Meditations of the Gospel of Christ According to the Evangelist Matthew

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Meditations on the Gospel of Christ According to the Evangelist Matthew

Part 1

"Repent, for the kingdom of Christ is at hand" (Matthew 4:17)

Abdul Massih & Friends

"Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." (Matthew 4:4)

First Edition: 2001

Mazra’at Yashou – P.O.Box 226 Matten – Lebanon

Meditate over the study and interpretation of the Holy Bible with us.

We introduce to you, with the help of God, the "Meditations on the Gospel of Christ according to the Evangelist Matthew", which brings to light the most important principles of commentary on this first book of the New Testament, together with the fundamental articles of the Christian law.

Our aim of these explanations is to give you maximum understanding of the teachings of Christ that you may think over the rights of his lawfulness, continue in your worship, and cling to the Savior, the Deliverer, through his calls to repentance, faith, and love.

At the end of each meditation, you will find model prayers. Try to pray them with us and complete them by adding suitable words of your own, depending on your own needs, following the directions of the Holy Spirit, to come close and commit yourself to your good shepherd.

At the end of each meditation and prayer, you will find questions, which will help you and urge you to meditate on the word of God offered to you. If you answer, in brief, 90% of these questions and mail to us your answers to all the questions throughout the book, (if by mail, do not forget to write your full name and address or you may send your answers by E-mail) we will send you the

Certificate of Maturity In the Study of the Gospel of Christ According to the Evangelist Matthew

Together with a valuable book to help you to acquaint yourself with the Holy Bible and bring the good news of salvation to those who have not yet gotten acquainted with the living Christ.

If you have questions about faith or about the Gospel, please write your questions on a separate sheet and send them to us stating your full name and address.

We pray that the Lord may bless you, keep you safe, make his face shine upon you and give you peace.

The center of study: Al-Hayat Al-Foudla,

Mazra’at Yashou, P.O.Box 226, Al Matten, Lebanon

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled." (Matthew 5:6)

Chronological Index

Introduction: The writing of the Gospel of Christ according to the Evangelist Matthew

Part 1: The period prior to the ministry of Christ (1:1-4:25)

Part 2: The ministry of Christ in Galilee and neighboring regions (5:1-18:35)

Part 3: The ministry of Jesus in Jordan Valley during his journey to Jerusalem

(19:1-20:34)

Part 4: The last ministry of Jesus in Jerusalem (21:1-25:46)

Part 5: Jesus’ passion and death on the cross (26:1-27:66)

Part 6: Jesus’ resurrection and the great commission (28:1-20)

Part 7: A guide to the Christian law according to the Evangelist Matthew.

"Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden,

and I will give you rest."

Matthew 11:28

Introduction

The Writing of the Gospel of Christ According to the Evangelist Matthew

Many people witnessed the life, speeches, death, and resurrection of Christ. We learn from the testimony of these people that Christ did not write books, though he was able to write in Hebrew. He is the word of God become flesh. He lived out what he said, and his conduct and way of life form and produce the open gospel to everyone who loves the truth. His word is more than a teaching. It is the constructive power of God. The word "gospel" signifies "good news", as it offers the riches of God’s kindness and grace through Christ Jesus.

The Four Gospels

The word "gospel" is intended as translation of Greek "evangelion" which signifies "good tidings" or "good news." The Gospel is the proclamation of the good news of salvation. This word sometimes stands for the record of the life of our Lord Jesus Christ (Mark 1:1) and the embracing of all his teachings (Acts 20:24).

But now the word "gospel" primarily describes the message that Christianity preaches. "Good news" is its significance. The gospel is a gift from God. It is the proclamation of the remission of sins and sonship with God restored through Christ.

The Spirit of the Lord put into our hands four books recording the life of Christ as revealed to his penmen, the evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Two of these penmen were close disciples of Christ. The other two were companions of his apostles. They accurately took the news from the apostles. When we look at the Gospels, we find that the first three Gospels have much in common. Sometimes the same or related wording appears in each, in spite of the fact that each of them mentions distinctive news about the life of Christ that the other ones did not mention. Thus each Gospel has its distinctive character.

Who is Matthew?

Matthew is one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ (Matthew 10:1-4). He was a Galilean (Act 2:7). His original name was "Levi son of Alphaeus" (Mark 2:14; Luke 5:29). "Matthew" signifies "the gift of Jehovah." The great feast that Matthew made in his house for Jesus, to which he invited many tax collectors and sinners, was on the occasion of his pleasant response to the call of the Lord. But he did not comment on it because of his humility.

Matthew’s occupation, in the beginning, was collecting taxes for the Roman government. Such people were hated and despised by the Jews who considered them unworthy of the Jewish nationality. Tax collectors were often ranked with sinners and outcasts (Matthew 9:10-11, 18:17), and the Pharisees have frequently complained about the Lord’s conversing with tax collectors, and entering their houses (Luke 5:30, 15:1-2, 19:7). But God’s grace is intended for everyone without exception and is able to save the worst sinners. It called Matthew from the Roman tax office to be an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. After he was a misfortune to the Jews by collecting taxes from them, God’s grace made Matthew their "gift of God" through his gospel. That is why he was not ashamed of calling himself "Matthew the tax collector" (Matthew 10:3).

The Characteristic of the Gospel According to the Evangelist Matthew

The gospel according to Matthew brings into view: Christ’s call to those who labor and are heavy laden (Chapter 11); some parables about the growth of the kingdom of God (Chapter 13); the parable of the wicked servant and idle laborers in the vineyard (Chapter 20); and the parable of the ten wise and foolish virgins, and the description of the final judgment (Chapter 25).

