Matthew 1:1-17, Lessons from Christ’s Genealogy

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Matthew 1:1-17 (KJV)

  1. The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
  2. Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren;
  3. And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram;
  4. And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon;
  5. And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse;
  6. And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias;
  7. And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa;
  8. And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias;
  9. And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias;
  10. And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias;
  11. And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon:
  12. And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel;
  13. And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor;
  14. And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud;
  15. And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob;
  16. And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
  17. So 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.

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Lessons from Christ’s Genealogy

OUTLINE

  • The Jewish Seed (v1-5)
  • The Royal Seed (v6-11)
  • The Woman’s Seed (v12-17)

INTRODUCTION

The sermon title is “Lessons from Christ’s Genealogy” taken from the Gospel according to Matthew in Matthew 1:1-17. 

A genealogy is a family tree, a line of descendants traced continuously from an ancestor. The New Testament begins by tracing the ancestry of Jesus Christ, the Son of God to Abraham and David. This is to ascertain without a doubt that Jesus Christ is the living and true God and that He entered into the history of our world, at a certain point in time. Jesus Christ is the most important Person in human history. He is the only Saviour of the world. In fact, by Him, our calendar is divided, B.C., Before Christ and A.D. Anno Domini, the year of the Lord. It is the purpose of our study to introduce this Saviour to you. In fact, from Jesus to Revelation, Jesus Christ is the sum and substance of the message of God to man. If you are already a Christian, then, in our study, you may know Him in a deeper and more meaningful way that will help you through the pathways of life.

Christianity has a historical basis. And the backbone of history is chronology. Here, we have a chronology, divided into three parts of 14 generations – the period of Abraham to David to Israel’s exile to Babylon and the period from their return from exile to the time of Christ.

Israel evolved from a theocracy the word means “God rules”– where God rules during the time of the patriarchs, to a monarchy “king rules”, God rules through God’s appointed king. From this genealogy, Matthew in an orderly way established the legal claim of Jesus Christ to be the King of Israel. But you will see in the Book of Matthew that Jesus, Israel’s true King was rejected. 

However, Matthew prophesied at the end of his book in Matt. 24-25 that Jesus Himself the true King of Israel will one day not only rule all Israel but the world – Theo-monarchy – Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of lords, Himself shall rule and set up His kingdom on earth for 1000 years. This is recorded in Rev. 20. And Rev. 1:7 tells us that the world who rejects Him will see Him as Judge. 

Revelation 1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

But while the Lord tarries in His 2nd coming, all who will receive Him as Saviour will not have to face Him at His 2nd coming as Judge. 

The New Testament opens by presenting to us the evidence that Jesus Christ is truly the Son of David, the Son of Abraham, and the Son of God. Jesus is the true Messiah of Israel and the Saviour of the world. The Jewish seed from Abraham, the first Jew, the Royal seed beginning with David the king (v6) and the Woman’s seed (v16), the virgin-born Son of God. 

Therefore, three thoughts as we consider the lessons from Christ’s genealogy, we will approach it according to our text and we shall draw practical lessons from there.

  • The Jewish Seed (v1-5)
  • The Royal Seed (v6-11)
  • The Woman’s Seed (v12-17)

(1) The Jewish Seed (v1-5)

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

This is the verse that opens the New Testament. It is the book (or the account, as the Hebrew word sepher, a book, sometimes signifies) of the generation of Jesus Christ, of his ancestors according to the flesh; or, it is the narrative of his birth. The next word, geneseos, is the genitive of the word with which every English reader is familiar, namely, genesis; capitalized Genesis when it refers to the Bible’s “book of beginnings.” The entire expression biblos geneseos means, therefore, record of beginning, or of origin or ancestry.[1] It is the record of ancestry of the One who is called Jesus Christ.[2]

Jesus which means “Saviour” –  Matthew 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.  

