The Gospel of Matthew
Chapter 1 verses 1-17.
Genealogies. Who likes genealogies? Who is into tracing their genealogy? You know, tracing one’s genealogy has become quite popular. But I’ve noticed something about Australians when we trace our genealogies – or perhaps it’s just our family. We trace our genealogy back to when our ancestors came to Australia, and then as soon as we get back to the mother country, the original country, we stop. Let me tell you about one of my ancestors. His name was Bryan Veech and he came out here in the 1850s from Ireland. Anyway, he got free passage to Australia – and perhaps I had better leave it there about why he was sent to Australia….
As you’ve probably noticed, the Bible is full of genealogies. We’ve just had a look at Genesis and that has quite a few genealogical lists in them. Today we start going through the Gospel of Matthew. Matthew chapter 1 is divided into two parts. The first part, from verses 1-17, gives us the list of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, which is the part we will look at today. Before I read these verses, I want to speak about this list of Jesus’ genealogy.
Why do I want to do that? Because, I think, that many of you consider that genealogical lists are very boring! In the Bible there are a number of genealogical lists, not just here in the first chapter of Matthew. Tell me, honestly, what do you do, when reading the Bible, and you meet a genealogical list? Do you read it attentively? Honestly? Or do you read it quickly? Or to you not read it at all and skip the section entirely?
Despite the fact that we may find genealogical lists boring, God placed them in the Bible for a reason. Therefore, we need to read these lists carefully – these lists which God places in the pages of the Bible. God placed them there, so that we should learn something from them. Therefore, when we read this text, we need to read it carefully.
Before we read this text, we need to know, that for the Jews, genealogy is more important that it is for us. For those of us who have had our genealogies traced, we find it interesting, because we can learn where we came from, what our ancestors did and so on. But for the Jews, their genealogy was more important that just finding bits of interesting information. Their whole identity as a people was tied up in their genealogy. Remember, that in the time before Christ came, only the Jews were the people of God. Therefore, for a Jew, his genealogy was important, because his genealogy proved that he was a real Jew, and therefore, a member of the people of God. Also, the genealogies of some people were more important than for others. For example, priests. In order to become a priest, a person had to prove from his genealogy that he was not only a real Jew, but also a Levite – and one descended from Aaron! The Levites were one of the 12 tribes of Israel. That is, they were descended from Levi, who wa one of the sons of Jacob, also known as Israel, who we’ve looked at recently. And Aaron was a descendent of Levi. Only Levites descended from Aaron could become priests. In order to prove that he could be a priest, a person had to show a list of his genealogy.
Genealogy was important not only for priests. At the time of Jesus’ birth, Israel was not an independent country. Israel was a part of the Roman Empire. The Jews did not like this situation and wanted to become independent.
They waited for the Messiah, who would save them from oppression and who would rule them with justice. This Messiah would lead them into a golden era of peace and prosperity. But, not just anyone could become the Messiah. Only a descendent of King David could be the Messiah. And David, like all the kings after him, was descended from Judah, one of Jacob’s sons, who we looked at last week. The Jews considered King David to have been the ideal king. Additionally, in the 2 Samuel 7, the prophet Nathan prophesied to David, that his descendents would always rule Israel. The church of the New Testament claimed that Jesus was the Messiah. Therefore Matthew needed to show the genealogy of Jesus, in order to prove that Jesus really was the Messiah. Jesus’ genealogy clearly shows that He was descended from David and that He was in the royal line.
From verses 8-11 we notice the kings of Israel and Judah were Jesus’ ancestors. Such kings as Solomon, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, Josiah and others.
How let’s look at the Gospel of Matthew, 1:1.
Matthew 1:1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Already in the first verse of his Gospel, Matthew, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, speaks about where Jesus comes from according to His human origins. In verse 1 it says that Jesus is the Son of David and also, the Son of Abraham. I have already spoken about the significance of the fact that Jesus was descended from David. That’s because the Messiah needed to be descended from David. In Matthew 1:1, it says that Jesus was the Messiah. Now you might ask, “Where does it say that?” In the first verse, Jesus is called “Jesus Christ”. Now, the word “Christ” is not a surname. Often, when we read “Jesus Christ”, we think that the word “Christ” is a surname. But “Christ” is not a surname, but a title. In fact, “Christ” is simply the Greek word for the Hebrew word “Messiah”. Therefore, the first verse says that Jesus, who is the Messiah, is descended from David just as the Holy Scriptures say He would be. Therefore, Jesus really was the Messiah. From long before the birth of Jesus, until today, the Jews have been expecting the Messiah. Even today, the Jews still await the Messiah. The hope of Israel was, and is, the Messiah. Now, verse 1 says to the Jews, that Jesus is the Messiah, the one whom they have been waiting for.
