God’s Promise Comes True

Matthew 1:17-25

Jesus Is Born

The angel appeared in the dream of Joseph and told him of the fact behind the pregnancy of Mary, that she was overshadowed by the Holy Spirit. The angel then encouraged Joseph to take Mary as his wife and instructed him to give the son the name “Jesus” (Matthew 1:18-25）.

The Greek word for “Jesus” is Ἰησοῦς, and its Hebrew’s transliteration is “Joshua” (Joshua 1:1) or “Jeshua” (Ezra 2:2), which means “The LORD saves.”

The name, “Jesus,” has the meaning of “the LORD saves”. The declaration of the angels explains specifically that the birth of Jesus comes with the mission of rescuing His people from their sins.

This phrase indicates not only the purpose of the birth of Jesus Christ, but at the same time, reveals the faithfulness and lovingkindness of God towards His people.

It shows that God kept His covenant firmly as He realized His promises to Abraham and David. God revealed His love for His people who sinned, and He showed His grace and forgave them, and He rescued them from their sins.

This message is the very core of the book of Matthew in part where the genealogy of Jesus Christ is recorded. The conclusion of this genealogy (Matthew 1:1-17) is that, from Abraham to David, it adds up to fourteen generations, and from David to the time of exile to Babylon also adds up to fourteen generation; And from exile to Babylon to Christ is another fourteen generations (Matthew 1:17).

We can see that the genealogy recorded by Matthew is an abstraction of the Israelite history, where it reflects the three main focuses in the history of Israel: Abraham, David and the captivity to Babylon. Ultimately it points towards a grand new season, where Christ Jesus was born, and He shall rescue His people from their sins.

From Abraham to David

The story of the Israelites started from Abraham. The Israelites are the descendants of Abraham (Matthew 3:9). They were chosen as God’s people, and it was based on the covenant that made between God and Abraham.

God covenanted with Abram and promised him that He would make his descendants a great nation, and they would possess the land of Canaan (Genesis 12:1-3; 15:7-21).

When it came to the time of Moses, the Israelites were settled down in Egypt for four hundred years. They were slaves of Pharaoh. God remembered His promise made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; thus, He rescued the Israelites out of the slavery of the Egyptians (Exodus 2:24).

God covenanted with them on Mount Sinai, and made the Israelites His own people and He, their God (Leviticus 26:12; Jeremiah 11:4). God led the Israelites into the land of Canaan, and they possessed the land as their inheritance.

When it came to the times of David, all the enemies in the land of Canaan were destroyed, and the Israelites enjoyed peace from all sides in the Promised Land, and the land enjoyed the fulfillment of its promised Sabbath (2 Samuel 7:1). God gave more grace to David, and He promised that the house of David and his kingdom shall be established forever (2 Samuel 7:1-16).

“From Abraham to David,” we witness of God’s faithfulness towards His people. Since the day God made His covenant with Abraham, He led the Israelites step by step until they experienced peace from all sides. God is faithful and whatever He has promised, He will fulfill it.

From David to Exile in Babylon

“From Abraham to David” reminds us how blessed the Israelites were; But “from David to exile in Babylon,” we feel sorry for the unfaithfulness of the Israelites which lasted long. Their captivity was the result of not obeying God’s law. They violated the Sinai Covenant (Deuteronomy 28:36-37, 63-64).

Twice, Matthew mentioned in the genealogy about the event of exile in Babylon (Matthew 1:11,12), and he mentioned again in the conclusion (Matthew 1:17). It revealed that the history of Israel was gloomed over the sin of rebellion against God’s covenant.

The Israelites had deserted God for a long time, and they refused to keep His commandments. God’s people were rebellious and they had violated His Laws, and finally they were captured into the Babylon. They fell under the punishment of God.

However, God is faithful. He had covenanted with Abraham to bless his descendants. His lovingkindness toward the Israelites was unfailing. He was willing to pardon them. He had stipulated in the prophets’ message there will be a time of restoration after His punishment. Though God’s people were captured because of their sins, they could return to their Promised Land once they repented and turned back to God (Deuteronomy 30:1-6).

All the prophecies that were spoken through the prophets gave hope to God’s people who were in captivity, that in the end, God shall bring them back to their homeland. They shall become God’s people again, and God will be their God. The descendants of David will reign forever.

From the exile to Babylon to Christ

The Israelites returned to their Promised Land after seventy years of captivity in Babylon, and they rebuilt the city of Jerusalem and the Temple. However, their rulers were not descendants of David, but the King of Persians instead.

They prayed sorrowfully to God in face of such a situation, and said, “But see, we are slaves today, slaves in the land you gave our ancestors so they could eat its fruit and the other good things it produces.” (Nehemiah 9:36)

They still waited for God to raise a descendant of David as their king to rule over them.

“From the exile of Babylon to Christ”, the captivity history finally came to its end with Christ’s advent. The Greek word for Christ” is “χριστός” which means “Messiah –the Anointed”.

The book of Matthew starts with a reference that Jesus Christ is the descendant of David (Matthew 1:1), and it indicates that Jesus is the descendant of David, the One who reigns forever, and who will rule over God’s people.

The coming of Jesus Christ signified the end of the captivity, and the dawn of a new era. Jesus would rescue His people from their sins. The captivity ended, and the sin of God’s people was forgiven, and God’s promise was fulfilled.

 I will bring Judah and Israel back from captivity and will rebuild them as they were before. I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against me and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against me.……” (Jeremiah 33:7-8)

The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will fulfil the good promise I made to the people of Israel and Judah. “‘In those days and at that time I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line; he will do what is just and right in the land. (Jeremiah 33:14-15)

Jesus Christ is the descendant of David who reigns forever, and He shall execute justice over the whole earth. He is the descendant of Abraham who shall be a blessing to all nations, and He came to the world to be the atonement for all mankind (Matthew 20:28). He shed His blood that the sins of men may be forgiven (Matthew 26:28).

The birth of Jesus Christ indicates again God’s faithfulness and lovingkindness. He fulfilled His promise and gave grace with the forgiveness of sin. God’s faithfulness and lovingkindness are not merely revealed to the Israelites, but to us today also.

May we receive the grace of salvation which follows the birth of Jesus Christ, and may we experience God’s faithfulness and lovingkindness throughout our lifetime. And may we be the earnest disciples of Christ who will spread the gospel to the entire the world.