In Matthew 1:1-17, we learn the lineage of Jesus. It is the list of begats…you know, the stuff you normally skip over when reading your Bible. Well, a while back, I came across a remarkable video that shared that the story of Jesus’ life and saving grace is hidden in his genealogy.
Matthew 1:1-17 (KJV) The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren; 3 And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram; 4 And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon; 5And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse; 6 And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias; 7 And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa; 8 And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias; 9 And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias; 10 And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias; 11 And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon: 12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel; 13 And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor; 14 And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud; 15 And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob; 16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations.
Every one of the names in Jesus’ lineage – all 42 generations – have a specific meaning in the Hebrew or Greek. I don’t have the space to go through each name in the genealogy verse by verse, but I’ve provided a link at the end of this blog if you’d like to delve deeper.
What is incredible is that when you combine the meanings of these names together – based on our best understanding of scripture and the meanings, the story of Jesus and God’s plan unfolds before our eyes.
I’ll give you a moment to pick your jaw up off the floor. You good? Okay.
The Father of a multitude laughs at the promise given by God. However, God will cause His seed to come and supplant. God will replace the old with the new and He shall be praised and celebrated. The breach of a rising sun will come whose righteousness shall flourish like the palm tree. He is enclosed and surrounded by a wall yet high, exalted and lifted up. He is noble and generous, giving liberally. The enchanter that will provide a garment or robe of righteousness for the people who believe and follow Him. In Him is strength but also He is wide in the range of serving and showing friendship. He possesses wealth of eternal life. He is love and therefore loving. The prince of peace and therefore peaceful. He will come through a daughter of an oath and is the flame of Jah. He is Jehovah (Yaheweh) the light and also the light and flame of those who believe and follow Him.
He will enlarge His people through Himself and they will worship Jehovah and call Him Father. He is their physician, their healer, and their cure. He will judge sin in the flesh, be raised from the dead, exalted, high and lifted up by His own strength. He is upright and perfect. He is the possessor and the one who has grasped His children into His hand by the might of God (Jehovah). He will forget and remember their sin no more.
He is the master workman who will build a new house also known as a new man in Christ to those that He heals and makes whole. He establishes His children in the truth and brings them out of from confusion and into their right mind by faith according to His word. He has prayed on behalf of those who are His so they can be set free just like those who were sown in Babylon. He is the father of majesty and renown. The God that raises the dead to life by His Word. He will send the helper to guide into all truth. He is just and the Lord that will establish His people and worthy to be praised. He is the help and the gift from above which will bring in the new covenant with His people by giving them a new heart. He is the first born and will cause His children to bear fruit. He will rebel against the things of the flesh, sin, and destroy the works of the devil.
His name is Jesus, the Christ, the anointed one!
How cool is our God? And how amazing and magical is His word? The Bible is filled with so much wisdom and treasure. The problem is that many of us read the Word, but we don’t study the Word. Don’t get me wrong, God is more than capable of revealing His Truth to us through reading scripture. And spending time in the Word – in any capacity – is an important and critical part of our walk with Him. But it is in the study that we receive these hidden gems of God’s immense love and His Plan for our lives.
God’s omnipotence and His omniscience are on full display in the Bible. However, I’m learning that to truly receive all that the Word has to offer, I need to invest more of my time and my heart. To set aside time to study, not just read. To pray for His wisdom to receive the deeper meanings woven into the words He breathed into the authors of the Bible.
So many people start a new year with a plan to read the Bible in 365 days. I’d like to challenge us all to take it a step further. Pick one or two books this year. Study them. Download a Bible Study App. Set aside time each week to pour into the Word. Dig. Drill down. Discover.
I promise you, God has more jaw-dropping revelations waiting in the journey from Abraham to Jesus.
Today’s accompanying prayer can be found at: https://simplyjoy.online/prayers/reveal-your-treasure/
Contributing Sources:
https://www.jesusbelieverjd.com/the-genealogy-of-jesus-in-matthew-hidden-meaning