Matthew

This is the record of the family line of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

1The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

NoteThe King James "the book of the generation" translates a Greek phrase that could mean "record of the origin" or "record of the family line," and it echoes the wording used for the family lists in Genesis. "Christ" is not a surname but a title: the Greek word christos translates the Hebrew mashiach, "anointed one," the king promised to Israel. "Son of" here means descendant, not immediate child.

2Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Judah and Judah's brothers.

2Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren;

Note"Begat" is simply the old past tense of "beget," to father a child. Note also that the King James gives these Hebrew names in the Greek forms Matthew wrote them in, so familiar figures appear under unfamiliar spellings: Judas is Judah, Thamar is Tamar, Booz is Boaz, Ezekias is Hezekiah, Josias is Josiah. "Judah and his brethren" means the twelve sons of Jacob, from whom the twelve tribes of Israel took their names.

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

3And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram;

NoteJewish family lists normally named only fathers. Matthew breaks that pattern four times, naming Tamar here, Rahab and Ruth in verse 5, and Uriah's wife in verse 6. Tamar was Judah's widowed daughter-in-law; her twins were conceived when she disguised herself as a prostitute after Judah failed to provide for her (Genesis 38).

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

4And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon;

5Salmon was the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz was the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed was the father of Jesse.

5And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse;

NoteRahab ran a house in Jericho and sheltered Israelite spies there (Joshua 2). Ruth was from Moab, a foreign nation; the book named after her tells how she married Boaz. Both women were outsiders to Israel.

6Jesse was the father of David the king. David the king was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah.

6And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias;

NoteMatthew does not give Bathsheba's name, calling her instead "her that had been the wife of Urias." Uriah was a soldier in David's army whose death David arranged after taking his wife (2 Samuel 11). The phrasing keeps that episode in view.

7Solomon was the father of Rehoboam. Rehoboam was the father of Abijah. Abijah was the father of Asa.

7And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa;

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

8And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias;

NoteAncient family lists commonly skipped generations, and Matthew does so here: the Old Testament records three kings between Joram and Uzziah (Ahaziah, Joash and Amaziah). "Begat" in such a list can mean "was the ancestor of."

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

9And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias;

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

10And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias;

11Josiah was the father of Jeconiah and Jeconiah's brothers. This was around the time the people were carried away to Babylon.

11And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon:

NoteThe "carrying away to Babylon" is the exile: in 597 and again in 586 BC the Babylonian empire captured Jerusalem, destroyed the temple, and deported the king, the nobility and the skilled classes to Babylon, ending the line of reigning kings descended from David. It was the defining catastrophe of Israel's history, and Matthew uses it here as the hinge of his list.

12After they were taken away to Babylon, Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel. Shealtiel was the father of Zerubbabel.

12And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel;

13Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud. Abiud was the father of Eliakim. Eliakim was the father of Azor.

13And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor;

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

14And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud;

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

15And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob;

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

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

NoteThe wording shifts here. Through the whole list each man "begat" the next; at Joseph the chain stops, and the Greek relative pronoun in "of whom was born Jesus" is feminine singular, referring to Mary alone rather than to Joseph or to the couple.

17So there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David until the people were carried away to Babylon, and fourteen from that time until the Christ.

17So 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.

NoteFourteen is a deliberate arrangement, not a count that falls out naturally; Matthew has left names out to reach it. In Hebrew, letters double as numerals, and the three letters of David's name add up to fourteen, which may be the point of the pattern. Counted strictly, the third group as Matthew gives it contains thirteen names.

18This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. His mother Mary was pledged in marriage to Joseph. Before they lived together as husband and wife, it was found that she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit.

18Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.

Note"Espoused" describes a betrothal, which was far stronger than a modern engagement: the couple were legally husband and wife from that moment, though the bride stayed in her father's house until the marriage was completed, and the arrangement could only be ended by a formal divorce. This is why verse 19 calls Joseph "her husband" and speaks of putting her away. "Holy Ghost" is not a spook; in 1611 "ghost" simply meant spirit, and the phrase means the Holy Spirit.

19Joseph, the man she was pledged to, was a good and fair man. He did not want to shame her in front of everyone, so he decided to end the marriage agreement quietly.

19Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.

Note"A just man" translates a word meaning upright, one who keeps the law. "Make her a publick example" refers to the open legal proceeding a charge of unfaithfulness would require, which carried lasting disgrace and could in principle be far worse. "Put her away privily" means divorce her quietly, before the minimum two witnesses the law required rather than in a public hearing.

20But while he was thinking about all this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife. The child inside her was conceived by the Holy Spirit.

20But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

NoteThe angel addresses Joseph as "thou son of David," the same title used of Jesus in verse 1. It marks Joseph as a descendant of the royal line, which matters because naming the child (verse 21) is what legally makes Jesus Joseph's son and heir. "Take unto thee Mary thy wife" means complete the marriage by bringing her into his home.

21She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

21And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

NoteThe name explains the sentence. "Jesus" is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Yeshua or Joshua, which means "the LORD saves." "For he shall save his people" is a play on the name that is plain in Hebrew and invisible in English.

22All of this happened so that what the Lord had said through the prophet would come true:

22Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,

Note"The prophet" is Isaiah; the quotation in the next verse is Isaiah 7:14. The King James "spoken of the Lord by the prophet" means spoken by the Lord through the prophet.

23"Look, the virgin will be pregnant and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel." That name means "God with us."

23Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

NoteThe Greek word Matthew uses, parthenos, means virgin. The Hebrew word in Isaiah, almah, means a young woman of marriageable age and does not by itself specify whether she is a virgin; the Greek translation of Isaiah in circulation in Matthew's day had already rendered it parthenos. "Emmanuel" is Hebrew for "God with us," which Matthew stops to translate for readers who did not know the language.

24So when Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do, and he took Mary home as his wife.

24Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:

25But he did not have sexual relations with her until she had given birth to her firstborn son. And he named him Jesus.

25And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.

Note"Knew her not" is a Hebrew way of speaking about sexual relations, carried straight into English by the King James translators. The Greek word for "till" states when something began to be true without saying anything about what followed, so the sentence tells the reader nothing either way about the period after the birth. "Firstborn" is partly a legal term: the firstborn son held particular rights and duties under the law.