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Matthew 1:1

New American Standard Bible (NASB ©1995) [2]
— The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
King James Version (KJV 1769) [2]
— The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
English Revised Version (ERV 1885)
— The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
American Standard Version (ASV 1901) [2]
— The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Webster's Revision of the KJB (WEB 1833)
— The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Darby's Translation (DBY 1890)
— Book of the generation of Jesus Christ, Son of David, Son of Abraham.
Rotherham's Emphasized Bible (EBR 1902)
— The Lineage Roll of Jesus Christ,—Son of David, Son of Abraham.
Young's Literal Translation (YLT 1898)
— A roll of the birth of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham.
Douay-Rheims Challoner Revision (DR 1750)
— The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
Geneva Bible (GNV 1560)
— The booke of the generation of Iesvs Christ the sonne of Dauid, the sonne of Abraham.
Original King James Bible (AV 1611) [2]
— The booke of the generation of Iesus Christ, the sonne of Dauid, the sonne of Abraham.
Lamsa Bible (1957)
— THE book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
John Etheridge Peshitta-Aramaic NT (1849)
— THE RECORD of the generation of Jeshu the Meshicha, the son of David, son of Abraham.
James Murdock Peshitta-Aramaic NT (1852)
— THE book of the nativity of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, son of Abraham.

Strong's Numbers & Red-LettersGreek New TestamentColor-Code/Key Word Studies
The book 976
{0976} Prime
βίβλος
biblos
{bib'-los}
Properly the inner bark of the papyrus plant, that is, (by implication) a sheet or scroll of writing.
of the generation 1078
{1078} Prime
γένεσις
genesis
{ghen'-es-is}
From the same as G1074; nativity; figuratively nature.
of Jesus 2424
{2424} Prime
Ἰησοῦς
Iesous
{ee-ay-sooce'}
Of Hebrew origin [H3091]; Jesus (that is, Jehoshua), the name of our Lord and two (three) other Israelites.
Christ, 5547
{5547} Prime
Χριστός
Christos
{khris-tos'}
From G5548; anointed, that is, the Messiah, an epithet of Jesus.
the son 5207
{5207} Prime
υἱός
huios
{hwee-os'}
Apparently a primary word; a 'son' (sometimes of animals), used very widely of immediate, remote or figurative kinship.
of David, 1138
{1138} Prime
Δαβίδ
Dabid
{dab-eed'}
Of Hebrew origin [H1732]; Dabid (that is, David), the Israelite king.
the son 5207
{5207} Prime
υἱός
huios
{hwee-os'}
Apparently a primary word; a 'son' (sometimes of animals), used very widely of immediate, remote or figurative kinship.
of Abraham. 11
{0011} Prime
Ἀβραάμ
Abraam
{ab-rah-am'}
Of Hebrew origin [H0085]; Abraham, the Hebrew patriarch. In Acts 7:16 the text should probably read Jacob.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary

Matthew 1:1

_ _ Matthew 1:1-17. Genealogy of Christ. ( = Luke 3:23-38).

_ _ The book of the generation — an expression purely Jewish; meaning, “table of the genealogy.” In Genesis 5:1 the same expression occurs in this sense. We have here, then, the title, not of this whole Gospel of Matthew, but only of the first seventeen verses.

_ _ of Jesus Christ — For the meaning of these glorious words, see on Matthew 1:16; see on Matthew 1:21. “Jesus,” the name given to our Lord at His circumcision (Luke 2:21), was that by which He was familiarly known while on earth. The word “Christ” — though applied to Him as a proper name by the angel who announced His birth to the shepherds (Luke 2:11), and once or twice used in this sense by our Lord Himself (Matthew 23:8, Matthew 23:10; Mark 9:41) — only began to be so used by others about the very close of His earthly career (Matthew 26:68; Matthew 27:17). The full form, “Jesus Christ,” though once used by Himself in His Intercessory Prayer (John 17:3), was never used by others till after His ascension and the formation of churches in His name. Its use, then, in the opening words of this Gospel (and in Matthew 1:17, Matthew 1:18) is in the style of the late period when our Evangelist wrote, rather than of the events he was going to record.

