Genealogy of Jesus Christ

There were two attempts made to give the genealogy of Jesus Christ in the scriptures. Both claim to be the genealogy of Joseph of Bethlehem. But considering how much they differ, many scientists argue that one of those family-lines might be that of Mary, the Mother of Jesus.

In Matthew Chapter One and in Luke Chapter Three, the Genealogy of Jesus Christ is accounted for. Both books claim to present the genealogy through Joseph. But since they are totally different from each other – all the way back to King David, those claims couldn’t both possibly be true in both accounts.

Heli and Jacob, both, in one book each, are named as father to Joseph. This couldn’t possibly be so. Jerusalem’s Talmud records that Mary was the daughter of Heli (Haggigah, Book 77, 4). If Jerusalem Talmud’s sources were correct, this would verify that the family-line recorded by Matthew would show Jesus’ genealogy on Joseph’s side, while his genealogy on Mary’s side is recorded in Luke.

The family-lines recorded in Matthew and Luke differs substantially from each-other, and not until they reach King David do they merge into one and the same. This shows that both Joseph of Nazareth and Mary, the Mother of Jesus, were of royal birth.

From a Christian and Messianic perspective, the royal lineage is of great importance, since it was prophesied that the Messiah would be born through the lines of David. On Joseph’s side there was nothing recorded that there was anyone who had a higher succession to the throne than Joseph, and this would make Jesus the prince. The royal line on Mary’s side could never render Jesus the throne, since the throne only passed on the male side.

So, if the genealogy of Jesus Christ in the account of Luke is the family line of Mary, it would be a correct way to secure Joseph’s and Jesus’ right to throne of David according to the male lineage, to proclaim Joseph the son of Heli, since a son-in-law and a son would both be legal sons and have claim to the same inheritance. So, having secured the fulfilment of the prophecy, Luke could then go ahead and declare the lineage of Mary, which would legally be the same for Joseph, as to his right to the throne.

Theoretically one might consider a few different reasons why the father of Joseph of Bethlehem has different names in the two accounts. For one; one might imagine that Heli and Jacob are one and the same person, and that Jacob was his name as the patriarch (in the same way as Abram was given the Patriarch-name Abraham, and Jacob became Israel). However, this is not likely, since it doesn’t explain the vast differences in the two genealogies.

One might also imagine the possibility that one, or both, both genealogies are made up. But considering all the Christian Jews of the early church, who must have had the Jewish knack for family history, would have detected mistakes or forgeries in a heartbeat, since there were plenty of family records to make cross-examinations against. And just imagine what the great council would have done with any little mistake in the genealogy of Jesus Christ! That would have been their main course at the trial of Jesus; killing him for saying he was King of the Jews, if he could not back it up! We can be absolutely certain that the genealogy was water-tight!

And then we have an old Christian tradition, which would explain the differences in the names of Joseph’s father, and the discrepancy in the two genealogies;

Joseph’s paternal grandmother, Estha, married Mathan, a descendant of David, through Salomon, and gave him a son; Jacob, whereupon Mathan died. Estha married Mathat, another descendent of David, through Nathan (a less known son of King David). According to the tradition she gave her second husband a son, namely Heli.

So, according to the tradition, Jacob and Heli, who both have been named fathers of Joseph, are half-brothers, having the same mother.

Heli married, but died, having had no children. Following Jewish custom, Jacob married Heli’s widow, in order to give posterity to his brother, which he also did. One of these children was Joseph.

This ancient tradition, if it be true, would render both Matthew’s and Luke’s genealogies of Jesus absolutely spot on correct, even though they differ dramatically since one might describe the family line with the biological father (Jacob), while the other makes the description with the father according to the law (Heli).

Now, let us look at the genealogy of Jesus Christ on his father’s side:

God the Father begat Jesus.

In one single step Jesus had royal blood. This made him Prince of Peace, King of the Jews, King of Heaven and Earth, King of Kings, etc. It is important to note that the Holy Ghost is not found in any genealogy of Jesus Christ.