[1] The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
[2] Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren;
[3] And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram;
[4] And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon;
[5] And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse;
[6] And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias;
[7] And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa;
[8] And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias;
[9] And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias;
[10] And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias;
[11] And Josias begat Jechonias
and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon:
[12] And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat
Zorobabel;
[13] And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor;
[14] And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud;
[15] And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob;
[16] And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
[17]
So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations;
and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen
generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are
fourteen generations.
[18]
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary
was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with
child of the Holy Ghost.
[19]
Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a
publick example, was minded to put her away privily.
[20]
But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord
appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear
not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her
is of the Holy Ghost.
[21] And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
[22] Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
[23]
Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and
they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with
us.
[24] Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:
[25] And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.
MATTHEW 1
MATTHEW 1 - INTRODUCTION
One
cannot read the first part of this chapter without realizing how God
over ruled in the Jewish method of keeping genealogies. Here Joseph’s
descent is established. Observe that, when it comes to Christ’s birth,
the word “begat” is not used. Jesus had no human father. What a stigma
Mary had to face as an unmarried teenager. However, just like the one
she is about to bear, she too, was willing to make herself of no
reputation. In the wondrous name, Jesus, which means Savior, we have
the prophecy and plan of God’s purpose to deliver humankind from sin.
Another name, Emmanuel, offers further revelation. In the Old
Testament, God is for us. Now, in Christ, He is with us, and by Holy
Spirit, the very God Himself lives inside us. Jesus came as God in human
fashion. As man, He understands our human needs. As God, He can meet
all our needs.
MATTHEW 1:1-17
BEGAT: The English word begat comes from the Greek word gennao. It means to procreate, as a father or sire; to generate; to produce; as, poverty can beget crime.
The purpose of
the genealogy in Matthew is because, since Matthew wants to present
Jesus as the King of the Jews, a king must have a royal bloodline
genealogy in order to prove his rightful assent to the throne.
In verse 1, the English word book comes from the Greek word bibloV/biblos. It
has to do with an important manuscript. A manuscript of great value.
In this case, it would be the manuscript with contains the real
genealogy of the Lord Jesus Christ proving Him to be the rightful King
of Israel. Making Him the true Messiah.
One of the
humorous pitfalls of being a research theologian and philosopher of
theology, is that we always are asking why? And in most cases, it is
about why some Bible character did the blunderbuss things that they did?
However, in this case, my question is about why God a certain Greek
word to describe the English word generations?
It would seem more logical, in the consistency of Greek text, that God would have chosen the Greek word genealogia/genealogia. It
means tracing ones royal roots through family manuscripts and
genealogies. However, in the case of Matthew 1:1, God has chosen the
Greek word genesia/genesia.. This Greek word has to do with tracing ones genealogy through the birthdays of the family members in question.
Why would God
do it this way? Is there a correct answer to this question? The answer
is not only yes, but the answer is found in verse 17. We will cover
this when getting to verse 17. Rest assured, there is a very beautiful
reason why God chose the wording which He did.
Then verse 1
finishes with the start of the genealogical trace of Jesus Christ, that
through the line of David, Jesus’ genealogy goes all the way back to
Abraham.
DAVID: David
was the eighth and youngest son of Jesse, a citizen of Bethlehem. His
father seems to have been a man in humble life. His mother's name is not
recorded. Some think she was the Nahash of in II Samuel 17:25. As to
his personal appearance, we only know that he was red-haired, with
beautiful eyes and a fair face in I Samuel 16:12 & 17:42.
His early
occupation was that of tending his father's sheep on the uplands of
Judah. From what we know of his after history, doubtless he frequently
beguiled his time, when thus engaged, with his shepherd's flute, while
he drank in the many lessons taught him by the varied scenes spread
around him. His first recorded exploits were his encounters with the
wild beasts of the field. He mentions that with his own unaided hand he
slew a lion and also a bear, when they came out against his flock,
beating them to death in open conflict with his club I Samuel 17:34.
While David, in
the freshness of ruddy youth, was thus engaged with his flocks, Samuel
paid an unexpected visit to Bethlehem, having been guided thither by
divine direction I Samuel 16:1-13. There he offered up sacrifice, and
called the elders of Israel and Jesse's family to the sacrificial meal.
Among all who appeared before him he failed to discover the one he
sought. David was sent for, and the prophet immediately recognized him
as the chosen of God, chosen to succeed Saul, who was now departing from
the ways of God, on the throne of the kingdom. He accordingly, in
anticipation, poured on his head the anointing oil. David went back
again to his shepherd life, but "the Spirit of the Lord came upon David
from that day forward," and "the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul"
in I Samuel 16:13-14.
Not
long after this David was sent for to soothe with his harp the troubled
spirit of Saul, who suffered from a strange melancholy dejection. He
played before the king so skillfully that Saul was greatly cheered, and
began to entertain great affection for the young shepherd. After this he
went home to Bethlehem. But he soon again came into prominence. The
armies of the Philistines and of Israel were in battle array in the
valley of Elah, some 16 miles south-west of Bethlehem; and David was
sent by his father with provisions for his three brothers, who were then
fighting on the side of the king. On his arrival in the camp of Israel,
David, now about twenty years of age, was made aware of the state of
matters when the champion of the Philistines, Goliath of Gath, came
forth to defy Israel. David took his sling, and with a well-trained aim
threw a stone "out of the brook," which struck the giant's forehead, so
that he fell senseless to the ground. David then ran and slew him, and
cut off his head with his own sword in I Samuel 17. The result was a
great victory to Israel who pursued the Philistines to the gates of Gath and Ekron.
David's popularity consequent on this heroic exploit awakened Saul's jealousy I Samuel 18:6-16, which
he showed in various ways. He conceived a bitter hatred toward him, and
by various stratagems sought his death in I Samuel 18-30. The deep-laid
plots of the enraged king, who could not fail to observe that David
"prospered exceedingly," all proved futile, and only endeared the young
hero the more to the people, and very specially to Jonathan, Saul's son,
between whom and David a life-long warm friendship was formed.
A
fugitive. To escape from the vengeance of Saul, David fled to Ramah in I
Samuel 19:12-18 to Samuel, who received him, and he dwelt among the
sons of the prophets, who were there under Samuel's training. It is
supposed by some that the sixth, seventh, and eleventh Psalms were
composed by him at this time. This place was only three miles from the
residence of Saul, who soon discovered whither the fugitive had gone,
and tried ineffectually to bring him back. Jonathan made a fruitless
effort to bring his father to a better state of mind toward David in I
Samuel 20, who, being made aware of the fact, saw no hope of safety but
in flight to a distance. We accordingly find him first at Nob and then
at Gath, the chief city of the Philistines. The king of the Philistines
would not admit him into his service, as he expected that he would, and
David accordingly now betook himself to the stronghold of Adullam in I
Chronicles 12:8-18. Here in a short time four hundred men gathered
around him and acknowledged him as their leader. It was at this time
that David, amid the harassment and perils of his position, cried, "Oh
that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem;"
when three of his heroes broke through the lines of the Philistines and
brought him the water for which he longed in II Samuel 23:13-17,but
which he would not drink.
In
his rage at the failure of all his efforts to seize David, Saul gave
orders for the massacre of the entire priestly family at Nob, "persons
who wore a linen ephod", to the number of eighty-five persons, who were
put to death by Doeg the Edomite. The sad tidings of the massacre were
brought to David by Abiathar, a son of Ahimelech, the only one who
escaped.
Hearing
that Keilah, a town on the western frontier, was harassed by the
Philistines, David with his men relieved it in I Samuel 23:1-14, and
then, for fear of Saul, he fled to the strongholds in the "hill country"
of Judah. While encamped there, in the forest in the district of Ziph,
he was visited by Jonathan, who spoke to him words of encouragement. The
two now parted never to meet again. Saul continued his pursuit of
David, who narrowly escaped from him at this time, and fled to the crags
and ravines of Engedi, on the western shore of the Dead Sea in I Samuel
23:29. Here Saul, who still pursued him with his army, narrowly
escaped, through the generous forbearance of David, and was greatly
affected by what David had done for him. He returned home from pursuing
him, and David betook himself to Maon, where, with his six hundred men,
he maintained himself by contributions gathered from the district. Here
occurred the incident connected with Nabal and his wife Abigail in I
Samuel 25, whom David married after Nabal's death.
Saul
again went forth in I Samuel 26 in pursuit of David, who had hid
himself "in the hill Hachilah, which is before Jeshimon," in the
wilderness of Ziph, and was a second time spared through his
forbearance. He returned home, professing shame and penitence for the
way in which he had treated David, and predicting his elevation to the
throne.
Fighting
against Israel. Harassed by the necessity of moving from place to place
through fear of Saul, David once more sought refuge among the
Philistines in I Samuel 27. He was welcomed by the king, who assigned
him Ziklag as his residence. Here David lived among his followers for
some time as an independent chief engaged in frequent war with the
Amalekites and other tribes on the south of Judah.
Achish
summoned David with his men to join his army against Saul; but the
lords of the Philistines were suspicious of David's loyalty, and
therefore he was sent back to Ziklag, which he found to his dismay may
had been pillaged and burnt during his brief absence. David pursued
after the raiders, the Amalekites, and completely routed them. On his
return to Ziklag tidings reached him of Saul's death in II Samuel 1. An
Amalekite brought Saul's crown and bracelet and laid them at his feet.
David and his men rent their clothes and mourned for Saul, who had been
defeated in battle near Mount Gilboa. David composed a beautiful elegy,
the most beautiful of all extant Hebrew odes, a "lamentation over Saul
and over Jonathan his son" in II Samuel 1:18-27. It bore the title of
"The Bow," and was to be taught to the children, that the memory of Saul
and Jonathan might be preserved among them. "Behold, it is written in
the book of Jasher.”
David
king over Judah. David and his men now set out for Hebron under divine
direction in II Samuel 2:1-4. There they were cordially welcomed, and he
was at once anointed as king. He was now about thirty years of age.
But
his title to the throne was not undisputed. Abner took Ish-bosheth,
Saul's only remaining son, over the Jordan to Mahanaim, and there
crowned him as king. Then began a civil war in Israel. The first
encounter between the two opposing armies, led on the one side by Abner,
and on the other by Joab, took place at the pool of Gibeon. It resulted
in the defeat of Abner. Other encounters, however, between Israel and
Judah followed in II Samuel 3:1-5, but still success was on the side of
David. For the space of seven and a half years David reigned in Hebron.
Abner now sided with David, and sought to promote his advancement; but
was treacherously put to death by Joab in revenge for his having slain
his brother Asahel at Gibeon. This was greatly to David's regret. He
mourned for the death of Abner. Shortly after this Ish-bosheth was also
treacherously put to death by two Canaanites of Beeroth; and there being
now no rival, David was anointed king over all Israel.
David
king over all Israel II Samuel 5:1-5 & I Chronicles 11:1-3. The
elders of Israel now repaired to Hebron and offered allegiance to David
in name of all the people, among whom the greatest enthusiasm prevailed.
He was anointed king over all Israel, and sought out a new seat of
government, more suitable than Hebron, as the capital of his empire. At
this time there was a Jebusite fortress, "the stronghold", on the hill
of Zion, called also Jebus. This David took from the Jebusites, and made
it Israel's capital, and established here his residence, and afterwards
built for himself a palace by the aid of Tyrian tradesmen. The
Philistines, who had for some time observed a kind of truce, now made
war against David; but were defeated in battle at a place afterwards
called, in remembrance of the victory, Baal-perazim. Again they invaded
the land, and were a second time routed by him. He thus delivered Israel
from their enemies.
