Thy Word:
This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah 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 [Bathsheba] 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 Abihud,
Abihud the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
Azor the father of Zadok,
Zadok the father of Akim,
Akim the father of Elihud,
Elihud the father of Eleazar,
Eleazar the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob,
and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.

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 Messiah.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭1:1-17‬ ‭NIV‬‬

(Note: the name “Bathsheba” in bracket’s was inserted by me.)

*****

My Thoughts: Every little girl has probably dreamed of being a princess. Every boy has most likely dreamed of being a mighty warrior, or even a king. Boldly I say, if you are a believer in Christ, your name is in this line of genealogy; therefore, you ARE royalty!

As we walk through the book of Matthew together we start (above) with the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Messiah.

This book was written by Matthew (also called by the name Levi) and he was one of the original twelve disciples to Jesus. Before becoming a disciple, he was a tax collector, therefore, despised by the Jews. But Jesus saw something more in Matthew…, something deep…, something Matthew may not have even known was there…, a longing for a change. Do you have that same longing for a change?

Included in this genealogy are some names you may recognize: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, Boaz, David, Solomon, and more. There is no doubt these men are spiritual giants! However, I hope you also saw something very unique in this long list of names…, the names of five women. In a time where women were not noted in family lines we see their names specifically pointed out by God:

Tamar, her story in Genesis 38.
Rahab, her story in Joshua 2, Joshua 6.
Ruth, her story in the book of Ruth.
Bathsheba, her story in 2 Samuel 11 and 12.
Mary, is the virgin mother of Jesus.  Her story is told in Luke 1 and 2.

All of these women have a powerful story in the Bible. Jesus outlines the lives of these women specifically for our hope and encouragement. If you want to know more about them I pray you are motivated to read the verses in the Bible noted by each name. Who knows, you might even see a bit of yourself in each of their stories?

Finally, towards the end of the lineage you will note that Matthew makes this statement:

“and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.”

In the notes of my NIV Bible I read this information: “Matthew’s genealogy gives Jesus’ legal (or royal) lineage through Joseph. Mary’s ancestral line is recorded in Luke 3:23-38. Both Mary and Joseph were direct descendants from David.”

So you see, it was imperative that not only Joseph’s name, but Mary’s name was mentioned in the lineage of Jesus so there was no doubt he was the Messiah.

Side note for the fiction readers of this group:
If you like Francine Rivers she wrote a fiction series about each of these women mentioned in the lineage of Jesus and they are very quick reads:

“Unveiled” about Tamar
“Unashamed” about Rahab
“Unshaken” about Ruth (or my book about Ruth “Going Home”)
“Unspoken” about Bathsheba
“Unafraid” about Mary

Can you tell I love these women? I do because I see myself in each one of their broken and messy lives. If they are mentioned in the line of Christ, in spite of their brokenness, why not me…., or you?

I look forward to walking through the book of Matthew with you!

*****

Closing Prayer: Father God, thank you for the prompting in my soul to go to the book of Matthew. I look forward to what you want to say to me and to all of us. I pray that I surrender everything to You and listen carefully to what You want us to hear. I pray this in the name of Jesus, my Messiah. Amen.