Jesus, Son of David

[Rachel72]

I just recently started reading the book of Matthew, in Chapter 1, it says that Jesus, the son of David and Abraham....I am wondering why?

And, when I got a little further into the chapter, the way it looks to me, Joseph and Mary were already married. Is this true? And, if so, why did they have to flee?

Curious...

Rachel

[sheya joie]

I just recently started reading the book of Matthew, in Chapter 1, it says that Jesus, the son of David and Abraham....I am wondering why?

And, when I got a little further into the chapter, the way it looks to me, Joseph and Mary were already married. Is this true? And, if so, why did they have to flee?

Curious...

Rachel

David and Abraham were very important in the history of the nation of Israel. David was King of Israel, and Abraham was the Patriarch (father) of the Israelite people. And both men had been given important prophecies from GOD about a son coming from them in the future. Matthew is showing that Jesus was the fulfillment of those prophecies.

Among David's prophecies:

2Samuel 7:12 And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.

13 He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.

Jer 23:5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.

And Abraham's prophecies:

Gen 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

Gen 22:18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.

(The word 'seed' refers to a child being born from a father.)

~~~

Joseph and Mary - In those days in Israel, before a couple got married, they had a time of betrothal. It usually lasted about a year. Betrothal was as binding as marriage, so that to get out of a betrothal, there had to be a divorce. But they had not yet had the wedding. Even though the couple wasn't yet husband and wife, the terms 'husband' and 'wife' were sometimes used to describe their relationship. Joseph and Mary were still in the betrothal period.

As for why they fled, I'm not sure if I understand what you mean. If you mean them going to Bethlehem, they didn't 'flee' there; they went there to be registered for the Emperor of Rome's census.

Luke 2:1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.

2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)

3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)

5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

Later, after Jesus was born, they did flee. But that was to protect Jesus from being murdered by Herod the King.

Mat 2:13 And when they [the wise men] were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.

Mat 2:14 When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:

Mat 2:15 And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.

Mat 2:16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.

By the way, the list of Jesus's ancestors in Matthew chapter 1 includes a great number of men who are mentioned in the Old Testament. All the men from David (in verse 6) to Jechonias (in verse 11), ruled as kings over either the nation of Israel or the smaller nation of Judah.

Hope that helps.

[irishcowboy]

this also identifies the family line....

just as our sir names do....

my sir name goes all the way back to the mid third century ( as best i can run the geneology back )

O'Neill, means Grandson of Neill...... ( actually the spelling was just a tad bit different...)

in Iceland, my son's names would be Christian Michaelson...... and Michael Michaelson....

if I had a daughter, her name would be (example) Deborah Michaelsdaughter or maybe Hanna Michaelsdaughter....

Christian's sons would have a christian name and then a sir name of Christianson or Christiansen... his daughters would be sirnamed Christiansdaughter......

there were actually a number of people that carried the name of Jesus... but only one of those came from the house of David...... that was Christ.....

it is a way to identify which man they were speaking of..... and showing that it did allign up with what had been promised and written......

all through the O.T. you will see geneology listed, and some of it is listed several times.... this also shows how everything ties together so that one can back the other up..... Scripture will back up Scripture....

mike

[irishcowboy]

as far as Mary and Joseph, they were legal except the marriage had not been consimated.....

in other words, Joseph did not know Mary until after the birth of Christ...

mike

[Rachel72]

Thank you. This is how I understand what you have said.

Because David and Abraham were such followers of God, God chose for them to be Jeus' father. Was this like a prize, a reward for being so faithful? I see what you are saying, but what throws me is that Jesus' father is God and Joseph. Because of their high standards, and God's prophecy, we are to understand that David and Abraham, too, were Jesus' father.

Am I understanding? One more thing...if Joseph and Mary WERE married, why did they have to flee? My understanding is that God would keep Joseph safe and no harm would come to him for Mary being pregnant. Was this an issue? Or am I getting it all wrong. I am so hungry for God's word, I just want to learn so much, but sometimes, I have a hard time understanding. I am sure you will hear from me again...LOL

Thanks for the help!

Rachel

Edited February 23, 2006 by Rachel72

[irishcowboy]

God did keep Joseph and Mary and the Baby safe....

they fled because God was with them, God told them to get up and leave so that the soldiers could not find them.....they had to do as God told them or they might not have been kept safe.

there is really only one thing in the Word of God that is totally unconditional... and that is His love...God;s Love for us.....

everything else has conditions on it.... even our salvation has a condition on it, and that is to turn our lives over to Christ, take Christ as our Savior... and that has steps to it..... one of those is to REPENT of our sins and another is asking for forgiveness.... conditions....

Mary and Joseph flead Bethlahem to save the life of their child... God did keep them safe. God also sent the wise men home by a different route.... again, keeping Joseph and Mary and Jesus safe from harm.

God's promise is always with us, it is up to us to keep our part of the covenant ( covenants are two sided )God has already done his part, we need to do ours....

Rachel, here is one way to learn God's Word, to find understanding in His Word.

every day, spend several minutes (don't time it or you will be concentrating on the clock) in prayer, seeking the Lord and what He has for you that day in His Word, to help you understand it better.

then. read for a while, not too long..... 5 minutes a day will get you through the N.T. in one year, and 10 minutes a day will get you through the O.T. in one year.... I would start out at this rate, and stop at stopping points.

after reading, spend a few more minutes in prayer Thanking God for His Holy Word, and ask Him to help you utilize His word. Next, spend a few minutes just listening for Him...

this will take about 30 minutes. again, do not worry about timing it, cause you will spend more time trying to make sure you spend the exact time doing each part and then it will be come more of a chore then a pleasure...

there will be days that you do not feel like doing anything but do it anyways...

as time goes on, you will notice that you will want to spend more time everyday in prayer and in His Word

I hope this helps you....

your friend and brother...

mike

[Rachel72]

Thank you Mike. I will try and do that. I am so hungry for God's work. Thanks to everyone as well...

[Triple Crown]

Because David and Abraham were such followers of God, God chose for them to be Jeus' father. Was this like a prize, a reward for being so faithful?

I wouldn't consider it a "prize", but look at it as more of the fact that God knew the future of these men and knew they were "right for the job" let's say.

I see what you are saying, but what throws me is that Jesus' father is God and Joseph.

Because of their high standards, and God's prophecy, we are to understand that David and Abraham, too, were Jesus' father.

GOD and GOD only was Jesus' father Rachel, plain and simple

Joseph was more like a "stepfather" more or less.

Peace to you

iHs

TC