If I understand your argument, your position is that we can handwave away the history we have, in favor of conjecture, because the history is inconvenient. Motivated reasoning, to say the least - stop accusing the Church of doing what you're acting out in real time here.
The Catholic Church based in rome has long done tyrannical things. I have not offered conjecture on MARY'S VIRGINITY BUT SIMPLE BIBLICAL STATEMENTRS WITHOUT HAVING TO TORTURE WORD MEANINGS LIKE YOU AND BOL HAVE.
Strong and McClintock provided a bit ago.
Well here are strongs and Thayers Greek, no cousins here . You muyst be using a different Strongs!
delphos (Key)
Pronunciation
ad-el-fos'
Part of Speech
masculine noun
Root Word (Etymology)
From
ἄλφα (G1) (as a connective particle) and delphus (the womb)
Greek Inflections of ἀδελφός [?]
Dictionary Aids
Vine's Expository Dictionary: View Entry
TDNT Reference: 1:144,22
KJV Translation Count — Total: 346x
The KJV translates Strong's G80 in the following manner: brethren (226x),
brother (113x),
brother's (6x),
brother's way (1x).
Outline of Biblical Usage [?]
- a brother, whether born of the same two parents or only of the same father or mother
- having the same national ancestor, belonging to the same people, or countryman
- any fellow or man
- a fellow believer, united to another by the bond of affection
- an associate in employment or office
- brethren in Christ
- his brothers by blood
- all men
- apostles
- Christians, as those who are exalted to the same heavenly place
Strong’s Definitions [?](Strong’s Definitions Legend)
ἀδελφός adelphós, ad-el-fos'; from
G1 (as a connective particle) and δελφύς delphýs (the womb); a brother (literally or figuratively) near or remote (much like
G1):—brother.
Thayer's Greek Lexicon [?](Jump to Scripture Index)
STRONGS G80:
ἀδελφός, -οῦ, ὁ (from α copulative and δελφύς, from the same womb; cf. ἀγάστωρ) [from Homer down];
1. a brother (whether born of the same two parents, or only of the same father or the same mother):
Matthew 1:2;
Matthew 4:18, and often. That 'the brethren of Jesus,'
Matthew 12:46,
47 [but WH only in marginal reading];
Matthew 13:55f;
Mark 6:3 (in the last two passages also sisters);
Luke 8:19;
John 2:12;
John 7:3;
Acts 1:14;
Galatians 1:19;
1 Corinthians 9:5, are neither sons of Joseph by a wife married before Mary (which is the account in the Apocryphal Gospels [cf.
Thilo, Cod. Apocr. N. T. i. 362f]), nor cousins, the children of Alphæus or Cleophas [i. e. Clopas] and Mary a sister of the mother of Jesus (the
McClintock gived 4 examples in NT that he says connotes cousins, but they are sketchy at best . The Matthew 13 would have jesus saying "Who are my mother aqnd cousins?" "Anyone doing the will of my Father is my mother and cousin"
Not poor grammar (in the sense of wrong usage) in the day, especially if they were speaking in Aramaic and the Greek authors of the NT were transliterating.
Well we do not know if they were speaking aramaic or Hebrew. Being in Jerusalem they were most likely Hebrew. but they knew who lived there. Remember Matthew was the gospel writers to a Jewish audience and the scholarly consensus is that Matthre originally wrote his gospel in Hebrew or aramaic.