Was Jesus Married?

The commentary below is Ryan's dissenting vote that Jesus was indeed married. I borrow heavily from material already put together by my father, Brad Constantine.

"Was Jesus married? Consider these items: Because a Jewish man being unmarried at the age Jesus would have been was so unusual during the time in which Jesus lived, and because the New Testament does not explicitly say that he had no wife, some have suggested that this itself may be evidence that he was indeed married; otherwise the scriptures would have mentioned that he wasn’t and why. If Jesus had been a bachelor... the Bible would surely contain some record of his being criticized for it. To the Jews, their human Savior, would be an embodiment of the laws of God, he would typify them rather than being exempt from them. Just as Jesus was baptized "to fulfill all righteousness", and said that he had not "come to destroy," the law, "but to fulfill" it (Matt. 3:15, 5:17). They also expected a married Messiah, because the prophets of their Tanach (the Hebrew Bible) predicted his marital state as a feature of his life: In speaking of Israel's expectant deliverer in a passage Paul identifies as referring to Jesus, David wrote, "Kings daughters were among thy honorable women", or wives as the 1599 version of the Geneva Bible, and a 1636 Church of England Bible puts it (Ps. 45:6, see Heb. 1:8) Of him having children, Isaiah predicts, "he shall see his seed”, and asks, “Who shall declare his generation?” Isaiah 53:8, see Luke 23:27-28 & Isaiah 53:10, Acts 8:33, Heb 2:16.

"Whether Jesus was married: In addition to all the indications already given, it is interesting to note that Jesus was referred to by a title only given to married teachers, that of Rabbi. Even his detractors had no qualms about referring to him as such, and allowed him to preach in the synagogue, a practice also limited to married men (John 1:38,49, 3:2, 6:25, 20:16).

"When Jesus was married: John in the second chapter of his book speaks of a wedding at which not only Jesus was present, but also his mother, who would have had to have traveled all the way from Nazareth especially to be there. At this event Jesus was in charge of the wine, a duty usually set aside for the groom, and if this does not make it obvious enough that it was his own wedding he was present at, we have in the sacred record that he was referred to as the bridegroom on this occasion (John 2:1-10: 1 And the athird day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: 2 And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. 3 And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. 4 Jesus saith unto her, aWoman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. 5 His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. 6 And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the apurifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. 7 Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. 9 When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, 10 And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. ).

"Who Jesus married: The association Jesus had with certain women would have been wholly inappropriate for a single man, but perfectly normal and accepted for a husband (Matt. 27:55, Mark 15:40-41, Luke 23:27-28). In the Greek language there is little distinction between the word woman and wife, and so therefore any (if not all) of those females who accompanied him quite possibly could have been married to him. Martha called him "Master", a title a wife would use to address her husband, and when Mary her sister was in mourning over the death of their brother, Lazarus, she sat in her home until Jesus called her out, just as was the custom that only a husband could call a woman out of her home at such a time (John 11:28). Not only did Christ fulfill the traditions and duties of a typical Jewish husband, but so did his wives, when they anointed him prior to his burial (Luke 24:1,10).

"Jesus Christ never omitted the fulfillment of a single law that God had made known for the salvation of the children of men. It would not have done for him to have come and obeyed one law and neglected or rejected another. He could not do that and then say to mankind, `Follow me! (Joseph F. Smith, Millennial Star 62:97)

"Joseph Smith in fact stated that "Mary and Martha manifested a much closer relationship [with Jesus] than merely a believer" (Journal of Wilford Woodruff, July 22, 1883), later explicitly naming Mary Magdalene as his wife. The Prophet did not surmise that Jesus `must have been married,' but through the unique insight and inspiration that came with his calling could proclaim Jesus was indeed wed.

"It will be borne in mind that once on a time, there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and on a careful reading of that transaction, it will be discovered that no less a person than Jesus Christ was married on that occasion. If he was never married, his intimacy with Mary and Martha and the other Mary also whom Jesus loved, must have been highly unbecoming and improper to say the best of it.

"I will venture to say that if Jesus Christ were now to pass through the most pious countries in Christendom with a train of women such as used to follow him, fondling about him, combing his hair, anointing him with precious ointment, washing his feet with tears, and wiping them with the hair of their heads and unmarried, or even married, he would be mobbed, tarred, and feathered, and rode not on an ass, but on a rail." (Orson Hyde, J.D. 4:259)

"One thing is certain, that there were several holy women that greatly loved Jesus - such as Mary, and Martha her sister, and Mary Magdalene; and Jesus greatly loved them, and associated with them much; and when He arose from the dead, instead of first showing Himself to His chosen witnesses, the Apostles, He appeared first to these women, or at least to one of them - namely, Mary Magdalene. Now, it would be very natural for a husband in the resurrection to appear first to his own dear wives, and afterwards show himself to his other friends. If all the acts of Jesus were written, we no doubt should learn that these beloved women were his wives. (Orson Pratt, The Seer, p. 159)

"He being married, we would expect him to have lived up to all of the God-given responsibilities that come with such a union, chief among these being the commandment to bring spirit children into the world through the means of procreation. Once again God's apostles and prophets proclaimed that this was not just a possibility that he might do so, but a necessity:

