Much has been written on Matt
1:18-25 and how this pericope shows that the author of Matthew knew nothing of the
post-partum virginity of Mary that is a dogma in Catholicism and Eastern
Orthodoxy. I will not rehash what has been written on this subject, except to
recommend Eric Svendsen’s discussion in his book, Who is My Mother?
I just wanted to highlight what was
pointed out by Murray Harris (Prepositions and Theology in the Greek New Testament)--had
Matthew wanted to convey Mary remaining a virgin after the birth of Jesus,
there was a three-word phrase he could have used had he known of Mary’s
perpetual virginity, viz η απο τοτε “or after that
[i.e. the birth of Jesus].” In light of this, and other considerations, such as
Matt 12 and 13 speaking of the “brothers” and “sisters” of Jesus within a
familial context (again, see Svendsen on the term “brother” αδελφος in the NT and
contemporary literature), the author of Matthew knew nothing of the perpetual
virginity.