What Is Known About Joseph, the Father of Jesus?
Joseph of Nazareth was the husband of Mary and the earthly father to Jesus. According to the Christian Bible, Joseph was born around the year 100 B.C. and died in 1 A.D. All of the information that is known about Joseph comes from the New Testament.
Joseph is known as Saint Joseph by the Catholic Church, as canonized by Pope Pius IX. In the New Testament book of Matthew, Joseph's lineage is dated back to King David, a prominent king in the Old Testament. He is widely believed by scholars to have been in his mid-thirties when he married Jesus' mother, Mary.
The Bible states that after Joseph wed Mary, he learned of her pregnancy. He planned to quietly divorce her, but an angel appeared to him and told him that she was pregnant with the Savior. He continued the relationship and became the earthly father to Jesus. The New Testament gospels describe Joseph as an honest and hard-working carpenter. Biblical information in the New Testament points to him teaching this trade to Jesus, and the two men worked together before Jesus began his ministry.
The manner in which Joseph died is unknown. Biblical information implies that Joseph died either before Jesus' ministry began or before the crucifixion of Jesus occurred.