To the personal name, Jesus has added the official name, Christ. This is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew Messiah. It indicates that the One to whom it refers was by the Holy Spirit anointed (hence, ordained, set apart, and qualified) to carry out the task of saving his people. Cf. Isa. 61:1; Luke 4:18; Heb. 1:9. He was anointed to be our chief prophet (Deut. 18:15; Isa. 55:4; Acts 3:22; 7:37); only high-priest (Ps. 110:4; Heb. 10:12, 14); and eternal king (Ps. 2:6; Zech. 9:9; Matt. 21:5; 28:18; Luke 1:33). Of course, the names Jesus and Christ, as here used, belong together. They really constitute one glorious name given to our Saviour.[3]

Abraham is the first Hebrew or first Jew from which the nation of Israel would come and David was born to lead Israel as its greatest king and Israel still have, the flag that represents, the symbol, the sign of David and the city of David, it is the place where King David built his palace and established his capital in Jerusalem. 

Matthew presents Jesus as the King. And He establishes this by telling us about Jesus’s family tree. If He is to be believed as King then He is to have credibility as King. And there it must be proved that He comes from the royal line. That He descends from the genealogy of royalty. This we shall study in our second thought from verses 6-11.

But what we want to establish now is that Jesus is the direct descendant of Abraham and seed of Abraham. You may ask, what is so significant about that?

What is significant is that God made a promise to Abraham in Gen. 12:3, “thy seed shall all the world be blessed”.

Genesis 12:1-3 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: 2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: 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.

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

Galatians 3:16 Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

This particular descendant Christ is the promised seed that will bless the families of the earth with salvation. These words were uttered by our Lord to Abraham 2000 years before the birth of Christ. And what Matthew is recording for us is that this promise has been fulfilled to the jot and title, albeit through the intrigue of human history.

Galatians 3:6 Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

Galatians 3:7 Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. 8 And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. 9 So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.

Galatians 3:26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

It must cause us to realize that God always keeps His Word. He is true to His Word. What He says, He will do! He has brought forth the Saviour of the world in the fullness of time.

What is your response to this truth? It is simply to believe. Abraham believed although he did not live to see that promise fulfilled. But we lived in hindsight, we look back in time 2000 years to see how God fulfilled that promise made to Abraham when Jesus was born. And Matthew records this truth that we may believe and have life. Do you believe that Jesus is indeed the Son of God?

Luke 12:4 And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him. 6 Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? 7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows. 8 Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God: 9 But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God.

If you are a child of God, realize that this great God who worked out this great salvation plan will also take care of you. Are you in any trouble? He is able to meet all your needs if you would only call upon Jesus!

There are two great days in our life. First is the day we are born and second the day we realize why! 

Abraham was born to be the father of many nations. David was born to lead Israel as its greatest king and Israel still has, the flag that represents, the symbol, the sign of David, still called the city of David, which is why he was born. 

Mozart, Beethoven and Bach were born to compose timeless, ageless music that would be played in our generation and in the generation to come. Michelangelo was born to sculpt and paint. Henry Ford was born to develop the idea of a motorized vehicle which would be built and duplicated over and over again till this day, cars bear his name. You too were born for a purpose. You may not have realized it yet.

John 18:37 Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.

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

This is the story of the Old Testament from Genesis 12 onwards to the end of the book.

3 And Judas begat Phares and Zara (1) of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram; 

It is interesting that Thamar was recorded in the genealogy that would normally consist of male descendants. She is the first of the 4 women mentioned. She was a Canaanite the wife of Er the oldest son of Judah in Gen. 38:6-30 who God judged for his wickedness. And Onan the second son was asked to marry Thamar and give seed to his brother. But Onan refused and God also slew him. And Judah had a third son Shelah who promised Thamar will be given to her for marriage to bring continuity to the family. It was not said in the Bible that had faith in Jehovah, Israel’s God. But she perhaps knew the Messianic significance of the line of Judah, and so she was determined in an incestuous way to save the extinction of the family and tribe which the Messiah was to come, she played the harlot and Judah his father-in-law fell into it. Out of this came twins – Phares and Zara in which Phares continued the line.

