This is the first in a series of reflections on the Gospel According to Matthew, and before we begin, a brief introductory note is necessary:
Who wrote this gospel and for whom? Although the text does not mention the author, ancient traditions attribute it to Matthew, the tax collector who became a follower of Jesus and an Apostle. And although it was not the first gospel to be written, it is the first in the New Testament because it serves as a bridge between the Old and New Testaments. It was primarily written for a Jewish audience and contains a lot of quotations and references to the Old Testament, more than other books in the New Testament. Its central theme is Jesus, the King of the Kingdom of Heaven and the Messiah who fulfills the promises of the Old Testament.
What can you expect from this series? This will not be an exhaustive study of the book; it’s not a biblical commentary, but rather a collection of reflections on the central themes of this gospel.
Let’s begin by reading Matthew 1:1-17:
1 This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:
Matthew 1:17 (NIV)
2 Abraham was the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
3 Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,
Perez the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
4 Ram the father of Amminadab,
Amminadab the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab,
Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth,
Obed the father of Jesse,
6 and Jesse the father of King David.
David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
7 Solomon the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah,
Abijah the father of Asa,
8 Asa the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Jehoram,
Jehoram the father of Uzziah,
9 Uzziah the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
10 Hezekiah the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amon,
Amon the father of Josiah,
11 and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.
12 After the exile to Babylon:
Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
13 Zerubbabel the father of Abihud,
Abihud the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
14 Azor the father of Zadok,
Zadok the father of Akim,
Akim the father of Elihud,
15 Elihud the father of Eleazar,
Eleazar the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob,
16 and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.
17 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.
There are quite a few names in this genealogy! Each one has much to tell us, moving the narrative of the Bible towards Jesus. Without delving into the details of each person mentioned in this genealogy, we can at least identify three main themes related to three of God’s great promises in the Old Testament.
- Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:15).
- Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3).
- Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to David (2 Samuel 7:5-16).
Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to Adam and Eve
Something interesting that Matthew does in this genealogy is include the names of some women, one of whom is Mary. Verse 16 doesn’t say, “Jacob was the father of Joseph, and Joseph was the father of Jesus,” but rather, “Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus.”
Why is it important to understand that Jesus was born of Mary? Because Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to Adam and Eve that one day a woman would give birth to one who would be wounded by the serpent but would ultimately defeat it by crushing its head.
That is Jesus, the promised descendant born of a woman who, by dying on the cross for sins, would suffer ‘wounded by the serpent in the heel,’ but through His resurrection would defeat the serpent by ‘crushing its head.’ Jesus is the fulfillment of Genesis 3:15.
Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham
In Genesis 12, God promised Abraham land, descendants, and blessing. This blessing was to reach all nations through Abraham’s descendants. That’s why Matthew begins by saying, “The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”
Jesus is the descendant of Abraham who would bring blessing to all nations. It is important to note that Matthew emphasizes the scope of this blessing by including in Jesus’ genealogy Tamar, who disguised herself as a prostitute and became pregnant by Judah; Rahab, the prostitute of Jericho who helped the spies and was spared from the city’s destruction; Ruth, the Moabite daughter-in-law of Naomi; and Bathsheba, the woman with whom David committed adultery while she was married to Uriah.
Matthew includes these foreign women and those on the margins of society to emphasize the scope of the blessing through Jesus—a blessing that is not only for religious Jews but for all nations and those on the margins. Jesus is the fulfillment of Genesis 12.
Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to David
Verse 1 says: “This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David…” In 2 Samuel 7, God had promised David that He would establish an eternal kingdom from his descendants.
The second portion of this genealogy traces David’s descendants up to the exile, and after the exile, God had not rejected His people or changed His promise to David. The third portion of the genealogy continues to trace David’s descendants to Jesus, whom Matthew refers to at the end of verse 16 as “the Messiah” or the Christ.
Christ/Messiah means Anointed One. In the Old Testament, kings were anointed; Jesus is the Anointed King of God, meaning He is the promised King from David’s descendants who will reign forever. Jesus is the fulfillment of 2 Samuel 7.
Let’s reflect: Why is this important for the original readers and for us?
- For those first-century Jews, understanding that Jesus is the fulfillment of the great promises of the Old Testament conveyed the message: “The wait is over, the Messiah has come; He will finally bring rest to God’s people and inaugurate the new covenant announced by the prophets. Respond in faith and come to Him.”
- For us, it is important to understand that by having faith in Jesus, we are part of a grand story. We place our faith in the One who fulfills ancient promises made from the beginning. Life is not just about us. We live in a time and society that pushes individualism and values our personal stories above all else, but Matthew reminds us that we are part of a story greater than ourselves—the story of Jesus that began in Genesis, with great promises that were fulfilled in Christ and will continue until their future consummation and perfection.
I need to remember this. When in my selfishness I want the world to revolve around me, I need to remember that life is not about me. Rather, through God’s grace and faith in Jesus, I am allowed to be just a small part and not the main focus within the Great Story of Jesus, the King, the Messiah, the fulfillment of God’s great and ancient promises.