David
now resolved to bring up the ark of the covenant to his new capital in
II Samuel 6. It was in the house of Abinadab at Kirjath-jearim, about 7
miles from Jerusalem, where it had been for many years, from the time
when the Philistines had sent it home in I Samuel 6-7. In consequence of
the death of Uzzah (for it was a divine ordinance that only the Levites
should handle the ark, Numbers 4, who
had put forth his hand to steady the ark when the cart in which it was
being conveyed shook by reason of the roughness of the road, David
stayed the procession, and conveyed the ark into the house of Obed-edom,
a Philistine from Gath. After three months David brought the ark from
the house of Obed-edom up to Jerusalem. Here it was placed in a new tent
or tabernacle which David erected for the purpose. About seventy years
had passed since it had stood in the tabernacle at Shiloh. The old
tabernacle was now at Gibeah, at which Zadok ministered. David now, in I
Chronicles 16, carefully set in order all the ritual of divine worship
at Jerusalem, along with Abiathar the high priest. A new religious era
began. The service of praise was for the first time introduced into
public worship. Zion became henceforth "God's holy hill."
David's
wars. David now entered on a series of conquests which greatly extended
and strengthened his kingdom in II Samuel 8. In a few years the whole
territory from the Euphrates to the river of Egypt, and from Gaza on the
west to Thapsacus on the east, was under his sway in II Samuel 8:3-10
& 10.
David's
fall. He had now reached the height of his glory. He ruled over a vast
empire, and his capital was enriched with the spoils of many lands. But
in the midst of all this success he fell, and his character became
stained with the sin of adultery II Samuel 11:2-27. It has been noted as
characteristic of the Bible that while his military triumphs are
recorded in a few verses, the sad story of his fall is given in detail, a
story full of warning, and therefore recorded. This crime, in the
attempt to conceal it, led to anoter. He was guilty of murder. Uriah,
whom he had foully wronged, an officer of the Gibborim, the corps of
heros, 23:39, was,
by his order, "set in the front of the hottest battle" at the siege of
Rabbah, in order that he might be put to death. Nathan the prophet in II
Samuel 7:1-17 & 12:1-23, was sent by God to bring home his crimes
to the conscience of the guilty monarch. He became a true penitent. He
bitterly bewailed his sins before God. The thirty-second and fifty-first
Psalms reveal the deep struggles of his soul, and his spiritual
recovery.
Bathsheba
became his wife after Uriah's death. Her first-born son died, according
to the word of the prophet. She gave birth to a second son, whom David
called Solomon, and who ultimately succeeded him on the throne in II
Samuel 12:24-25.
Peace.
After the successful termination of all his wars, David formed the idea
of building a temple for the ark of God. This he was not permitted to
carry into execution, because he had been a man of war. God, however,
sent Nathan to him with a gracious message in II Samuel 7:1-16. On
receiving it he went into the sanctuary, the tent where the ark was, and
sat before the Lord, and poured out his heart in words of devout
thanksgiving. The building of the temple was reserved for his son
Solomon, who would be a man of peace in I Chronicles 22:9 & 28:3.
A
cloudy evening. Hitherto David's carrer had been one of great
prosperity and success. Now cloudy and dark days came. His eldest son
Amnon, whose mother was Ahinoam of Jezreel, was guilty of a great and
shameful crime in II Samuel 13. This was the beginning of the disasters
of his later years. After two years Absalom terribly avenged the crime
against Tamar, and put Amnon to death. This brought sore trouble to
David's heart. Absalom, afraid of the consequences of his guilt, fled to
Geshur beyond Jordan, where he remained for three years, when he was
brought back through the intrigue of Joab in II Samuel 14.
After
this there fell upon the land the calamity of three years' famine in II
Samuel 21:1-14. This was soon after followed by a pestilence, brought
upon the land as a punishment for David's sinful pride in numbering the
people in II Samuel 24, in which no fewer than seventy thousand perished in the space of three days.
Rebellion
of Absalom. The personal respect for David was sadly lowered by the
incident of Bathsheba. There was a strong popular sentiment against the
taking of the census, and the outburst of the plague in connection with
it deepened the feeling of jealously that had begun to manifest itself
among some of the tribes against David. Absalom, taking full advantage
of this state of things, gradually gained over the people, and at length
openly rebelled against his father, and usurped the throne. Ahithophel
was Absalom's chief counsellor. The revolt began in Hebron, the capital
of Judah. Absalom was there proclaimed king. David was now in imminent
danger, and he left Jerusalem in II Samuel 15:13-20, and
once more became a fugitive. It was a momentous day in Israel. The
incidents of it are recorded with a fulness of detail greater than of
any other day in Old Testament history. David fled with his followers to
Mahanarm, on the east of Jordan. An unnatural civil war broke out.
After a few weeks the rival armies were mustered and organized. They met
in hostile array at the wood of Ephraim in II Samuel 18:1-8. Absalom's
army was defeated, and himself put to death by the hand of Joab. The
tidings of the death of his rebellious son filled the heart of David
with the most poignant grief. He "went upto the chamber over the gate,
and wept,” giving utterance to the heart-broken cry, "Would God I had
died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!" Peace was now restored, and
David returned to Jerusalem and resumed the direction of affairs. An
unhappy dispute arose between the men of Judah and the men of Israel. Sheba,
a Benjamite, headed a revolt of the men of Israel. He was pursued to
Abelbeth-maachah, and was there put to death, and so the revolt came to
an end.
The
end. After the suppression of the rebellion of Absalom and that of
Sheba, ten comparatively peaceful years of David's life passed away.
During those years he seems to have been principally engaged in
accumulating treasures of every kind for the great temple at Jerusalem,
which it was reserved to his successor to build in I Chronicles
22:28-29, a house which was to be "exceeding magnifical, of fame and of
glory throughout all countries.The exciting and laborious life he had
spent, and the dangers and trials through which he had passed, had left
him an enfeebled man, prematurely old. It became apparent that his life
was now drawing to its close. A new palace conspiracy broke out as to
who should be his successor. Joab favoured Adonijah. The chiefs of his
party met at the "Fuller's spring," in the valley of Kidron, to proclaim
him king; but Nathan hastened on a decision on the part of David in
favour of Solomon, and so the aim of Adonijah's party failed. Solomon
was brought to Jerusalem, and was anointed king and seated on his
father's throne in I Kings 1:11-53. David's last words are a grand
utterance, revealing his unfailing faith in God, and his
joyful confidence in his gracious covenant promises in II Samuel 23:1-7.
After
a reign of forty years and six months, II Samuel 5:5 & I Chronicles
3:4, David died in B.C. 1015, at the age of seventy years, "and was
buried in the city of David." His tomb is still pointed out on Mount
Zion.
Both
in his prophetical and in his regal character David was a type of the
Messiah in I Samuel 16:13. The book of Psalms commonly bears the title
of the "Psalms of David," from the circumstance that he was the largest
contributor about eighty psalms to the collection.
"The
greatness of David was felt when he was gone. He had lived in harmony
with both the priesthood and the prophets; a sure sign that the spirit
of his government had been thoroughly loyal to the higher aims of the
theocracy. The nation had not been oppressed by him, but had been left
in the free enjoyment of its ancient liberties. As far as his power went
he had striven to act justly to all in II Samuel 8:15. His weak
indulgence to his sons, and his own great sin besides, had been bitterly
atoned, and were forgotten at his death in the remembrance of his
long-tried worth. He had reigned thirty-three years in Jerusalem and
seven and a half at Hebron in II Samuel 5:5. Israel at his accession had
reached the lowest point of national depression; its new-born unity
rudely dissolved; its territory assailed by the Philistines. But he had
left it an imperial power, with dominions like those of Egypt or
Assyria. The sceptre of Solomon was already, before his father's death,
owned from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates, and from the Orontes to
the Red Sea.."
David took from
the Jebusites the fortress of Mount Zion. He "dwelt in the fort, and
called it the city of David" in I Chronicles 11:7. This was the name
afterwards given to the castle and royal palace on Mount Zion, as
distinguished from Jerusalem generally in I Kings 3:1 & 8:1.It was
on the south-west side of Jerusalem, opposite the temple mount, with
which it was connected by a bridge over the Tyropoeon valley.
Bethlehem
is called the "city of David" in Luke 2:4-11, because it was David's
birth-place and early home as per I Samuel 17:12.
ABRAHAM: The
name Abraham means father of a multitude. Till the age of seventy,
Abram sojourned among his kindred in his native country of Chaldea which
today is called Kuwait. He then, with his father and his family and
household, left the city of Ur in which he had hitherto dwelt and went
some three hundred miles north to Haran, where he abode fifteen years.
The cause of his migration was a call from God, Acts 7:2-4. There is no
mention of this first call in the Old Testament; it is implied, however,
in Genesis 12. While they tarried at Haran, Terah, Abram’s father, died
at the age of 205 years. Abram now received a second and more definite
call, accompanied by a promise from God in Genesis 12:1-2; whereupon he
took his departure, taking his nephew Lot with him, "not knowing whither
he went" Hebrews 11:8. He trusted implicitly to the guidance of Him
who had called him. Abram now, with a large household of probably a
thousand souls, entered on a migratory life, and dwelt in tents. Passing
along the valley of the Jabbok, in the land of Canaan, he formed his
first encampment at Sichem in Genesis 12:6, in the vale or oak-grove of
Moreh, between Ebal on the north and Gerizim on the south. Here he
received the great promise, "I will make of thee a great nation,"
Genesis 12:2-7.
This promise comprehended not only temporal but also
spiritual blessings. It implied that he was the chosen ancestor of the
great Deliverer whose coming had been long ago predicted in Genesis
3:15. Soon after this, for some reason not mentioned, he removed his
tent to the mountain district between Bethel, then called Luz, and Ai,
towns about two miles apart, where he built an altar to "Jehovah." He
again moved into the southern tract of Palestine, called by the Hebrews
the Negeb; and was at length, on account of a famine, compelled to go
down into Egypt. This took place in the time of the Hyksos, a Semitic
race which now held the Egyptians in bondage. Here occurred that case of
deception on the part of Abram which exposed him to the rebuke of
Pharaoh Genesis12:18. Sarai was restored to him; and Pharaoh loaded him
with presents, recommending him to withdraw from the country. He
returned to Canaan richer than when he left it, "in cattle, in silver,
and in gold" Genesis 12:8;13:2 & Psalms105:13- 14.
The whole party
then moved northward, and returned to their previous station near
Bethel. Here disputes arose between Lot's shepherds and those of Abram
about water and pasturage. Abram generously gave Lot his choice of the
pasture-ground. He chose the well-watered plain in which Sodom was
situated, and removed thither; and thus the uncle and nephew were
separated. Immediately after this Abram was cheered by a repetition of
the promises already made to him, and then removed to the plain or
"oak-grove" of Mamre, which is in Hebron. He finally settled here,
pitching his tent under a famous oak or terebinth tree, called "the oak
of Mamre" Genesis 13:18. This was his third resting-place in the land.
Some fourteen years before this, while Abram was still in Chaldea,
Palestine had been invaded by Chedorlaomer, King of Elam, who brought
under tribute to him the five cities in the plain to which Lot had
removed. This tribute was felt by the inhabitants of these cities to be a
heavy burden, and after twelve years they revolted.
This brought upon
them the vengeance of Chedorlaomer, who had in league with him four
other kings. He ravaged the whole country, plundering the towns, and
carrying the inhabitants away as slaves. Among those thus treated was
Lot. Hearing of the disaster that had fallen on his nephew, Abram
immediately gathered from his own household a band of three hundred
eighteen armed men, and being joined by the Amoritish chiefs Mamre,
Aner, and Eshcol, he pursued after Chedorlaomer, and overtook him near
the springs of the Jordan. They attacked and routed his army, and
pursued it over the range of Anti-Libanus as far as to Hobah, near
Damascus, and then returned, bringing back all the spoils that had been
carried away. Returning by way of Salem/Jerusalem, the king of that
place, Melchizedek, came forth to meet them with refreshments. To him
Abram presented a tenth of the spoils, in recognition of his character
as a priest of the most high God Genesis 14:18-20. In a
recently-discovered tablet, dated in the reign of the grandfather of
Amraphel Genesis 14:1, one of the witnesses is called "the Amorite, the
son of Abiramu," or Abram.
