Matthew 1:17 Therefore all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the time of Christ fourteen generations.
1. First Period—14 Generations from Abraham to David
This is the period of promise—the time from the beginning of Israel’s history, which started with the Abrahamic covenant, up to the establishment of the Unified Kingdom of David.
The names of the 14 generations of the first period in Matthew’s genealogy are the same as the names listed in the genealogy of 1 Chronicles (1 Chr 1:27–34; 2:1–15; Ruth 4:18–22). They are also the same in the genealogy in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 3:31–34). The only difference noted among the names that appear in the genealogies are “Ram” (Matt 1:3–4), who also is called “Arni” in Luke according to some translations (Luke 3:33), and “David the king” (Matt 1:6), who is mentioned simply as “David” in Luke (Luke 3:31).
(1) Structure of the chronology (1,163 years in total)
The first period extends from Abraham’s birth until King David’s reign in Hebron. David reigned for 7 years and 6 months in Hebron and 33 years in Jerusalem (2 Sam 5:4–5; 1 Kgs 2:11; 1 Chr 3:4–5; 29:27). In this book, we consider that the first period of the genealogy in Matthew 1 ended when David ended his reign in Hebron, and the second period started with David’s reign in Jerusalem. The reason for this is that the second period begins with the words, “David was the father of Solomon by Bathsheba who had been the wife of Uriah” (Matt 1:6). This affair with Bathsheba (2 Sam 11) took place after David’s reign in Hebron and during the early part of his reign in Jerusalem (2 Sam 5:13–14; 1 Chr 3:4–5).
Abraham’s birth was in the year 2166 BC and David’s reign in Jerusalem started in the year 1003 BC. Thus, the total span of the first period is 1,163 years long. This period can be divided broadly into five sections and we will look into the details in Part 3 of this book.
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From Abraham’s birth (2166 BC) to the time Jacob took 70 of his family members into Egypt (1876 BC)—around 290 years
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430 years of slavery in Egypt
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40 years of the wilderness journey after the Exodus and 16 years of the Canaan conquest for a total of 56 years
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The time of the judges—340 years
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47 years and 6 months includes King Saul’s reign of 40 years and David’s reign of 7 years and 6 months in Hebron
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(2) The three women listed in the first period: Tamar, Rahab and Ruth
Matt 1:3 “Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar.”
Matt 1:5a “Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab.”
Matt 1:5b “Boaz was the father of Obed by Ruth.”
Unlike the genealogy in the Gospel of Luke, the genealogy in the Gospel of Matthew includes five women—Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Uriah’s wife and Mary. In Jewish tradition, women were never included in the genealogies; therefore, having these women’s names listed is a peculiarity unique to Jesus’ genealogy. Furthermore, the names of such famous matriarchs of faith like Sarah, Rebekah and Rachel, were not included in Jesus’ genealogy; rather, the names of women who were lowly and disdained by society—women whose names were stained by sins—were included.
Through the three women included in the first period of Jesus’ genealogy, we can understand that the scope of salvation has been expanded to include all Gentiles as well. In other words, God’s redemptive activity is not limited to the people of Israel but is open to all nations and people (Rom 1:14–16; 3:22; 10:11–13). The gospel of Jesus Christ transcends race, gender and distinctions of class so that there is no discrimination in redemption whether for Greek or Jew (1 Cor 1:24; 12:13; Gal 3:28).
Colossians 3:11 a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all.
The fact that unclean women have been included in the genealogy in the Gospel of Matthew shows us Jesus’ selfless humility to save mankind. Jesus was sinless (Heb 4:15), knew no sin (2 Cor 5:21) and did not originally have a body of sin (Rom 6:6) like other humans. However, God condemned sin (Rom 8:3b) in the body of Jesus Christ the only begotten Son and made Him to be like a sinner (Phil 2:7). This is the profound mystery of substitutionary atonement for our salvation and the principle by which we have been justified (Rom 4:25).
Jesus could have kept His genealogy undefiled. However, in taking on the form of a servant to save sinners, He did not mind being called a descendant of women who were stained with lawlessness, adultery and even incest. Through this genealogy, we are able to discover that God’s love is greater, wider and deeper than the universe. We can feel a deep gratitude for the sacrificial love of Jesus who endlessly humbled Himself even though He is God. The Word of the beginning came in the form of man, having his name listed among sinners in a human genealogy. Jesus’ genealogy is filled with evidence that attests of God’s agape love for sinners; Jesus Christ humbled Himself completely to the point of becoming a mockery among people in the genealogy (Ps 22:6–7).
(3) David—the only person in Matthew’s genealogy who is counted twice
As the person who concludes the first period and begins the second, David is the only person who is counted twice (Matt 1:17). David is highlighted because he concludes one period and begins another. Also, among the many kings who are mentioned in the genealogy, only David is given the title “king” (Matt 1:6). It is not a coincidence that the genealogy is structured in groups of 14 generations because 14 is the sum of the numerical values represented by the letters in David’s Hebrew name
Clearly, the central figure of the genealogy in Matthew 1 in introducing Jesus Christ is David, and the genealogy illustrates the fact that Jesus Christ is the Son of David.22 David, as someone prefiguring Jesus Christ, became the central figure in the genealogy of Matthew 1. This shows that Jesus Christ would come not only to fulfill the things of the past, but also to open up a new era as the central figure of redemptive history, thereby expanding the meaning of the administration of redemption.
The promise of the eternally established kingdom, which was to come through a son in the Davidic covenant, is not the kingdom that would be built by David’s physical descendants; the promise ultimately points