According to the Gospels, Mary, a virgin betrothed to Joseph, conceived Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit – and therefore Christians consider Jesus the Son of God. However, most Christians understand Joseph to be a true father in every way except biological, since Joseph was the legal father who raised Jesus.
Jesus' earthly father was Joseph and His Heavenly Father is God. Joseph raised Jesus as his son, even though they had no biological connection. Jesus is also the Son of God; after Jesus' baptism, God spoke and said, “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased” (Mark 1:11b).
Consequently, Jesus received his DNA from the Blessed Mother, Mary and, by extension, her direct ancestors.
Joseph has one wife, Asenath the daughter of Potiphar the priest of On, whom he marries in Egypt. She gives birth to two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. Since in the Bible, unlike in later Jewish law, ethnic identity is determined by the father, the fact that their mother is not an Israelite does not affect their status.
God had seen that Joseph was trustworthy with his talents, his business, and his money. He had watched him behave mercifully toward Mary instead of being judgmental. He knew that Joseph would be a spiritual leader in his family and that he was spiritually tuned to the voice of His Spirit.
It is often said that Joseph was 90 and Mary was 11-12 years old when they got married. There is not one verse that says this. Though one can guess Joseph was older than Mary since he died before even Jesus did.
And so, it is not unreasonable to conclude he died a number of years before Mary. It seems certain that by the time of Jesus' ministry, Joseph was no longer alive. John notes how at the time of His crucifixion Jesus made sure His mother would be provided for after His death (John 19:26-27).
Scripture is quite clear that Mary conceived Jesus in a virginal way – by the power of the Holy Spirit. Additionally, it is the constant teaching of the Church that she always retained her virginity. She had no other children and never engaged in the marital act with Joseph.
There is no specific Church teaching on when St. Joseph died. All we know from Sacred Scripture is that he died in between the time that Jesus was twelve and when Jesus started His public ministry at age 30.
The text is framed as an explanation by Jesus on the Mount of Olives concerning the life of Joseph, his stepfather. Agreeing with Mary's continued virginity, the text proclaims that Joseph had four sons (Judas, Justus, James, and Simon) and two daughters (Assia and Lydia) by a previous marriage.
Mainstream Christian thinking typically assumes Jesus to have remained celibate and without a defined sexuality, living a pious life free from sins such as lust or fornication.
The notion of a progeny from Jesus and Mary Magdalene and its supposed relationship to the Merovingians, as well as to their alleged modern descendants, is strongly dismissed as pseudohistorical by a qualified majority of Christian and secular historians such as Darrell Bock and Bart D.
Isaiah 52:14 New Century Version (NCV)
His appearance was so damaged he did not look like a man; his form was so changed they could barely tell he was human.
According to the canonical Gospels, Joseph was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus.
I am a Jew, but I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene." Einstein was then asked if he accepted the historicity of Jesus, to which he replied, "Unquestionably! No one can read the Gospels without feeling the actual presence of Jesus. His personality pulsates in every word.
Jesus' known family members include his mother Mary, his father Joseph, and his three brothers, James, Jude (or Judas-not to be confused with Judas Iscariot), and Simon (not to be confused with Simon Peter). Jesus is a Greek form of Joshua, meaning “savior,” but it was a pretty common name.
According to Christianity.com, Mary was 46 to 49 years old when Jesus died. Britannica states that she “flourished” from 25 B.C. to A.D. 75. Assuming this is in reference to her lifespan, according to Britannica, Mary was approximately 54 to 59 years old when Jesus died.
Joseph's Disappearance from the Narrative
After the Temple event, he is no longer mentioned. Scholars believe he likely passed away before Jesus' public ministry. Mary continued to play a significant role, present at the crucifixion and among the disciples after the resurrection (John 19:25-27; Acts 1:14).
Joseph is revered in Islamic history. Descended from the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, he also has the gift of prophecy.
The Gospel of James states that Mary remained a life-long virgin, because Joseph was an old man who married her without physical desire, and the brothers of Jesus mentioned in the canonical gospels are explained as Joseph's sons by an earlier marriage.
According to Mark, our first written Gospel, Jesus had four brothers: James, Joses, Judas, and Simon. He also had at least two sisters, although they are unnamed. Matthew agrees with this list, although he modifies the name “Joses,” changing it to the more common version “Joseph.”
In 1st-century Palestine, the ideal age for marriage, for both women and men, was during late adolescence. Men, however, often married a bit later, sometimes even as late as 30. We can probably assume, therefore, that when they married, Mary was between 14 and 19 years old while Joseph may have been in his 20s.
Joseph, her husband, to “send her away” quietly. “Why was Joseph going to separate himself from Mary?” The immediate response may well be that he suspected her of adultery, but did not want to make this publicly known lest she be shamed and, indeed, stoned to death.
The fact that Jesus asked “the disciple he loved” (maybe John himself) to care for His mother suggests that Joseph was no longer alive to care for Mary. So, the answer to our question, “where was Joseph when Jesus died?” seems to be that he had passed away.
The sons of Joseph and Mary were James, Joseph, Jude, and Simon. While they were skeptical of Jesus during his ministry, this changed after Jesus' resurrection. Two of Jesus' brothers, James and Jude, went on to become leaders in the early church, each writing a New Testament book.