We cannot but wonder how Judah and Tama have the distinction of mention in this sacred genealogy of Jesus Christ. Bishop Hall expressed it this way, “God’s election is only by Grace, for otherwise Judah would never have been chosen. Judah was a Jew and Thamar was a Gentile and thus their parentage of Phares (Matt. 1:3) can be looked upon as a foreshadowing of the fact that both Jews and Gentiles were to share in the blessings of the Gospel.” This is the blessing that God promised to Abraham that was being worked out here.

4 And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon; 5 And Salmon begat Booz (2) of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed (3) of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse;

The word “beget” simply means to be the “father of” has the meaning of the word “to procreate”.

It is interesting that there was another lady mentioned in verse 5 that is Rachab, or Rahab. She was another Gentile, the prostitute from Jericho at the initial stage of Israel’s conquest of the Promised Land.

Hebrews 11:31 By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.

We may observe from Joshua 2, by faith, Rahab fearfully confessed the true God (v1-10) and by faith Rahab courageously followed the true God (v11-24).

Rahab this character can hardly be called a model for who she is, a harlot, a prostitute. A woman of particularly low morals, she sold her body for filthy lucre, she sold herself without regard to reputation, without regard to personal dignity. She was an immoral woman. This woman lived in the gutter or the back streets of society. She was undeniably a guilty sinner, rebellious, unclean and wicked. But she is one of the two women personally named in Hebrews 11 Hall of Faith. Sarah, the wife of Abraham is the other woman. 

Sarah was a godly woman, the wife of the founder of the Hebrew race and God used her to bring forth Issac in her old age. But Rahab was an ungodly Gentile who worshipped heathen gods and sold her body for money. If you look at them socially speaking, they have nothing in common. But from God’s viewpoint, Sarah and Rahab shared the most important thing in life. They both exercised saving faith in the living and true God. Rahab was called “the woman God took from the dunghill”.

Not only does the Bible associate Rahab with Sarah but the epistle of James chapter 2:21-26 associates her with Abraham. James used both Abraham and Rahab to illustrate the fact that true saving faith always proves itself by good works.[4]

But there is more to be said of Rahab. As we search the Scriptures further, we will discover that the Bible associated Rahab with the Messiah. When you read the genealogy of the Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew chapter 1, you will find Rahab’s name listed there in verse 5. “Rachab” is the Greek translation. She was the mother of Boaz, husband of Ruth, and the great, great-grandmother of David, she was in the line of Christ. God found her in Jericho, a guilty sinner, condemned to be destroyed with the rest of the Canaanites, but God opened her spiritual eyes, convicted her of her sins, converted her and God exalted her. She feared God and believed in God. God gave her an inheritance among the sanctified, the wild olive grafted into the main branch to partake of her richness and fatness.

James 2:5 Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?

God did not despise her past, but God chose to save this one woman from the entire city of Jericho before the axe of His judgment would fall upon it. She was special in God’s sight. Why was Rahab special? 

As we study Rahab’s life, we see the life of a sinner saved by faith. It was the grace of God that came upon her. Does she deserve it? No. She was a sinner. This is the power of God’s love demonstrated in Rahab’s life. What an encouragement to see that there is no sin too great and God cannot pardon if we would only repent and believe.

And God used her mightily to save the spies to be a part of His redemption plan for mankind. Is she worthy? Not in man’s eyes. We echo what Paul would say.

1 Corinthians 1:27-29 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: 29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.

Here is the life of Rahab the marvellous testimony of God’s salvation, salvation grace through faith that Rahab received through the line the hope of eternal life by the scarlet thread, of Jesus’ blood, the perfect atonement for our sins. 

Then there is Ruth, the Moabite, why was she also given a place of honour? Is it not to teach the important lesson that God’s grace is showered not only upon Jews but also upon Gentiles (Gal. 3:28-29)?

Galatians 3:28-29 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. 

How we too must thank God that He did not count us, Gentiles, out of His grace and favour![5]

The first thought, was the Jewish seed (v1-5) descending from Abraham and then our second thought was the royal seed (v6-11).

(2) The Royal Seed (v6-11)

6 And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her (4) that had been the wife of Urias; 

God promised to David 2 Samuel 7:12-13 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.

