Virgin Mary at Joseph’s
Since Joachim and Anna were in advanced old age, they did not live for long after Her presentation to the temple, and the Virgin Mary was left an orphan. When She reached her fourteenth birthday, according to the law, She could no longer stay at the temple and had to wed.
The High Priest, being aware of Her vow but reluctant to violate the law of marriage, formally betrothed Her to a distant relative of Hers, the widowed octogenarian Joseph, who promised to care for her and protect her virginity.
Joseph lived in the town of Nazareth and also came from the lineage of King David. He was not a wealthy man and worked as a carpenter. Joseph had children from his first marriage: Judah, Simon, James (the Lesser) and Josses (Matthew 13:55), whom the Gospels refer to as “brethren” of Jesus.
The Virgin Mary led as modest and solitary a life in the home of Joseph as She did in the temple.