Having returned to his home at Mamre, the
promises already made to him by God were repeated and enlarged Genesis
13:14. "The word of the Lord," an expression occurring here for the
first time, "came to him" Genesis15:1. He now understood better the
future that lay before the nation that was to spring from him. Sarai,
now seventy-five years old, in her impatience, persuaded Abram to take
Hagar, her Egyptian maid, as a concubine, intending that whatever child
might be born should be reckoned as her own. Ishmael was accordingly
thus brought up, and was regarded as the heir of these promises in
Genesis16. When Ishmael was thirteen years old, God again revealed yet
more explicitly and fully his gracious purpose; and in token of the sure
fulfilment of that purpose the patriarch's name was now changed from
Abram to Abraham in Genesis17:4-5, and the rite of circumcision was
instituted as a sign of the covenant. It was then announced that the
heir to these covenant promises would be the son of Sarai, though she
was now ninety years old; and it was directed that his name should be
Isaac.
At the same time, in commemoration of the promises, Sarai's name
was changed to Sarah. On that memorable day of God's thus revealing his
design, Abraham and his son Ishmael and all the males of his house were
circumcised Genesis17. Three months after this, as Abraham sat in his
tent door, he saw three men approaching. They accepted his proffered
hospitality, and, seated under an oak-tree, partook of the fare which
Abraham and Sarah provided. One of the three visitants was none other
than the Lord, and the other two were angels in the guise of men. The
Lord renewed on this occasion his promise of a son by Sarah, who was
rebuked for her unbelief. Abraham accompanied the three as they
proceeded on their journey. The two angels went on toward Sodom; while
the Lord tarried behind and talked with Abraham, making known to him the
destruction that was about to fall on that guilty city. The patriarch
interceded earnestly in behalf of the doomed city. But as not even ten
righteous persons were found in it, for whose sake the city would have
been spared, the threatened destruction fell upon it; and early next
morning Abraham saw the smoke of the fire that consumed it as the "smoke
of a furnace" in Genesis19:1-28. After fifteen years' residence at
Mamre, Abraham moved southward, and pitched his tent among the
Philistines, near to Gerar. Here occurred that sad instance of
prevarication on his part in his relation to Abimelech the King Genesis
20.
Soon after this
event, the patriarch left the vicinity of Gerar, and moved down the
fertile valley about 25 miles to Beer-sheba. It was probably here that
Isaac was born, Abraham being now an hundred years old. A feeling of
jealousy now arose between Sarah and Hagar, whose son, Ishmael, was no
longer to be regarded as Abraham's heir. Sarah insisted that both Hagar
and her son should be sent away. This was done, although it was a hard
trial to Abraham in Genesis 21:12.
At this point
there is a blank in the patriarch's history of perhaps twenty-five
years. These years of peace and happiness were spent at Beer-sheba. The
next time we see him his faith is put to a severe test by the command
that suddenly came to him to go and offer up Isaac, the heir of all the
promises, as a sacrifice on one of the mountains of Moriah. His faith
stood the test in Hebrews 11:17-19. He proceeded in a spirit of
unhesitating obedience to carry out the command; and when about to slay
his son, whom he had laid on the altar, his uplifted hand was arrested
by the angel of Jehovah, and a ram, which was entangled in a thicket
near at hand, was seized and offered in his stead. From this
circumstance that place was called Jehovah-jireh, i.e., "The Lord will
provide." The promises made to Abraham were again confirmed (and this
was the last recorded word of God to the patriarch); and he descended
the mount with his son, and returned to his home at Beer-sheba in
Genesis 22:19, where he resided for some years, and then moved northward
to Hebron.
Some years after this Sarah died at Hebron, being one
hundred twenty seven years old. Abraham acquired now the needful
possession of a burying-place, the cave of Machpelah, by purchase from
the owner of it, Ephron the Hittite in Genesis 23); and there he buried
Sarah. His next care was to provide a wife for Isaac, and for this
purpose he sent his steward, Eliezer, to Haran in Acts 7:2, where his
brother Nahor and his family resided in Genesis11:31. The result was
that Rebekah, the daughter of Nahor's son Bethuel, became the wife of
Isaac in Genesis 24). Abraham then himself took to wife Keturah, who
became the mother of six sons, whose descendants were afterwards known
as the "children of the east" Judges 6:3, and later as "Saracens." At
length all his wanderings came to an end. At the age of one hundred
seventy five years, one hundred years after he had first entered the
land of Canaan, he died, and was buried in the old family burying-place
at Machpelah in Genesis 25:7-10. The history of Abraham made a wide and
deep impression on the ancient world, and references to it are
interwoven in the religious traditions of almost all Eastern nations. He
is called "the friend of God" in James 2:23, "faithful Abraham" in
Galatians 3:9), "the father of us all" in Romans 4:16.
ISAAC: Isaac
was the only son of Abraham by Sarah. He was the longest lived of the
three patriarchs in Genesis 21:1-3. He was circumcised when eight days
old, and when he was probably two years old a great feast was held in
connection with his being weaned. The next memorable event in his life
is that connected with the command of God given to Abraham to offer him
up as a sacrifice on a mountain in the land of Moriah in Genesis 22.
When he was
forty years of age Rebekah was chosen for his wife, Genesis 24. After
the death and burial of his father he took up his residence at
Beer-lahai-roi, Genesis25:7-11, where his two sons, Esau and Jacob,
were born, Genesis 21-26, the former of whom seems to have been his
favorite son, Genesis 27 & 28. In consequence of a famine, Genesis
26:1, Isaac went to Gerar, where he practised deception as to his
relation to Rebekah, imitating the conduct of his father in Egypt,
Genesis12:12-20, and in Gerar, Genesis20:2. The Philistine king rebuked
him for his prevarication. After sojourning for some time in the land of
the Philistines, he returned to Beersheba, where God gave him fresh
assurance of covenant blessing, and where Abimelech entered into a
covenant of peace with him.
The next chief event in his life was the
blessing of his sons Genesis 27:1. He died at Mamre, "being old and full
of days," Genesis 35:27-29, one hundred and eighty years old, and was
buried in the cave of Machpelah. In the New Testament reference is made
to his having been "offered up" by his father Hebrews 11:17 & James
2:21, and to his blessing his sons Hebrews11:20. As the child of
promise, he is contrasted with Ishmael Romans 9:7-10; Galatians 4:28;
Hebrews 11:18. Isaac is "at once a counterpart of his father in simple
devoutness and purity of life, and a contrast in his passive weakness of
character, which in part, at least, may have sprung from his relations
to his mother and wife. After the expulsion of Ishmael and Hagar, Isaac
had no competitor, and grew up in the shade of Sarah's tent, moulded
into feminine softness by habitual submission to her strong, loving
will." His life was so quiet and uneventful that it was spent "within
the circle of a few miles; so guileless that he let Jacob overreach him
rather than disbelieve his assurance; so tender that his mother's death
was the poignant sorrow of years; so patient and gentle that peace with
his neighbors was dearer than even such a coveted possession as a well
of living water dug by his own men; so grandly obedient that he put his
life at his father's disposal; so firm in his reliance on God that his
greatest concern through life was to honor the divine promise given to
his race.”
JACOB: The
name Jacob means one who follows on anothers heels; supplanter,
Genesis 25:26; 27:36; Hosea 12:2-4 He was the second born of the twin
sons of Isaac by Rebekah. He was born probably at Lahai-roi, when his
father was fifty-nine and Abraham one hundred and fifty-nine years old.
Like his father, he was of a quiet and gentle disposition, and when he
grew up followed the life of a shepherd, while his brother Esau became
an enterprising hunter. His dealing with Esau, however, showed much mean
selfishness and cunning in Genesis 25:29-34. When Isaac was about one
hundred sixty years of age, Jacob and his mother conspired to deceive
the aged patriarch in Genesis 27, with the view of procuring the
transfer of the birthright to himself. The birthright secured to him who
possessed it
(1) superior rank in his family Genesis 49:3);
(2) a
double portion of the paternal inheritance in Deuteronomy 21:17);
(3)
the priestly office in the family Numbers 8:17-19); and
(4) the promise
of the Seed in which all nations of the earth were to be blessed Genesis
22:18.
Soon after his acquisition of his father's blessing Genesis 27,
Jacob became conscious of his guilt; and afraid of the anger of Esau, at
the suggestion of Rebekah Isaac sent him away to Haran, 400 miles or
more, to find a wife among his cousins, the family of Laban, the Syrian
(28). There he met with Rachel (29). Laban would not consent to give him
his daughter in marriage till he had served seven years; but to Jacob
these years "seemed but a few days, for the love he had to her." But
when the seven years were expired, Laban craftily deceived Jacob, and
gave him his daughter Leah. Other seven years of service had to be
completed probably before he obtained the beloved Rachel. But "life-long
sorrow, disgrace, and trials, in the retributive providence of God,
followed as a consequence of this double union." At the close of the
fourteen years of service, Jacob desired to return to his parents, but
at the entreaty of Laban he tarried yet six years with him, tending his
flocks (31:41). He then set out with his family and property "to go to
Isaac his father in the land of Canaan" in Genesis 31. Laban was angry
when he heard that Jacob had set out on his journey, and pursued after
him, overtaking him in seven days. The meeting was of a painful kind.
After much recrimination and reproach directed against Jacob, Laban is
at length pacified, and taking an affectionate farewell of his
daughters, returns to his home in Padanaram.
And now all connection of
the Israelites with Mesopotamia is at an end. Soon after parting with
Laban he is met by a company of angels, as if to greet him on his return
and welcome him back to the Land of Promise in Genesis 32:1-2. He
called the name of the place Mahanaim, i.e., "the double camp," probably
his own camp and that of the angels. The vision of angels was the
counterpart of that he had formerly seen at Bethel, when, twenty years
before, the weary, solitary traveller, on his way to Padan-aram, saw the
angels of God ascending and descending on the ladder whose top reached
to heaven in Genesis 28:12. He now hears with dismay of the approach of
his brother Esau with a band of 400 men to meet him. In great agony of
mind he prepares for the worst. He feels that he must now depend only on
God, and he betakes himself to him in earnest prayer, and sends on
before him a munificent present to Esau, "a present to my lord Esau from
thy servant Jacob." Jacob's family were then transported across the
Jabbok; but he himself remained behind, spending the night in communion
with God.
While thus engaged, there appeared one in the form of a man
who wrestled with him. In this mysterious contest Jacob prevailed, and
as a memorial of it his name was changed to Israel (wrestler with God);
and the place where this occurred he called Peniel, "for", said he, "I
have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved" in Genesis
32:25-31. After this anxious night, Jacob went on his way, halting,
mysteriously weakened by the conflict, but strong in the assurance of
the divine favor. Esau came forth and met him; but his spirit of revenge
was appeased, and the brothers met as friends, and during the remainder
of their lives they maintained friendly relations. After a brief
sojourn at Succoth, Jacob moved forward and pitched his tent near
Shechem, but at length, under divine directions, he moved to Bethel,
where he made an altar unto God in Genesis 35:6-7, and where God
appeared to him and renewed the Abrahamic covenant. While journeying
from Bethel to Ephrath (the Canaanitish name of Bethlehem), Rachel died
in giving birth to her second son Benjamin in Genesis 35:16-20, fifteen
or sixteen years after the birth of Joseph.
He then reached the old
family residence at Mamre, to wait on the dying bed of his father Isaac.
