Jesus did not have brothers and sisters and the word used for brothers means cousins (a view also held by Christian leaders in Egypt in the early third century). Yet, in each instance, the specific word for brother and not cousin is used. While the word can mean cousin, there is no lexical necessity for such usage in these instances. Some have also argued that Jesus’ brothers and sisters were half brothers and half sisters who were the children of Joseph from an earlier marriage. There is no evidence