I thrive having lists. Shopping lists. Menu lists. To-do lists.
Clearly lists are really important in the Scriptures. The Old Testament is packed with genealogy lists, which fade out in the New Testament at the birth of Jesus.
Matthew chapter one contains 48 male and female names starting with Abraham and ending with the Messiah. Luke counts 74 male names in his list found in chapter 3 going backwards from Joseph all the way to Adam. (According to Luke, Mary comes from the royal line of David as well.)
Typically, Biblical genealogy lists men, and not women. Yet, God introduced in Joseph’s bloodline some unusual names and characters: Tamar (guilty of incest and adultery), Bathsheba (guilty of adultery), Ruth (a non-Jew)… not to mention the guilt of sins the men carried in the line of Jesse: adultery, idolatry, murder. (Matthew 1)
Why not orchestrate a perfect scenario fit for the perfect Messiah?
Jesus’ name restores honour to the line of David by identifying Himself with the lineage of sinners, showing the world that He’s a gracious Saviour. He “chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise”.
As we go back in the Old Testament, we easily fast-forward the long genealogies of Genesis missing out on its original value.
Chaim Japheth Malespin, the brother of our Jewish friend, does some amazing discovery upon studying the twelve names of Jacob. (Jesus coming through the tribe of Judah.)
“It’s so amazing how God hid these wonderful truths inside simple names and stories. Here are the names and their meanings:
“This completely blows one’s mind when one discovers it. Jesus Christ is not just a name mentioned in sermons. Jesus is the content, the context, the text, the paragraph, the mark and the remark of the “Word of Truth “. Jesus is the outline of the entire Bible. And His “scarlet thread” of redemption links and runs throughout the whole thing.”
When the names are joined together, this is what it says:
Let’s take the time to study genealogies and discover hidden gems.
And may Christ use our simple name, tagged to our simple story to weave the message of Hope, Joy, and Peace found in the newborn King.