New Testament · Gospel

Matthew 1

The King Arrives

The New Testament opens with a genealogy — and every name carries a story. Two great promises converge in one person. This is where it all comes together.

Berean Standard Bible BSB KJV

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1This is the record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham:

2Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers.

3Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram.

4Ram was the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon.

5Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse,

6and Jesse the father of David the king. David was the father of Solomon by Uriah’s wife,

7Solomon the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asa.

8Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah.

9Uzziah was the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah.

10Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, Amon the father of Josiah,

11and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.

12After the exile to Babylon: Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,

13Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor.

14Azor was the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud.

15Eliud was the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob,

16and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

17In all, then, there were fourteen generations from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Christ.

18This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged in marriage to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.

19Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and was unwilling to disgrace her publicly, he resolved to divorce her quietly.

20But after he had pondered these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to embrace Mary as your wife, for the One conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

21She will give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.”

22All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:

23“Behold, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel” (which means, “God with us”).

24When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and embraced Mary as his wife.

25But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a Son. And he gave Him the name Jesus.

Understand This

Matthew 1, explained

What Matthew 1 is saying

Matthew opens with a genealogy (biblos geneseōs) tracing Jesus from Abraham through David to Joseph, structured in three sets of fourteen generations. The birth narrative establishes Jesus as conceived by the Holy Spirit, with Joseph's righteous response guided by angelic revelation.

The background behind it

Written by the apostle Matthew primarily for a Jewish-Christian audience, likely from Antioch in the 60s–80s AD. The genealogy's tripartite structure around Abraham, David, and the exile reflects deliberate theological architecture linking Jesus to Israel's covenant story.

Themes running underneath

The fulfillment of messianic prophecy is the controlling theme, with the Isaiah 7:14 citation establishing the 'Immanuel' motif. The genealogy's inclusion of Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba signals that God's redemptive plan has always incorporated outsiders and the unexpected.

Why it still matters

Matthew's opening reminds readers that God is faithful across generations, working through flawed people and broken histories to accomplish redemptive purposes.

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Scripture text: Berean Standard Bible — used by permission, Bible Hub.