The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and … so all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.
Matthew 1:1-17
The New Testament’s first book, Matthew, begins with 17 verses, 45 names, and 347 words detailing the genealogy of Jesus. Why would that be so? It’s certainly not an introductory paragraph that grabs the casual reader’s attention. Of course, if you know the whole story, then it’s one of the most amazing passages in all of literature.
You see, it reveals that Jesus was the embodiment, the fulfillment of centuries-old Hebrew prophecies about a Messiah, a Savior, a Christ, who would save God’s people through the line of Abraham.
Secondly, it reveals Christ’s humanity and His humility. Even though Jesus was the only begotten Son of God, He came to this Earth in a physical form common to every person and anything but god-like. Yes, Jesus’ family tree included Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, King David, and King Solomon – royalty, patriarchs, and heroes of the Bible. But it also included the wicked: murderers, adulterers, idol worshippers, and thieves. And it included average, everyday people, the common man if you will.
On Christmas Day so long ago, when Jesus was born on this Earth, He was no different than any of us in the physical or human sense. He cried, He grew hungry or thirsty, and He lived a brief life.
But this man always has been, is, and will forever be our Savior, the Messiah, and the only true hope for a dark, degenerate, and dying world.