The first verse doesn’t just say that Jesus was the Son of David. It also says that Jesus was the Son of Abraham. Why is it so important, that Jesus was descended from Abraham? In order to understand the significance of why Jesus was descended was Abraham, we need to look at the first book of the Bible, Genesis where for the first time we meet Abraham. Let’s look at Genesis, 12:1-3, where we first meet Abraham. We should already be quite familiar with these verses after our recent series on Genesis.
Genesis 12:1 Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
Notice in the last part of verse 3 where it says, “and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Not only the Jews would be blessed through Abraham, but all the families of the earth. All the peoples of the world. Not only Jews. Also English, French, Chinese, - even Australians!! And – even unreached peoples – of whom the vast majority have never heard about Jesus! 4000 years ago, and 2000 years before the birth of Jesus, God promised Abraham that through him, all the different peoples of the world would be blessed. This promise was not fulfilled in the time of Abraham, but would be fulfilled through one of his descendents. This descendent is Jesus. Since the coming of Jesus into the world, and through Jesus, all peoples have been blessed. Any person, from any ethnic group, is able to accept Jesus Christ and is able to receive eternal life.
Now we know why, in the first verse of the Gospel of Matthew it says that Jesus was descended from both David and Abraham. From David, because Jesus was the Messiah, the promised son of David, who would save the Jews. From Abraham, because Jesus was not only for the Jews. Jesus was the descendent of Abraham, through whom all the nationalities of the world would be blessed. Therefore, Jesus, who was born into the families of both Abraham and of David, is the hope of the whole world.
But, the Gospel of Matthew not only says that Jesus was descended from Abraham and from David. It also gives us the list of Jesus’ genealogy. This list is divided into three parts and each part has 14 generations. The first part is from Abraham to David. The second part, is from David until the exile to Babylon, and the third part is from the exile to Babylon until Christ. Abraham – the father of the Israelite nation. David, the most loved king in the history of the Jewish nation and the highest point in the history of Israel. The Exile into Babylon – the lowest point in the history of Israel, when the Jews lost their land. The genealogy of Jesus includes the beginning of the history of the nation of Israel, its highest point and its lowest point.
The genealogy of Jesus reads like a normal Jewish genealogy except for the following: in a normal genealogical list, only male ancestors are included. But, in the list of Jesus’ genealogy, 4 women ancestors are included.
Of course we know that women are in Jesus’ human ancestors as well as men, but the fact that some of Jesus’ female ancestors were actually written down as part of His genealogy shows that these women are important in His genealogy. Throughout the Gospels we notice that Jesus was concerned for women as well as men and we notice the faith of many women. In Jewish society at that time, women were often not regarded as spiritually responsive and were usually not given instruction in the Law. But Jesus ministered to women as well as men, and came to die for both and to bring salvation to both. Jesus came for all people – men and women.
But these women are no ordinary people! All these women are interesting and unusual. At least 2 were Gentiles. In verse 5 it mentions Rahab, a Gentile from Jericho. In verse 5, it also mentions Ruth, a Moabite. Moabites were the enemies of the Jews. The two other woman were also possibly Gentiles. The 3rd verse mentions Tamar, who probably was a Canaanite – that is – a Gentile. And in the sixth verse, it mentions Bathsheba. It’s interesting, because it does not mention her name, but rather the name of her former husband, “Uriah.” Now we know that Uriah was a Hittite – that is, a Gentile. It’s interesting, that in the list of Jesus’ genealogy there are some Gentiles. Matthew, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, probably included these ancestors in order to emphasise that Jesus was the hope and saviour of the whole world, not just of the Jews.
Now that I have explained the significance of Jesus’ genealogy, let’s read verses 1-17. As you listen, listen carefully for those things I have just spoken about. Notice that the list of Jesus’ genealogy is divided into 3 parts. Notice the Gentile women ancestors of Jesus. Notice the well known ancestors of Jesus – patriarchs and kings. Notice that Jesus is a real Jew. Notice that Jesus is a real son of David. Jesus – the real Messiah. Jesus – a real son of Abraham. Jesus, the real saviour of the world. Jesus – my and your real Lord and Saviour, if we trust in Him. Let’s read:
Matthew 1:1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, 4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of David the king.
And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, 7 and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, 8 and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah,
9 and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10 and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, 11 and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
12 And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13 and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, 14 and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, 15 and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, 16 and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.
17 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 tthe Christ fourteen generations.
Interesting, yes?
Now, it is very interesting because in verse 16 is something very unexpected. In this verse it says that Jesus was born from Mary, who was the wife of Joseph. But, notice, that Jesus was not born from Joseph! When Mary fell pregnant, she was a virgin. In Mt 1:18 it says that Mary became pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Therefore, Jesus did not have a human father! Now the genealogy, about which I have just spoken, is the genealogy of Joseph, not the genealogy of Mary, and therefore, not the genealogy of Jesus! Now, why did Matthew use so many verses to speak about a genealogy that was not in fact Jesus’ genealogy? While the Bible does not clearly state why, I think that is possible to understand why.