The complete reconciliation between Esau and Jacob was shown by their
uniting in the burial of the patriarch in Genesis 35:27-29. Jacob was
soon after this deeply grieved by the loss of his beloved son Joseph
through the jealousy of his brothers in Genesis 37:33. Then follows the
story of the famine, and the successive goings down into Egypt to buy
corn, verse 42, which led to the discovery of the long-lost Joseph, and
the patriarch's going down with all his household, numbering about
seventy souls in Exodus1:5; Deuteronomy 10:22 & Acts 7:14, to
sojourn in the land of Goshen. Here Jacob, "after being strangely tossed
about on a very rough ocean, found at last a tranquil harbor, where all
the best affections of his nature were gently exercised and largely
unfolded" in Genesis 48. At length the end of his checkered course draws
nigh, and he summons his sons to his bedside that he may bless them.
Among his last words he repeats the story of Rachel's death, although
forty years had passed away since that event took place, as tenderly as
if it had happened only yesterday; and when "he had made an end of
charging his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up
the ghost.” His body was embalmed and carried with great pomp into the
land of Canaan, and buried beside his wife Leah in the cave of
Machpelah, according to his dying charge. There, probably, his embalmed
body remains to this day in Genesis 50:1-13.
The
history of Jacob is referred to by the prophets Hosea 12:3-12, and
Malachi1:2. In Micah 1:5 the name is a poetic synonym for Israel, the
kingdom of the ten tribes. There are, besides the mention of his name
along with those of the other patriarchs, distinct references to events
of his life in Paul's epistles as per Romans 9:11-13; Hebrews 11:21. See
references to his vision at Bethel and his possession of land at
Shechem in John 1:51; 4:5-12; also to the famine which was the occasion
of his going down into Egypt in Acts 7:12.
JUDAH: The
name Judah means praise. Judah was the fourth son of Jacob by Leah.
The name originated in Leah's words of praise to the Lord on account of
his birth: "Now will I praise Jehovah, and she called his name Yehudah"
in Genesis 29:35. It was Judah that interposed in behalf of Joseph so
that his life was spared in Genesis 37:26-27. He took a lead in the
affairs of the family, and "prevailed above his brethren" in Genesis
43:3-10 & 44:14-34; 46:28; & I Chronicals 5:2). Soon after the
sale of Joseph to the Ishmaelites, Judah went to reside at Adullam,
where he married a woman of Canaan. After the death of his wife Shuah,
Judah returned to his father's house, and there exercised much influence
over the patriarch, taking a principal part in the events which led to
the whole family at length going down into Egypt. We hear nothing more
of him till he received his father's blessing Genesis 49:8-12.
adefoV/adephos: in this particular application, this would be a reference to physical, blood kin relatives.
PEREZ: The name Pharez/Perez means breach. In Genesis Pharez or Pérez is the son of Judahby the Canaanite woman Tamar. He was the twin brother of Zerah. According
to the Scriptures. Pharez was born as a result of prostitution,
especially sinful because Tamar was Judah's daughter-in-law, and such a
relationship is forbidden. The sons of Pharez were Hezron and Hamul.
According to the genealogy provided in the Book of Ruth, Perez was the
ancestor of King David
ZERAH/ZARAH: The
name Zerah/Zarah means sunrise. An "Ethiopian," probably Osorkon II.,
the successor of Shishak on the throne of Egypt. With an enormous army,
the largest we read of in Scripture, he invaded the kingdom of Judah in
the days of Asa in II Chronicles 14:9-15. He reached Zephathah, and
there encountered the army of Asa. This is the only instance "in all the
annals of Judah of a victorious encounter in the field with a
first-class heathen power in full force." The Egyptian host was utterly
routed, and the Hebrews gathered "exceeding much spoil." Three hundred
years elapsed before another Egyptian army, that of Necho in B.C. 609,
came up against Jerusalem. Zerah/Zarah was a son of Tamar in Genesis 38:30. Zerah/Zarah was also a Gershonite Levite in I Chronicles 6:21 & 41.
HEZRON: The
name, Hezron means the dart of joy; or the division of the song.
Hezron was the older of the two sons of Pharez in Genesis 46:12.
RAM/ARAM: Ram/Aram
was the son of Shem in Genesis10:22. According to Genesis 22:21, he
was a grandson of Nahor. He was the father of Amminadab in I Chronicles
2:10. The word means high, or highlands, and as the name of a country
denotes that elevated region extending from the northeast of Palestine
to the Euphrates. It corresponded generally with the Syria and
Mesopotamia of the Greeks and Romans. In Genesis 25:20; 31:20-24 &
Deuteronomy 26:5, the word "Syrian" is properly "Aramean”. Damascus
became at length the capital of the several smaller kingdoms
comprehended under the designation "Aram" or "Syria."
AMMINADAB: The
name Amminadab means kindred of the prince. Amminadab was the father of
Nahshon, who was chief of the tribe of Judah in Numbers 1:7; 2:3;
7:12-17 & 10:14. His daughter Elisheba was married to Aaron in
Exodus 6:23.
NAHSHON/NAASSON: Nahshon/Naason was a sorcerer
and the son of Aminadab, and prince of the children of Judah at the
time of the first numbering of the tribes in the wilderness in Exodus
6:23. His sister Elisheba was the wife of Aaron. He died in the
wilderness in Number 26:64-65. His name occurs in the Greek form Naasson
in the genealogy of Christ.
SALMON: Salmon was the son of Nashon in Ruth 4:20. It is possible he is the same as Salma in I Chronicles 2:51.
BOAZ: Boaz
was the husband of Ruth, a wealthy Bethlehemite. By the "levirate law"
the duty devolved on him of marrying Ruth the Moabitess in Ruth 4:1-13.
He was a kinsman of Mahlon, her first husband.
OBED: The
name Obed means one who worships God by serving God. Obed was a son of
Boaz and Ruth in Ruth 4:21, 22. Obed was also the grandfather of
David.
JESSE: The
name Jesse can mean firm or a gift. He was a son of Obed, the son of
Boaz and Ruth in Ruth 4:17-22. He was the father of eight sons, the
youngest of whom was David in I Samuel17:12. The phrase "stem of Jesse"
is used for the family of David in Isaiah11:1, and "root of Jesse" for
the Messiah in Isaiah 11:10 & Revelation 5:5. Jesse was a man
apparently of wealth and position at Bethlehem as per I Samuel17:17 20;
Psalms 78:71. The last reference to him is of David's procuring for him
an asylum with the king of Moab in I Samuel 22:3.
SOLOMON: The
name Solomon means peaceful. Solomon was David's second son by
Bathsheba. Solomon was their the first after their legal marriage in II
Samuel12. He was probably born about B.C. 1035 in I Chronicles 22:5
& 29:1. He succeeded his father on the throne in early manhood,
probably about sixteen/eighteen years of age. Nathan, to whom his
education was intrusted, called him Jedidiah which means "beloved of the
Lord" in II Samuel12:24-25.
He
was the first king of Israel "born in the purple." His father chose him
as his successor, passing over the claims of his elder sons: "Assuredly
Solomon my son shall reign after me." His history is recorded in I
Kings 1-11 and II Chronicles 1-9. His elevation to the throne took place
before his father's death, and was hastened on mainly by Nathan and
Bathsheba, in consequence of the rebellion of Adonijah in I Kings
1:5-40.
During
his long reign of forty years the Hebrew monarchy gained its highest
splendor. This period has well been called the "Augustan age" of the
Jewish annals. The first half of his reign was, however, by far the
brighter and more prosperous. The latter half was clouded by the
idolatries into which he fell, mainly from his heathen intermarriages in
I Kings 11:1-8; 14:21-31.
Before
his death David gave parting instructions to his son in I Kings 2:1-9
& I Chronicles 22:7-28. As soon as he had settled himself in his
kingdom, and arranged the affairs of his extensive empire, he entered
into an alliance with Egypt by the marriage of the daughter of Pharaoh
in I Kings 3:1, of whom, however, nothing further is recorded. He
surrounded himself with all the luxuries and the external grandeur of an
Eastern monarch, and his government prospered. He entered into an
alliance with Hiram, king of Tyre, who in many ways greatly assisted him
in his numerous undertakings.
For
some years before his death David was engaged in the active work of
collecting materials in I Chronicles 29:6-9 & II Chronicles 2:3-7,
for building a temple in Jerusalem as a permanent abode for the ark of
the covenant. He was not permitted to build the house of God in I
Chronicles 22:8. That honor was reserved to his son Solomon.
After
the completion of the temple, Solomon engaged in the erection of many
other buildings of importance in Jerusalem and in other parts of his
kingdom. For the long space of thirteen years he was engaged in the
erection of a royal palace on Ophel in I Kings 7:1-12. It was 100
cubits long, 50 broad, and 30 high. Its lofty roof was supported by
forty-five cedar pillars, so that the hall was like a forest of cedar
wood, and hence probably it received the name of "The House of the
Forest of Lebanon." In front of this "house" was another building, which
was called the Porch of Pillars, and in front of this again was the
"Hall of Judgment," or Throne-room in I Kings 7:7; 10:18-20 & II
Chronicles 9:17-19), "the King's Gate," where he administered justice
and gave audience to his people. This palace was a building of great
magnificence and beauty. A portion of it was set apart as the residence
of the queen consort, the daughter of Pharaoh. From the palace there was
a private staircase of red and scented sandal wood which led up to the
temple. Solomon also constructed great works for the purpose of securing
a plentiful supply of water for the city in Ecclesiastes 2:4-6. He then
built Millo for the defence of the city, completing a line of ramparts
around it in I Kings 9:15-24 & 11:27.
He
erected also many other fortifications for the defence of his kingdom
at various points where it was exposed to the assault of enemies in I
Kings 9:15-19 & II Chronicles 8:2-6. Among his great undertakings
must also be mentioned the building of Tadmor in the wilderness as a
commercial depot, as well as a military outpost.
During
his reign, Palestine enjoyed great commercial prosperity. Extensive
traffic was carried on by land with Tyre and Egypt and Arabia, and by
sea with Spain and India and the coasts of Africa, by which Solomon
accumulated vast stores of wealth and of the produce of all nations in I
Kings 9:26-28; 10:11-12; II Chronicles 8:17-18 & 9:21.
This
was the "golden age" of Israel. The royal magnificence and splendor of
Solomon's court were unrivaled. He had seven hundred wives and three
hundred concubines, an evidence at once of his pride, his wealth, and
his sensuality. The maintenance of his household involved immense
expenditure. The provision required for one day was "thirty measures of
fine flour, and threescore measures of meal, ten fat oxen, and twenty
oxen out of the pastures, and an hundred sheep, beside harts, and
roebucks, and fallow-deer, and fatted fowl" in I Kings 4:22-23.
Solomon's
reign was not only a period of great material prosperity, but was
equally remarkable for its intellectual activity. He was the leader of
his people also in this uprising amongst them of new intellectual life.
"He spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and
five. And he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even
unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall: he spake also of
beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes" in I Kings
4:32-33. His fame was spread abroad through all lands, and men came from
far and near "to hear the wisdom of Solomon." Among others thus
attracted to Jerusalem was "the queen of the south" in Matthew12:42,
the queen of Sheba, a country in Arabia Felix. "Deep, indeed, must have
been her yearning, and great his fame, which induced a secluded Arabian
queen to break through the immemorial custom of her dreamy land, and to
put forth the energy required for braving the burdens and perils of so
long a journey across a wilderness. Yet this she undertook, and carried
it out with safety." in I Kings 10:1-13 & II Chronicles 9:1-12.
