Thru The Bible -- Gospel Of MatthewSample

Standing in the Gap of History: Life between the Old and New Testaments

As we begin our study of the book of Matthew, we stand at the end of a huge gap in history—a chasm of 400 years between the Old Testament and the New Testament. It’s been 400 years since Malachi, the Old Testament’s last prophet, had spoken, and after that heaven went silent.

We know from history that these four centuries were both terrific and tragic for God’s people. When the Old Testament closed, the Medo-Persian Empire dominated the earth. Egypt stood tall. But when the New Testament opens, both had faded from the scene. Now, a new power, Rome, rules the world. 

When the book of Matthew—and the New Testament— opens, it begins with a nod to Jesus’ family line, listing all of Jesus’ relatives beginning with Abraham, through David, then through the captivity years, all the way down to Joseph, the carpenter. In many respects, this genealogy is extremely important since the entire New Testament rests upon its accuracy. 

Matthew calls “Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” Instead of in chronological order, Matthew describes Jesus as “son of David” first because he presents Him as the Messiah, the One who is the King and who will establish the kingdom of heaven on earth. Jesus must be in David’s line to fulfill the prophecies God made to David. This context puts Jesus on the throne. 

Jesus is also the son of Abraham, which gives Jesus’ context as part of the nation. God had said to Abraham, “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 22:18), and Paul says, “That seed was Christ” (see Galatians 3:16). 

Matthew shows us a remarkable thing in the genealogy. Even though Joseph could not be Jesus’ natural father, Joseph gave Jesus the legal title to the throne of David. By marrying Mary, the source of Jesus’ true humanity, Joseph passed along the legal right to Jesus. Both Mary and Joseph were in the line of David, so when it came time for them to pay their tax, they both went to Bethlehem, the town of David, where prophecy said the Messiah would be born.

The random listing of names and families seem tedious to us, but each name is a story—one person’s story and how God saw them, preserved their history, and used them to accomplish His greater purposes. When your own days feel tedious, remember God is writing your story, too, perfectly placed in the flow of history. 

Next, we’ll visit with the people whom God chose to be Jesus’ earthly parents.