The Aramaic Original Gospel

The first three Gospels present together a selected view of the life and sayings of Christ. It is evident that those three apostles—before writing their Gospel in Greek—collected and reported what happened during the life of Christ and what he said in Aramaic that was the basis upon which all the evangelists wrote their Gospels (Luke 1:1-4, John 20:30).

Who Wrote the Gospel of Matthew?

Matthew, the penman of the first and longest Gospel, was a chief tax collector. He was despised by the people for being a skillful official serving the occupying state. His original name was "Levi" (Mark 2:14, Luke 5:27). But Christ gave him a new name, "Matthew", i.e. "the gift of God".

The oldest testimony concerning the Gospel of Matthew may be found in the writings of Papias, an elder of the church. We read in his records that Matthew compiled the sayings of the Lord, first in Aramaic. This is confirmed by the many words written in their Aramaic pronunciation in the Gospel, such as "raca" (worthless), and "mammon" (wealth, money, riches). It is most probable that the apostles entrusted Matthew, the most skillful among them in languages, with the compilation and translation of the sayings of Christ into Greek, under their care.

The internal evidences also give powerful support to the fact that the writer is Matthew, the tax collector, considering that this Gospel mentions more different currencies than any other Gospel. The Gospel, in fact, refers to three monetary units that are not mentioned any other place in the New Testament. The Gospel of Matthew solely mentions the "two-drachma" (Matthew 17:24), the "stater" (Matthew 17:27), and the "talent" (Matthew 18:24), which tells that the writer of this Gospel was familiar with the different kinds of currencies and that he was interested in identifying and defining their values to the followers. It is also to be mentioned that in his Gospel, Matthew refers to himself, among the other disciples of Christ, as "Matthew, the tax collector" as an indication of his humility, whereas Mark and Luke refer to him as "Matthew" without mentioning the degrading attribute of "tax collector." This humility of Matthew also appears in not mentioning particular details that may speak of him in glowing terms. He does not mention that he made the feast for Jesus. He talks of Jesus’ sitting down in "the house" (Matthew 9:10) without telling whose house it was, whereas Luke mentions (Luke 5:29) that Matthew gave Christ "a great feast." In his Gospel, Matthew does not mention the story of Zacchaeus and the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Luke 19:1-10; 18:9-14) maybe because both imply praise to the faith of the tax collector.

The Six Addresses of Jesus

Christ’s sayings in the Gospel of Matthew may be divided into six comprehensive parts, systematically successive, and having no repeated ideas. Matthew adopted the teaching of his Master step by step. First, he brought into view the constitution of the kingdom of heaven (Chapter 10), then the secrets of its growth (Chapter 13), followed by its interior organization (Chapter 18), the woes against the enemies of his kingdom (Chapter 23), and finally his appearance on the coming of his kingdom (Chapter 24, 25). The mentioning of these sayings of Jesus is the most valuable treasure in the Gospel of Matthew that deserves thorough study and meditation.

The Purpose of the Gospel of Matthew

The special purpose that Matthew had in view in his Gospel was to present the details of the tradition of Christ by proving to the Jewish people that Jesus of Nazareth is the predicted Messiah, the son of David and the son of Abraham. Matthew quotes more frequently from the Old Testament than any other evangelist does to prove that Jesus is the promised Messiah in whom is to be found the fulfillment and realization of the Messianic predictions of the Old Testament prophets and seers. Accordingly, his Gospel is considered the best book to build and strengthen believers through growing deeper into the teaching of Christ. It is, at the same time, good for preaching to the sons of Abraham and bringing them over to their Savior who took upon himself, in their place, the judgment of God.

These two purposes "preaching and teaching" are so wonderfully correlated in the Gospel of Matthew that it is the first book in the New Testament, glorifying Jesus, the Christ of God.

The Date of Writing the Gospel According to Matthew

This unique Gospel was written around 58 AD—about 25 years after the crucifixion. Scholars agree that it was written before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, as it does not report the fall of Jerusalem and the temple but, on the contrary, describes these events as still in the future (please refer to 23:37-38; 24:1-2). Furthermore, Matthew reports many warnings in his Gospel against the Sadducees who lost their power and authority after the destruction of Jerusalem.

We find in this Gospel true statements about the words and deeds of our Master Jesus Christ who calls us to follow him just as he called Matthew.

Questions:

1. Who is Matthew, and how did he introduce himself?

2. What are the characteristics of the Gospel according to Matthew?

3. What is the purpose of the Gospel according to Matthew?

Part 1

The Preliminary Period of the Ministry of Christ

1. Birth and childhood of Jesus................................................. 1:1-2:23

Genealogy of Jesus.................................................................... 1:1-17

Birth and naming of Jesus.......................................................... 1:18-25

Visit and worship of the Magi.................................................... 2:1-11

Herod’s attempt to kill Jesus...................................................... 2:12-23

2. John, the Baptist, prepares the way of Christ...................... 3:1-4:11

The call to repentance............................................................... 3:1-12

The baptism of Christ................................................................ 3:13-15

Proclamation of the unity of the Holy Trinity............................... 3:16, 17

The temptation of Christ by the devil and his great victory........... 4:1-11

3. Christ begins his Galilean Ministry...................................... 4:12-25

Christ chooses Capernaum as a residence.................................. 4:12-17

Christ calls the first two brothers to discipleship.......................... 4:18-22

A beautiful account of the Savior’s ministry................................ 4:23-25

The quiz of Part 1

1- Birth and childhood of Jesus (1:1-2:23)

Genealogy of Jesus (1:1-17)

1:(1) The book of the genealogy of Jesus

Most religions rely on their holy books but we, Christians, do not worship books. We cling to, and believe in a unique person who is the incarnate word of God. Matthew did not produce a flight of fancy following the example of novelists. He was not dictated ideals by a strange spirit, nor did he hear a supernatural voice in a trance, but he described the life and words of Jesus of Nazareth whom he was more than fond of and whom he honored and followed with an abiding faith. Thus this book is an eyewitness testimony about a historical person and real events wherein Jesus is presented as our King, Christ, Savior, and Lord.

