The Story of God’s Redemption

The genealogy of Jesus tells the story of redemption—how God faithfully keeps His covenant promise through sinful people, until it is finally fulfilled in Christ.

Matthew 1:1–17

Introduction: Why a Genealogy? (Matthew 1:1)

Mark’s Gospel begins with the claim that Jesus is the Son of God, rooting him back to a promise in Isaiah, then he gets right into the action, telling the story of Jesus’ baptism.

Luke, in his account, focuses on the historicity of the Gospel. He begins with the angels’ appearance to Zechariah and Elizabeth, then to Joseph and Mary.

John goes all the way back to eternity past, focusing on the divinity of Jesus.

All of these Gospel accounts begin in a way that sets the tone for the whole book. It’s almost as if they are saying, “If you don’t understand this first part, you won’t understand the rest of what I’ve written.” Well, that gives us a problem. Matthew begins with a list of names. A genealogy. So did Matthew just choose to add this in because he was a tax collector, and looking at genealogies was a normal part of his job?

There is no doubt that Matthew was very familiar with genealogies, and there is no doubt that Matthew was Jewish, and he wrote this account for the Jews, who found genealogies incredibly important, but there is no doubt that Matthew is making some strong claims in these first 17 verses, but they are not as obvious to our western culture 2000 years later.

Genealogies are no doubt falling back into fashion in recent years, but there is no doubt that our family of origin, and even our heritage can be places of pride. There are also probably parts of it that we would leave out. The main point that Matthew is making by opening with this genealogy is that Jesus bar Joseph of Nazareth is not just the rightful King of Israel, but that He is THE King. The one that was promised. The seed of Abraham. The Son of David. The anointed one. The Messiah. The Christ.

Let’s read Matthew 1:1-17.

What we are looking at is more than just a list of names, we’re looking at a survey of all of redemptive history up until the birth of Jesus. We’re looking at lifetimes and generations of God’s covenant faithfulness to His people.

This genealogy is representative, not exhaustive, meaning that there weren’t actually 14 generations in between each of these eras, but for organization and an aid to those who would be memorizing this, the list we get here is laid out in this way. What we get in each of these is an era of redemptive history that we will walk through, supporting the claims that Matthew makes in verse 1.

I. The Promise Announced (Matthew 1:1)

Christ, Son of Abraham, Son of David

The word translated genealogy here in verse 1 is actually the same word translated birth in verse 18. It’s the greek word for genesis. This is the origin of Jesus, who is the Promised Son of David, and the Promised Seed of Abraham.

Supporting Scripture

Genesis 3:15 “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”” (the promise of the Christ)

Genesis 12:3 “I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”” (promise to Abraham)

2 Samuel 7:12–13 “When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.” (promise to David)

Galatians 3:16 “Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ.” (the seed fulfilled in Christ)

Theological Emphasis

Christ = the promised Savior

Son of Abraham = the promised blessing to the nations

Son of David = the promised eternal King

Transition

But Matthew doesn’t just claim fulfillment—he shows us why fulfillment was necessary.

**II. The PromiseMade but Not the Surety Was Not Yet Given (Abraham → David)

Matthew 1:2–6a**

Main Point

God’s promise advances through imperfect people who cannot secure it themselves.

Supporting Scripture

Genesis 15:6 “And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.” (faith counted as righteousness)

Hebrews 11:8–12 “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.” (promise received, not fulfilled)

Key Observations

The promise begins by grace

The patriarchs believe—but fail

The promise survives, but remains incomplete

Refrain

The promise was made—but the surety was not yet given.

**III. The Promise Centralized but Corrupted (David → Exile)

Matthew 1:6b–11**

Even God-appointed kings fail to preserve the promise, leading to judgment.

