Luke 1:27
"to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin's name was Mary."
Luke 1:27—How could Elizabeth be related to Mary when she was from the tribe of Aaron?
Contrasting Link: Luke 1:5 →
Luke 1:27
—How could Elizabeth be related to Mary when she was from the tribe of Aaron?
Problem:
According to
Luke 1:5
, Elizabeth was from the priestly tribe of Aaron. But here in
Luke 1:36
she is described as a relative of Mary, who was from the tribe of Judah (
1:39
;
3:30
).
Solution:
Being a relative of someone in the tribe of Judah does not mean she was from that tribe. She could have been related by marriage. Intermarriage between tribes was permitted, except in the case of an heiress. Aaron himself married someone from the tribe of Judah (
Ex. 6:23
;
1 Chron. 2:10
).