7 And Solomon begat wicked Roboam, and Roboam begat wicked Abia; wicked Abia begat good Asa; good Asa begat good Josaphat; good Josaphat begat wicked Joram. 

Grace does not run in the blood, neither does reigning sin. God’s grace is his own, and he gives or withholds it as he pleases.[6]We realize how many godly parents in this catalogue had wicked and ungodly sons. The names of Roboam, and Joram, and Amon, and Jechonias, should teach us humbling lessons. They all had pious fathers. But they were all wicked men. God does not run in families. It needs something more than good examples and good advice to make us children of God. They that are born again are not born of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. Praying parents should pray night and day, that their children may be born of the Spirit.

8…and Joram begat Ozias; 9 And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias; 10 And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias; 

In the pedigree of the kings of Judah, between Joram and Ozias (v. 8), there are three left out, namely, Ahaziah, Joash, and Amaziah; and therefore when it is said, Joram begat Ozias, it is meant, according to the usage of the Hebrew tongue, that Ozias was lineally descended from him, as it is said to Hezekiah that the sons which he should beget should be carried to Babylon, whereas they were removed several generations from him. It was not through mistake or forgetfulness that these three were omitted, but, probably, they were omitted in the genealogical tables that the evangelist consulted, which yet were admitted as authentic. Some give this reason for it: — It is Matthew’s design, for the sake of memory, to reduce the number of Christ’s ancestors to three fourteens, it was requisite that in this period three should be left out, and none fitter than they who were the immediate progeny of cursed Athaliah, who introduced the idolatry of Ahab into the house of David, for which this brand is set upon the family and the iniquity thus visited to the third and fourth generation. Two of these three were apostates; and such God commonly sets a mark of his displeasure upon in this world: they all three had their heads brought to the grave with blood.[7]

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

When Solomon’s descendent Jehoiachin, the last legitimate king of the Davidic was deported to Babylon, God cursed his descendants for their disobedience toward Him going after other gods. 

Jeremiah 22:30 Thus saith the LORD, Write ye this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days: for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah.

Never again will any of his descendants sit upon the throne prospering. Interestingly, Zerubabbel came back with Joshua, leading 50,000 who came back but he was not king, even though he was of the direct line of Jehoiachin because he knew that in Jer. 22:30 that prophecy had been uttered that curse. 

How could the Jews from the Babylonian captivity into the inter-testament period, those 600 years, from the curse that Jeremiah uttered on Jehoiachin to Jeconiah in Jeremiah 22 of his prophecy? How could Jews have coped with that? What is the hope of a Messiah if the very line through which He had been promised was now cursed?

(3) The Woman’s Seed (v12-17)

12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel; 13 And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor; 14 And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud; 15 And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob; 16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. 

How is God’s promise going to be fulfilled with the curse on the Davidic line of kings?

God by-passed that cursed line and ended up in Joseph and brought about Jesus through another son of David, Nathan, all the way down to Mary, the biological line, so that we have in Jesus a combination of the legal line through Joseph who has the legal right, by adopting a son, who was not another man’s son but was of the offspring of the virgin Mary and that’s the marvel of how God worked this out, staggers our imagination.

Matthew 1:16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

Of whom? Of Joseph? No! You can’t tell from the English translation but the Greek text tells us the “whom” is feminine and not masculine. So, all of a sudden, amazingly, we are told while Joseph was the husband of Mary, it was by Mary that Jesus was born. You say, of course, every child will be born of the mother but you see the line is father to son to grandson and all of a sudden, Joseph was, as it was set aside, and Mary is the focus of the one-by-whom Jesus entered the world. Now similarly, in the gospel of Luke, notice the intricate by which the Holy Spirit protects the uniqueness of the Lord Jesus’s birth by virgin conception.

