Who was Joseph, father of Christ's father?

Question

Was it Jacob, as stated in Matthew 1:16, or Heli as stated in Luke 3:23?

Answer 1

Two explanations exist - both reasonings seem plausible to me - and both were discussed ad nauseum in my seminary classes on the Gospels...

a) St. Matthew's genealogy is that of St. Joseph; St. Luke's, that of the Blessed Virgin. This contention implies that St. Luke's genealogy only seemingly includes the name of Joseph. It is based on the received Greek text, on (os enomizeto ouios Ioseph) tou Heli, "being the son (as it was supposed, of Joseph, but really) of Heli". This parenthesis really eliminates the name of Joseph from St. Luke's genealogy, and makes Christ, by means of the Blessed Virgin, directly a son of Heli. This view is supported by a tradition which names the father of the Blessed Virgin "Joachim", a variant form of Eliacim or its abbreviation Eli, a variant of Heli, which latter is the form found in the Third Evangelist's genealogy. But these two consideration, viz. the received text and the traditional name of the father of Mary, which favour the view that St. Luke gives the genealogy of the Blessed Virgin, are offset by two similar considerations, which make St. Luke's list terminate with the name of Joseph. First, the Greek text preferred by the textual critics reads, on ouios, hos enomizeto, Ioseph tou Heli, "being the son, as it was supposed, of Joseph, son of Heli", so that the above parenthesis is rendered less probable. Secondly, according to Patrizi, the view that St. Luke gives the genealogy of Mary began to be advocated only towards the end of the fifteenth century by Annius of Viterbo, and acquired adherents in the sixteenth. St. Hilary mentions the opinion as adopted by many, but he himself rejects it (Mai, "Nov. Bibl, Patr.", t. I, 477). It may be safely said that patristic tradition does not regard St. Luke's list as representing the genealogy of the Blessed Virgin.

(b) Both St. Matthew and St. Luke give the genealogy of St. Joseph, the one through the lineage of Solomon, the other through that of Nathan. But how can the lines converge in St. Joseph? St. Augustine suggested that Joseph, the son of Jacob and the descendant of David through Solomon, might have been adopted by Heli, thus becoming the adoptive descendant of David through Nathan. But Augustine was the first to abandon this theory after learning the explanation offered by Julius Africanus. According to the latter, Estha married Mathan, a descendant of David through Solomon, and became the mother of Jacob; after Mathan's death she took for her second husband Mathat, a descendent of David through Nathan, and by him became the mother of Heli. Jacob and Heli were, therefore, uterine brothers. Heli married, but died without offspring; his widow, therefore, became the levirate wife of Jacob, and gave birth to Joseph, who was the carnal son of Jacob, but the legal son of Heli, thus combining in his person two lineages of David's descendants.

Answer 2

Most theologians agree that Heli was the father of Mary.

The traditional (Catholic) St. Joachim seems to have gotten lost in the struggle. Perhaps Heli was another of his names.

Answer 3

Christ's father is Heavenly Father. Not Joseph. Jesus is the physical son of Heavenly Father and Mary

Answer 4

Probably Heli-Jacob. (No, he didn't fly!) I understand Moses's father-in-law had a similar identity problem.

Answer 5

Joseph's fathers name was Joachim.

God bless,
Stanbo

Answer 6

Mary had to get married...so Joseph was earthly father and God was his real father

Answer 7

A lot of people in the Middle East have multiple names. You can do better than this if you want to point out apparent contradictions.

Answer 8

No Joseph was his human father who raised him

Answer 9

more like care taker

Answer 10

He was jewish.