GOD WITH US

Matthew 1:1-25

Key Verse 1:23

The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son,

and they will call him Immanuel"

—which means, "God with us."

The focus of this study is the Immanuel God who has been with Israel throughout history and who came into this world to be with us.

The Genealogy of Jesus (1:1-17)

1.     Please read verse 1.

ANSWER:

Mat 1:1  A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham:

What is the opening proclamation of this gospel?

ANSWER:

Matthew's gospel begins with the proclamation that Jesus is the Christ.

This gospel was written especially to Jews with the intent to prove that Jesus is the Messiah (Christ) of Old Testament prophecy. Only this gospel begins with a genealogy and this reflects the interest of the Jews in pedigrees.

What is the significance of these three descriptions of Jesus: ‘Christ’, ‘son of David’ and ‘son of Abraham’?

ANSWER:

The word “Christ” refers to the one whom God promised to send in the Old Testament to deliver his people.

God promised to send the Christ through David in 2Sa 7:12 and to Abraham in Gen 12:3 (Gal 3:16).

For Jesus to be the Christ, it was necessary that he should be descended from David and Abraham. The genealogy which follows proves that he is.

2.     What does the genealogy show about God?

ANSWER:

It shows God's faithfulness and mercy. Somehow, God did not allow the line of his promised Messiah to be extinguished. People do not care about God's salvation plan.  But God cannot give up on it because it is impossible for men to be saved without Jesus.  So he kept working and continued the Messianic line in order to send Jesus. 

Who are the five women in Matthew’s genealogy?

ANSWER:

Tamar (3), Rahab (5), Ruth (5), Bathsheba (6) and Mary (16).

Tamar was Judah's daughter-in-law (Gen 38:11). While he was living away from his brothers in Canaan, Judah got Tamar as a wife for his firstborn son, so possibly she was a Canaanite (Gen 38:1, 6). When Tamar’s husband died, Judah refused to give his oldest remaining son to her in marriage. According to Levirate law, she was entitled to have a son through her huband’s brother to carry on the name of her dead husband. So Tamar dressed as a prostitute and became pregnant through Judah (Gen 38:18) and bore a son named Perez. By faith, she risked her life (Gen 38:24, Lev 20:12) and secured what was rightfully hers.

Rahab was a Canaanite prostitute who, by faith in God, welcomed the spies who were sent by Joshua into Jericho (Jos 2:1-21, Heb 11:31). By her faith, she and her family members were saved.  By her faith, she was counted as righteous (Jas 2:25).

Ruth was a Moabitess (Rth 1:22) and the daughter-in-law of Naomi. When Naomi’s husband and children died, she wanted to return home to Israel. Ruth was committed to following Naomi and to join with Naomi’s people and her God (Rth 1:16-17). God honored her because she committed herself to him.

Bathsheba was possibly an Israelite. She was the wife of Uriah the Hittite (2Sa 11:3). She committed adultery with David. David killed her husband, Uriah (2Sa 11:15), and married her (2Sa 11:27). Bathsheba believed and kept God’s promise regarding her son Solomon (1Ki 1:11) when Adonijah attempted to take the throne.

Mary was a virgin “pledged to be married” (betrothed) to Joseph. She believed the angel Gabriel’s words about having a child and offered herself as the Lord’s servant in obedience despite the costs (Luk 1:38) and thereby became the most blessed woman, the mother of our Lord (Luk 1:48).

Why did the author include Gentile women in Jesus’ genealogy? (3, 5)

ANSWER:

Mat 1:3  Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram,

Mat 1:5  Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse,

The Jews regarded Gentiles as unclean and as unfit to be with God’s chosen people. Gentile women were considered as lower than the Gentile men.  However, God, in his mercy used these lowly, mean Gentile women to prepare for the messiah. Thus, God, indeed, chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise and chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong (1Co 1:27).

That Gentiles were grafted into the lineage of Jesus alludes to the fact that Jesus came to save Gentiles. So, when verse 21 says, "...he will save his people from their sins," we can understand this to include Gentiles.

How was the mercy of God shown in the lives of these women?

