Matthew 1:1-17
Why was Jesus' Lineage important?
It proved that he was of the line of David therefore, he could be a king in Israel. (You had to be a royal blood to be the Messiah).
Until 70 A.D. (when the temple was destroyed by the Romans) if you were of the line of David you could go to the temple and trace your family tree by the scrolls that were meticulousness kept by temple scribes. It was not a guessing game and you could not be a king if you were not connected to the line of David.
Why is it significant that there are four women in Jesus' lineage? It was not necessary for women to be mentioned in a patriarchal (Lineage represented by fathers, matriarchal would be lineage represented by mothers, the Jews lineage was strictly patriarchal) lineage and yet four women are mention in Jesus' ancestry. The four women did not come from great backgrounds either. Tamar was was not Jewish, Rehab (Canaanite), Ruth (Moabite, a descendant of Lot) and Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, the wife of Uriah could have been either Jewish or Hittite. Tamar, Rehab, And Bathsheba are know for their sexual sins and Ruth came from a people not well respected by a Jewish audience, and yet under direction of the Holy Spirit they are added to the This most important list. This was a sign of God to show right from the beginning of Jesus' ministry he would be making room for the non-Jewish people-groups and elevating the status of women of New Testament women compared to Old Testament ones. A common prayer prayed by Jews of Jesus times was, "Blessed art thou, O God, for not making me a Gentile, slave, or woman." Guess God was not a big fan of that prayer.
Here is a quick rundown of the other people mentioned in Jesus' lineage.
Abraham: Family came from modern day Iraq where he grew up worshiping the sun God Nanna.
Struggle with lying when in trouble but loved his family and was one of the richest men of his time.
Married to Sarai who God miraculously gave a child at an old age.
Issac: Was also successful at business man and share his fathers problem with lying. (probably observed it at home and work with his Dad) Married Rebekah. Rebekah also struggled with having children.
Judah: Was successful in saving Joseph's life but seems to be a all around immoral person sleeping with his daughter-in-law when he thougt she was a prostitute and being given to superstition.
Pharez and Zerah out of Tamar: Judah was the father of her children Gen:38
Hezron was Pharez's son: we don't know anything about him
Aram: - Unknown
Amminadab: – Aaron took his daughter as a wife and seems to be the respected leader of the tribe of Judah before his son.
Nahshon:- The leader of the tribe of Judah during the Exodus Numbers 1:7
Salmon: Father of Boaz. (Ruth 4:20, Ps. 68:14)
Boaz Out of Rahab: This is significant because it shows the missional mission statement of GOd. He has always been interested in reaching the world.
Obed out of Ruth: Ruth was a Moabite. Moabites were descendants of Lots showing God's complete forgiveness of Lot and his family.
Jesse: Seems to be a everyday guy who was loyal to God and Israel.
David: Man after Gods own heart.
Solomon out of her who had been the wife of Uriah: Uriah was a Hittie who were known as warriors and giants and at one time they were enemies of Israel. (Gen 15:20) But by Genesis chapter 20 the Hittites seem to be friends cause Ephron the Hittite allows Abraham to bury Sarah on his land for free.
Rehoboam: destroyed davids kingdom by taking bad council and enslaving his own people 1Kings 12) His mom was a descendant of Lots younger daughter (the Ammonites).. (1 Sam 11) Saul scatters the ammonites and they live among the Israelites after that.
Abijam: was evil and married to a forenier that was suppose to be disposed of
Asa: followed God and returned them to true worship
Jehoshaphat: Walked in the way of David and took council from prophets
Jehoram: Good king and warrior died because he was betrayed
Uzziah: Good king but made a bad choice at the end of his life
Jotham: Good king died of leprosy
Ahaz: Bad king practiced the rights of foreign gods
Hezekiah: was a great king with a lot of faith but ended poorly and did not care about the generation after him.
Manasseh: Bad king but repented at the end of his life.
Amon: Bad king his servants killed him and put his 8 year old son in his place
Josiah: Good king listen to council and to God. Turned people back tot he law and rebuilt the kingdom at the grand old age of 8 years old.
Jehoiachin: He was evil and the Israelites were taken into captivity under this king
Shealtiel: Good king
Zerbbabel: Good King
Abiud: Not mentioned elsewhere
Eliakim: was a priest king.
Azor,Sadoc,Achim,Eliud,Eleazar,Matthan,Jacob,Joseph: The rest of the names mentioned were all rulers after the Israelites were in captivity. They could not have been kings but must have been leaders during the inter-testament period (The four hundred years between the last book of the Old Testament and the writing of the New Testament. Some of the names are mention in apocrypha books (books that tell the history of the Jews during the inter-testament times) but these books are not recognized as being inspired by the Holy Spirit.
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