Matthew 1:1-17
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, 3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, 4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and 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, 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, 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, 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.
Reflection
Matthew begins his book with a genealogy to show that Jesus continues the Old Testament story of God’s grace to his disobedient people. To show this connection, the “family tree” begins and ends with three great names in Israelite history: Abraham, David, and Jesus (1:1, 17).
The ancestry of Jesus also reminds us that God accepts sinful and outcast people. Five women appear in the list: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, “the wife of Uriah” (Bathsheba), and Mary. These women faced great social difficulty, but God treated them mercifully and used them in his plan to save his people. Tamar, Rahab, and Bathsheba were involved in sexual sin (Genesis 38; Joshua 2; 2 Sam. 11:1–12:23). Ruth was a desperately poor immigrant field-worker (Ruth 2:2), and Mary, although innocent, was falsely thought to have been unfaithful to her fiancé, Joseph (Matt. 1:19).
Despite lives made difficult by poverty and sin, God helped these women and gave them important places in his plan to “save his people from their sins” (v. 21). This reminds believers that God powerfully saves those who have faith in him (Rom. 1:16) and that “God shows no partiality” (Rom. 2:11). He saves ungodly people (Rom. 4:5) and uses outcasts for his saving purposes (1 Cor. 1:26–30; 2 Cor. 12:9).
Romans 1:1-7
1: Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, 6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,
7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Reflection
God fulfills his promises. In a world that worships hundreds of gods, there is only one God who sends “the gospel” (Rom. 1:1). The word “gospel” means “good news.” When the Bible uses the word it is specifically referring to the good news of a Savior who conquers sin, destroys death, and will rescue the creation from its decay (8:18–39). This gospel was promised in the Old Testament (1:2). The Scripture pointed to David’s Descendant, God’s Son, who was raised from the dead to demonstrate God’s power and affirmation of Jesus’ saving work on the cross (v. 4). To proclaim the message of salvation, God graciously set apart messengers (apostles) like Paul (vv. 1, 6). They announced a message to be received “among all the nations” (v. 5), in fulfillment of God’s promise to bless the world through Abraham (see Gen. 12:1–3). That message and blessing continue to spread throughout the world today.
Psalm 96:7-9
7 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength! 8 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts! 9 Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness; tremble before him, all the earth!
God is graciously spreading the gospel throughout the world, offering the only true remedy for sin and death. Take a moment to thank him for bringing the gospel into your life, and ask him to use you to bring that same blessing into the lives of others.