Genealogy of Christ

[Storyteller]

Okay.... I`ve just started on the Bible. I`m starting with the New Testament, Matthew, and I`m already stumped!

Forgive me if this has been covered or if I`m missing something....

Joseph was the father of Christ yet Mary was a virgin, how does that work? What am I missing?

I get that Jesus was fully God and fully man, I just don`t get the genealogy bit.

Help?

(Sorry if I am being dense)

[PaulSacramento]

Okay.... I`ve just started on the Bible. I`m starting with the New Testament, Matthew, and I`m already stumped!

Forgive me if this has been covered or if I`m missing something....

Joseph was the father of Christ yet Mary was a virgin, how does that work? What am I missing?

I get that Jesus was fully God and fully man, I just don`t get the genealogy bit.

Help?

(Sorry if I am being dense)

Joseph was Christ's Father by virtue of his marriage to Mary.
Not sure what your concern is...

[Storyteller]

Thanks Paul. That makes sense.

Sorry, I was being dense

[PaulSacramento]

Thanks Paul. That makes sense.

Sorry, I was being dense

No worries, happens to us all !

[Kurieuo]

Thanks Paul. That makes sense.

Sorry, I was being dense

No, you're being observant and questioning.

A book you might be interested to have, if you keep having questions, is:
When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties

You may not be agreeable to every response, but there's a lot of Scriptural insight in that book.

[Storyteller]

Thanks K

I'll look into that book.

I am really enjoying learning about Scripture and I think there will be a lot for me to learn.

[christianwarrior]

It is great that you looked into Jesus' genealogy which is important. Jesus was the legal son of Joseph but not the biological son of Joseph. This is important because God put a curse on the one of the kings of Judah, Jeconiah (Jeremiah 22:24-30). Jeconiah was an ancestor of Joseph, if Joseph was Jesus' biological father then Jesus would not be an eligible to inherit the throne of Judah.
Matthew 1:1-17:
A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham: Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah's wife, Solomon the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa, Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Jehoram, Jehoram the father of Uzziah, Uzziah the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, Amon the father of Josiah, and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon. After the exile to Babylon: Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, Abiud the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, Azor the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Akim, Akim the father of Eliud, Eliud the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Christ.

Luke 3:23-38:

The Genealogy of Jesus Christ

Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph, the son of Heli, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melki, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai, the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda, the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri, the son of Melki, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon, the son of Amminadab, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel, the son of Kenan, the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.

Now there are two main problems with the two genealogies listed.

1. According to Matthew: Joseph is descended from Solomon, the son of King David and Bathseba (Matthew 1:6) while Luke seems to say that Joseph was descended from Nathan, another son of King David (Luke 3: 31). After King David the two genealogies diverge greatly.

2. According to Matthew: Joseph is descended from Jeconiah (Matthew 1:11-12). However God placed a curse on Jeconiah (Jeremiah 22:24-30). Jeremiah 22: 30: This is what the LORD says: "Record this man as if childless, a man who will not prosper in his lifetime, for none of his offspring will prosper, none will sit on the throne of David or rule anymore in Judah." Any descendant of Jeconiah would not be suitable for the throne of Judah. Luke's genealogy traces the line through Nathan, son of David. However God's covenant to David that his descendants would have the throne of Judah was inherited by Solomon because he was the one who finished the Temple of God (2 Samuel 7:12-16). If Jesus did not descend from Solomon then he would ineligible for the throne.

Jesus was born of a virgin then legally adopted by Joseph through marriage. Matthew's genealogy traces his legal line through his legal father Joseph. Jesus was eligible to inherit the throne of Judah because he was legally the descendant of Solomon and his offspring however he bypasses the curse of Jeconiah because he is not biologally a descendant of Jeconiah. Luke traces Jesus' biology line. Heli was the biology father of Mary. In ancient times father-in-laws were considered as if they were fathers. If Jesus was the biology son of Joseph he would fall under the Curse of Jeconiah however he is the biological son of Mary but not Joseph. Since he is the legal son of Joseph he is legally descended from Solomon fulfilling God's promise to David and Solomon. http://www.jewsforjesus.org/publication ... /genealogy http://www.gotquestions.org/curse-of-Jeconiah.html


There are several genealogial lists in the Bible. These parts of the Scriptures are "boring" but are still important because they demonstrate that the Scriptures were not written as an allegory or a fable. Many modern-day Christians support the literalness of the New Testament but then claim that the Old Testament especially the first few chapters of Genesis are fables. However the genealogies of Jesus do not present that as an option. Matthew traces the genealogy back to Abraham. Jesus is the seed of Abraham and the fulfilment of the promise God gave to Abraham (Galatians 3:16). Abraham is a descendant of Shem (Genesis 11:10). Shem was the son of Noah. If you reject the story of the flood then you should also reject the story of Abraham. Allegorical characters cannot have real life sons. If Abraham did not exist then he could not have had offspring. Luke's genealogy goes back to Adam. If Adam did not exist then the whole line is wiped out. Genealogies link the different books of Scripture together. It links the Old and New Testaments together.