The word "genealogy" mentioned in the beginning of his Gospel means in Greek "source", "becoming", "coming", and "development in the journey of life." The birth of Jesus on earth was not the beginning of his existence. He exists from eternity. Birth and death do not confine his entity. He lives at all times because he is the Spirit of God, and because he is glorious and everlasting to God. Yet he is the Lord himself.

Jesus of Nazareth had different names. He called himself the Son of Man, the Light of the World, and the Bread of Life that gives life to the world. His enemies called him, spitefully, the "Son of Mary" who had no father. But his disciples honored him with the title "Master." His original name was "Joshua." From this unique name, the devils tremble with fear, but the angels revive. In this name, the purpose and the aim of God’s will are found and in these letters are the power of the sovereign authority of all heavens work. We begin our humble commentary not in our own names but in the name of the Lord Jesus who is the incarnate Spirit of God.

The word "Jesus" is mentioned 950 times in the Arabic Holy Bible, which indicates that it is more important than his other names.

Prayer:

O Lord Jesus, you are the eternal God. You became flesh that I may see God’s power in my life and receive the power of the Holy Spirit through your words. Forgive me my ignorance and my incapability. Fill me with light that I may know you, believe in you, and honor your holy name, "Jesus", through my testimony, actions, and thankfulness.

Question 4: Why is a Christian not bound by a certain book, but is devoted to the person of Jesus?

1:(1) … Jesus Christ

At the time of Jesus, the Jews were still looking forward to the coming of Christ whom they were promised 1,000 years prior. In the Old Testament, God had already promised the fathers, the kings, and the prophets that he would raise up a man from their nation to be a great king of the people. In addition to his human entity, he would be of divine nature, full of the power of the Creator and rule a kingdom that shall have no end (2 Samuel 7:12-15; Isaiah 9:6-7).

The Jews, eagerly, expected the oncoming Christ, particularly when the Romans occupied their country. They wished for Christ to come and deliver them from the occupying enemy, establish the kingdom of God on earth by force and power, make the city of Jerusalem a center of the world, and judge the nations.

When Matthew wrote the first sentence of his book, and testified that the meek gentleman Jesus of Nazareth was the promised Messiah, he created with this testimony a burning belief among the prepared people and a severe hate among the rejecting obstinate people. All the faithful among those that awaited Christ and recognized in Jesus the incarnate spirit of God committed themselves to him with faith. But the majority of the Jews rejected him because the leaders of their people did. Having come without weapon and without earthly power, he was delivered up for crucifixion. Matthew did not worry about the grudge of the crowds and the leaders, but opposed them boldly. He testified the truth and called Jesus, "The promised Christ of God." The word "Christ" is mentioned 569 times in the New Testament.

The word "Christ" is not a name of Jesus. It is his title, which indicates his office. "Christ" means the anointed one with all the fullness of the Holy Spirit. In the Old Testament, kings, priests, and prophets were anointed with the oil of dedication. In his person, Jesus unified the power of the divine king. He is the true High Priest and the slain Lamb of God. He did not come as all other prophets with the word of God revealed unto him, for he was himself the word of God become flesh. In Christ dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Are you a follower or an enemy of Christ?

Prayer:

O Lord Jesus Christ, I worship you for you are my King sent from God, and my faithful Priest. You moved my heart towards the kingdom of your peace. Please teach me to recognize your name and your spiritual power that I may experience your life, meekness, and humility. Renew my mind that I may stand firm as a qualified member of your kingdom.

Question 5: What does the title "Christ" signify with respect to Jesus?

1:(1) … Jesus Christ, the Son of David

Every Jew knows David, for many have kept his "Psalms" by heart and chanted them at religious feasts and occasions. They glorify God’s love and care with words from his Psalms which are outbursts of praise and thankfulness. They use the words and phrases of their king to confess their sins and to ask the Lord to deliver them from their enemies.

Who is David? The Lord chose David while he was still a young shepherd to be the anointed king of the people of the Old Testament. During his service as keeper of his father’s sheep, he learned patience, courage, leadership, and trust in God. He struggled against bears and lions, learned to hunt and play the psaltery and harp. And in his youth he overcame, with the power and assistance of God, Goliath, the giant; therefore, King Saul envied him and was jealous of his famous bravery.

David had to flee to the Philistines where he lived under their protection until his enemy, Saul, killed himself. Thereafter, he established a kingdom in Hebron for seven years. When the situation became better in 1004 BC, he captured Jerusalem and made it the capital of his kingdom. He then removed the Ark to the center of his kingdom making Jerusalem the center of the Jewish civilization. He also gradually defeated his neighboring enemies in bloody wars.