Luke 3:23 And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli,

In Luke 3:23, Jesus was traced again. The Greek word simply tells us that Joseph was simply outside of the genealogy of the Lord and is traced back all the way to Adam, in Luke’s genealogy. From Mary back to Adam, as in Matthew, it was Joseph back to David and to Abraham. So Luke says, being a son as was supposed of Joseph, but actually, the son or descendent through His mother, of the next named man, namely, Heli. So the genealogy, you see, is not Jesus and Joseph and Heli, it’s Jesus, Mary, and Heli because He was the physical descendent of Heli through Mary alone. There was no physical connection with Joseph at all, so He is physically and genetically of a different line, back through Mary all the way to Nathan, a different son of David, not Nathan the prophet, but a son of David named Nathan. 

Let’s think of it this way, by way of a mental chart, that God would provide for us in His Word – King David had a number of sons by different wives, and one of them to whom God gave the throne, the kingship was Solomon but when Solomon’s descendant Jehoiachin, the last legitimate king of the Davidic was deported to Babylon, God cursed his descendants. Never again will any of his descendants sit upon the throne prospering. Interestingly, Zerubabbel came back with Joshua, leading 50,000 who came back but he was not king, even though he was of the direct line of Jehoiachin because he knew that in Jer. 22:30 that prophecy had been uttered, that curse, and so God by-passed that cursed line and ended up in Joseph and brought about Jesus through another son of David, Nathan, all the way down to Mary, the biological line, so that we have in Jesus a combination of the legal line through Joseph who has the legal right, by adopting a son, who was not another man’s son, but was of the offspring of the virgin Mary and that’s the marvel of how God worked this out, staggers our imagination.

God is able to accomplish something no human mind can anticipate. The two genealogies in Matthew and Luke have very different purposes. They are very backwards from each other. Matthew starts with Abraham and works through to Jesus through the legal father who adopted Jesus, Joseph but Luke begins with Mary and works back all the way to Adam, whom he calls the Son of God, who is therefore created to be like God, like angels. When we analyzed them carefully, we begin to see something marvellous emerging. That God is able to accomplish something no human mind can anticipate. 

Well, God solved the problem by bringing together in that humble home situation in Nazareth a man who is the inheritor, the legal right to that throne, a humble carpenter, to adopt a boy who had no other human father and thus to pass on to Him legal right without inheriting the curse through his seed genetically and Mary, how could she have realized that she was a direct descendent of David that’s of course why Joseph and Mary went both down to Bethlehem to be taxed, to be enrolled, registered because they were the house of David, both of them through different lines. How could she have realized that by marrying a man like Joseph, she could become a biological mother of a boy who had no human father but receive legal rights through Joseph? God solved the problem and the marvel of the mystery of the incarnate Christ is His solution.

CONCLUSION

The Jewish seed, the Royal seed, the Seed of the woman. That’s how God accomplish His redemption plan to bring forth the Saviour of the world.

Jesus lived a sinless life for 33 years before He was betrayed and sentenced to death on the cross. On the cross, He shed His blood to cleanse our sins. And Jesus died a death that we could not, to be the Substitute, the Lamb of God that will take away the sins of the world. And three days later He rose from the dead giving eternal life to all who will believe in Him.

What a great God we have, what a redemption we received in Jesus Christ. If you are not a Christian, you have not your sins forgiven. I urge you to come to Jesus today and receive from Him everlasting life. Amen.

[1] Hendriksen, W., & Kistemaker, S. J. (1953-2001). Vol. 9: Exposition of the Gospel According to Matthew. New Testament Commentary (107–108). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.

[2] Hendriksen, W., & Kistemaker, S. J. (1953-2001). Vol. 9: Exposition of the Gospel According to Matthew. New Testament Commentary (108). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.

[3] Hendriksen, W., & Kistemaker, S. J. (1953-2001). Vol. 9: Exposition of the Gospel According to Matthew. New Testament Commentary (108). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.

[4] Warren Wiersbe, Be Strong, David and Cook, 1993, 45.

[5] Jeffrey Khoo, The Life of Christ, Part 1, FEBC Course notes, 20-21.

[6] Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible: Complete and unabridged in one volume (1612). Peabody: Hendrickson.

[7] Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible: Complete and unabridged in one volume (1612). Peabody: Hendrickson.