Did Mary have sister named Mary???

[OrangeHope]

Why so many Mary's : ?

 

[winslow]

Is this an error in the Bible?


Therefore the soldiers did these things. But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.

John 19:25

Since when do parents has two daughters and call them both the same name?


And yet here we have a verse in the Gospel of John that says Jesus' mother's sister was named Mary! That would mean that Mary had a sister named Mary.

This seems awfully far fetched! Who would call their daughters the same name?

Was John confused? Does that mean the Bible has errors?

Or is here another explanation?

I believe you are misinterpreting the verse. It seems there were 4 woman mentioned in the verse:

1. Mary the mother of Jesus
2. Mary's sister
3. Mary the wife of Clopas
4. Mary Magdalene

 

[tall73]

John 19:25
John alone mentions the mother of Jesus in the group. It is not clear whether the sister of the mother of Jesus is Salome the mother of the sons of Zebedee or the wife of Clopas. If so, two sisters have the name Mary and James and John are cousins of Jesus. The point cannot be settled with our present knowledge

Robertson? lol

I loved your work in "Word Pictures" !

 

[tall73]

There is nothing in the Greek that demands that it be the same person. On the other hand, all the others have the conjunction AND before them, and there is none there ( which is further accentuated by its presence in the Syriac, etc. } So it seems likely.

 

[CaliforniaJosiah]

My perspective...



I don't think this issue can be determined with the assurance necessary for any dogma. And none exists on that point.



I furthermore don't think the issue of whether the 4 named brothers of Jesus were via Mary can be determined with the assurance necessary for any dogma. And none exists on that point.



I furthermore don't think it can be determined with the assurance necessary for dogma how often Mary and Joseph shared marital intimacies with each other after Jesus was born necessary for any dogma. But it does exist. A couple of denominations insist - to the very highest level of importance and necessity of belief - exactly this issue.


I don't even know how often my parents "do it" (ugh - why would I even WANT to know?). And I certainly wouldn't say that issue is the highest level of certainly and importance for knowing.



My perspective.


Pax!


- Josiah



.

 

[simplyg123]

comentary by adam clarke:

Joh 19:25 -
Mary the wife of Cleophas - She is said, in Mat_27:56, (see the note there), and Mar_15:40, to have been the mother of James the Less, and of Joses; and this James her son is said, in Mat_10:3, to have been the son of Alpheus; hence it seems that Alpheus and Cleopas were the same person. To which may be added, that Hegesippus is quoted by Eusebius, Hist. Eccl. l. iii. c. 11, as saying that Cleopas was the brother of Joseph, the husband of the virgin. Theophylact says that Cleopas, (brother of Joseph, the husband of the virgin), having died childless, his brother Joseph married his widow, by whom he had four sons, called by the evangelists the brothers of our Lord, and two daughters, the one named Salome, the other Mary, the daughter of Cleopas, because she was his daughter according to law, though she was the daughter of Joseph according to nature. There are several conjectures equally well founded with this last to be met with in the ancient commentators; but, in many cases, it is very difficult to distinguish the different Marys mentioned by the evangelists.

 

[PaulAckermann]

I believe you are misinterpreting the verse. It seems there were 4 woman mentioned in the verse:

1. Mary the mother of Jesus
2. Mary's sister
3. Mary the wife of Clopas
4. Mary Magdalene

Actually, there are three Mary's. There is Jesus's mother. There is Jesus's mother's sister, Mary, the wife of Clopas. And there is Mary Magdelene.

But even if there 4 instead of 3, my argument still stands. Since when do parents name two of their daughters with the same name? So how could Mary have a sister named Mary?

The only credible expanation is that, knowing that in that culture "sister" and "brother" often meant cousin or some sort of relative, that it meant that Mary had a cousin named Mary. Having two cousins of the same name is very common.

 

[Axion]

Actually, there are three Mary's. There is Jesus's mother. There is Jesus's mother's sister, Mary, the wife of Clopas. And there is Mary Magdelene.

But even if there 4 instead of 3, my argument still stands. Since when do parents name two of their daughters with the same name? So how could Mary have a sister named Mary?

The only credible expanation is that, knowing that in that culture "sister" and "brother" often meant cousin or some sort of relative, that it meant that Mary had a cousin named Mary. Having two cousins of the same name is very common.

Exactly.