_ _ the son of David, the son of Abraham — As Abraham was the first from whose family it was predicted that Messiah should spring (Genesis 22:18), so David was the last. To a Jewish reader, accordingly, these behooved to be the two great starting-points of any true genealogy of the promised Messiah; and thus this opening verse, as it stamps the first Gospel as one peculiarly Jewish, would at once tend to conciliate the writer’s people. From the nearest of those two fathers came that familiar name of the promised Messiah, “the son of David” (Luke 20:41), which was applied to Jesus, either in devout acknowledgment of His rightful claim to it (Matthew 9:27; Matthew 20:31), or in the way of insinuating inquiry whether such were the case (see on John 4:29; Matthew 12:23).

Matthew Henry's Commentary

Matthew 1:1-17

_ _ Concerning this genealogy of our Saviour, observe,

_ _ I. The title of it. It is the book (or the account, as the Hebrew word sepher, a book, sometimes signifies) of the generation of Jesus Christ, of his ancestors according to the flesh; or, It is the narrative of his birth. It is Biblos Genesesa book of Genesis. The Old Testament begins with the book of the generation of the world, and it is its glory that it does so; but the glory of the New Testament herein excelleth, that it begins with the book of the generation of him that made the world. As God, his outgoings were of old, from everlasting (Micah 5:2), and none can declare that generation; but, as man, he was sent forth in the fulness of time, born of a woman, and it is that generation which is here declared.

_ _ II. The principal intention of it. It is not an endless or needless genealogy; it is not a vain-glorious one, as those of great men commonly are. Stemmata, quid faciunt? — Of what avail are ancient pedigrees? It is like a pedigree given in evidence, to prove a title, and make out a claim; the design is to prove that our Lord Jesus is the son of David, and the son of Abraham, and therefore of that nation and family out of which the Messiah was to arise. Abraham and David were, in their day, the great trustees of the promise relating to the Messiah. The promise of the blessing was made to Abraham and his seed, of the dominion to David and his seed; and they who would have an interest in Christ, as the son of Abraham, in whom all the families of the earth are to be blessed, must be faithful, loyal subjects to him as the son of David, by whom all the families of the earth are to be ruled. It was promised to Abraham that Christ should descend from him (Genesis 12:3; Genesis 22:18), and to David that he should descend from him (2 Samuel 7:12; Psalms 89:3, etc.; Psalms 132:11); and therefore, unless it can be proved that Jesus is a son of David, and a son of Abraham, we cannot admit him to be the Messiah. Now this is here proved from the authentic records of the heralds' offices. The Jews were very exact in preserving their pedigrees, and there was a providence in it, for the clearing up of the descent of the Messiah from the fathers; and since his coming that nation is so dispersed and confounded that it is a question whether any person in the world can legally prove himself to be a son of Abraham; however, it is certain that none can prove himself to either a son of Aaron or a son of David, so that the priestly and kingly office must either be given up, as lost for ever, or be lodged in the hands of our Lord Jesus. Christ is here first called the son of David, because under that title he was commonly spoken of, and expected, among the Jews. They who owned him to be the Christ, called him the son of David, Matthew 15:22; Matthew 20:31; Matthew 21:15. Thus, therefore, the evangelist undertakes to make out, that he is not only a son of David, but that son of David on whose shoulders the government was to be; not only a son of Abraham, but that son of Abraham who was to be the father of many nations.

_ _ In calling Christ the son of David, and the son of Abraham, he shows that God is faithful to his promise, and will make good every word that he has spoken; and this. 1. Though the performance be long deferred. When God promised Abraham a son, who should be the great blessing of the world, perhaps he expected it should be his immediate son; but it proved to be one at the distance of forty-two generations, and about 2000 years: so long before can God foretel what shall be done, and so long after, sometimes, does God fulfil what has been promised. Note, Delays of promised mercies, though they exercise our patience, do not weaken God's promise. 2. Though it begin to be despaired of. This son of David, and son of Abraham, who was to be the glory of his Father's house, was born when the seed of Abraham was a despised people, recently become tributary to the Roman yoke, and when the house of David was buried in obscurity; for Christ was to be a root out of a dry ground. Note, God's time for the performance of his promises is when it labours under the greatest improbabilities.