When David became rich and famous, he was overcome by his lust—committing adultery and then killing and taking the poor man’s "lamb." But he heard God’s reproof and responded to it, so God accepted his sincere repentance and forgave him his sin after his clear confession. The son bore from sin died, for it is impossible for sin and blessing to meet together under one roof. God punished him through his children's many sins and acts of rebellion until he had to flee from God’s presence. Though he was old, he fled to Jordan where he stayed until his rebellious son Absalom was killed.

During those troubled years, David continually drew near to God and prayed until the Holy Spirit inspired him with indescribable hymns and prophecies. A great part of his psalms refer to the coming Christ. The deepest influence that the Holy Spirit carved in his heart was that a son would descend from him whose father would be God himself (2 Samuel 7:12-15; 1 Chronicles 17:11-14). These exciting promises establish that Christ would be a son of David.

In the first sentence of his book, Matthew did not only call Jesus by the title "Christ" but he also emphasized that he descended from David, showing that Jesus is of the kindred of the king, designated from his birth to be the promised king over a kingdom without end.

Prayer:

O Holy God, your ways are unseen to my eyes, but every promise of yours is true and is established. You did not choose me because of my own goodness, but because of your great mercy. I have rejected you in my sins; yet you purify me if I sincerely repent. Please direct me to overcome my pride and repent of my sins that I may reject all evil, and be sanctified by the power of your pure Spirit.

Question 6: Why was Jesus called "The Son of David"?

1:1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:

The Jews honored their father Abraham, because with him and a group of men the history of their relationship with God began. God called Abraham from his residence in Haran and ordered him to get out of his culture and leave his friends and the protection of his kindred. He made him a traveling Bedouin without a home. Abraham abandoned himself to the right guidance of his Lord and became an example to believers. From the beginning, God promised his elect that he would multiply his seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore, and that in his seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed (Genesis 12:2, 7; 13:16; 15:5,18). Though he owned no land and had no son, Abraham believed the Lord’s promises and became the father of all the faithful.

Despite his true faith, he fell into temptation. He did not wait until God gave him a child but in haste he married Hagar, the Egyptian handmaid of his wife, and she bare Ishmael. His hastiness resulted in pain and distress to the nations for ages.

After having kept away from Abraham for thirteen years, God had mercy upon him when he was ninety-nine years old. The Most Holy made a covenant with him and granted him the symbol of circumcision, promising him again a chosen son in spite of he and Sarah's old age. Abraham believed in God; he also believed God's promise of a son, which was contrary to the law of nature. Although Sarah had been barren, the Creator granted the elderly couple a son, Isaac. Abraham’s relationship with God became close, even before he interceded for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, and he was called the friend of God. God tested Abraham, the father of the faithful, and commanded him to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac. The believer obeyed the voice of God and prepared to sacrifice his beloved son out of love for his Lord. Thus he became an example of God who sacrificed his Son out of his love for us and desire to save us. Because of Abraham’s faithfulness, at that moment God swore he would bless all the nations in his seed (Genesis 22:12, 16-17; The Koran: Al-Safat 37:102-113).

We know from Paul, the apostle, that the expression "Abraham’s seed" signifies one person, Jesus Christ (Galatians 3:16), in whom and through whom the nations are blessed. But at the time when Matthew called Jesus by the title, "the Son of Abraham", the majority of the Jews rejected this Son and crucified the bearer of the promise. The evangelist confirmed from the beginning of his Gospel that no blessing would come to the people of Abraham or to anyone else except through Jesus, the Bearer of the promise, through whom alone the complete blessing of God can be received.

Prayer:

I worship you, our Holy God, because you choose wicked people. You do not choose people because of their goodness and faith but because of your grace and mercy. Please help me to live in vivid faith, that I may live worthy of your calling, stand fast as a son of Abraham in spirit, and share in the fullness of the blessing given to me in your Son Jesus.

Question 7: How can Jesus be the Son of Abraham too?

1:(2) … Abraham begot Isaac,

The Evangelist Matthew wrote his Gospel to the Jews and to the Christians of Jewish origin. He brought into view, first of all, the complete genealogy of Jesus proving that he was lawfully worthy of being the Messiah since he was of the seed of Abraham and a son of David. Matthew gives Jesus' lineage knowing his existence did not begin with his birth.

God initiated the way of salvation with Abraham. By offering Isaac as a sacrifice, he indicated the necessity of the unique sacrifice accomplished in Jesus Christ on the cross. Isaac, the heir to the promise, was brought up since his childhood in godliness with full submission to God. He was a man of prayer who initiated his marriage in the name of the Lord and got many returns from his fields. He was patient, left his two wells to the quarreling herdsmen, and dug a new well, overcoming his enemies with love. He lived with all humility and meekness until God appeared to him and confirmed the Abrahamic covenant. The behavior of Isaac and that of Jesus bear many resemblance's—more than when compared with any other member of the family (Genesis 24:63; 25:5; 26:12-13, 22).

But Isaac committed sins similar to those of his father. He called his wife "his sister" to rescue himself from his lustful enemies (Genesis 26:6-7). Also Isaac loved his first son Esau more than his second son Jacob, which resulted in a plot created by his wife and Jacob against he and Esau which caused his blessing to be given to Jacob instead of Esau, making him a link of the blessed genealogy of Jesus.

Prayer:

I glorify you and praise you, Lord of heaven and earth, for your constant protection to the fathers of faith in spite of their weaknesses. Your love lasts throughout the ages. I believe that you have chosen me to live in Christ and that you have mercy on me in spite of my failure. Thank you for your great kindness.

Question 8: How was Isaac comparable to Jesus?

