Sunday, 2 August 2026

Matthew 1 (résumé): The genealogy & birth of Jesus

Matthew's (or Levi) Gospel was essentially written for a Jewish audience, quoting the Old Testament extensively, focused on Jesus Christ as Messiah and King. Matthew starts by giving Jesus' genealogy showing him to have been a descendant of Abraham and of David. The genealogy is organized into 3 groups of 14 generations: from Abraham to David / from David to the Babylonian exile / from the exile to Jesus Christ. It is interesting to note the 5 women in this family tree: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba (called here "the wife of Uriah") and Mary. There are some unlikely characters here in the genealogy of the Messiah demonstrating God's supreme grace. Then comes the description of Jesus birth. "Mary was found to be pregnant by the Holy Spirit... she will give birth to a son and you will call him Jesus... this fulfills Isaiah 7:14 that he will be called Immanuel which means God with us... and Mary gave birth to a boy and they called him Jesus".

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