_ _ III. The particular series of it, drawn in the direct line from Abraham downward, according to the genealogies recorded in the beginning of the books of Chronicles (as far as those go), and which here we see the use of.

_ _ Some particulars we may observe in the genealogy.

_ _ 1. Among the ancestors of Christ who had brethren, generally he descended from a younger brother; such Abraham himself was, and Jacob, and Judah, and David, and Nathan, and Rhesa; to show that the pre-eminence of Christ came not, as that of earthly princes, from the primogeniture of his ancestors, but from the will of God, who, according to the method of his providence, exalteth them of low degree, and puts more abundant honour upon that part which lacked.

_ _ 2. Among the sons of Jacob, besides Judah, from whom Shiloh came, notice is here taken of his brethren: Judas and his brethren. No mention is made of Ishmael the son of Abraham, or of Esau the son of Isaac, because they were shut out of the church; whereas all the children of Jacob were taken in, and, though not fathers of Christ, were yet patriarchs of the church (Acts 7:8), and therefore are mentioned in the genealogy, for the encouragement of the twelve tribes that were scattered abroad, intimating to them that they have an interest in Christ, and stand in relation to him as well as Judah.

_ _ 3. Phares and Zara, the twin-sons of Judah, are likewise both named, though Phares only was Christ's ancestor, for the same reason that the brethren of Judah are taken notice of; and some think because the birth of Phares and Zara had something of an allegory in it. Zara put out his hand first, as the first-born, but, drawing it in, Phares got the birth-right. The Jewish church, like Zara, reached first at the birthright, but through unbelief, withdrawing the hand, the Gentile church, like Phares, broke forth and went away with the birthright; and thus blindness is in part happened unto Israel, till the fulness of the Gentiles become in, and then Zara shall be born — all Israel shall be saved, Romans 11:25, Romans 11:26.

_ _ 4. There are four women, and but four, named in this genealogy; two of them were originally strangers to the commonwealth of Israel, Rachab a Canaanitess, and a harlot besides, and Ruth the Moabitess; for in Jesus Christ there is neither Greek, nor Jew; those that are strangers and foreigners are welcome, in Christ, to the citizenship of the saints. The other two were adulteresses, Tamar and Bathsheba; which was a further mark of humiliation put upon our Lord Jesus, that not only he descended from such, but that is decent from them is particularly remarked in his genealogy, and no veil drawn over it. He took upon him the likeness of sinful flesh (Romans 8:3), and takes even great sinners, upon their repentance, into the nearest relation to himself. Note, We ought not to upbraid people with the scandals of their ancestors; it is what they cannot help, and has been the lot of the best, even of our Master himself. David's begetting Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias is taken notice of (says Dr. Whitby) to show that the crime of David, being repented to, was so far from hindering the promise made to him, that it pleased God by this very woman to fulfil it.

_ _ 5. Though divers kings are here named, yet none is expressly called a king but David (Matthew 1:6), David the king; because with him the covenant of royalty was made, and to him the promise of the kingdom of the Messiah was given, who is therefore said to inherit the throne of his father David, Luke 1:32.

_ _ 6. In the pedigree of the kings of Judah, between Joram and Ozias (Matthew 1:8), there are three left out, namely, Ahaziah, Joash, and Amaziah; and therefore when it is said, Joram begat Ozias, it is meant, according to the usage of the Hebrew tongue, that Ozias was lineally descended from him, as it is said to Hezekiah that the sons which he should beget should be carried to Babylon, whereas they were removed several generations from him. It was not through mistake or forgetfulness that these three were omitted, but, probably, they were omitted in the genealogical tables that the evangelist consulted, which yet were admitted as authentic. Some give this reason for it: — It being Matthew's design, for the sake of memory, to reduce the number of Christ's ancestors to three fourteens, it was requisite that in this period three should be left out, and none more fit than they who were the immediate progeny of cursed Athaliah, who introduced the idolatry of Ahab into the house of David, for which this brand is set upon the family and the iniquity thus visited to the third and fourth generation. Two of these three were apostates; and such God commonly sets a mark of his displeasure upon in this world: they all three had their heads brought to the grave with blood.

