THE CONJUNCTION HEŌS (“UNTIL”)
by Giuseppe Monno
The Greek conjunction heōs (“until”) in Sacred Scripture carries a meaning that does not necessarily imply any change in the situation after the point in time it marks. This is a well-established observation in Catholic exegesis and is especially important for understanding Matthew 1:25, where the evangelist states that Joseph did not know Mary “until” she had given birth to a son.
From a linguistic perspective, heōs can indicate a temporal limit without suggesting anything about what follows. Its function is to draw attention to a particular moment—often to underscore the theological significance of what takes place up to that point—without intending to describe what happens afterward.
THE USE OF HEŌS IN SCRIPTURE
A number of biblical passages make clear that heōs does not imply a subsequent change:
Psalm 110:1 (109:1):
“Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.”
Plainly, the Messiah does not cease to sit at the Father’s right hand once his enemies are subdued. The “until” marks the scope of the action, not a change in the Son’s state.
2 Samuel 6:23:
“And Michal, daughter of Saul, had no child to the day of her death.”
The point is to express a permanent condition, not to suggest the possibility of children after death.
1 Timothy 4:13:
“Until I arrive, devote yourself to reading, to encouraging and to teaching.”
Paul is not suggesting that Timothy should abandon these practices once he arrives.
Matthew 28:20:
“And look, I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.”
The Church has always understood this to mean that Christ’s presence does not come to an end, but is brought to its fullness beyond the end of time.
APPLICATION TO MATTHEW 1:25
When Matthew says that Joseph did not know Mary until the birth of Jesus, his concern is to establish a specific fact: that Jesus was conceived without human intervention, entirely by the action of the Holy Spirit.
The theological emphasis, then, is on affirming virginity before the birth. The text neither asserts nor denies anything about marital relations afterward. On the basis of Apostolic Tradition, the Church professes that Mary remained a virgin even after giving birth (virginitas post partum), and that the Gospel account is fully consistent with this belief.
The Fathers of the Church—from Augustine to Jerome—recognized that the evangelist’s purpose was not to describe the private life of the Holy Family, but to proclaim the mystery of the Incarnation:
Jerome, Against Helvidius on the Perpetual Virginity of Mary, chs. 5 and 8:
“The word ‘until’ does not imply that anything changed afterward; it simply indicates what took place up to the moment mentioned.”
Augustine, On the Harmony of the Gospels 2.1.2; Sermon 51.11:
“Scripture says ‘until,’ not in order to deny what follows, but to affirm with certainty what occurs before that point.”
John Chrysostom, Homilies on Matthew 5.3:
“In saying that Joseph did not know her until she bore a son, he intends to show that the birth took place without marital union. He does not at all assert that anything changed afterward. The evangelist’s aim is simply to establish the certainty of the miracle.”
Basil the Great, Homily on the Holy Generation of Christ:
“The Gospel testifies that there was no union until the Lord’s birth, in order to attest the virginal conception. It does not say that there was any afterward: Scripture is silent, and silence is not denial.”
Epiphanius of Salamis, Panarion 78.6:
“When Scripture says that Joseph did not know her until she gave birth, it does not mean that he knew her afterward. It is customary in biblical language to use ‘until’ to affirm a fact up to a certain point, without indicating what happens later.”
Gregory of Nyssa, Against Eunomius 2.9:
“Scripture often uses ‘until’ not to mark a point after which the opposite occurs, but to highlight what precedes it.”
Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae III, q. 28, a. 3:
“The evangelist says ‘until’ not to suggest that the opposite occurred afterward, but to emphasize what took place up to the birth: that she gave birth without any intervention of man.”
Aquinas further observes:
“Joseph would not have dared to approach her, knowing that her conception was from the Holy Spirit.”
(Summa Theologiae III, q. 28, a. 3 ad 3)
He further notes:
“It was fitting that Christ should be born of a Virgin who remained a virgin even after the birth.”
(Summa Theologiae III, q. 28, a. 3)
And again:
“It was appropriate for the Virgin to preserve her virginity by a vow.”
(Summa Theologiae III, q. 28, a. 4 ad 3)
Mary’s perpetual virginity does not rest on mere human reasoning, but on a coherent reading of the entire mystery of the Incarnation and the unique consecration God willed for the Mother of his Son.
The expression “until” in Matthew 1:25 is therefore not an argument against Mary’s perpetual virginity. On the contrary, it serves to highlight the role of the Holy Spirit in the conception of the Saviour. To read that “until” as implying what happened afterward is to assign it a meaning that neither the Greek language nor the Gospel context supports.
Reading Scripture in the light of Tradition and the Fathers, the Church recognizes in Matthew’s wording a clear affirmation: Jesus was born of a Virgin who remained such before, during, and after the birth—entirely consecrated to the mystery of the Son of God.