"Did the Savior of the world consider it to be his duty to fulfill all righteousness? You answer, yes. Even the simple ordinance of baptism he would not pass by, for the Lord commanded it, and therefore it was righteousness to obey what the Lord had commanded, and he would fulfill all righteousness. Upon this hypothesis I will go back to the beginning, and notice the commandment that was given to our first parents in the Garden of Eden. The Lord said unto them, "Multiply and replenish the earth. ..."... Our first parents, then, were commanded to multiply and replenish the earth; and if the Savior found it his duty to be baptized to fulfill all righteousness, a command of far less importance than that of multiplying his race, (if indeed there is any difference in the commandments of Jehovah, for they are all important, and all essential,) would he not find it his duty to join in with the rest of the faithful ones in replenishing the earth? ... (Orson Hyde, J.D. 2:79, 80, 82 - check refs)

"The offspring from such a union, being the children of a perfect being, would almost certainly be uniquely endowed with an inclination towards righteousness, and a rare degree of spiritual strength, not often seen amongst other mortals. What a loss it would be to the world if they were to go unrecognized, but this is not a danger us Latter-day Saints need fear of, for the early prophets and apostles of this dispensation declared - through use of their revelatory skills - that indeed, the sons of the Messiah did walk amongst the Saints. Joseph Smith being the first to reveal this truth, when he informed the plural wife of Elder Judge Adams, that the Apostle "was a literal descendant of Jesus Christ." (Oliver B. Huntington Journal, p. 259) Lorenzo Snow, and his counselor George Q. Cannon, would also declare this truth more publicly:

"President George Q. Cannon also spoke ... Among the other things, he said, "There are those in this audience who are descendants of the old Twelve Apostles - and shall I say it, yes, descendants of the Savior Himself. His seed is represented in this body of men. Following Pres. Cannon, President Snow arose and said that what Bro. Cannon had stated respecting the literal descendants among this company of the old apostles and the Savior himself is true - the Savior's seed is represented in this body of men. (Journal of Pres. Rudger Clawson, pp. 374-375)

"Other arguments for Jesus being married:

"D&C 131:1-4 states: 1 In the acelestial glory there are three bheavens or degrees; 2 And in order to obtain the ahighest, a man must enter into this border of the cpriesthood [meaning the new and deverlasting covenant of emarriage]; 3 And if he does not, he cannot obtain it. 4 He may enter into the other, but that is the end of his kingdom; he cannot have an aincrease.

"This, however, does not mean that Jesus was married during mortality, but that He would need to be sealed to a spouse in order to be exalted.

"In his answer to the Sadducees who questioned him about marriage in the afterlife, Jesus responded in Matthew 22:30 – For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven. The interpretation of this verse is that sealings to spouses are to be done prior to the resurrection. Therefore, Jesus having been resurrected three days after his death, would have had to have been sealed either prior to his death, or during the time his body rested in the sepulcher prior to his resurrection. It seems most logical to assume that Jesus, being our ultimate Exemplar, would set us the pattern by being sealed Himself to a spouse while in mortality instead of waiting to be sealed to a spouse by proxy on His behalf. Although, Elder Bruce R. McConkie stated: “There is no revelation, either ancient or modern, which says there is neither marrying nor giving in marriage in heaven itself for righteous people.” DNTC 1:607.

"Also, as mentioned previously, the Jewish custom was for men to be married and have children and since there are no recorded objections by the Jewish rulers who questioned Him about everything else, to have not criticized him for this omission had He not been married.)"

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Howard W. Hunter stated, " He held the priesthood and received all the saving and exalting ordinances of the gospel,(https://www.lds.org/manual/teachings-of-presidents-of-the-church-howard…)" of which Eternal Marriage is one such ordinance.

Handbook 2 states, "Some ordinances are required for exaltation in the celestial kingdom for all accountable persons. These ordinances include baptism, confirmation, Melchizedek Priesthood ordination (for men), the temple endowment, and temple sealing. Living members of the Church receive these saving and exalting ordinances themselves." Conclusion, unless unable, you must be sealed to a spouse while living.

Bruce R. McConkie said, "Everything that we do in the Church is connected and associated with and tied into the eternal order of matrimony that God has ordained. Everything that we do from the time that we become accountable, through all our experiences, and all the counsel and direction we receive, up to the time of marriage, is designed and intended to prepare us to enter into a probationary marriage arrangement, one that does in fact become eternal if we abide in the covenant made in connection with that order of matrimony. Then everything that we do for the remainder of our lives, whatsoever it may be, ties back into the celestial order of matrimony into which we have entered and is designed and intended to encourage us to keep the covenant made in holy places. That is the general concept, briefly stated, under which we are operating."(https://www.lds.org/new-era/1978/06/celestial-marriage?lang=eng)

Additionally, consider that to have Eternal Life, to be exalted, is to be just like God the Father. As part of that is the ability and responsibility of having one's own spirit children and populating countless worlds as He has done. Surely, the exalted Jesus is doing what His Father has done in this matter since even while in the flesh He stated that "Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. (John 5:19)"

"As pertaining to the new and everlasting covenant, it was instituted for the fulness of my glory, and he that receiveth a fulness thereof must and shall abide the law, or he shall be damned, saith the Lord God." (D&C 132:6)