_ _ 7. Some observe what a mixture there was of good and bad in the succession of these kings; as for instance (Matthew 1:7, Matthew 1:8), wicked Roboam begat wicked Abia; wicked Abia begat good Asa; good Asa begat good Josaphat; good Josaphat begat wicked Joram. Grace does not run in the blood, neither does reigning sin. God's grace is his own, and he gives or withholds it as he pleases.

_ _ 8. The captivity of Babylon is mentioned as a remarkable period in this line, Matthew 1:11, Matthew 1:12. All things considered, it was a wonder that the Jews were not lost in that captivity, as other nations have been; but this intimates the reason why the streams of that people were kept to run pure through that dead sea, because from them, as concerning the flesh, Christ was to come. Destroy it not, for a blessing is in it, even that blessing of blessings, Christ himself, Isaiah 65:8, Isaiah 65:9. It was with an eye to him that they were restored, and the desolations of the sanctuary were looked upon with favour for the Lord's sake, Daniel 9:17.

_ _ 9. Josias is said to beget Jechonias and his brethren (Matthew 1:11); by Jechonias here is meant Jehoiakim, who was the first-born of Josias; but, when it is said (Matthew 1:12) that Jechonias begat Salathiel, that Jechonias was the son of that Jehoiakim who was carried into Babylon, and there begat Salathiel (as Dr. Whitby shows), and, when Jechonias is said to have been written childless (Jeremiah 22:30), it is explained thus: No man of his seed shall prosper. Salathiel is here said to beget Zorobabel, whereas Salathiel begat Pedaiah, and he begat Zorobabel (1 Chronicles 3:19): but, as before, the grandson is often called the son; Pedaiah, it is likely, died in his father's lifetime, and so his son Zorobabel was called the son of Salathiel.

_ _ 10. The line is brought down, not to Mary the mother of our Lord, but to Joseph the husband of Mary (Matthew 1:16); for the Jews always reckoned their genealogies by the males: yet Mary was of the same tribe and family with Joseph, so that, both by his mother and by his supposed father, he was of the house of David; yet his interest in that dignity is derived by Joseph, to whom really according to the flesh he had no relation, to show that the kingdom of the Messiah is not founded in a natural descent from David.

_ _ 11. The centre in whom all these lines meet is Jesus, who is called Christ, Matthew 1:16. This is he that was so importunately desired, so impatiently expected, and to whom the patriarchs had an eye when they were so desirous of children, that they might have the honour of coming into the sacred line. Blessed be God, we are not now in such a dark and cloudy state of expectation as they were then in, but see clearly what these prophets and kings saw as through a glass darkly. And we may have, if it be not our own fault, a greater honour than that of which they were so ambitious: for they who do the will of God are in a more honourable relation to Christ than those who were akin to him according to the flesh, Matthew 12:50. Jesus is called Christ, that is, the Anointed, the same with the Hebrew name Messiah. He is called Messiah the Prince (Daniel 9:25), and often God's Anointed (Psalms 2:2). Under this character he was expected: Art thou the Christ — the anointed one? David, the king, was anointed (1 Samuel 16:13); so was Aaron, the priest (Leviticus 8:12), and Elisha, the prophet (1 Kings 19:16), and Isaiah, the prophet (Isaiah 61:1). Christ, being appointed to, and qualified for, all these offices, is therefore called the Anointed — anointed with the oil of gladness above his fellows; and from this name of his, which is as ointment poured forth, all his followers are called Christians, for they also have received the anointing.

_ _ Lastly. The general summary of all this genealogy we have, Matthew 1:17, where it is summed up in three fourteens, signalized by remarkable periods. In the first fourteen, we have the family of David rising, and looking forth as the morning; in the second, we have it flourishing in its meridian lustre; in the third, we have it declining and growing less and less, dwindling into the family of a poor carpenter, and then Christ shines forth out of it, the glory of his people Israel.