She
was filled with amazement by all she saw and heard: "there was no more
spirit in her." After an interchange of presents she returned to her
native land. But that golden age of Jewish history passed away. The
bright day of Solomon's glory ended in clouds and darkness. His decline
and fall from his high estate is a sad record. Chief among the causes of
his decline were his polygamy and his great wealth. "As he grew older
he spent more of his time among his favorites. The idle king living
among these one thousand women, with all their mischievous attendants,
filled the palaces and pleasure houses which he had built in I Kings
11:3, learned first to tolerate and then to imitate their heathenish
ways. He did not, indeed, cease to believe in the God of Israel with his
mind. He did not cease to offer the usual sacrifices in the temple at
the great feasts. But his heart was not right with God; his worship
became merely formal; his soul, left empty by the dying out of true
religious fervour, sought to be filled with any religious excitement
which offered itself. Now for the first time a worship was publicly set
up amongst the people of the Lord which was not simply irregular or
forbidden, like that of Gideon in Judges 8:27, or the Danites in
Judges18:30-31. But was downright idolatrous." in I Kings 11:7& II
Kings 23:13.
This
brought upon him the divine displeasure. His enemies prevailed against
him in I Kings 11:14-40. And one judgment after another fell upon the
land. And now the end of all came, and he died, after a reign of forty
years, and was buried in the city of David, and "with him was buried the
short-lived glory and unity of Israel." "He leaves behind him but one
weak and worthless son, to dismember his kingdom and disgrace his name."
"The kingdom of Solomon," says Rawlinson, "is one of the most striking
facts in the Biblical history.
A
petty nation, which for hundreds of years has with difficulty
maintained a separate existence in the midst of warlike tribes, each of
which has in turn exercised dominion over it and oppressed it, is
suddenly raised by the genius of a soldier-monarch to glory and
greatness. An empire is established which extends from the Euphrates to
the borders of Egypt, a distance of four hundred and fifty miles. And
this empire, rapidly constructed, enters almost immediately on a period
of peace which lasts for half a century. Wealth, grandeur, architectural
magnificence, artistic excellence, commercial enterprise, a position of
dignity among the great nations of the earth, are enjoyed during this
space, at the end of which there is a sudden collapse. The ruling nation
is split in twain, the subject-races fall off, the pre-eminence lately
gained being wholly lost, the scene of struggle, strife, oppression,
recovery, inglorious submission, and desperate effort, re-commences."
REHOBOAM: The
name Rehoboam means he enlarges the people. He was the successor of
Solomon on the throne, and apparently his only son. He was the son of
Naamah "the Ammonitess," some well-known Ammonitish princess in I Kings
14:21 & II Chronicles12:13. He was forty-one years old when he
ascended the throne, and he reigned seventeen years from B.C. 975-958.
Although
he was acknowledged at once as the rightful heir to the throne, yet
there was a strongly felt desire to modify the character of the
government. The burden of taxation to which they had been subjected
during Solomon's reign was very oppressive, and therefore the people
assembled at Shechem and demanded from the king an alleviation of their
burdens. He went to meet them at Shechem, and heard their demands for
relief in I Kings 12:4. After three days, having consulted with a
younger generation of courtiers that had grown up around him, instead of
following the advice of elders, he answered the people haughtily in
verses 6-15. "The king hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was
from the Lord" This brought matters speedily to a crisis. The terrible
cry was heard "What portion have we in David? Neither have we
inheritance in the son of Jesse: To your tents, O Israel: Now see to
thine own house, David" Please note here I Kings 12:16. And now at once
the kingdom was rent in twain.
Rehoboam
was appalled, and tried concessions, but it was too late. The tribe of
Judah, Rehoboam's own tribe, alone remained faithful to him. Benjamin
was reckoned along with Judah and these two tribes formed the southern
kingdom, with Jerusalem as its capital; while the northern ten tribes
formed themselves into a separate kingdom, choosing Jeroboam as their
king. Rehoboam tried to win back the revolted ten tribes by making war
against them, but he was prevented by the prophet Shemaiah II
Chronicles11:1-4) from fulfilling his purpose.
In
the fifth year of Rehoboam's reign, Shishak, one of the kings of Egypt
of the Assyrian dynasty, stirred up, no doubt, by Jeroboam his
son-in-law, made war against him. Jerusalem submitted to the invader,
who plundered the temple and virtually reduced the kingdom to the
position of a vassal of Egypt in I Kings 14:25-26 & II
Chronicles12:5-9. A remarkable memorial of this invasion has been
discovered at Karnac, in Upper Egypt, in certain sculptures on the walls
of a small temple there. These sculptures represent the king, Shishak,
holding in his hand a train of prisoners and other figures, with the
names of the captured towns of Judah, the towns which Rehoboam had
fortified in II Chronicles11:5-12. The kingdom of Judah, under
Rehoboam, sank more and more in moral and spiritual decay. "There was
war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all their days." At length, in the
fifty-eighth year of his age, Rehoboam "slept with his fathers, and was
buried with his fathers in the city of David" in I Kings 14:31. He was
succeeded by his son Abijah.
ABIJAH: Abijah
was the son of Rehoboam, whom he succeeded on the throne of Judah in I
Chronicles 3:10. He is also called Abijam in I Kings 14:31 &
15:1-8. He began his three years' reign in II Chronicles12:16
&13:1-2, with a strenuous but unsuccessful effort to bring back the
ten tribes to their allegiance. His address to "Jeroboam and all
Israel," before encountering them in battle, is worthy of being
specially noticed in II Chronicles13:5-12. It was a very bloody battle,
no fewer than half a million of the army of Israel having perished on
the field. He is described as having walked "in all the sins of his
father" in I Kings 15:3 & II Chronicles11:20-22. It is said in I
Kings 15:2, that "his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of
Abishalom;" but in II Chronicles13:2 we read, "his mother's name was
Michaiah, the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah." The explanation is that
Maachah is just a variation of the name Michaiah, and that Abishalom is
probably the same as Absalom, the son of David. It is probable that
"Uriel of Gibeah" married Tamar, the daughter of Absalom in II
Samuel14:27, and by her had Maachah. The word "daughter" in I Kings 15:2
will thus, as it frequently elsewhere does, mean grand-daughter.
ASA: Asa
was the son of Abijah and grandson of Rehoboam. He was the third king
of Judah. He was zealous in maintaining the true worship of God and in
rooting all idolatry, with its accompanying immoralities, out of the
land in I Kings 15:8-14.
The
Lord gave him and his land rest and prosperity. It is recorded of him,
however, that in his old age, when afflicted, he "sought not to the
Lord, but to the physicians.” He died in the forty-first year of his
reign, greatly honoured by his people in II Chronicles16:1-13, and was
succeeded by his son Jehoshaphat.
JEHOSH/JEHOSHAPHAT:
Jehoshaphat
was the son and successor of Asa, king of Judah. After fortifying his
kingdom against Israel in II Chronicles17:1-2, he set himself to cleanse
the land of idolatry in I Kings 22:43. In the third year of his reign
he sent out priests and Levites over the land to instruct the people in
the law in II Chronicles17:7-9. He enjoyed a great measure of peace
and prosperity, the blessing of God resting on the people "in their
basket and their store." The great mistake of his reign was his entering
into an alliance with Ahab, the king of Israel, which involved him in
much disgrace and brought disaster on his kingdom in I Kings 22:1-33.
Escaping
from the bloody battle of Ramoth-gilead, the prophet Jehu in II
Chronicles 19:1-3, reproached him for the course he had been pursuing,
whereupon he entered with rigor on his former course of opposition to
all idolatry, and of deepening interest in the worship of God and in the
righteous government of the people in II Chronicles 19:4-11.
Again
he entered into an alliance with Ahaziah, the king of Israel, for the
purpose of carrying on maritime commerce with Ophir. But the fleet that
was then equipped at Ezion-gaber was speedily wrecked. A new fleet was
fitted out without the co-operation of the king of Israel, and although
it was successful, the trade was not prosecuted in II Chronicles
20:35-37 & I Kings 22:48-49.
He
subsequently joined Jehoram, king of Israel, in a war against the
Moabites, who were under tribute to Israel. This war was successful. The
Moabites were subdued; but the dreadful act of Mesha in offering his
own son a sacrifice on the walls of Kir-haresheth in the sight of the
armies of Israel filled him with horror and he withdrew and returned to
his own land in II Kings 3:4-27.
The
last most notable event of his reign was that recorded in II Chronicles
20. The Moabites formed a great and powerful confederacy with the
surrounding nations and came against Jehoshaphat. The allied forces were
encamped at Engedi. The king and his people were filled with alarm and
betook themselves to God in prayer. The king prayed in the court of the
temple, "O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might
against this great company that cometh against us." Amid the silence
that followed, the voice of Jahaziel the Levite was heard announcing
that on the morrow all this great host would be overthrown. So it was,
for they argued among themselves and slew one another, leaving to the
people of Judah only to gather the rich spoils of the slain. This was
recognized as a great deliverance wrought for them by God in B.C. 890.
Soon
after this Jehoshaphat died, after a reign of twenty-five years being
sixty years of age. He was succeeded by his son Jehoram in I Kings
22:50. He had this testimony, that "he sought the Lord with all his
heart" in II Chronicles 22:9. The kingdom of Judah was never more
prosperous than under his reign.
JORAM/JEHORAM: Joram,
or in some spellings Jehoram, was the son/successor of Jehoshaphat.
Eventually, he ascended to the throne of Judah in II Kings 8:24.
UZZIAH: Uzziah is a name which means the Lord is my strength. He became king of Judah in II Kings 14:21 & II Chronicles 26:1.
His long reign
of about fifty-two years was "the most prosperous excepting that of
Jehosaphat since the time of Solomon." He was a vigorous and able ruler
and "his name spread abroad, even to the entering in of Egypt"in II
Chronicles 26:8-14.
In the earlier
part of his reign, under the influence of Zechariah, he was faithful to
Jehovah, and "did that which was right in the sight of the Lord" in II
Kings 15:3 & II Chronicles 26:4-5. However, toward the close of his
long life "his heart was lifted up to his destruction," and he wantonly
invaded the priest's office in II Chronicles 26:16 by entering the
sanctuary proceeded to offer incense on the golden altar.
Azariah the
high priest saw the tendency of such a daring act on the part of the
king, and with a band of eighty priests he withstood him in II
Chronilces 26:17, saying, "It appertaineth not unto thee, Uzziah, to
burn incense." Uzziah was suddenly struck with leprosy while in the act
of offering incense and he was driven from the temple and compelled to
reside in "a several house" to the day of his death II Kings 15:5-27
& II Chronicles 26:3.
He was buried
in a separate grave "in the field of the burial which belonged to the
kings" in II Kings 15:7 & II Chronicles 26:2. "That lonely grave in
the royal necropolis would eloquently testify to coming generations that
all earthly monarchy must bow before the inviolable order of the divine
will, and that no interference could be tolerated with that unfolding
of the purposes of God, which, in the fulness of time, would reveal the
Christ, the true High Priest and King for evermore"
JOTHAM: He
was the son and successor of Uzziah on the throne of Judah. As during
his last years, Uzziah was excluded from public life on account of his
leprosy. His son, then twenty-five years of age, administered for seven
years the affairs of the kingdom in his father's stead in II Chronicles
26:21-23 & 27:1. After his father's death he became sole monarch,
and reigned for sixteen years from B.C. 759-743. He ruled in the fear
of God, and his reign was prosperous. He was contemporary with the
prophets Isaiah, Hosea, and Micah, by whose ministrations he profited.
He was buried in the sepulcher of the kings and was greatly lamented by
the people in II Kings 15:38 & II Chronicles 27:7-9.
AHAZ: Ahaz
was the son and successor of Jotham, king of Judah in II Kings 16;
Isaiah 7-9 & II Chronicles 28. He gave himself up to a life of
wickedness and idolatry. Notwithstanding the remonstrances and warnings
of Isaiah, Hosea, and Micah, he appealed for help against Rezin, king of
Damascus, and Pekah, king of Israel, who threatened Jerusalem, to
Tiglath-pileser, the king of Assyria, to the great injury of his kingdom
and his own humiliating subjection to the Assyrians in II Kings 16:7-9
& 15:29. He also introduced among his people many heathen and
idolatrous customs in II Kings 23:12; Isaiah 8:19 & 38:8; He died
at the age of thirty-five years, after reigning sixteen years B.C.
