Matthew
1:1-25
Lesson 1
1:1-25
Lesson 1
Matthew 1:1-25 The Birth of Jesus Christ 1 The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren; 3 And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram; 4 And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon; 5 And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse; 6 And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias; 7 And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa; 8 And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias; 9 And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias; 10 And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias; 11 And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon: 12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel; 13 And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor; 14 And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud; 15 And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob; 16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations. 18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily. 20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. 21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. 22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. 24 Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: 25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS. |
Margin notes:
"The book of the generation of Jesus Christ." (1:1) - "The book of Jesus Christ's genealogy." Verses 1:2-16 are Jesus' genealogy through Joseph. "Son of David, the son of Abraham." (1:1) - In Jewish genealogy, "son" also meant grandson, great-grandson, etc. By calling Jesus the "Son" of David and Abraham, Matthew is showing his Jewish readers that Christ fulfills the Old Testament prophecies that they've known and trusted since childhood and is thus the Messiah. "Jesse begat David the king." (1:5) - See the book of Ruth 4:13-22. "About the time they were carried away to Babylon." (1:11) - In 587/586 BC, the Babylonian army besieged Jerusalem, looted and destroyed the Temple, and took tens of thousands of Jewish leaders, craftsmen, military officers, priests, nobleman, political figures, and King Jehoiachin back to Babylon as captives. To learn more, read 2 Kings 24:14-16, Jeremiah 27:20, and Daniel 1:1-2. "Who is called Christ." (1:16) - The word Christ comes from the Greek word Christos, which means anointed. "The birth of Jesus Christ was on the wise." (1:18) - Means "The birth of Jesus Christ was like this." Jesus' birth is called "the first advent." The second advent will be when Jesus returns. "Mary was espoused to Joseph." (1:18) - "Mary was engaged to Joseph." In Jewish culture, an engagement was a binding relationship that could only be ended by death or divorce. To be unfaithful while engaged was considered adultery. "Holy Ghost." (1:18) - The Holy Ghost is the same as the Holy Spirit. "Was minded to put her away privily." (1:19) - "Had decided to divorce her quietly." Under Jewish law, Joseph could have demanded Mary (and the father of her child) be stoned to death (Deuteronomy 22:23-24). But he showed love and mercy towards Mary. Joseph lived the rest of his life with unbelievers thinking the worst of his wife. When Jesus was thirty years old, the Pharisees were still accusing Him of being born out of wedlock (John 8:41). "The prophet." (1:22) - The prophet was Isaiah. See verse 1:23. "Behold, a virgin shall be with child." (1:23) - As prophesied in Isaiah 7:14, 700 years before the birth of Christ. An additional 360 other Old Testament prophecies are fulfilled in the New Testament. "They shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us." (1:23) - "Why was Jesus not actually called "Immanuel?" According to Hebrew usage the name does not represent a title but a characterization, as in Isaiah 1:26 and 9:6. The name "Immanuel" shows that He really was "God with us." Thus the Deity of Christ is stressed at the very beginning of Matthew." ("The New Scofield Reference Bible' published by Oxford University Press, New York, New York; Page 992) "Did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him." (1:24) - "Did as the angel of God told him." "Knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son." (1:25) - "Had no sexual relations with her (Mary) until she delivered her first son (Jesus)." |