John Wesley's Explanatory Notes

Matthew 1:1

The book of the generation of Jesus Christ — That is, strictly speaking, the account of his birth and genealogy. This title therefore properly relates to the verses that immediately follow: but as it sometimes signifies the history of a person, in that sense it may belong to the whole book. If there were any difficulties in this genealogy, or that given by St. Luke, which could not easily be removed, they would rather affect the Jewish tables, than the credit of the evangelists: for they act only as historians setting down these genealogies, as they stood in those public and allowed records. Therefore they were to take them as they found them. Nor was it needful they should correct the mistakes, if there were any. For these accounts sufficiently answer the end for which they are recited. They unquestionably prove the grand point in view, that Jesus was of the family from which the promised seed was to come. And they had more weight with the Jews for this purpose, than if alterations had been made by inspiration itself. For such alterations would have occasioned endless disputes between them and the disciples of our Lord. The son of David, the son of Abraham — He is so called, because to these he was more peculiarly promised; and of these it was often foretold the Messiah should spring. Luke 3:31.

Geneva Bible Translation Notes

Matthew 1:1

The (1) (a) book of the (b) generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the (c) son of Abraham.

(1) Jesus Christ came of Abraham of the tribe of Judah, and of the family of David as God promised.

(a) Rehearsal: as the Hebrews used to speak; see (Genesis 5:1), the book of the generations.

(b) Of the ancestors from whom Christ came.

(c) Christ is also the son of Abraham.

Cross-Reference Topical ResearchStrong's Concordance
generation:

Genesis 2:4 These [are] the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,
Genesis 5:1 This [is] the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;
Isaiah 53:8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
Luke 3:23-38 And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was [the son] of Heli, ... Which was [the son] of Enos, which was [the son] of Seth, which was [the son] of Adam, which was [the son] of God.
Romans 9:5 Whose [are] the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ [came], who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.

the son of David:

Matthew 9:27 And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, [Thou] Son of David, have mercy on us.
Matthew 15:22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, [thou] Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
Matthew 22:42-45 Saying, What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, [The Son] of David. ... If David then call him Lord, how is he his son?
2 Samuel 7:13 He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
2 Samuel 7:16 And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.
Psalms 89:36 His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me.
Psalms 132:11 The LORD hath sworn [in] truth unto David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne.
Isaiah 9:6-7 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. ... Of the increase of [his] government and peace [there shall be] no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
Isaiah 11:1 And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:
Jeremiah 23:5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
Jeremiah 33:15-17 In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. ... For thus saith the LORD; David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel;
Jeremiah 33:26 Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob, and David my servant, [so] that I will not take [any] of his seed [to be] rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy on them.
Amos 9:11 In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old:
Zechariah 12:8 In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David [shall be] as God, as the angel of the LORD before them.
Luke 1:31-32 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. ... He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
Luke 1:69-70 And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David; ... As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:
John 7:42 Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was?
Acts 2:30 Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne;
Acts 13:22 And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the [son] of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will.
Romans 1:3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;
Revelation 22:16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, [and] the bright and morning star.

the son of Abraham:

Genesis 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
Genesis 22:18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
Genesis 26:3-5 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; ... Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
Genesis 28:13-14 And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I [am] the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; ... And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
Romans 4:13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, [was] not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
Galatians 3:16 Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.
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Chain-Reference Bible SearchCross References with Concordance

Gn 2:4; 5:1; 12:3; 22:18; 26:3; 28:13. 2S 7:13, 16. Ps 89:36; 132:11. Is 9:6; 11:1; 53:8. Jr 23:5; 33:15, 26. Am 9:11. Zc 12:8. Mt 9:27; 15:22; 22:42. Lk 1:31, 69; 3:23. Jn 7:42. Ac 2:30; 13:22. Ro 1:3; 4:13; 9:5. Ga 3:16. Rv 22:16.

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