Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus. (Matthew 1:18–25)
He who was going to consecrate a new order of birth, must Himself be born after a novel fashion, concerning which Isaiah foretold how that the Lord Himself would give the sign. What, then, is the sign? “Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son.” Accordingly, a virgin did conceive and bear “Emmanuel, God with us.” This is the new nativity; a man is born in God. And in this man God was born, taking the flesh of an ancient race, without the help, however, of the ancient seed, in order that He might reform it with a new seed, that is, in a spiritual manner, and cleanse it by the removal of all its ancient stains.
Tertullian, On the Flesh of Christ 17
Thus the evangelists help us to recognize the divine and corporeal birth of the Lord, which they describe as a twofold mystery and a kind of double path. To be sure, both births of the Lord are indescribable, but that from the Father vastly exceeds every mode of narration and wonder. The bodily birth of Christ is in time; His divine birth is before time. The former is in this world, the latter before the ages. The former from a virgin mother, the latter from God the Father. Angels and men stood as witnesses at the corporeal birth of the Lord; at his divine birth there was no witness except the Father and the Son, because nothing existed before the Father and the Son. But because God the Word could not be seen in the glory of His divinity, He assumed visible flesh to show His invisible divinity. He took from us what is ours, in order to lavish upon us what is His.
When therefore saint Mary had conceived by the Holy Spirit in accordance with the announcement of the angel and showed herself to be well along in her pregnancy, saint Joseph, to whom the same Virgin Mary had been betrothed, not knowing about the secret of such a great mystery, wanted to dismiss her secretly. … He thought that she who even while pregnant remained a virgin was an adulteress; he reckoned to be defiled she who was the mother of virginity; and he believed that she who had conceived the author of life was worthy of death. Yet consider the resolve of the just man. Although he thought saint Mary was an adulteress, yet he was not disposed to offer her up for condemnation, lest he should stain his own holy conscience with the blood of someone else.
While saint Joseph then was still unaware of so great a mystery and wanted to put Mary away secretly, he was warned in a vision by an angel, who said to him, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for that which is born from her is of the Holy Spirit.” Saint Joseph is made aware of the heavenly mystery, lest he think otherwise about Mary’s virginity. For it would not have been right for a just man to be in error over such great virginity. He is also made aware of it for this purpose, to exclude the evil of suspicion and receive the good of the mystery. The following words were said to him: “Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for that which will be born from her is of the Holy Spirit,” so that he would recognize the integrity of his spouse and the virgin birth.
Chromatius of Aquileia, Tractate on Matthew 3.1–3
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