740-724. He was succeeded by his son Hezekiah. Because of his
wickedness he was "not brought into the sepulcher of the kings."
HEZEKIAH: The
name Hezekiah means whom Jehovah has strengthened. He was the son of
Ahaz in II Kings 18:1 & II Chronicles 29:1, whom he succeeded on
the throne of the kingdom of Judah. He reigned twenty-nine years during
the dates of B.C. 726-697.
The
history of this king is contained in II Kings 18:20; II Chronicles
29-32 & Isaiah. 36-39. He is spoken of as a great and good king. In
public life he followed the example of his great-grandfather Uzziah. He
set himself to abolish idolatry from his kingdom, and among other
things, which he did to this end, he destroyed the "brazen serpent,"
which had been removed to Jerusalem, and had become an object of
idolatrous worship in Numbers 21:9. A great reformation was wrought in
the kingdom of Judah in his day in II Kings 18:4 & II Chronicles
29:3-36. On the death of Sargon and the accession of his son
Sennacherib to the throne of Assyria, Hezekiah refused to pay the
tribute which his father had paid, and "rebelled against the king of
Assyria, and served him not," but entered into a league with Egypt in
Isaiah 30; 31 & 36:6-9. This led to the invasion of Judah by
Sennacherib in II Kings 18:13-16, who took forty cities, and besieged
Jerusalem with mounds. Hezekiah yielded to the demands of the Assyrian
king, and agreed to pay him three hundred talents of silver and thirty
of gold. But Sennacherib dealt treacherously with Hezekiah in Isaiah
33:1. and a second time within two years invaded his kingdom in II
Kings 18:17; II Chronicles 32:9 & Isaiah 36. This invasion issued
in the destruction of Sennacherib's army. Hezekiah prayed to God, and
"that night the angel of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the
Assyrians 185,000 men." Sennacherib fled with the shattered remnant of
his forces to Nineveh, where, seventeen years after, he was assassinated
by his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer in II Kings 19:37.
The
narrative of Hezekiah's sickness and miraculous recovery is found in II
Kings 20:1; II Chronicles 32:24 & Isaiah 38:1. Various ambassadors
came to congratulate him on his recovery, and among them
Merodach-baladan, the viceroy of Babylon in II Chronicles 32:23 & II
Kings 20:12. He closed his days in peace and prosperity, and was
succeeded by his son Manasseh. He was buried in the "chiefest of the
sepulchres of the sons of David" in II Chronicles 32:27-33. He had
"after him none like him among all the kings of Judah,nor any that were
before him" in II Kings 18:5.
MANASSEH: The name Manasseh means make me forget, or "God hath made me forget" Genesis 41:51.
(1.) The
elder of the two sons of Joseph. He and his brother Ephraim were
afterwards adopted by Jacob as his own sons 48:1. There is an account of
his marriage to a Syrian I Chronicles 7:14 & 11:1; and the only
thing afterwards recorded of him is, that his grandchildren were
"brought up upon Joseph's knees" Genesis 50:23, "born upon Joseph's
knees" or, were from their birth adopted by Joseph as his own children.
The
tribe of Manasseh was associated with that of Ephraim and Benjamin
during the wanderings in the wilderness. They encamped on the west side
of the tabernacle. According to the census taken at Sinai, this tribe
then numbered 32,200 Number 1:10; 35 & 2:20-21. Forty years
afterwards its numbers had increased to 52,700 26:34-37, and it was at
this time the most distinguished of all the tribes.
The
half of this tribe, along with Reuben and Gad, had their territory
assigned them by Moses on the east of the Jordan Joshua 13:7-14; but it
was left for Joshua to define the limits of each tribe. This territory
on the east of Jordan was more valuable and of larger extent than all
that was allotted to the nine and a half tribes in the land of
Palestine. It is sometimes called "the land of Gilead," and is also
spoken of as "on the other side of Jordan." The portion given to the
half tribe of Manasseh was the largest on the east of Jordan. It
embraced the whole of Bashan. It was bounded on the south by Mahanaim,
and extended north to the foot of Lebanon. Argob, with its sixty cities,
that "ocean of basaltic rocks and boulders tossed about in the wildest
confusion," lay in the midst of this territory.
The
whole "land of Gilead" having been conquered, the two and a half tribes
left their wives and families in the fortified cities there, and
accompanied the other tribes across the Jordan, and took part with them
in the wars of conquest. The allotment of the land having been
completed, Joshua dismissed the two and a half tribes, commending them
for their heroic service Joshua 22:1-34. Thus dismissed, they returned
over Jordan to their own inheritance.
On
the west of Jordan the other half of the tribe of Manasseh was
associated with Ephraim, and they had their portion in the very centre
of Palestine, an area of about 1,300 square miles, the most valuable
part of the whole country, abounding in springs of water. Manasseh's
portion was immediately to the north of that of Ephraim (Joshua16. Thus
the western Manasseh defended the passes of Esdraelon as the eastern
kept the passes of the Hauran.
The
only son and successor of Hezekiah on the throne of Judah. He was
twelve years old when he began to reign II Kings 21:1, and he reigned
fifty-five years B.C. 698-643. Though he reigned so long, yet
comparatively little is known of this king. His reign was a continuation
of that of Ahaz, both in religion and national polity. He early fell
under the influence of the heathen court circle, and his reign was
characterized by a sad relapse into idolatry with all its vices, showing
that the reformation under his father had been to a large extent only
superficial Isaiah 7:10 & II Kings 21:10-15. A systematic and
persistent attempt was made, and all too successfully, to banish the
worship of Jehovah out of the land. Amid this wide-spread idolatry there
were not wanting, however, faithful prophets Isaiah & Micah who
lifted up their voice in reproof and in warning. But their fidelity only
aroused bitter hatred, and a period of cruel persecution against all
the friends of the old religion began. "The days of Alva in Holland, of
Charles IX. in France, or of the Covenanters under Charles II. in
Scotland, were anticipated in the Jewish capital. The streets were red
with blood." There is an old Jewish tradition that Isaiah was put to
death at this time (2 Kings 21:16; 24:3, 4; Jer. 2:30), having been sawn
asunder in the trunk of a tree. Psalms 49, 73, 77, 140 & 141 seem
to express the feelings of the pious amid the fiery trials of this great
persecution. Manasseh has been called the "Nero of Palestine."
Esarhaddon,
Sennacherib's successor on the Assyrian throne, who had his residence
in Babylon for thirteen years (the only Assyrian monarch who ever
reigned in Babylon), took Manasseh prisoner B.C. 681 to Babylon. Such
captive kings were usually treated with great cruelty. They were brought
before the conqueror with a hook or ring passed through their lips or
their jaws, having a cord attached to it, by which they were led. This
is referred to in II Chronicles 33:11, where the Authorized Version
reads that Esarhaddon "took Manasseh among the thorns;" while the
Revised Version renders the words, "took Manasseh in chains;" or
literally, as in the margin, "with hooks." II Kings 19:28.
The
severity of Manasseh's imprisonment brought him to repentance. God
heard his cry, and he was restored to his kingdom II Chronicles
33:11-13. He abandoned his idolatrous ways, and enjoined the people to
worship Jehovah; but there was no thorough reformation. After a
lengthened reign extending through fifty-five years, the longest in the
history of Judah, he died, and was buried in the garden of Uzza, the
"garden of his own house" II Kings 21:17-18 & II Chronicles 33:20.
and not in the city of David, among his ancestors. He was succeeded by
his son Amon.
In
Judges 18:30 the correct reading is "Moses," and not "Manasseh." The
name "Manasseh" is supposed to have been introduced by some transcriber
to avoid the scandal of naming the grandson of Moses the great lawgiver
as the founder of an idolatrous religion.
Amon: The name Amon means builder.
Amon was the
governor of Samaria in the time of Ahab. The prophet Micaiah was
committed to his custody I Kings 22:26 & II Chronicles 18:25. The
son of Manasseh, and fourteenth king of Judah. He restored idolatry,
and set up the images which his father had cast down. Zephaniah 1:4;
3:4-11. This would refer to the moral depravity prevailing in this
king's reign. He
was assassinated II Kings 21:18-26 & II Chronicles 33:20-25 by his
own servants, who conspired against him. An Egyptian god, usually
depicted with a human body and the head of a ram, referred to in
Jeremiah 46:25, where the word "multitudes" is more appropriately
rendered "Amon.”
JOSIAH: The
name Josiah means healed by Jehovah, or Jehovah will support. He was
the son of Amon, and his successor on the throne of Judah in II Kings
22:1 & II Chronicles 34:1. His history is contained in II Kings
22-23. He stands foremost among all the kings of the line of David for
unswerving loyalty to Jehovah. He "did that which was right in the
sight of the Lord, and walked in all the way of David his father." He
ascended the throne at the early age of eight years and it appears that
not till eight years afterwards did he begin "to seek after the God of
David his father." At that age he devoted himself to God. He
distinguished himself by beginning a war of extermination against the
prevailing idolatry, which had practically been the state religion for
some seventy years in II Chronicles 34:3; Jeremiah 25:3-29.
In
the eighteenth year of his reign he proceeded to repair and beautify
the temple which due to time and violence had become sorely dilapidated
in II Kings 22:3- 6; 23:23 & II Chronicles34:11. While this work
was being carried on, Hilkiah, the high priest, discovered a roll, which
was probably the original copy of the law, the entire Pentateuch,
written by Moses. When this book was read to him, the king was alarmed
by the things it contained, and sent for Huldah, the "prophetess," for
her counsel. She spoke to him words of encouragement, telling him that
he would be gathered to his fathers in peace before the threatened days
of judgment came. Josiah immediately gathered the people together, and
engaged them in a renewal of their ancient national covenant with God.
The Passover was then celebrated, as in the days of his great
predecessor, Hezekiah, with unusual magnificence. Nevertheless, "the
Lord turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath wherewith his
anger was kindled against Judah" in II Kings 22:3-20; 23:21-27 & II
Chronicles 35:1-19.
During
the progress of this great religious revolution Jeremiah helped it on
by his earnest exhortations. Soon after this, Pharaoh-Necho II, king of
Egypt, in an expedition against the king of Assyria, with the view of
gaining possession of Carchemish, sought a passage through the territory
of Judah for his army. This Josiah refused to permit. He had probably
entered into some new alliance with the king of Assyria, and faithful to
his word he sought to oppose the progress of Necho. The army of Judah
went out and encountered that of Egypt at Megiddo, on the verge of the
plain of Esdraelon. Josiah went into the field in disguise, and was
fatally wounded by a random arrow. His attendants conveyed him toward
Jerusalem, but had only reached Hadadrimmon, a few miles south of
Megiddo, when he died in II Kings 23:28-30 &vII Chronicles35:20-27,
after a reign of thirty-one years.
He was buried with the greatest
honors in fulfilment of Huldah's prophecy in II Kings 22:20 &
Jeremiah 34:5. Jeremiah
composed a funeral elegy on this the best of the kings of Israel in
Lamentations 4:20 & II Chronicles 35:25. The outburst of national
grief on account of his death became proverbial Zechariah 12:11 &
Revelatoin16:16.
JECONIAH/CONIAH: Jeconiah,
preparation, or stability, of the Lord. Jeconiah is called Coniah in
Jeremiah 22:24-30. There a curse is pronounced upon him. There it is
predicted that none of his seed should proper sitting upon David’s
throne. Had our Lord been the natural son of Joseph, who was descended
from Jeconiah/Coniah, He could never reign in power and righteousness
because of the curse. But Christ came through Mary’s line, not
Joseph’s. As the adopted son of Joseph, the curse upon Coniah’s seed
did not affect Him.