Firstly, in Jewish culture, it was possible to adopt. Therefore, because Joseph was the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus, according to the law, Jesus was the son of Joseph. Therefore, according to law, Jesus shared the genealogy of Joseph. Legality is what was important, therefore Jesus truly was the son of Abraham and the son of David.
Secondly, which I think is more important, Matthew wanted to show that the spiritual origin of Jesus was more important that His human origin. During the lifetime of Jesus on earth, people thought that Jesus was the son of Joseph. In Matthew 13:55, the inhabitants of Nazareth said about Jesus, “Isn't this the carpenter's son?” “Carpenter” was Joseph’s profession. The inhabitants of Nazareth considered Jesus to be the son of Joseph. Yes, it is important that Jesus was Joseph’s son according to the law. Because Jesus was Joseph’s son according to the law, just as we have already seen, Jesus was able to be the Messiah. But more important than any human genealogy was the spiritual origin of Jesus! Mary became pregnant through the Holy Spirit, therefore the father of Jesus was not Joseph, but rather, His father – was God!
In the Gospel of Matthew, 15 verses are used, in order to show the human origin of Jesus. 15 verses of Holy Scripture and then, in the 16th verse it says that Jesus was not the son of Joseph! Can you see the contrast? In the Gospel of Matthew, 15 verses are used in order to show the genealogy of Jesus. In order to prove that Jesus was the real Messiah and the real hope for both Jews and the whole world. The human genealogy of Jesus is very important. Although this is so, the origin of Jesus from God is even more important. Truly, Jesus is the Son of Man. Jesus was a real human, but Jesus was not only a human. Jesus is also the Son of God – in fact, Jesus is God.
Jesus fulfilled all the conditions in order to be the Messiah. But Jesus was much more than the Jews were expecting for their Messiah. The Jews expected a human Messiah, who would deliver Israel from their enemies – that is, from the Roman Empire. But Jesus came from God for the purpose of something far greater. Jesus was the human Messiah, but He was also the divine Messiah, who came from God in order to save us from our sins and to give us eternal life.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, Matthew 1:1-17 speaks about the genealogy of Jesus Christ. It speaks about His genealogy, not so that we become bored, but in order to show that Jesus really was the Messiah. Jesus was the real, divine Messiah, who came from God to earth, in order to save us from our sins and to give us eternal life – that is, to everyone who believes in Him.
But, how can people believe in Jesus if they have never heard?
It is fitting that at the close of this Gospel, of Matthew’s Gospel, that Jesus – this promised one, the Messiah, the Son of God – God Himself – gave us a command.
Matthew 2818 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority iin heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and kmake disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.
Matthew opens his Gospel with Jesus’ genealogy of His human and divine origins – and then closes with the command to take the Good News of Jesus Christ to all the people of the world.
Many in the world have never heard about Jesus Christ – about how His coming was prophesied thousands of years ago. About how all peoples of the earth are to be blessed through Him. About how He came to save His people from their sins, as we read in Matthew 1.21. Yet Jesus has commanded us to take this message to all the world. For example, in the country in Central Asia where we use to live, and which I’m visiting soon – most of the people have never heard this message. The vast majority of the population have never heard about the divine origin of Christ. It’s the same with the Bees in Indonesia. Remember we had some people visit us a few months ago going to minister to them. The vast majority of these people, and others, have never heard that they too can be blessed through Jesus.
Today, we’ve heard about Jesus – who He is.
The descendent of Abraham – to bring salvation to all peoples.
The Christ – the Messiah, the one who came, not just to save Jews, but to save people from all nations, who believe in Him – and to deliver them from their sins and the wrath of God. This includes people from Australia – and also people from all other nations, including those places where most people haven’t yet heard about Jesus.
Jesus - the one without human father, the true One and only Son of God – indeed God Himself.
He came to live among us. And then – He died for our sins. And then rose, victorious over our sins.
He did this to pay the penalty for our sins. – But only if we believe in Him – that is, to trust Him, to live for Him, be committed to Him and to allow His Holy Spirit into our lives, so that we turn from our sinful ways and live in righteousness.
If you don’t believe in Jesus Christ – you too can receive forgiveness of sins through Him. If you’d like to know more, talk to me or someone afterwards.
If you do believe in Him, then spread the word – here and beyond – about God’s provision for our sins. About Jesus’ origins – as the one promised thousands of years ago. Jesus – the Messiah. Jesus, the one who would bless all nations. Jesus – the one born of God – the Son of God, God Himself, who came to save us from our sins.
