20.
The statement of the Bridegroom, I know you not is the language of that which constitutes marriage. Marriage is not a ceremony, it is an act. Eve was taken out of Adam and in marriage the two were to become one flesh. Gen. 2:24 Jesus verified the validity of the marital act by declaring that the two would be one. Mt. 19:5 The Apostle Paul was to repeat these words in Eph. 5:31 and with them revealed the great mystery. He was speaking of Christ and His church. Remember the words of the angel to Mary, For with God nothing shall be impossible. Luke 1:37.
Mary experienced a meeting with the Lord in the person of the Holy Spirit. She was to be enveloped, captivated in, and by, the presence of the Spirit of the Lord. Anyone who has ever had the Spirit of the Lord come upon them will strongly verify the glory and joy of such an occasion. The word overshadowed is self explanatory. Strong gives us this explanation, to cast a shade upon, i.e.(by analogy) to envelope in a blaze of brilliancy, figuratively to invest with preternatural influence. What a glorious and most sacred moment as the seed, the Word that was becoming flesh was implanted within her body.
Mary, the mother of Jesus, responded to the annunciation of the angel with the words, I know not a man. How could it possibly happen? Luke 1:34 The angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream informing him of the virginity of Mary. He accepted it as the will of the Lord. Not only was he a just man but he was a man of faith. Though Joseph lived with her as her husband for the term of her pregnancy he knew her not. Mt. 1:25 Thus we see from the language of the Word of the Lord that when the Bridegroom said, I know you not it conveyed a deeper thought than just a rejection of recognition. They would not be allowed to enter into the consummation of the marriage. The term is found to be used in the Old Testament with the same meaning. Judah, in failing to keep his promise and in a moment of indiscretion impregnated his daughter-in- law. Tamar, was certainly not without complicity in the matter. Gen. 38:11-26 And he knew her no more. The Scriptures have a discreet way of handling delicate matters, while at the same time, not hiding the misdeeds of humanity. The virgin birth of the Lord Jesus is one of the very vital and fundamental teachings of the Word of the Lord. It needs to be fully embraced and declared to all men, everywhere.