SHEALTIEL/SALATHIEL:The
name(s) Shealtiel/Salathiel, means asked for of God, father of
Zerubbabel (Ezra 3:2-8 & Nehemiah12:1. He was the son of Jeconiah
in I Chronicles 3:17 & Matthew1:12. He is also called the son of
Neri in Luke 3:27. The probable explanation of the apparent discrepancy
is that he was the son of Neri, the descendant of Nathan, and thus heir
to the throne of David on the death of Jeconiah in Jeremiah 22:30.
ZERUBBABEL: The
name Zerubbabel means the seed of Babylon. Zerubbabel was the son of
Salathiel or Shealtiel He is also known by the Persian name of
Sheshbazzar in Ezra 1:8, 11. In the first year of Cyrus, king of
Persia, he led the first band of Jews, numbering 42,360 in Ezra 2:64.
Exclusive of a large number of servants who returned from captivity at
the close of the seventy years. In the second year after the Return, he
erected an altar and laid the foundation of the temple on the ruins of
that which had been destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel chapter 1.
All through the work he occupied a prominent place, inasmuch as he was a
descendant of the royal line of David.
ABIUD: the name Abiud, means father of praise.
ELIAKIM: The name Eliakim means resurrection of God
AZOR: The name Azor can mean either a helper or a court.
SADOC: No particular information available.
ACHIM: The name Achim can mean preparing, revenging or confirming.
ELIUD: The name Eliud means God is my praise.
ELEAZAR: The name Eleazar means God has helped.
MATTHAN/MATTAN: The son of Eleazar, and father of Jacob who was the father of Joseph the husband of the Virgin Mary.
JACOB: No particular information on this Jacob available.
JOSEPH: The
foster-father of our Lord in Matthew 1:16 & Luke 3:23. He lived at
Nazareth in Galilee as per Luke 2:4. He is called a "just man." He was
by trade a carpenter Matthew 13:55. He is last mentioned in connection
with the journey to Jerusalem, when Jesus was twelve years old. It is
probable that he died before Jesus entered on his public ministry. This
is concluded from the fact that Mary only was present at the marriage
feast in Cana of Galilee. His name does not appear in connection with
the scenes of the crucifixion along with that of Mary as per John 19:25. In
Matthew chapter 1, the English word begat appears in excess of thirty
five times. The English word begat comes from the Greek word gennao/gennaw. It means to be the biological father or the male counterpart in the act of procreating. Please
notice in verse 17, three sets of fourteen generations. The first set
of fourteen would be Abraham to King David. The second set of fourteen
would be Kind David to Josiah. And the third and last set of fourteen
generations would be Josiah to Joseph the foster father of Jesus.
MATTHEW 1:18
[18]
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary
was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with
child of the Holy Ghost.
[18] tou
de ihsou cristou h gennhsis outwV hn mnhsteuqeishV gar thV mhtroV autou
mariaV tw iwshf prin h sunelqein autouV eureqh en gastri ecousa ek
pneumatoV agiou
tou/tou: of this person
de/de: Now
IhsouV/Iesous: Jesus
CristoV/Christos: Christ
h/e: the
gennhsiV/gennesis: birth
outw/houto: wise
hn/en: was
mnhsteuw/mnesteuo: espoused
gar/gar: When
mhthr/meter: mother
autou/hautou: they
Maria/Maria: Mary
Iwshf/Ioseph: Joseph
prin/prin: before
h/e:
sunercomai/sunerchomai: came together
autou/hautou: she
euriskw/heurisko: found
en/en: with
gasthr/gaster: child
ecw/echo: of the
ek/ek: out from or out of
pneuma/pneuma: Spirit
agioV/hagios: Holy
In the
description of the divine nativity, the wording is very careful in order
to keep all characters involved in their proper places of perspective.
The English word birth comes from the Greek word gennesis/gennhsiV. This has to do with a live, physical, human birth as we would understand it in the natural vernacular.
The English word espoused comes from the Greek word mnesteuo/mnhsteuw. This particular Greek word answers an age old question. Was
Joseph and Mary married at this time or just engaged. The use of this
Greek word indicates they were only engaged and that intimate martial
union has not taken place at this time.
The English word before comes from the Greek word prin/ prin. Quite
simply, prior to the event in question. In this case, the span of
time between the betrothal ceremony at the temple, and the actual
consummation of the marriage.
The English phrase come together comes from the Greek word sunercomai/sunerchomai. It
means the act of coming together for conjugal purposes. As to
consummate a marriage. Therefore, it would seem that the time of the
marriage and consummation was getting close and Joseph needed to know
what was going on.
The English word found comes from the Greek word euriskw/heurisko.
In this case, she was found to be already pregnant before the time of
marriage and consummation. However, Holy Spirit was the father of her
unborn baby not a normal, natural, mortal man.
Luke 1:35,
gives us even more information about the conception of Christ. In this
verse, Holy Spirit came upon her, and the very power of the very God
overshadowed her. It was due to the power of God Himself that Mary
conceived. And according to Luke 1:35, the conceived child which she
was carrying was Holy in the sight of God.
Therefore, in
Matthew 1:18, after the betrothal ceremony, and, before the act of the
wedding and consummation, it was discovered that Mary was pregnant.
However, the Bible is very careful to make sure the reader understands
that it is Holy Spirit who is the father of Jesus not Joseph or a
natural mortal man.
This is in direct fulfillment of the prophecy found in Isaiah 7:14...Therefore
the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall
conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
As
per the wording of Matthew 1:18, the actual marriage of Joseph and Mary
would have had to be complete. For the Greek wording would indicate
that Joseph was approaching Mary for the purpose of sexual
intercourse.In the Greek New Testament, the virgin birth is not
presented on the level of the mythical, but on the level of historical
fact. The virgin birth proves GOD the FATHER can create anything. As per the SCRIPTURES, Joseph could have either divorced Mary, or even had her executed as per Deuteronomy 22:13-21.
John
1:14...And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld
his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of
grace and truth.
Notice the smooth transition from the genealogy of JESUS to the actual historical account of His birth. Just as HOLY SPIRIT was instrumental in the creation in Genesis 1, HOLY SPIRIT again is instrumental in the creation of the body which will house the Messiah.
Between
engagement and marriage can be a period of just over a year. However,
the legal position of the fiancee’ remains constant. And engagement in
this society was as binding as the actual marriage itself. But, consummatio matrimonii at this particular time had not occurred.
Here in Matthew 1:18, the Greek word sunercomai/sunerchomai has to do with that of marital intimacy. Meaning, that Mary was still a virgin when her wedding time came about. In
the Hebrew society, an engagement was as enforceable as the actual
marriage itself. In the event that one/both of the parties wanted out
of this marriage, a bill of divorcement would be required.
MATTHEW 1:19
[19]
Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a
publick example, was minded to put her away privily.
[19] iwshf de o anhr authV dikaioV wn kai mh qelwn authn paradeigmatisai eboulhqh laqra apolusai authn
Iwshf/Ioseph: Joseph
de/de: Then
o/ho: the
anhr/aner: husband
autou/hautou: her
dikaioV/dikaios: just
wn/on: being
kai/kai: and
mh/me: not
qelw/thelo: willing
paradeigmatizw/paradeigmatizo: public example
boulomai/boulomai: minded
laqra/lathra: privily
apoluw/apoluo: put away
In Matthew 1:19, the English word husband comes from the Greek word aner/anhr. It
means that according to the local religious/governmental practices of
that region, the man and the woman in question are, in fact by the
letter of the law, legally married. As is the wording of the Greek New
Testament. Even though Joseph and Mary were only betrothed, in the eyes
of the government and the temple they were for all practical intents
and purposes, in fact married. Then Joseph found out about Jesus just
as he and Mary were about to have the wedding and consummate the
marriage. Please notice, that as per Jewish laws, Joseph is already
being referred to as aner/anhr.
In verse 19,
Joseph decided on a very quiet divorce as per the Law of God in
Deuteronomy 24:1. Mind you, Joseph could have opted for a very
public/messy divorce, or he could have even had Mary judicially
executed. Instead, he chooses a quiet/discreet divorce.In verse 20, the
Bible uses the word thought. In my opinion, and I stress my opinion,
it was while Joseph agonized on these things. At this time he was
feeling a very deep sickening hurt and agony. He was feeling betrayal,
love and anger all at the same time. However, he had decided that in
the long run, a quite, discreet little divorce would probably be the
best interest to all parties concerned. Please note here Numbers 5:11-22.
Deuteronomy
24:1-4...When a man hath taken a wife, and married her, and it come to
pass that she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath found some
uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and
give it in her hand, and send her out of his house. And when she is
departed out of his house, she may go and be another man's wife. And if
the latter husband hate her, and write her a bill of divorcement, and
giveth it in her hand, and sendeth her out of his house; or if the
latter husband die, which took her to be his wife; Her former husband,
which sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after that
she is defiled; for that is abomination before the LORD: and thou shalt not cause the land to sin, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.
MATTHEW 1:20
[20]
But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord
appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear
not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her
is of the Holy Ghost.
[20]
tauta de autou enqumhqentoV idou aggeloV kuriou kat onar efanh autw
legwn iwshf uioV dauid mh fobhqhV paralabein mariam thn gunaika sou to
gar en auth gennhqen ek pneumatoV estin agiou
tauta/tauta: these
de/de: But
autou/hautou: he/him/her
enqumeomai/enthumeomai: thought
idou/idou: behold
aggeloV/aggelos: angel
kurioV/kurios: Lord
kata/kata: the
onar/onar: dream
fainw/phaino: appeared
legw/lego: saying
Iwshf/Ioseph: Joseph
uioV/huios: son
Dabid/Dabid: David
mh/me: not
fobew/phobeo: fear
paralambanw/paralambano: take unto thee
Maria/Maria: Mary
o/ho: the
gunh/gune: wife
sou/sou: thy
gar/gar: for
en/en: that
gennaw/gennao: conceived
ek/ek: is of the
pneuma/pneuma: Ghost
esti/esti: is
agioV/hagios: Holy
While Joseph
was going through the process of getting Mary out of his life, one night
while sleeping, an angel of the Lord appears to Joseph and tells him
not to fear to take Mary as his wife. For the child she is carrying has
been conceived by Holy Spirit.
There are those
who say that the Bible never does say that Joseph is of the house of
David. Look at Matthew 1:20. It does say that Joseph is of the house
of David.
There are times, when in order for GOD to
get us into the position which He would need for us to be in, He will
give us an instruction which, on the surface, appears ludicrous. For
Joseph, it would appear that he is aiding and abating an unfaithful
adulteress. However, when GOD steps in, suddenly Joseph’s fears turns to calm. And he now knows that he has stepped into the will and plan of GOD Himself.
It is quite possible that Matthew 1:20 is an epiphany. An epiphany is a pre-Bethlehem appearance of Jesus Christ.
Genesis 18 is
an epiphany of Jesus Christ. He is the one who came to Sarah to tell
her she would be having a baby in the next year and to announce to
Abraham the destruction of Sodom.
When you
compare Exodus 3:14 with John 18:5-8, Moses, without a doubt, has an
epiphany of Jesus Christ at the burning bush event. Then Moses has yet
another epiphany of Jesus Christ in Exodus 33:18-23.
You see another
epiphany of Jesus in the form of the Shekinah Glory of God in Exodus
40:33-38; I Kings 8:10-11; II Chronicles 5:13-14; II Chronicles 7:1-3
& Ezekiel 1-3. Compare these verse with Mark 9:2-4: Luke 9:29-31
& Revelation 1:12-16.
I
JOHN 3:1-3... Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon
us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world
knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of
God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that,
when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he
is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as
he is pure.
