Genealogy of Jesus
Genealogy of Jesus Christ: In the first century, it could have been only Mary and Joseph and no one else who could have fulfilled all the blessings and prophecies about the lineage of Messiah without passing a curse. By Liny J.
1). A Blessing: God’s Promise to David about his descendants
“When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. (2 Sam 7:12).
2.) A Prophecy: God’s Prophecy about David’s Throne
“For to us a child is born, to us, a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace, there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.” (Isa 9:6-7)
3.) A Legal Right: Solomon’s Descendants have Legal Right to David’s Throne King David legally transferred the right to Solomon. “And the King took an oath and said, “As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my life from every distress, just as I swore to you by the LORD God of Israel, saying, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall be king after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ so I will certainly do this day” (1 Kings 1: 29-30).
4.) Curse on the Legal Heir to David’s Throne
“Thus says the Lord: Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not prosper in his days: for none of his descendants shall prosper, sitting on the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah.” (Jeremiah 22:30).
5.) About Messiah until Now
- Messiah should be the literal descendant of David to have the blessing
- Messiah should be the legal heir to David’s throne
But the literal descendant who had the legal right is now under the curse.
6.) Joseph- Has the Legal Right to Throne but is Under Curse Matthew 1:
Genealogy through Solomon’s descendants who are under the curse. Joseph is the inheritor of legal rights and curses too.
7.) Mary- Is another literal descendant of David but has no legal right to the throne
2 Samuel 5:13-14″…Also, more sons and daughters were born to David. Now these are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon,…”
David’s son Nathan is referred to in Luke 3: 31Nathan had a great-grandson- Levi (Luke 3:29), Levi had a great-grandson named Shimei (in Hebrew) and Semei in (Greek) Luke 3: 26.
Interestingly it is these same order of names that are mentioned in Zechariah 12:12-14 “And the land shall mourn, every family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of Shimei by itself, and their wives by themselves.”
8.) Objection for David’s bloodline being passed through a Female- (Deuteronomy 21:16, 17).
Answer: There is an exception. If there is no male offspring, then the bloodline can pass through female provided the woman marries from her own tribe (Read Numbers 26, 27, and 36:6). Mary had no brother though we read about Mary’s sister (John 19:25). If Mary had a brother, after Joseph’s death, she should return to be under the care of her father (who seems to have died much before) or brother according to the first-century Jewish custom. If the widow does not have a father or brother, then the responsibility of taking care of her falls on the son. In Mary’s case, as her father seems to have died and she had no brother, the responsibility was on Jesus which He transferred to John the disciple in John 19: 26, 27. So Mary had no brother and she married Joseph from her own tribe (Judah). Therefore she passed the bloodline of David to her son- Jesus.
Joseph and Mary Fulfills the Blessing and Prophecy of Sovereign God
Since Jesus is not the literal son of Joseph, the curse is not there on Jesus. But Jesus is the legal heir of Joseph so Jesus has the legal right to David’s throne. Moreover, Mary as she had no brother and married from her own tribe could pass the bloodline of David to Jesus. Therefore Jesus is:
- Literal Descendant of David
- Legal Heir to David’s throne
- But has no curse.
In the first century, it could have been only Mary and Joseph and no one else who could have fulfilled all the blessings and prophecies about the lineage of Messiah without passing the curse.
Read the article on the Mission of Jesus.
{moscomment}