Supporting Scripture

2 Samuel 7:16 “And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’ ”” (eternal throne promised)

1 Kings 11:9–11 “And the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what the Lord commanded. Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this has been your practice and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant.” (Solomon’s fall)

2 Kings 17:7–23 “And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods and walked in the customs of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel, and in the customs that the kings of Israel had practiced. And the people of Israel did secretly against the Lord their God things that were not right. They built for themselves high places in all their towns, from watchtower to fortified city. They set up for themselves pillars and Asherim on every high hill and under every green tree, and there they made offerings on all the high places, as the nations did whom the Lord carried away before them. And they did wicked things, provoking the Lord to anger, and they served idols, of which the Lord had said to them, “You shall not do this.” Yet the Lord warned Israel and Judah by every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.” But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the Lord their God. They despised his statutes and his covenant that he made with their fathers and the warnings that he gave them. They went after false idols and became false, and they followed the nations that were around them, concerning whom the Lord had commanded them that they should not do like them. And they abandoned all the commandments of the Lord their God, and made for themselves metal images of two calves; and they made an Asherah and worshiped all the host of heaven and served Baal. And they burned their sons and their daughters as offerings and used divination and omens and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger. Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them out of his sight. None was left but the tribe of Judah only. Judah also did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God, but walked in the customs that Israel had introduced. And the Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel and afflicted them and gave them into the hand of plunderers, until he had cast them out of his sight. When he had torn Israel from the house of David, they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. And Jeroboam drove Israel from following the Lord and made them commit great sin. The people of Israel walked in all the sins that Jeroboam did. They did not depart from them, until the Lord removed Israel out of his sight, as he had spoken by all his servants the prophets. So Israel was exiled from their own land to Assyria until this day.” (Israel’s covenant failure)

Key Observations

Kingship magnifies the problem of sin

Power does not fix the human heart

The kingdom collapses under covenant unfaithfulness

Refrain

The throne was established—but not faithful.

**IV. The Promise Preserved in Silence (Exile → Christ)

Matthew 1:12–16**

Though hope appears lost, God quietly preserves His promise until Christ comes.

Supporting Scripture

Lamentations 3:31–33 “For the Lord will not cast off forever, but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not afflict from his heart or grieve the children of men.” (God does not abandon forever)

Haggai 2:23 “On that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel my servant, the son of Shealtiel, declares the Lord, and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts.”” (hope through Zerubbabel)

Galatians 4:4 “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,” (the fullness of time)

Key Observations

No king

No glory

No resolution

Yet God is still working

Refrain

The promise was preserved—but not completed.

**V. The Promise by Grace: Outsiders and Sinners Included

(Throughout the Genealogy)**

Main Point

God’s redemptive plan advances by grace, not moral achievement or ethnic purity.

Supporting Scripture

Joshua 2:9–13 “and said to the men, “I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that, as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father’s house, and give me a sure sign that you will save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.”” (Rahab’s faith)

Ruth 1:16–17 “But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.”” (Ruth’s covenant loyalty)

Matthew 9:13 “Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”” (mercy, not merit)

Romans 5:8 “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Christ dies for sinners)

Key Observations

Women included intentionally

Gentiles included deliberately

Scandal included honestly

Theological Emphasis

Redemption moves forward not because of human faithfulness, but because of God’s covenant promise.

VI. The Promise Fulfilled (Matthew 1:16–17)

“Until the Christ”

What no generation could accomplish, God has accomplished in His Son.

Supporting Scripture

Matthew 5:17 ““Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” (Christ fulfills)

2 Corinthians 1:20 “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.” (all promises fulfilled in Christ)

Hebrews 10:10–14 “And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.” (once-for-all accomplishment)

Final Refrain

The promise was given.

The promise was threatened.

The promise was preserved.

The promise is fulfilled—in Christ.

Conclusion: Gospel Invitation

Supporting Scripture

John 1:12–13 “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” (children of God by grace)

Romans 8:1 “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (no condemnation in Christ)

Revelation 21:3 “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.” (God with His people)

Closing Emphasis

This story doesn’t end in Matthew 1

It continues in the lives of those united to Christ by faith

God still works through sinful people—by grace