Matthew 1 ~ the genealogy of Jesus Christ

Matthew 1

1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram,[a] 4and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6and Jesse the father of David the king.

And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, 7 and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph,[b] 8 and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, 9 and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10 and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos,[c] and Amos the father of Josiah, 11 and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

12 And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel,[d] and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13 and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, 14 and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, 15 and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, 16 and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

17 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.


What are we to make of this list? For starters, all of these people, whether we know their lives, stories, hearts - all are important to God. Very important.

And all of the people Father God placed in the genetics of Jesus where flawed. Two prostitutes. Thieves, liars. And all of them loved by God. We know most of these stories from the Bible. From Sunday School even.

Boaz was so loved for the way he cared for Ruth and adopted Naomi, as Mother-in-law and adopted Grandmother, Solomon named the pillar by the front door of the Temple - Boaz.

And the list of Kings - some did well with what they were given and some made spectacular mistakes with their lives and the lives they were entrusted with. Remember David was a Shepherd and David's descendants were Shepherds as well. All Kings are recorded nicely for the rest of mankind to read. No pressure.

v. 11 Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.


One of the clay tablets revealing the presence of the Judean royal house as prisoners in Babylon. Excavated from an arched building near the Ishtar Gate of ancient Babylon. The cuneiform texts, 595 - 570 B.C., contain lists of rations of barley and oil issued to the captive princes and artisans, including "Yaukin, king of the land of Yahud." This is a direct reference to Jeconiah. The other tablets mention his 5 sons accompanying him to Babylon. Staatliche Museum, Berlin

v. 12 ~ Zerubbabel marched or trudged back with the freed slaves into Israel with high hopes from Governor Nehemiah for Zerubbabel to become governor next. The people hope the curse God gave Zerubbabel will be removed, the sentence on his father, Jeconiah, for his impiety. To Jeconiah He had said Jeremiah 22:24, "though he were the signet upon My right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence; and I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life."

Haggai 2

¹ In the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by the hand of Haggai the prophet, ² "Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to all the remnant of the people, and say, ³ 'Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes?

⁴ Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the LORD. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the LORD. Work, for I am with you, declares the LORD of hosts, ⁵ according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not.

⁶ For thus says the LORD of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. ⁷ And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the LORD of hosts. ⁸ The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the LORD of hosts. ⁹ The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the LORD of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the LORD of hosts.'"

What a blessing. Who wouldn't hope for that Word from the Lord.

It was a blessing indeed. Yet Zerubbabel did not rule. The blessing was for him and also for Jesus.

The mercy God had for David continued. Zerubbabel did not make the history books. Perhaps that is a blessing as well. But God's word cannot be broken.

But Basically. All of these people were called to be Shepherds.

Luke 12:48
From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

Romans 8:27
And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God's own will.

Acts 20:28
Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.

Micah 6:8
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?


Gratitude is a major component to understanding blessing and living it. We are given gifts by God to live the life He gives us to have. Jesus called this abundant life. Jesus was a King who did not live as a King on this earth.

Something to think about.




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