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1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king.
And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.
So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.
Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Immanuel”
(which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.
(ESV)
The Gospels do not record a single word spoken by this man. Yet, the Gospel account written by Matthew is a bridge to the past. If a person had just read the Old Testament and started with Romans or Acts, they would be completely lost. The book of Matthew builds a strong link to the prophetic utterances of the Old Testament while also introducing the new covenant through Jesus Christ.
The Jews reading Matthew would have been concerned about God’s Kingdom. The Kingdom of Heaven occurs 33 times in this book. The genealogy listed here would tie into that promised kingdom by tracing roots back to David and Abraham – two men who were critical to kingdom prophecies.
Matthew also uses the word “righteous” more than all of the other Gospels combined. This would be due to the fact that first-century Jews put a heavy emphasis on being righteous before God. An important task that Matthew seeks to accomplish is convincing the Jews that Jesus is their Messiah. This would prove to be difficult, but it wasn’t due to a lack of factual information. It was the result of calloused hearts.
Matthew paints a paradoxical picture with his genealogy account. On one hand, Jesus was an ordinary man with a messy family tree. On the other hand, He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He was born into a simple family in the most humble of circumstances, yet, came to save all of humanity – past, present, and future. Jesus identified with sinners from the beginning.
Another fascinating snippet from Matthew’s genealogy account is the inclusion of women. This was rare, but it speaks to the counter-cultural message that Jesus and His followers enthusiastically embraced. In Jesus’ Kingdom, there are no pre-existing conditions. Men, women, children, Jews, Gentiles, tax collectors, prostitutes, and Pharisees are all welcome at the King’s table.
“In this list of names the patriarchs, Gentiles, women of doubtful character, good men and bad men, the wise, the illustrious, the unknown-all supply important links. It is as though to teach us that in the Son of man there is a blending of all classes, that He might be the representative and helper of all. Each of us may find some point of contact in this genealogy. Jesus Christ belongs to our race. He knew what was in man by that subtle and intimate knowledge which comes of kinship. In Him, therefore, is neither Jew nor Greek exclusively, but all are one in Him.”
F.B. Meyer