Joseph and Mary's Courtship and Marriage 

Sometime early in the year 10 BCE, Joseph began to notice and subsequently to court Mary when she was a young woman and he was about nineteen years old. At the time, Joseph was working for Mary’s father, helping to build an addition to the home. One day, Mary brought Joseph a cup of water during lunchtime, and it was then that their courtship really began. Joseph was a black-eyed brunet; Mary, a brown-eyed well-nigh blond type.

Their courtship lasted nearly two years; and at the end of that time, in March 8 BCE, Mary and Joseph were married at Mary’s home when Joseph was twenty-one years old. They moved into their new home in Nazareth that had been built by Joseph and two of his brothers, and they enjoyed its ideal and charming location near the high ground that overlooked the surrounding countryside. And it was in this specially prepared home that they eventually expected to receive the child of promise that Gabriel subsequently announced to Mary in November 8 BCE.