ANSWER: 

As we see in the above, God mercifully used these women in spite of their shortcomings for his redemptive history, preciously.  All these women were far from being considered by the standards of this age as wise, pure or even respectable (morally). But by God’s mysterious one-sided grace, they all were greatly used for His redemptive history.

The sins surrounding these women in Jesus' lineage is perhaps intended to remind us  that he came to save his people from their sins (v 21).

Why do you think the author divided Israel’s history this way? (17)

ANSWER:

Mat 1:17  Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Christ.

He divided it according to the rise, decline and fulfillment of the Messianic hope. That hope rose to its pinnacle with King David to whom God promised that, from one of his own sons, the Messiah would come. The hope reached its lowest point at the time of the exile to Babylon. Then, finally, the hope attained its fulfillment in Jesus.

The birth of Jesus Christ (1:18-25)

3.     How did Mary become pregnant?

ANSWER: 

Mat 1:18  This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.

“Before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit “ (Mat 1:18). Jesus was conceived during the time when Mary was “pledged to be married” or betrothed. During that period, infidelity was considered adultery (cf. Deut 22:23-24) and sexual relations between the betrothed couple was forbidden.

The genealogy traces Jesus’ human ancestry, but his origin is from heaven; he entered this world supernaturally through the Holy Spirit.

Why did the author call Joseph a “righteous man”? (19)

ANSWER:

Mat 1:19  Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

Because he had a right relationship with God by his faith in the coming Messiah. From this, godly character came forth. He was probably hurt, thinking that Mary had been unfaithful. But he could act contrary to his natural feeling so as to please God. He could be merciful to Mary, believing that God would send the Messiah to mercifully deliver him from what his sins deserved.

How did God help Joseph? (20) 

ANSWER:

Mat 1:20  But after he had considered 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, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

What did the angel foretell concerning Mary’s child? (21) 

ANSWER:

Mat 1:21  She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

Because we cannot save ourselves from our sin, Jesus had to come. He came to save us from our sin rather than in our sin.

What does ‘Jesus’ mean?

ANSWER: 

Jesus is the Greek form of Joshua, which means the Lord saves

4.     What was foretold concerning Jesus’ birth? (23, Isa 7:14) 

ANSWER:

Mat 1:23  "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" -- which means, "God with us."

Isa 7:14  Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

This prophesy of Isaiah was given 730 years before Jesus' birth. When Aram and Samaria joined forces against Judah, Ahaz wanted to make a pact with Assyria. So, the Prophet Isaiah was sent to King Ahaz to persuade him to trust the Lord rather than Assyria. Isaiah promised him the sign of Immanuel, the sign that God was with his people as their Lord and protector.

Why is this significant? 

ANSWER: 

The virgin birth is the fulfillment of Messianic prophesy and the sign God gave us by which we can recognize the Messiah.

What does ‘God with us’ mean to you?

ANSWER:

Mat 1:23  "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" -- which means, "God with us."

‘God with us’ means that, through Jesus, God is with us and for us, despite our sins.

Note: This also asserts that Jesus is God. He is God incarnate who came to be with us.

How did Joseph obey the Lord’s command? (24).

ANSWER:

Mat 1:24  When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.

He immediately obeyed.

The End.

Christ literally means “anointed”. To appoint a person to some office, the Lord would anoint him with oil. This was done for prophets (1Ki 19:16b), priests (Exo 28:41), and kings (1Sa 10:1).

Despite the prohibition in Deu 23:3, “No Ammonite or Moabite or any of his descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even down to the tenth generation.”

Bathsheba was possibly the granddaughter of Ahithophel, King David’s counselor, and the daughter of Eliam who was one of David's Thirty fighting men. 2Sa 23:34 says, "...Eliam son of Ahithophel". And 2Sa 11:3 says, "...Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam". Ahithophel was probably an Israelite since his hometown was Giloh (2Sa 15:12) a town in southern Judah (Jos 15:51).

This was very risky in a culture that had a death penalty for adultery (Deut 22:22, Joh 8:5). This pregnancy would jeopardize her marriage with Joseph. In fact, when Joseph, her husband, found out about her pregnancy, he planned to divorce her, thinking that she was unfaithful (Mat 1:19).