1:(2) … Isaac begot Jacob,

He who reads the genealogy of Jesus realizes that the gospel is based on the books of the Old Testament. No one can understand it thoroughly unless he studies this genealogy, just as no one can reach the upper room of a house unless he first comes from its lower door.

By a revelation of God, Jacob alone was designated, prior to his birth, as bearer of the blessing (Genesis 25:23-28). But Jacob did not wait for the fulfillment of the promise with patience and prayer. He hastened and plotted with his mother until he obtained the blessing of the birthright. The grudge, which his brother held against him, was so great that Jacob was compelled to flee. Amidst this flight, God appeared to the schemer, Jacob, and told him that through him the entire world will be blessed. Jacob did not understand the dream, but he fearfully believed in the revelation of the stairway reaching to heaven and in the word of his Lord. He continued on his way and reached the land of the East. There he became a skillful herdsman. He deceived Laban, his uncle and owner of the flock. Laban, on his part, met Jacob with a similar deception by giving him in marriage his first-born daughter rather than the younger daughter they had agreed upon. Later, Jacob married the younger daughter whom he really wanted but only after he labored for his uncle for many years. After long service and difficulty, he longed to go back to the land of his fathers, but God met him on his journey to put an end to his pride and to make him broken and regretful, so he wrestled with him in a dream. Through this spiritual wrestling, the deceiver turned into a humble worshiper, and God gave Jacob a new name, "Israel" which signifies, "he who struggles with God and succeeds as a result of his faith." The Lord achieved his purpose with this deceiver, creating in his soul a longing for the perfect salvation which he caught sight of from afar in the coming of Jesus to the world.

It was Christ in whom Jacob’s dream came true with the angels of God ascending from him to heaven and descending with the blessings of the world (Genesis 28:12-13; 48:15-16; 49:18; John 1:51).

Prayer:

O Holy God, You know my soul that is inclined to lies, deception, and pride. Please forgive me of all my sins. Break my evil intents that I may walk broken in the path of your righteousness. Crush my pride as you crushed Jacob's so that I may become a worshiper and a struggler for the kingdom of your kindness.

Question 9: How was Jacob made worthy of offering God’s blessing to all men?

1:(2) … and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. (3) Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar

The Bible does not oppose men, but makes it clear that we are all sinners, and that every man who thinks that his family is blameless, even if they were kings and prophets, is deceived since none is righteous in front of God, even in the family of Jesus. We find it true that Jesus' lineage lived in sin, but he overcame the wicked inheritance of his fathers, not being conceived from a human father but conceived of God’s Spirit who dwells in him. He remained innocent and pure with no iniquity in him, and has willingly redeemed the human race in himself.

Judah was one of the twelve sons of Jacob in whose name the twelve tribes were named. These sons were nomads who once destroyed the population of a whole city for a disgrace that had fallen on their sister (Genesis 34:1-29). They also envied their youngest brother Joseph because their father loved him more than all of them and made a varicolored robe for him. So, they planned to kill him, but Judah dampened their zeal and convinced them to sell their brother for twenty pieces of silver and profit from him instead of taking his life.

Judah committed adultery over and above his covetousness. He prevented Tamar, his late son’s wife from getting married to his third son according to the law. She tricked him and let him sleep with her illicitly and had by him his child Pharez (Genesis 38). It is shameful to humans that the names of these three people—Judah, Tamar, and Pharez—were mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus. The Son of God came down to prove that he redeems even the covetous, the adulterers, and the sinners; and that he shows up and unveils everybody without exception.

Jacob indicated the absolute authority of Christ to redeem the sinners when he blessed his son Judah and compared him with a lion before which all his brothers and all nations will bow in obedience (Genesis 49:8-12). John, the evangelist knew the mystery of this prophesy, he even heard the call of the elders in heaven saying, "Behold, the lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David has prevailed" (Revelation 5:5-10). John opened his eyes to see the great lion, but he did not see the lion. He saw a slain lamb that redeemed to God by his blood chosen people out of every nation who serve him as royal priests forever. Jesus has fulfilled the promises declared about his father Judah.

Prayer:

I worship you O Holy Lamb of God because you deserve all blessing, glory, riches, and praise; having overcome the evil one in the world and in your followers, sacrificing your holy life for me. Please overcome my affection for sin because I am no better than Judah or Tamar. Please cleanse me from my sins and sanctify me wholly.

Question 10: How was the promise about Judah, son of Jacob, fulfilled in Jesus?

1:3 Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram. (4) Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon. (5) Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, (6) and Jesse begot David the king. David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah.

The Gospel of Matthew leads us to three points in the genealogy of Jesus when it brings into view the names of three women who have caused tiredness and shame to the commentators of the Old Testament. We, on our part, condemn nobody, but we observe man's wicked trends and continue in repentance of our own sins.

Matthew did not mention the names of Sarah nor of other famous women whom all the Jews are proud of, but he mentions the names of the women whom the Jews were unable to be proud of: "Tamar" was mentioned to indicate that the salvation of God is planned for sinners (Genesis 38:11-14); "Rahab" was mentioned to indicate that the salvation for sinners is by faith (Joshua 2; Hebrews 11:31); "Ruth" was mentioned to indicate that this salvation is by grace without the law (Deuteronomy 23:3; Romans 3:21-30); and "Bath-Sheba" was mentioned to indicate that the salvation of God to believers is by grace and that such salvation is everlasting (2 Samuel 11 & 12; Psalm 23:3; Hebrews 10:38-39).

