1526 | MattheW 1:1
The Genealogy of Jesus the Messiah
1:1-17pp— Lk 3:23-38 1:3-6pp— Ru 4:18-22 1:7-11pp— 1Ch 3:10-17
1
This is the ge ne al o gy a of Jesus the Mes si ah b the son of Da vid, the son of Abra ham:
2
Abra ham was the fa ther of Isaac, Isaac the fa ther of Ja cob, Ja cob the fa ther of Ju dah and his broth ers,
3
Ju dah the fa ther of Pe rez and Ze rah, whose moth er was Ta mar, Pe rez the fa ther of Hez ron, Hez ron the fa ther of Ram,
4
Ram the fa ther of Am min a dab, Am min a dab the fa ther of Nah shon, Nah shon the fa ther of Sal mon,
5
Sal mon the fa ther of Boaz, whose moth er was Ra hab,
Boaz the fa ther of Obed, whose moth er was Ruth,
Obed the fa ther of Jes se,
6 and Jes se the fa ther of King Da vid.
Da vid was the fa ther of Sol o mon, whose moth er had been Uri ah’ s wife,
7
Sol o mon the fa ther of Re ho bo am, Re ho bo am the fa ther of Abi jah, Abi jah the fa ther of Asa,
8
Asa the fa ther of Je hosh a phat, Je hosh a phat the fa ther of Je ho ram,
Je ho ram the fa ther of Uz zi ah,
9
Uz zi ah the fa ther of Jo tham, Jo tham the fa ther of Ahaz, Ahaz the fa ther of Hez e ki ah,
10
Hez e ki ah the fa ther of Ma nas seh, Ma nas seh the fa ther of Amon, Amon the fa ther of Jo si ah,
11 and Jo si ah the fa ther of Jec o ni ah c and his broth ers at the time of the ex ile to Bab ylon.
12
Af ter the ex ile to Bab ylon: Jec o ni ah was the fa ther of She al ti el, She al ti el the fa ther of Ze rub ba bel,
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Ze rub ba bel the fa ther of Abi hud, Abi hud the fa ther of Eli a kim, Eli a kim the fa ther of Azor,
14
Azor the fa ther of Za dok, Za dok the fa ther of Akim, Akim the fa ther of Eli hud,
15
Eli hud the fa ther of El e a zar, El e a zar the fa ther of Mat than, Mat than the fa ther of Ja cob,
16 and Ja cob the fa ther of Jo seph, the hus band of Mary, and Mary was the moth er of Jesus who is called the Mes si ah.
17
Thus there were four teen gen er a tions in all from Abra ham to Da vid, four teen from Da vid to
a
1 Or is an account of the origin b
1 Or Jesus Christ. Messiah( Hebrew) and Christ( Greek) both mean Anointed One; also in verse 18. c
11 That is, Jehoiachin; also in verse 12
1:1 – 17 The Gospel of Matthew probably was written sometime between AD 60 – 85 by the apostle Matthew, one of Jesus’ twelve disciples( Mt 9:9; 10:3). The book begins with Jesus’ genealogy, identifying him as a descendant of David and Abraham. These connections serve to establish Jesus’ identity as a Jew( son of Abraham) and his right to rule( son of David). Additionally, both titles evoke Messianic expectations and recall God’ s promises in his covenants with Abraham and David.
Matthew arranges his material in three groups of roughly 14 generations each. Matthew traces Jesus’ lineage back to Abraham, though the genealogy is not exhaustive. It gives priority to the theme of the royal Messiah rather than to strict chronology. See the event line“ Jesus’ Early Life and Ministry” on p. 1530; see people diagram“ Jesus’ Family Tree According to Matthew” on p. 1528.
1:1 the genealogy Family descent was very important to Matthew’ s original audience, who hoped in the promises that God had made to specific ancestors. The book of Matthew shows how Jesus fulfills these promises. Messiah The Greek word used here, christos, can be rendered as“ Christ,”“ Messiah” or“ anointed one.” This term is used in the OT primarily to describe kings— although other figures, such as priests and prophets, are occasionally referred to as anointed. Matthew applies the term to Jesus and connects him with David, thereby emphasizing Jesus’ kingly role. Jews in the first century had varied and multifaceted expectations of the Messiah. Many longed for a political leader like King David who would free them from Roman oppression and restore national independence. Others anticipated a priestly figure who would legitimize the temple worship, which the Hasmonean rulers had taken over. son of David The Jews expected the true Messiah to be from David’ s line( 2Sa 7:11 – 16). For Matthew, Jesus’ Davidic heritage is evidence of his Messiahship, stemming from passages such as Jer 23:5 and 33:15. By connecting Jesus with David, Matthew asserts that the Davidic covenant reaches its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus( see 2Sa 7:16 and note). Abraham The forefather of Israel. God had promised Abraham that he would be the source of blessing for all peoples( Ge 12:3; compare Ac 3:25; Gal 3:8). For Matthew, this promise ultimately is fulfilled in Jesus. 1:5 Ruth The great-grandmother of King David. See Ru 4:17 and note. 1:6 Uriah’ s wife Refers to Bathsheba— the woman David committed adultery with( see 2Sa 11). 1:8 Jehoram the father of Uzziah Matthew omits three intervening kings( Ahaziah, Joash and Amaziah; 1Ch 3:11 – 12), possibly in order to tidy up the structure of the genealogy( see note on Mt 1:1 – 17). 1:11 exile to Babylon Occurred when Nebuchadnezzar took the southern tribe of Judah into captivity in Babylon( 2Ki 25:8 – 11). 1:16 Joseph, the husband of Mary The culture of this time considered adoption to be real sonship. Even though Jesus had no biological relation to Joseph, he continued Joseph’ s familial line.