October 1 A READ MATTHEW 1–4
Pedigree of the King
OVERVIEW
The Messiah, the one whose coming is promised with such anticipation in the Old Testament, now arrives in the first book of the New Testament, and his name is Jesus. He comes from the kingly line of David. His name means “the LORD saves.” He is worthy of worship—and wise men from the east travel great distances to pay homage to him. He will be a light to the Gentiles, be announced by a forerunner, and demonstrate power over Satan, demons, disease, and death. Jesus will do all this and more. The Messiah has finally come!
MY DAILY WALK
How well do you know your Old Testament?
That may seem like an unusual question to ask as you begin reading the New Testament. But you’ll quickly discover that the key to unlocking the New is a foundational knowledge of the Old. In order to persuade his fellow Jews to believe in Jesus as their long-awaited Messiah and King, Matthew used the Old Testament as proof. When Jesus faced the triple temptation by Satan in the wilderness, he quoted Deuteronomy as his basis of defense.
Underline each Old Testament quotation you find in today’s reading. (Hint: watch for such phrases as “this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet.”) Then spend a few extra minutes looking up those Old Testament prophecies that became New Testament realities. Wouldn’t it be fitting to close your time in God’s Word today by thanking God that his centuries-old promises are trustworthy?
YOU CAN NEVER STARVE THE PERSON WHO FEEDS ON GOD’S PROMISES.
INSIGHT
Déjà Vu | Matt. 2:16
This isn’t the first time a brutal ruler tried to wipe out a generation of Jewish infants (2:16). That’s how Moses ended up in Pharaoh’s household; he was floated down the Nile in a basket to escape Pharaoh’s massacre of baby Hebrew boys. In both cases, God had foretold the time that a deliverer would come. And, in both cases, God’s enemies sought to stamp out the possibility of deliverance.
INSIGHT
Great Expectations . . . Unfulfilled | Matt. 3:5
Most Jews in Jesus’ day longed for a deliverer to free them from the iron heel of Roman oppression. But many thought the Messiah would not arrive until they were good enough to “deserve” him. One commonly held notion was that the Messiah would come only when the nation had kept the Sabbath for four consecutive weeks. There was just one problem. Collectively, they could not keep all the Mosaic laws for even one day. God sent the Savior as a gift for imperfect people, which we all are, not as a reward for the righteous.
The Ancestors of Jesus the Messiah
1This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of David and of Abraham*:
2Abraham was the father of Isaac.
Isaac was the father of Jacob.
Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers.
3Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah (whose mother was Tamar).
Perez was the father of Hezron.
Hezron was the father of Ram.*
4Ram was the father of Amminadab.
Amminadab was the father of Nahshon.
Nahshon was the father of Salmon.
5Salmon was the father of Boaz (whose mother was Rahab).
Boaz was the father of Obed (whose mother was Ruth).
Obed was the father of Jesse.
6Jesse was the father of King David.
David was the father of Solomon (whose mother was Bathsheba, the widow of Uriah).
7Solomon was the father of Rehoboam.
Rehoboam was the father of Abijah.
Abijah was the father of Asa.*
8Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat.
Jehoshaphat was the father of Jehoram.*
Jehoram was the father* of Uzziah.
9Uzziah was the father of Jotham.
Jotham was the father of Ahaz.
Ahaz was the father of Hezekiah.
10Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh.
Manasseh was the father of Amon.*
Amon was the father of Josiah.
11Josiah was the father of Jehoiachin* and his brothers (born at the time of the exile to Babylon).
12After the Babylonian exile:
Jehoiachin was the father of Shealtiel.
Shealtiel was the father of Zerubbabel.
13Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud.
Abiud was the father of Eliakim.
Eliakim was the father of Azor.
14Azor was the father of Zadok.
Zadok was the father of Akim.
Akim was the father of Eliud.
15Eliud was the father of Eleazar.
Eleazar was the father of Matthan.
Matthan was the father of Jacob.
16Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary.
Mary gave birth to Jesus, who is called the Messiah.
17All those listed above include fourteen generations from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the Babylonian exile, and fourteen from the Babylonian exile to the Messiah.
The Birth of Jesus the Messiah
18This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. 19Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement* quietly.
20As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. 21And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus,* for he will save his people from their sins.”
22All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet:
23“Look! The virgin will conceive a child!
She will give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel,*
which means ‘God is with us.’”
24When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. 25But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.