We do not precisely know some of the names mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus today. However we know that Rahab, the heathen prostitute received the spies and protected them because God showed her that he surrendered her city Jericho to the hands of the oncoming people. After the city was conquered, one of those spies married her and she became a grandmother of Christ. Tamar brought non-Jewish blood into King David and Jesus. Rahab did the same, and such did Ruth, because the Spirit of God wished to prove that he was not keeping to a racial thinking, but also desires to save Gentile sinners (Joshua 2:1-21; Hebrews 11:31).

Boaz was a straight man. He did not take advantage of the distress of Ruth, the widow, but ordered his servants to leave the grain of the harvest for her to gather and eat because he knew what a faithful friend she was to her mother-in-law (the mother of her late husband). After that, he married her though she was a foreign woman and she became the mother of David’s grandfather. She was considered unclean according to Jewish law but all men are equal to God (Ruth 2:4).

The most horrible sin in the history of the ancestors of Jesus was one committed by David, the prophet. He desired the wife of Uriah, one of his soldiers, as she was taking a bath on the roof of her house. He sent messengers and brought her to his palace, and asked the commander of his army to find a plan to let Uriah, her husband, be killed in an ambush of the enemy in order to cover the shame of the king. But God uncovered the adultery and the murder in his servant and threatened to kill him. Nothing could save him but the sincere and immediate repentance and the belief in God’s grace for the humble and repentant (Psalm 51). The mercy did not leave him. He married her legitimately, and God gave them a son, wise Solomon, inasmuch as the marriage was purified through sincere repentance.

Prayer:

O heavenly Father, I thank you that you did not reject me. I am corrupt and adulterous, but you sent your Son to me that I might see in his behavior a holy example for my life. I accept his sacrifice for me. I am consecrated in the power of your Holy Spirit and I humbly live serving your fatherly will.

Question 11: Why did Matthew, the evangelist, bring into view four women in the genealogy of Jesus? What are their names?

1:6 and Jesse begot David the king. David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah. (7) Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa. (8) Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah. (9) Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah.

In his youth, Solomon was educated at the hand of a priest. He grew up in godliness asking God for an obedient heart filled with wisdom. When he was crowned king, he built a beautiful temple in Jerusalem, a planned center of the Jewish civilization throughout the ages. He cut many valuable cedar logs in Lebanon for this building. Solomon imposed upon the people payment for the costs of those magnificent buildings. The people suffered from exorbitant taxes for such a costly life. He had 700 wives and about 300 concubines. To complete the mischief, each one of his wives carried with her an idol from her country, and they drew Solomon to worship the idols to satisfy his wives (1 Kings 11).

At the time of David and Solomon, a strong Israeli state arose but only lasted for 100 years before division began. It happened at the time of "Rehoboam" the tyrannical son of Solomon. The country of the fathers was divided in 932 BC, and the ten tribes were unified into the new kingdom of Israel, the capital of which was Samaria. The tribe of Judah, however, remained faithful to the Davidic royal family, and the Jewish kingdom in the Jerusalem region was formed from this tribe. As for the names of the kings in the genealogy of Jesus, they refer to those who ruled this small kingdom in Jerusalem and its suburbs.

At the time of this division, God sent his prophets to the northern kingdom. Some of those prophets were Elijah, Amos and Hosea. They worked towards stopping the idol worship that entered into the nation in the name of God and to turn Israel from the worship of images, holy trees, and from the slaying of children. They called all the gods vanities and proclaimed one almighty God emphasizing that there is but one God. They suffered from the pervading atheism and threatened the ungodly with God’s judgment and vengeance. At the same time, they proclaimed the coming of the humble and just God who would come to unify the two separated brothers and to establish peace in Jerusalem.

However, the tribes in the northern kingdom did not obey the prophets. They continued their idol worship and shameless parties and consequently atheism and corruption prevailed. God allowed the Assyrians to attack Israel with incredible power. The Assyrians besieged and destroyed Samaria. They captured the wealthy and the chiefs and took them into exile 1,500 km from their homes, into Mesopotamia. They melted away among the nations and the history of Israel had ended in 722 BC. The Assyrians took other Gentiles and housed them in Galilee, Samaria, and North Palestine in place of the captured, so these people mixed together with the rest of the people of Israel and formed a mixed religion. This prompted the southern Jews to despise and reject the northern Jews as being unclean because they intermarried with Gentiles. However, the statement "Joram begot Uzziah" does not mean that Joram is the father of Uzziah; it means that Uzziah is a descendant of Joram. There were three kings between Joram and Uzziah whose names were not mentioned in the genealogy (1 Chronicles 3:11, 12). They were Ahaziah, Joash and Amaziah. The deletion of these three kings was a divine extermination according to the promise mentioned in (Exodus 20:3-5; Deuteronomy 29:18-20). The people also did not recognize their rule over them, but rose against them and killed them. They did not bury them in the sepulchers of the kings (2 Chronicles 22:8, 9; 24:25; 25:27, 28) and excluded them from the royal list of ancestors. Matthew did the same in his Gospel writing because it would be presented to the Jews. Not mentioning their names produces no effect on the validity of the genealogy. The Jews were unable to object to this since omitting some names from genealogy records was familiar to the Jews (compare Ezra 7:1-5 with 1 Chronicles 6:3-15).

Jesus loved the despised and lived by his own choice in Nazareth, in the kingdom of the north, which caused him rejection on the part of the Jews of Jerusalem. At the time of Jesus, Herod, the king, repaired the temple, which was the second temple in Jewish history. Christ and his apostles did not reject this house that was built of stone. They called the people who gathered in the temple to commit themselves to the true God and devote themselves as living stones to build a spiritual house (themselves) into that which God would dwell by his Holy Spirit.

