogy via Mary serves no purpose because it does not support Jesus' claim to messiahship.
No mention of Mary. Hence, it is not saying Heli was the father of Mary.
When it says, "Joseph, the son of Heli," what is means is the Joseph, not Mary, who was the son of Heli.
This guy gets a single mention in the Bible.
Luke 3:23 Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph,
the son of Heli, 24 the son of Matthat,
the son of Levi, the son of Melki,
the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph,
25 the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos,
the son of Nahum, the son of Esli,
the son of Naggai,
The Gospel of Luke clearly states he was the son of Jannai, the father of Joseph.
So how come so many Christians think he was the father of Mary, and not Joseph?
Luke is following the line of Mary (Jesus’ blood relative), through David’s son Nathan. Since there was no specific Koine Greek word for “son-in-law,” Joseph was called the “son of Heli” by marriage to Mary, Heli’s daughter. Click here for more information.
That would explain why you don't actually know what you're talking about.
Mary's ancestry goes back to David, through his son Nathan.
Hmm, so the argument appears to be that as there was "no specific Koine Greek word for “son-in-law,”" it must be the case that the author of Luke meant that when he said "son... of". Got to admit, I am not clear why the author could not say Jesus was the son of Mary who was the daughter of Heli, if he believed that it was Mary who was the daughter of Heli rather than Joseph was the son of Heli.
Besides noting the fact that Mary is not even mentioned in Luke's genealogy, it is also worth pointing out that:
Descent Via the Male Line
Jews used descent via the mother to decide if you were Jewish, but in all genealogies, and legal issue about descent, it was the male line that was important and only the male line.- In Luke's nativity story, it is to Joseph's family home that they go, not Mary's. Mary's family did not matter.
- In Matthew 1 we see a long genealogy; a few women are mentioned, but none are in the line of descent
- In Luke 3 we see another genealogy; women are not mentioned at all. They do not matter.
- In the story of Noah, we know his name, we know his son's names. We know the names of none of the women. They did not matter
- In Genesis 10 we can read about Noah's descendant. About sixty men are mentioned. Zero women.
- Exodus 23:17 and 34:23, as well as Deuteronomy 16:16, has God demanding that all the males appear before him. As for the females, he is not interested.
- Numbers 3:15 has God asking for a census of the Levites - but only the males, the females do not matter.
Requirement for Messiahship
The reason Luke included the genealogy was to make clear that Jesus was qualified to be the Jewish messiah. All the ancient kings of Judah were direct male-line descendants of David. This was the requirement, and so become the requirement for any future king, i.e., the awaited messiah.A genealogy via Mary serves no purpose because it does not support Jesus' claim to messiahship.
No Mention of Mary
Just in case you were unsure, here are the verses again.Luke 3:23 Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph,
the son of Heli, 24 the son of Matthat,
the son of Levi, the son of Melki,
the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph,
25 the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos,
the son of Nahum, the son of Esli,
the son of Naggai,
No mention of Mary. Hence, it is not saying Heli was the father of Mary.
When it says, "Joseph, the son of Heli," what is means is the Joseph, not Mary, who was the son of Heli.