Matthew begins his good news story about Jesus Christ with words that are very familiar to readers of the Book of Genesis. Like Genesis told the story of the beginning of creation, the Book of Matthew tells of God’s new beginning for humanity.
An account of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham (Matthew 1.1).
Christ is not Jesus’ last name. Jesus is properly identified as the Messiah by the translators of the New Revised Standard Version, which I’m using in my blog articles.
The genealogy, beginning with Abraham and ending with Jesus in Matthew 1, describes God’s work through Hebrew history to bring the nation and the world to the point where His Messiah comes on the scene.
I’m not going to include the entire genealogy in my blog article, and neither will Rudy Ross and I include it in our YouTube video today. We will point out some interesting features in this passage that demonstrate the dramatic act of God throughout history.
The first of these is the fact that God pays attention to people’s names.
Fifty years ago, I was sitting in a philosophy of religion class when I first heard the thought that God is personal. I knew that I had a personal relationship with Him, but it never dawned on me that the nature of God, distinct from other religions in the world, is that He is personal.
The names listed in this genealogy, and the names that are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, let us know that God is personal and He forms personal relations with humans.
I’m not a student of world religions. That being said, I don’t know of a single world religion where God is personally interested in humans, where He knows their names and interacts with them. However, that fact is true of the Hebrew/Christian faith.
The Number 14
Another interesting aspect of the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew is the divisions of 14. In Jewish numerology, 14 can represent the letters that spell out the word David, the most famous of Israel’s kings.
Additionally, the number 14 can be divided into six sevens, with the seventh being complete with the coming of Jesus.
No matter how we understand the number 14, what we have in these verses is a picture that includes the call of Abraham, the high point of King David’s life, the low point of the exile, and finally the redemption of the world through the Messiah.
Four Women
The genealogy includes four women. The mention of women is a part of Old Testament genealogies, so that is not unusual. What might be unusual is the nature of these women and where they were from.
(1) Tamar is the first woman mentioned in this list. She is distinctive because she used deception to become pregnant by her father-in-law, Judah. She was a Canaanite.
(2) The story of Rahab is documented in Joshua 2, focusing on the conquest of Jericho. Rahab showed kindness to the spies and, as a result of her loyalty to God’s people, she and her family were spared. Like Tamar, Rahab was a Canaanite.
(3) In the commentary I’m studying, Ruth is identified as one of the four “embarrassed” mothers mentioned in Matthew.
While her relationship with Boaz is not considered as morally questionable as those of the other women, the phrasing used in the Book of Ruth suggests that it might be seen as more problematic than initially understood. She was a non-Israelite from the country of Moab.
(4) Bathsheba is not mentioned by name in Matthew, but is identified as the wife of Uriah. She is the one who committed adultery with King David and gave birth to Solomon. Bathsheba was a Hittite.
The inclusion of these women in the genealogy foreshadows a significant theme that will develop in the Gospel of Matthew: God’s love extends to all people, even those who are flawed, and He is eager to work with them. This demonstrates that God’s message is one of good news for everyone.
From the outset, we see that Gentiles are incorporated alongside the people of Israel, highlighting the message at the end of the book of the church’s mission to the whole world.
Reflecting on the vast expanse of history from Abraham’s time to our own, and considering all the individuals who have played a role in God’s work, I often feel like an insignificant speck within that immense group.
We may seem small in the eyes of the world, but God knows each of us by name. He is aware of our hopes, dreams, desires, and sorrows — every facet of our lives.
God has a specific plan for each of us and is intimately involved in our life’s journey. Just as those mentioned in the genealogy fulfilled their roles, we too can fulfill the roles God has designated for us.
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross and I discussed this passage on YouTube today. It can be found on the Bob Spradling YouTube channel.
Real Voices 