Prayer:

O Lord Jesus Christ, Your kingdom is not of this world. You are the true humble king. All other leaders have sinned, fought, shed blood, and laid up treasures; but you lived holy and died for the sake of truth to redeem me from shame. Please accept me and plant me into your spiritual temple that I may truly be the eternally devoted house of God.

Question 12: When did the division take place in the kingdom of the Old Testament, and from which group does Jesus descend?

1:9 … and Ahaz begot Hezekiah. (10) Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon, and Amon begot Josiah. (11) Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon.

The Assyrian empire dominated the Middle East with great power. It was situated between the Tigris and the Nile. The small Jewish kingdom around Jerusalem was a thorn in the eye of the colonizer. So the Assyrians began to besiege the city of peace in 701 BC and the siege stopped unexpectedly with the help of the Lord when Sennacherib’s army was struck by a plague and about 185 000 soldiers died all at once.

At that time, a devout king named Hezekiah lived in Jerusalem. He worked side by side with Isaiah, the noble prophet. The Lord of Hosts appeared to Isaiah and sent him as a mighty prophet to call his king and people to repentance and to a firm belief in the faithfulness of the Most High. The Jewish people shook, but they did not changed nor renew themselves to godliness. Instead, they kept leading a life of ease and pride.

One hundred years after this divine miracle, the godly king Josiah came and made a radical reformation that covered religious and social issues. He gathered the people and read in their ears the Book of the Law that was found in the temple. He repaired the temple of the Lord and arranged its rituals so that the people might truly be sanctified. But, since the law has no ability to overcome sin, the corruption was deeper than what was apparent.

At that time, God sent a mighty prophet called Jeremiah (626-580 BC) who warned his people that the southern kingdom would pass away. His enthusiastic call to repent still attracts us today. The prophet suffered greatly from the persecution of his kings for he saw the end of the kingdom and called his tribe to politically listen to reason and yield to the enemy.

At that time, the Assyrians were defeated in Mesopotamia. Babylon took a great deal of the Assyrian culture and properties, and forced the tribe of Judah to pay exorbitant tribute to the new Babylonian king. And when the Jews rebelled against the Babylonians in 597 BC, the armies of Nebuchadnezzar invaded and occupied Jerusalem without delay, and this king offered the Jewish people a chance of their nobles and carried them into exile. Those remaining were so blind that they did not even ponder their spiritual and political weakness. This small tribe rebelled in 587 BC at the time of Zedekiah, and as a result, their city was destroyed and they were all taken into captivity.

God’s judgment will not exclude his elect if they become corrupt and depart from him and do not repent. His holy love for them is the motive for such chastisement in order to bring about repentance so he can release the captive and renew them.

Prayer:

O Lord, please forgive me of my narrow mindedness. Teach me how to change my mind that I may not take gold, nor comfort, nor weapons, as god of my life. Give me your Holy Spirit to sanctify me for acceptable behavior in truth, purity, love and self-denial, such as the behavior of your Christ on earth. Your kingdom come, your will be done in my life as it is in heaven.

Question 13: How did God protect the southern kingdom, and how did he deliver it into captivity?

1:12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel. (13) Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor. (14) Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud. (15) Eliud begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob. (16) And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.

The Jews that were made captives and carried away to Babylon were exceedingly afraid. They thought that God protected them because of his covenant with them and that his presence in the temple ensured them definite victory. But, after that, they experienced God's demand for sanctification and keeping of his law in love. He was not content with their repeated, meaningless rituals, ceremonies, and prayers because his aim was not to establish a theocracy. He sought to change the hearts and make them broken and humble before him. He also sought to renew their minds and turn them into a new creation.

God does not get angry forever. He offers the nations and the individuals a second chance to repent. As such in 538 BC, two men went back to Jerusalem with broken hearts and with great hope. Their names were Zerubbabel of Davidic descent, and Jeshua the son of the former high priest. They, as well as their people, were allowed to go back home, because the Persians defeated the Babylonians and Cyrus, the king, allowed the Jews to go back home if they wished. So a small part of them went back joyously, but they found Jerusalem and its neighborhood destroyed and poor. Despite the bad situation, they took steps to rebuild the Temple, knowing that their past decline was due to their lack of faith and twisted conduct. They knew that God did not have in view a political kingdom. He demanded spiritual services, faithful worship and a pure life.

We do not know much about the men mentioned in the last third of the genealogy of Jesus. Yet, in view of the fact that the power moved from the Persians to the Greek, then to the Maccabees, and thereafter to the Romans, they lived almost continuously under the dominance of strangers. Therefore the Jewish region remained an unimportant isolated district in political history.

We are astonished when we find that the genealogy of Jesus ends with Joseph who is not a father to Jesus according to the flesh. But the Jewish understanding of genealogy at that time depended upon legitimate rights and engagements, not upon race and blood relation. Thus Jesus was grafted in with the sons of David through Joseph who adopted him. Additionally, because of a Roman census, he was born in the city of David and not in Nazareth, as Joseph was obliged to go back to the house of his ancestors according to Roman law.

