"Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?"
At the weekend we studied various passages of scripture at the Corps about 'stones', and the subsequent discussion over a cup of coffee with the visiting officer has, once again, set me off on another interesting tangent. This one's all about the meaning of the word 'carpenter' in the above text. So what did Joseph do for a living?
Joseph is described as a carpenter by trade, and Jesus would have probably followed the same trade, learning by apprenticeship. But is that right? The Greek word being translated here as "carpenter" is τεκτων (tekton), which is a word that is from the same root as "technical" and "technology". This means Joseph was an artisan, a craftsman who was probably working with various materials, ranging from wood to stone. And since wood wasn't as commonly available in the local area as stone, most structural building was done in stone. Therefore, both Joseph and Jesus were probably the village craftsmen, working in wood, stone and possibly metal.
It's interesting, then, to consider Mark 12:1-12 in the light of this... the parable ends us with a good reference for a local building expert to use:
It's interesting, then, to consider Mark 12:1-12 in the light of this... the parable ends us with a good reference for a local building expert to use:
Mark 12:10-12 (NIV)
Haven’t you read this passage of Scripture: "‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”
Then the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd; so they left him and went away.
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Here's some more food for thought, on the same lines:
Matthew 7: 24 – 27 (The Message)
"These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock.
"But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards."
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