1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham 2 Abraham became the father of Isaac. Isaac became the father of Jacob. Jacob became the father of Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron. Hezron became the father of Ram. 4 Ram became the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon. Nahshon became the father of Salmon. 5 Salmon became the father of Boaz by Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed by Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse. 6 Jesse became the father of King David. David became the father of Solomon by her who had been Uriah’s wife. 7 Solomon became the father of Rehoboam. Rehoboam became the father of Abijah. Abijah became the father of Asa. 8 Asa became the father of Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat became the father of Joram. Joram became the father of Uzziah. 9 Uzziah became the father of Jotham. Jotham became the father of Ahaz. Ahaz became the father of Hezekiah. 10 Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh. Manasseh became the father of Amon. Amon became the father of Josiah. 11 Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the exile to Babylon. 12 After the exile to Babylon, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel. Shealtiel became the father of Zerubbabel. 13 Zerubbabel became the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim. Eliakim became the father of Azor. 14 Azor became the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim. Achim became the father of Eliud. 15 Eliud became the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan. Matthan became the father of Jacob. 16 Jacob became the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, from whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the exile to Babylon fourteen generations; and from the carrying away to Babylon to the Christ, fourteen generations.

Matthew 1:1-17 - World English Bible

Matthew laid out his genealogy in a deliberate manner to demonstrate his belief about Jesus. He was the Messiah as the “son of David, son of Abraham.” He was heir to David’s eternal throne. He was also THE faithful Jew who brought about the presence of the Kingdom.

Matthew structured his genealogy to emphasize the right moment for the Messiah’s appearance and the people he would serve. Matthew listed the genealogy in three groups of fourteen; since Jews considered the number “seven” as the complete or perfect number, multiples of “seven” had significance. By using the number in this way, Matthew emphasized the appearance of the Messiah at the right time, the “fullness of time.” It is interesting to note that Jesus himself marked the fourteenth generation in the list. In other words, the last name to appear, number fourteen on the third list of generations, was the Messiah. In Matthew’s eyes, his appearance announced the presence of the end times, the coming of the Kingdom.

The people in the genealogy described not only the character and power of Jesus, they also indicated his mission. He was sent to the poor, the weak, the outcast. The appearance of four women on the list was extraordinary; no ancient man would boast of women in his list of ancestors unless they displayed extraordinary virtue. Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba (mother of Solomon) may have had outstanding characters, but their stories were flawed, tainted with immorality. Yet, all four had a great impact on their husbands and sons who were key in God’s plans. So, too would Mary. The concept of the virgin birth would raise eyebrows among non-believers. For Matthew, the Christ came despite immorality. Indeed, he came to sinners, so they, too, could have a place in God’s great plan of salvation.

How do you feel knowing that God prepared for the coming of his Son with less than perfect people?