Matthew testified of the importance of the title of Jesus, Son of Mary. He is the promised Christ. Matthew was not the only man who observed the Messiahship of Jesus. Many people of the Old Testament and millions of nations until now have joyfully observed that the kingdom of God came near with the birth of Jesus Christ. His love, spiritual power and humility are the signs of his supernatural kingship. Our declining world is not in need of new kingdoms and principalities since weapons and revolutions cannot change hearts; it is only the reconciliation to God through Christ and his divine peace that can renew individuals and situations. Therefore we pray with all our hearts, "Your kingdom come" in these last days.

Prayer:

O Lord Jesus, you are my king. You did not require me to pay taxes or to perform ordinances, but you gave your life for me, and delivered me from my passing hopes for political honor, economic security and the desire for revenge. You change me continuously into a person of love, giving me eternal life that I may not die when I pass away (John 11:25-26), but have eternal life.

Question 14: Why does the genealogy of Jesus end with Joseph who is not his father according to the flesh?

1:17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations. (See Luke 3:23-38)

Fourteen is composed of (2 X 7). Also seven is equal to (3 + 4). The number (3) refers to the triune godhead, and the number (4) represents the four universe directions; therefore heaven and earth have been linked with number (7) in the development of history. Yet when number (7) is repeated again to become (14), this means the completion of the divine historical development of our world. This appears in two quotations that give evidence to God and his work in our present life.

These periods of fourteen years appeared three times. Matthew saw that they foretold the coming of Christ according to God’s timing. It also informed of the dwelling of the kingdom of heaven on earth. Matthew takes interest in mentioning the lineage of kings and these few historical details because he saw God’s great designs for salvation in them.

The Lord chose Abraham and made him the beginning of a great nation of which David became the summit. The collapse started with Solomon, and the political state was divided at the time of Rehoboam, his son. Then the northern kingdom was exterminated, and the Jews were taken captive to Babylon.

The Jews who came back from captivity realized from God’s school of chastening that God’s purpose for the repentant was not authority, weapons and comfort, but a holy life according to the Law of Moses, that they might become holy and royal people in humility and truth.

This school of brokenness did not produce the same thinking in people. The zealous objected to God and to his crushing them and they determined to build up a glorious nation at any cost. The Pharisees, however, attempted to fulfill the law through their own diligence and they became proud and boastful. A small number of the Jews understood their inability to lead a holy life, so they lived in repentance and brokenness before God, waiting with the tears of repentance for the coming Messiah. At the time of Jesus, the Jews did not see events that indicated the coming of the great savior of their nation who would redeem and bless the whole world. However Matthew, the evangelist, observed the absolute proof in the course of history that Jesus was the promised Christ of God.

Prayer:

I glorify you, my Holy and Almighty God, because you prepared from ages past for the coming of your Son, and employed the fathers, the kings and the prophets to prepare his way. You were not ashamed to include captives and adulterers into the genealogy of your Son. Thank you that I too may be sanctified in faith and become the fruit of the redemptive work of your Son. May my life reflect the goodness of his Spirit, giving you praise and bringing you glory.

Question 15: What does the chronological order of the genealogy of Jesus indicate?

Birth and naming of Jesus (1:18-25)

1:18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. (See Luke 1:26-38)

From her youth, Mary – the pure virgin, kept the word of God by heart. Her praises indicate a rich knowledge of the Old Testament and the prophets. The Holy Spirit inspired her with a beautiful testimony about the glory, the wisdom and the wonderful works of God. Mary, like the majority of girls, might have expected marriage to fulfill the desire of her heart, so she was satisfied with her espousal to the carpenter. Espousal was considered among the people of the Old Testament as a legitimate engagement, so that Joseph was called "her husband" (v. 19) and she was called "his wife" (v. 20).

Christ was born of a virgin, but of a betrothed virgin:

1. To sanctify marriage and to recommend it as "honorable among all" (Hebrews 13:4), not giving heed to doctrines of demons – "forbidding to marry" (1 Timothy 4:3).

2. To save the credit of the blessed virgin. It was fit that her conception should be protected by an espousal to Joseph, and so be justified from doubt and suspicion in the eyes of the world.

3. That the blessed virgin might have one to be a guide of her youth, a companion of her solitude and travels, a partner in her cares, and a help mate for her.

Suddenly, she received a message from the angel Gabriel that God himself chose her to give birth by his Holy Spirit to a son. This news deeply excited this pure virgin, but she humbly and submissively believed the word of God. The pregnancy was not an act of flesh, for the Holy Spirit is holy in himself. Every claim that God took Mary to be his woman and had a child by her is a blasphemy that will not be forgiven. There is no doubt that modern biology is not against the idea that a child may be born by a virgin without an earthly father. This is known as Human Cloning. But everyone who is born again of the Holy Spirit, recognizes this secret and accepts the truth of Jesus’ coming by way of the blessed Virgin Mary.

Mary magnified God for his glorious plan. But at the same time this situation was a bit perplexing to her. She could hardly have expected Joseph to accept her story, so she kept silent and trusted God to be her witness. She suffered and prayed knowing that she would be treated as a harlot and could be stoned to death according to Moses’ law. But believing in God as a Savior, she trusted him, and by her faith she made possible what was impossible: that the Son of God would be incarnate through her body. Because of her great faith, she is glorified by all the ages on earth. Mary’s faith prepared her to be the last link of the chain of the heroes of faith in the genealogy of Jesus. We can learn from her.

Prayer:

I worship you eternal God, because you came upon the Virgin Mary by your Holy Spirit and gave birth to your Son Jesus through her. I cannot logically understand this miracle but I worship you with praise and thankfulness because you give birth to me spiritually to enable me to understand who you are, and who your Son and Holy Spirit are, and what your great work is.