Joses

Biblical Record

Joses appears in Scripture not through any words or deeds of his own but only as a name used to identify his mother.

• Mark 15:40: Among the women who watched the crucifixion of Jesus from afar was "Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses."
• Mark 15:47: The same Mary, together with Mary Magdalene, "beheld where he was laid."
• Matthew 27:56: Recounting the same scene, Matthew identifies her as the mother of James and Joseph (KJV: "Joses"). Joses is regarded as another form of the name Joseph, and the spelling differs among manuscripts.

Mark 16:1 and Luke 24:10 name "Mary the mother of James" among the women who came to the tomb on the morning of the resurrection. Many interpreters identify this woman with the mother of Joses.

Significance in Scripture

Because his name is used to identify his mother, some interpreters infer that Joses and his brother James were known to early Christian readers. The text, however, says nothing further about who Joses was.

Interpretations and Debates

• Who was James the Less? One tradition identifies James the Less with James the son of Alphaeus, one of the twelve disciples. Others hold that the evidence for this identification is insufficient.
• Who was his mother, Mary? Some identify her with "Mary the wife of Cleophas" in John 19:25, but this cannot be established with certainty.
• Relationship to the brothers of Jesus: Mark 6:3 names James and Joseph (KJV: "Joses") among the brothers of Jesus. In the original Greek, this name has the same form as that of the Joses discussed here, so the relationship between the two figures is debated.
• The Catholic Church, in keeping with the doctrine of Mary's perpetual virginity, understands the "brothers" of Jesus as relatives. Within this tradition, the interpretation that they were children of Mary the mother of Joses, and thus cousins of Jesus, has been widely known since Jerome.
• The Orthodox Church has a tradition that regards them as children of Joseph from a previous marriage.
• Many Protestants regard the brothers in Mark 6:3 as children born to Mary after the birth of Jesus and read them as distinct from the Joses mentioned at the cross. This is not, however, a matter on which denominations have taken an official position.

In Korean Churches

In Korean churches, sermons or Sunday school lessons devoted specifically to Joses are rare. He is mentioned mainly as part of the name identifying his mother, Mary, when the women who stood by the cross and kept watch at the tomb are discussed during Holy Week and at Easter.