A Manger Seen, Week 3, Day 16

MATTHEW 1:19 | Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly.

But Joseph decides to abandon his original plan. His intended turns up pregnant with a strange story of an angelic visit and divine intervention. Silent Joseph, who never speaks in the New Testament, decides to “put her away quietly.” As a seemingly wronged fiancé, whose betrothed has become pregnant without his help, he would have the right of public vindication, in which Mary would be judged and punished. Betrothal, or engagement, had the status and commitment level of marriage in 1st century Palestine. Broken promises presumably led to public humiliation. But Joseph opts for a private disengagement, a non-vindictive and generous separation. There is a quality of mercy in this choice, a refusal to turn what he sees as Mary’s failure into an occasion for revenge and anger.

In your life, have you ever given up a cherished plan?
What caused this decision?
Did you make the change graciously?

Tags: mercy, plan, joseph