When I was about twelve years old I thought I was nutty boy. But I wanted to be better. I started to read the Bible from cover to cover. It was quite hard for me, since I did not have anyone to instruct me. When I came up to the family tree written in Matthew when it says, “someone begot somebody” I wondered why it was included and important to us.

Later I found out. The puzzle was solved.

There are two family trees related to Jesus. Both came from the lineage of David and, of course, from Adam first.

It is written first in Matthew 1 and then again in Luke 3.

The wording is similar to the genealogy of Abraham in the Old Testament, where it states that Abraham begot Isaac and so on. Luke described it in a different way.

A family tree was very important to keep records and recording mainly the bloodline of the fathers. The tradition was strictly kept. Jesus was hidden to the family and the people so that Satan would not discover Him prematurely to harass Him. This is why we are informed that the plan of redemption was a mystery. Also, Jesus was born and thus hidden into a large family because at the time not having children or only one child was suspicious and was considered a curse. That would signal Satan to attack Jesus prematurely. Jesus had four half brothers and at least two half sisters.

Matthew starts the genealogy with Abraham begot Isaac... it ends with Jacob begot Joseph, the husband of Mary. The description is of Joseph’s lineage. If someone begot someone else, this means that Jacob was the father of Joseph.

Luke’s description is different, but it is also describes David’s line. Luke was a historian, not a Jew (and he was also a physician).

Luke 3:23 reads as follows: “And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli.”

This family tree is Mary’s. Her father was Heli (Eli) and Joseph’s father was Jacob. Joseph was the son-in-law of Heli. The law and custom recorded this.

Both records are slightly different.

But this is an important situation.

In Matthew’s record there is an interesting event. In verse 11 there is mentioned Jeconiah, who was the wicked king. Jeremiah 22:24-30 said that there will be no king in his descendants because of his wickedness. Jeconiah was carried to Babylonia’s captivity and died.

The text reads: “‘As I live’ says the LORD,’ though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, were the signet on My right hand, yet I would pluck you off; and I will give you into the hand of those who seek your life, and into the hand of those whose face you fear; the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the hand of the Chaldeans. "So I will cast you out, and your mother who bore you, into another country where you were not born; and there you shall die. But to the land to which they desire to return, there they shall not return. Is this man Coniah a despised, broken idol; a vessel in which is no pleasure? Why are they cast out, he and his descendants, and cast into a land, which they do not know? O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD! Thus says the LORD: 'Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not prosper in his days; for none of his descendants shall prosper, sitting on the throne of David, and ruling anymore in Judah.'"

If Jesus, as the King who will sit on David’s throne, would be Joseph’s son, then He would be not the King. If Jesus would sit on the throne of David then the Bible’s prophecy is a lie.

Two different family trees not only confirm that Joseph was not father of Jesus, but also the Bible is true.

No. 4209-2

© 2009 Vladimir Uhri