Matthew 1:17

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. SO ALL THE GENERATIONS FROM ABRAHAM TO DAVID ARE FOURTEEN GENERATIONS; AND FROM DAVID UNTIL THE CARRYING AWAY (OR MIGRATION) INTO BABYLON ARE FOURTEEN GENERATIONS; AND FROM THE CARRYING AWAY INTO ('THE MIGRATION OF') BABYLON UNTO CHRIST ARE FOURTEEN GENERATIONS. That is, the whole may be conveniently divided into three fourteens, each embracing one marked era, and each ending with a notable event, in the Israelite annals. Such artificial aids to memory were familiar to the Jews, and much larger gaps than those here are found in some of the Old Testament genealogies. In Ezra 7:1 no fewer than six generations of the priesthood...

1-17 Concerning this genealogy of our Saviour, observe the chief intention. It is not a needless genealogy. It is not a vain-glorious one, as those of great men often are. It proves that our Lord Jesus is of the nation and family out of which the Messiah was to arise. The promise of the blessing was made to Abraham and his seed; of the dominion, to David and his seed. It was promised to Abraham that Christ should descend from him, Genesis 12:3; Genesis 22:18; and to David that he should descend from him, 2 Samuel 7:12; Psalms 89:3; Psalms 132:11; and, therefor...

Verse Matthew 1:17. _FOURTEEN GENERATIONS_] Matthew 1:11, Matthew 1:11. The Jews had a sort of technical method of summing up generations in this way. In _Synopsis Sohar_, p. 132, n. 18, we have the following words; "From Abraham to Solomon were fifteen generations; and then the moon was at the full. From Solomon to Zedekiah were other fifteen generations; the moon was then in the wane, and Zedekiah's eyes were put out." That is, the regal state came to its zenith of light and glory in the time of _Solomon_; but decreased gradually, till it became nearly extinct in the days of _Zedekiah_. See _Schoetgen_....

SO ALL THE GENERATIONS ... - This division of the names in the genealogical tables was doubtless adopted for the purpose of aiding the memory. It was common among the Jews; and other similar instances are preserved. The Jews were destitute of books besides the Old Testament, and they had but few copies of that among them, and those chiefly in their synagogues. They would therefore naturally devise plans to keep up the remembrance of the principal facts in their history. One method of doing this was to divide the tables of genealogy into portions of equal length, to be committed to memory. This greatly facilitated the remembrance of the names. A man who wished to commit to memory the names of a regiment of soldiers would naturally divide it into companies and platoons, and this would greatly facilitate his work. This was doubtless the reason in the case before us. And, though it is not st...

EXPOSITION MATTHEW 1:1 JESUS THE CHRIST BY HUMAN ANCESTRY, (Parallel passage: Luke 3:23.) MATTHEW 1:1 THE BOOK OF THE GENERATION. As St. Matthew was writing only for Jews, and they, by reason of their Old Testament prophecies, looked for the Messiah to be born of a certain family, he begins his Gospel with a pedigree of Jesus. In this he mentions, by way of introduction, the two points to which his countrymen would have special regard—the descent of Jesus from David, the founder of the royal line, him in whose descendants the Ruler of Israel must

SO ALL THE GENERATIONS FROM ABRAHAM,.... The Evangelist having traced the genealogy of Christ from Abraham, which he divides into "three" parts, because of the threefold state of the Jews, "first" under Patriarchs, Prophets, and Judges, "next" under Kings, and "then" under Princes and Priests, gives the sum of each part under its distinct head; "so all the generations", that is, the degrees of generation, or the persons generated from Abraham to David, both being included, "are fourteen generations"; as there were, and no more, and are as follow, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, Phares, Esrom, Aram, Amminadab, Naasson, Salmon, Boaz, Obed, Jesse, David. AND FROM DAVID UNTIL THE CARRYING AWAY INTO BABYLON ARE FOURTEEN GENERATIONS. Here David who closed the first division must be excluded this, and it must be observed, that the Evangelist does not say as before, that "all" the generations fro...

ANALYSIS AND ANNOTATIONS I. The King and the Offer of the Kingdom. Chapter s 1-12. _ 1. Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham. (Matthew 1:1 .) 2. From Abraham to David. (Matthew 1:2 .) 3. From David to the Captivity. (Matthew 1:6 .) 4. From the Captivity to the Birth of Christ. (Matthew 1:12) 5. The Birth of Jesus Christ. (Matthew 1:18 .)_ CHAPTER 1 The first chapter of the Gospel of Matthew is divided into two parts. In the first to the seventeenth verse we find the genealogy of Jesus Christ, and in the last

THE GENEALOGY OF JESUS (_cf._ Luke 3:23). The Biblical part of this genealogy (Matthew 1:2) is taken from 1 Chronicles 1-3, with some help from Ruth 4:18; Genesis 38:16 ff., and other OT passages. It contains devices for assisting the memory, _e.g._ (_a)_ three groups each of fourteen names, though one name is missing from the third group (_cf._ Matthew 1:17); (_b_) the three fourteens may be connected with the number (three) and the numerical value (fourteen) of the letters in the Heb. name David; (_c)_ notes like of Rahab, of Ruth ...

This is the record of the lineage of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham begat Isaac, and Isaac begat Jacob. Jacob begat Judah and his brothers. Judah begat Phares and Zara, whose mother was Thamar. Phares begat Esrom. Esrom begat Aram. Aram begat Aminadab. Aminadab begat Naasson. Naasson begat Salmon. Salmon begat Booz, whose mother was Rachab. Booz begat Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed begat Jesse. Jesse begat David, the king. David begat Solomon, whose mother was Uriah's wife. Solomon begat Roboam. Roboam begat Abia. Abia begat Asaph. Asaph begat Josaphat. Josaphat begat Joram. Joram begat Ozias. Ozias begat Joatham. Joatham begat Achaz. Achaz begat Ezekias. Ezekias begat Manasses. Manasses begat Amos. Amos begat Josias. Josias begat Jechonias, and his brothers, in the days when the exile to Babylon took place. After the exile to Babylon Jechonias begat Sal...

SO. Verse 17 is the Figure of speech _Symperasma._ App-6. ALL THE GENERATIONS. See the Structure, above. The _first_ begins with the call of Abraham, and ends with the call of David the layman (1 Samuel 16:13). The _second_ begins with the building of the Temple, and ends with the destruction of it. The _third_ begins with the nation under the power of Babylon, and ends with it under the power of Rome (the first and fourth of the world-powers of Daniel 2). THE: i.e. the generations given above, not all recorded in the O.T. fourteen. It is not stated that there were forty-two, but three fourteens are reckoned in. special manner, as shown in the Structure above. Note the three divisions of the whole period, as in the seventy weeks of Daniel ...