The Genealogy
“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 the Christ fourteen generations.”
Matthew 1:1-17
Devotion
As part of my daily devotions, I listen to the Bible in a year. But when it comes to a passage like this; I easily drift off, thinking about what I’m going to do next, or I might think to myself, “I have never heard of half of these strange names, what is the point in me listening to this?” Somehow, I don’t think I’m alone here, these parts of the Bible are possibly the most neglected, and maybe that’s because genealogies aren’t that important to our culture. But to the Jews in the ancient world, genealogies were very important. And this one found at the beginning of Matthew’s Gospel, is very, very important; a genealogy tells a story, and this one tells the most important story in all of history, it tells the story of the Bible.
Now, I don’t want to pick out each name, and tell you about who they were, but instead I will ask the question, “Why does Matthew begin his Gospel with this genealogy of Jesus?”
In 2 Samuel 7 God did something very special for King David, God made a covenant with him – A covenant is a partnership where two parties make a promise to each other. This is what God promised David;
“When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
2 Samuel 7:12-13
This passage points to One who was to come, He would be a King, He would be the King who would rule an everlasting Kingdom, and bring peace to all nations. And, Matthew wants us to know that He has come. The promised King has arrived. The Son of David is Jesus, Jesus is the perfect King who has come to rule His Kingdom with perfect justice, and will reign upon His great throne forever and ever.
I have chosen to do these devotionals on the birth of King Jesus, because more than ever, we need to hear the good news that the King arrived and that He reigns today. 2020 has been tough, but King Jesus still sits upon His throne and is in control of all things. So, over this week, we will be taking a passage in Matthew 1, and will follow the story of the birth of the Humble and Good King, Jesus Christ.
