MARK 15:40

Q:  Mark notes some women were watching from a distance and specifically names “Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome.” At first I thought the name Joses was a typo and should have been “Jesus,” as Jesus’ mother was Mary and his younger brother James. However, other Bibles have the same name. The detail seems to imply the audience may have been familiar with James the younger and Joses. What do we know about these three, including Mary the mother. Also Salome was the name of the daughter who danced for Herod and asked for John the Baptist’s head on a platter. I assume this is not the same Salome?

This a case where a more detailed comparison of different biblical accounts may lead to additional insights. There are actually several listings of the women in the crucifixion accounts. All have Mary Magdalene present, with the others being:

Mark 15:40 Mary (the mother of James the younger and of Joses) and Salome

Matt. 27:56 Mary (the mother of James and Joseph) and the mother of the sons of Zebedee

John 19:25 Mary (Jesus' mother), her sister, and Mary (wife of Clopas)

Piecing these together, it is most likely that Mary the mother of James the younger and Joses (a Greek variation of the name Joseph) is the same as Mary the mother of Jesus. The James mentioned is thus our author of the Epistle of James. As for Joses/Joseph, we know nothing specifically about him other than the general references in the Gospels to the brothers of Jesus. Mary is probably designated as the mother of James and Joses in Matthew and Mark's accounts because of their prominence in the early Jerusalem church at the time of the writings.

Assuming that there were three women present at the cross besides Mary Magdalene, we can now tentatively identify Salome as being the sister of Mary (the mother of Jesus), the wife of Zebedee, and the mother of the apostles James and John. That would make James and John the earthly cousins of Jesus. Also, it would identify Salome as the woman who asked that her sons sit on Jesus' side in his kingdom (Matthew 20:20-23) and might explain why she had the temerity to do so, in light of the family connection.

The fourth woman is then Mary the wife of Clopas (who could possibly be the Cleopas who met the resurrected Jesus on the road to Emmaus). Other than her husband's name, we know nothing else about her, except that she should certainly not be identified with the infamous Salome of the John the Baptist story.