Matthew 1
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Greek
The Genealogy of Jesus (1-17)
1
"The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham." (ESV)
Matthew's use of "son of David, son of Abraham" is of great importance. "Son of David" is used often in Matthew (9:27; 12:23; 15:22; 20:30-31; 21:9, 15; 22:42, 45), more than any other book of the New Testament. It brings attention to the promised figure in 2 Samuel 7:11-16. This figure would "establish David's kingdom" and "establish the throne" of Israel. This points to Jesus' royal lineage, and also evoked an understanding of a Messiah who would come - like David - as a mighty warrior to destroy Israel's enemies and reestablish the throne in Jerusalem.
"Son of Abraham" should be understood as giving hope to the entire world. God's covenant with Abraham (Gen 12:1-3; 22:18) established Israel as a chosen nation but also promised blessings to every nation. Thus, Matthew begins his Gospel demonstrating Jesus' fulfillment of God's covenant to the particular people of Israel but also in fulillment of God's promise to bring a universal hope to all nations (see Matthew, NIV Application Commentary, pp. 55-56, by Michael J. Wilkins).
- The Origins of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:1-25), by Bob Deffinbaugh
1-17
Matthew begins his Gospel with a genealogy. This is a way of connecting to the Jews, since they were very fond of detailed genealogies, as Paul indicates in Titus 3:9.
Matthew also endorses the significance of Old Testament genealogy. "The book of the generations" is a structuring element of the book of Genesis, and a strong connection is created by this terminology. This passage demonstrates that genealogy holds more significance than simply being because Matthew draws attention to the fact that he has developed the genealogy of Christ to three groups of fourteen. This is also part of the basis for Biblical numerology, since Matthew has to tinker with the details to obtain a desired result; evidently the desired result (structuring the history of Israel in multiples of seven) has some significance.
Difficulties
Critics have raised several problems with Matthew's genealogy. First of all, there are only 41 names, whereas three fourteens should make 42 names. This is explained by the fact that Matthew lists David's name in both the first fourteen and the second fourteen.
A more serious issue is that comparison with Old Testament records shows that there are gaps. This is explained by the fact that, in Old Testament usage, gaps frequently occur in genealogies because the grandson is considered to be in the loins of the father as well as the child. Levi was in the loins of Abraham according to Hebrews 7:9-10.
Matthew was a tax collector. He would have been well-trained in counting things, and he was certainly very meticulous. He knew that his genealogy was not the most straight-forward, but he endorses numerology by manipulating the genealogy to obtain the perfection that he wanted to communicate.
The Birth of Jesus Christ (18-25)
Jesus was born to a virgin. There is a hint of the virgin birth of the Promised Seed in Genesis 3:15 ("the woman's seed", not "the man's seed"). The most direct interpretation of Isaiah 7:14 , although there is some debate about the exact significance of this passage. At any rate, the miracle of Jesus' birth is a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy.