In this verse Jesus announces three things to Joseph:
[1] Joseph is the Son of David
[2] Not to be afraid to take unto himself Mary to be his wife
[3] The baby she is carrying was conceived by Holy Spirit
MATTHEW 1:21
[21] And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
[21] texetai de uion kai kaleseiV to onoma autou ihsoun autoV gar swsei ton laon autou apo twn amartiwn autwn
tiktw/tikto: bring forth
de/de: And
uioV/huios: son
kai/kai: and
kalew/kaleo: call
o/ho: the
onoma/onoma: name
autou/hautou: his/he/their
IhsouV/Iesous: Jesus
swzw/sozo: save
tou/tou: of this person
laoV/laos: people
apo/apo: from
amartia/hamartia: sins
The fact that
Jesus came to the earth, this time, to bring mankind into right standing
with God, is what finally caused Him to be rejected by Israel in Luke
21:24. Israel
did not want spiritual help. They wanted political and military help in
that they wanted to be free from Rome. And since that was not the
reason which Jesus came to the earth, He was rejected by the Nation of
Israel in John 1:11-13.
JESUS: The name Jesus can also mean Joshua, the son of Nun as per Acts 7:45 & Hebrews 4:8. Note also Colossians 4:11.
Jesus,
the proper as Christ, is the official, name of our Lord. To
distinguish him from others so called, he is spoken of as "Jesus of
Nazareth" as in John 18:7, and "Jesus the son of Joseph" as in John
6:42.
Jesus
is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Joshua, which was originally
Hoshea in Numbers 13: & 16. But changed by Moses into Jehoshua in
Numbers 13:16 & In Chronicles 7:27. After the Exile, it assumed the
form Jeshua, whence the Greek form Jesus. It was given to our Lord to
denote the object of his mission, to save in Matthew 1:21.
The
life of Jesus on earth may be divided into two great periods. First,
that of his private life, till he was about thirty years of age. Then
secondly, that of his public life, which lasted about three years.
In
the "fulness of time" he was born at Bethlehem, in the reign of the
emperor Augustus, of Mary, who was betrothed to Joseph, a carpenter in
Matthew 1:1; Luke 3:23 & John 7:42. His birth was announced to the
shepherds in Luke 2:8-20. Wise men from the east came to Bethlehem to
see him who was born "King of the Jews," bringing gifts with them in
Matthew 2:1-12. Herod's
cruel jealousy led to Joseph's flight into Egypt with Mary and the
infant Jesus, where they tarried till the death of this king in Matthew
2:13-23. After this, they returned and settled in Nazareth, in Lower
Galilee as per Matthews 2:23; Luke 4:16 & John 1:46. At the age of
twelve years he went up to Jerusalem to the Passover with his parents.
There, in the temple, "in the midst of the doctors," all that heard him
were "astonished at his understanding and answers" as per Luke 2:41.
Eighteen
years pass, of which we have no record beyond this, that he returned to
Nazareth and "increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God
and man" in Luke 2:52.
He
entered on his public ministry when he was about thirty years of age.
It is generally reckoned to have extended to about three years. "Each of
these years had peculiar features of its own.
The
first year may be called the year of obscurity, both because the
records of it which we possess are very scanty, and because he seems
during it to have been only slowly emerging into public notice. It was
spent for the most part in Judea.
The
second year was the year of public favor, during which the country had
become thoroughly aware of him; his activity was incessant, and his
frame rang through the length and breadth of the land. It was almost
wholly passed in Galilee.
The
third was the year of opposition, when the public favor ebbed away. His
enemies multiplied and assailed him with more and more pertinacity, and
at last he fell a victim to their hatred. The first six months of this
final year were passed in Galilee, and the last six in other parts of
the land."
The
only reliable sources of information regarding the life of Christ on
earth are the Gospels, which present in historical detail the words and
the work of Christ in so many different aspects.
The
name Jesus, itself, means Savior; the name of the Son of God as
announced by the angel to his parents; the personal name of Our Lord, in
distinction from Christ, his official appellation.
SIN: Sin
is "any want of conformity unto or transgression of the law of God" as
per Romans 4:15 & I John 3:4. The inward state and habit of the
soul, as well as in the outward conduct of the life, whether by omission
or commission as in Romans 6:12-17 & 7:5-24. Sin is "not a mere
violation of the law of our constitution, nor of the system of things,
but an offence against a personal lawgiver and moral governor who
vindicates his law with penalties. The soul that sins is always
conscious that his sin is intrinsically vile and polluting and that it
justly deserves punishment, and calls down the righteous wrath of God.
Hence sin carries with it two inalienable characters. First is
ill-desert, guilt (reatus); and second, pollution (macula).
The
moral character of a man's actions is determined by the moral state of
his heart. The disposition to sin, or the habit of the soul that leads
to the sinful act, is itself also sin in Romans 6:12-17; Galatians 5:17
& James 1:14-15.
The
origin of sin is a mystery, and must for ever remain such to us. It is
plain that for some reason God has permitted sin to enter this world,
and that is all we know. His permitting it, however, in no way makes God
the author of sin.
Adam's
sin, in Genesis 3:1-6, consisted in his yielding to the assaults of
temptation and eating the forbidden fruit. It involved in it, the sin of
unbelief, virtually making God a liar; and the guilt of disobedience to
a positive command. By this sin he became an apostate from God, a rebel
in arms against his Creator. He lost the favor of God and communion
with him; his whole nature became depraved, and he incurred the penalty
involved in the covenant of works.
Original
sin. "Our first parents being the root of all mankind, the guilt of
their sin was imputed, and the same death in sin and corrupted nature
were conveyed to all their posterity, descending from them by ordinary
generation." Adam was constituted by God the federal head and
representative of all his posterity, as he was also their natural head,
and therefore when he fell they fell with him as per Romans 5:12-21
& I Corinthians 15:22-45. His probation was their probation, and his
fall their fall. Because of Adam's first sin all his posterity came
into the world in a state of sin and condemnation. This sin and
condemnation is a state of moral corruption, and of guilt, as having
judicially imputed to them the guilt of Adam's first sin.
"Original
sin" is frequently and properly used to denote only the moral
corruption of their whole nature inherited by all men from Adam. This
inherited moral corruption consists of first, the loss of original
righteousness; and second, the presence of a constant proneness to evil,
which is the root and origin of all actual sin. It is called "sin" in
Romans 6:6; 6:12-17;7:5-17; Galatians 5:17-24; Ephesians 4:18-19 &
James 1:14-15. It influences and depraves the whole man, and its
tendency is still downward to deeper and deeper corruption, there
remaining no recuperative element in the soul. It is a total depravity,
and it is also universally inherited by all the natural descendants of
Adam Romans 3:10-23; 5:12-21 & 8:7.
f4 Pelagians
deny original sin, and regard man as by nature morally and spiritually
well; semi-Pelagians regard him as morally sick; Augustinians, or, as
they are also called, Calvinists, regard man as described above,
spiritually dead as per Ephesians 2:1 & I John 3:14.
MATTHEW 1:22
[22] Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
[22]touto de olon gegonen ina plhrwqh to rhqen upo tou kuriou dia tou profhtou legontoV
touto/touto: this
de/de: Now
oloV/holos: all
ginomai/ginomai: was done
ina/hina: that it
pleroo/pleroo: fulfilled
rew/rheo: spoken
upo/hupo: by
tou/tou: of this person
kurioV/kurios: Lord
dia/dia: by
o/ho: the
profhthV/prophetes: prophet
legw/lego: saying
In Matthew
5:17, Jesus made it very clear that He did not come to destroy the Law
or the Prophets. But Jesus came to fulfill and finish the Law and the
Prophets. Please note here II Peter 1:21.
II
PETER 1:21...For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man:
but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
We see that it is the will of God that one of the ways in which he has spoken to His people is by the Holy Prophets.
II
Peter 1:21 gives to us the argument that all Scripture is teleological
in nature. In that the teleological argument is a philosophical
doctrine which argues that all things gives evidence that there was an
intelligent designer who designed all things with a specific purpose in
mind at the moment of design. That without an intelligent designer,
nothing can exist.
In the Gospels,
the Psalms and the Prophets are quoted quite heavily and frequently.
This gives evidence that the Heavenly Father Himself is firmly regarded
as the One who speaks in Scripture. The point being, that this insight
is not a theory which denies or excludes the human authors. Meaning,
these men are not introduced merely indirectly as intermediaries, but
directly as the true hands of what is said.
One of the
numerous purposes of the life of Jesus, was to fulfil the Prophetic
Manuscripts which are spoken with Divine authority, and which can be
called directly the Word of God. In Biblical thinking is quite
incompatible with the concept of God that the event should lag behind
God’s Word. That the full measure of fulfilment should must needs be
reached. God fulfils His Word by full actualisation. The Old Testament
Prophets are the mouth of God through which He speaks to mankind.
ISAIAH
7:14...Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a
virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
MATTHEW 1:23
[23]
Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and
they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with
us.
[23]
idou h parqenoV en gastri exei kai texetai uion kai kalesousin to onoma
autou emmanouhl o estin meqermhneuomenon meq hmwn o qeoV
idou/idou: behold
h/e: the
parqenoV/parthenos: virgin
en/en: with
gasthr/gaster: child, the state of pregnancy in her belly
ecw/echo: shall be having
kai/kai: and
tiktw/tikto: bring forth
uioV/huios: son
kalew/kaleo: call
o/ho: the
onoma/onoma: name
autou/hautou: his
Emmanouhl/Emmanouel: Emmanuel
esti/esti: is
meqermhneuw/methermeneuo: being interpreted
meta/meta: which is
hmwn/hemon: us
o/ho: the
qeoV/theos: God
The name Emmanuel/Immanuel literally means the literal God the Father is living with us. In the original Isaiah manuscript, it did not say “a virgin will conceive,” but that “the” virgin will conceive.” Denoting a certain preselected female for this event. Here
you have the very God the Heavenly Father stepping into the events and
affairs of man in the fleshly form of one Jesus Christ.
MATTHEW 1:24
[24] Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:
[24] diegerqeis de o iwshf apo tou upnou epoihsen wV prosetaxen autw o aggeloV kuriou kai parelaben thn gunaika autou
diegeirw/diegeiro: raised up
de/de: Then
o/ho: the
Iwshf/Ioseph: Joseph
apo/apo: from
tou/tou: his
upnoV/hupnos: sleep
poiew/poieo: did
wV/hos: as
prostassw/prostasso: bidden
autou/hautou: him
o/ho: the
aggeloV/aggelos: angel
kurioV/kurios: Lord
paralambanw/paralambano: take unto him
o/ho: the
gunh/gune: wife
autou/hautou: him
In
verses 20 & 21 Joseph is given the definitive instruction to take
unto himself Mary to be his wife. In verse 21 Joseph is told to call
His name Jesus. Verses 24 & 25 is a very interesting study in responding to an instruction and the reaction to that instruction.
MATTHEW 1:25
[25] And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.
[25] kai ouk eginwsken authn ewV ou eteken ton uion auths ton prwtotokon kai ekalesen to onoma autou ihsoun
kai/kai: And
ou/ou: not
ginwskw/ginosko: knew
autou/hautou: her
ewV/heos: till
tiktw/tikto: brought forth
tou/tou: of this person
uioV/huios: son
prwtotokoV/prototokos: first born
kai/kai: and
kalew/kaleo: call
o/ho: the
onoma/onoma: name
autou/hautou: his
IhsouV/Iesous: Jesus
Notice the
wording of verse 25. Two specific statements stand out about verse 25.
First they did not consummate their marriage until after the birth of
Jesus. This is in conjunction to Isaiah 7:14. Then secondly, as per
the instructions of verse 21, Joseph and Mary name the baby Jesus.
The wording of this verse confirms that Jesus was the first of many children which Joseph and Mary will parent.
1. Jesus was to be born in Bethlehem of Judea: Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:1 & Luke 2:4-7.
2. Jesus was to be born of a virgin: Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:18 & Luke 1:26-3