The Shepherds Visit Jesus, Luke 2:16-20

So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the [a]manger. 17 When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. 18 And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. 19 But Mary treasured all these things¹, pondering them in her heart. 20 The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God² for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

Footnotes:

Luke 2:16 Or feeding trough

Commentary

This is a much shorter passage than the last few I have done, and that is generally my preference. Scripture is so rich with meaning and allusion and revelation that each word of a passage can really be considered closely if I spend more time on fewer verses.

As I mentioned in the last post, I saved this part of the nativity story, based on the assumption that once the shepherds determined to go see the baby, at least some time elapsed before they got to him (despite the fact that they came in a hurry). I also wanted to spend some more time considering the shepherds in their historical and cultural context. I read an interesting article about who these shepherds might have been and what physical proximity they may have had to Jesus’ birthplace https://www.johnbmacdonald.com/blog/why-shepherds-at-bethlehem. (Side note about articles, sermons, and other reference materials I find online: I try to look up some references about the authors to ensure they offer sound biblical teaching, but there isn’t always an abundance of information about their ministry. At the very least, I believe that the article itself has merit and does not directly contradict scripture. However, please know that there is a lot of heresy on the internet, so you should look on all teaching through the lens of Biblical discernment. You should also make it your business, if possible, to know the reputation and the general belief system of the authors on whom you are relying for Biblical teaching.)

The name of the article is “Why Shepherds at Bethlehem?” and it expands on a theory I have read in several places, regarding the specific type of flock for which these shepherds would have been responsible. The law at that time was clear that flocks kept in urban or suburban areas were only allowed if the animals were used for temple sacrifice. Due to the fact that the scripture says the shepherds were “nearby”, it is a reasonable inference that these shepherds were caring for animals that would be used as sacrifices to God. There was a watchtower between Bethlehem and Hebron, called Migdal Eder, which was used by shepherds to watch over these sacred flocks. It was erected in the place where Jacob camped after Rachel’s death, and Micah 4:8 refers to it when it says “O tower of the flock…to you it will come…the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem” (Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 2 pg. 201).

Once again, I am amazed by the little hints God gives us, which make very little sense at the time, but become so much clearer in light of the events that fulfill prophecy. Also, the perfect symbolism of these shepherds who tend to the animals used in Old Testament sacrifice, who are the first to see the ultimate sacrifice, the Lamb of God. I’m not sure I agree with the article’s implication that the shepherds may have been excited about an end to their livelihood, but I do agree that they, above anyone, understood what it meant to see the child who would represent an end to all other sacrifices, that He would carry the weight of sacrifice on His shoulders for the rest of time. Imagine their awe, as well, at finding a baby, just as they had been told they would, in a little stone trough in a cave (Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 4 pg. 68). Further, that the baby was wrapped in strips of cloth may also have been a rarity. Since Mary had no midwife, she did the best she could, wrapping the baby in similar fashion to the way bodies were wrapped for the grave, possibly foreshadowing His future purpose (Nelson’s KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1267). Another way the swaddling cloths may have been symbolic to the shepherds is that those shepherds caring for sacrificial lambs would sometimes swaddle their spotless lambs and keep them in mangers to maintain their flawless purity until it was time for them to be sacrificed. Additionally, the night shepherds would probably have been the ones grazing the sheep designated for sacrifice, since it was common practice to preserve the sacrificial livestock from the hustle and bustle of daytime activity. They were the absolute perfect audience for the angels’ message, immediately understanding what it meant to swaddle a pure, innocent thing and lay it in a manger.

The above-referenced article also asserts that, when Luke sets out to compile his narrative by interviewing witnesses, one of those witnesses may have been Mary herself. I looked this up, and it seems many theologians believe that Mary was one of Luke’s sources, particularly because it answers the question I stated in a previous post – how did the author of this book know what Mary said or thought in a possibly private setting? Answer: she told him. This would make sense of verse 19, as well as the verse it references, Luke 2:51. It also speaks to the nature of Mary and why she was a good choice to quietly carry the Son of God. Her tacit introspection contrasts the shepherds’ enthusiasm to tell everyone they saw, and while the shepherds weren’t wrong to want to share about what they had seen, if Mary had been the talkative type who drew attention to herself, it could have had any number of consequences for her marriage, her pregnancy, and/or Jesus’ life. When the shepherds explained the reason they had come (an angelic visit), this would have been the next in a series of confirmations of her son’s legitimacy. She had received a visit by angels, Elizabeth had affirmed her when Mary visited, Joseph had been visited by angels, and now when the baby was born in the night, the shepherds on third shift were visited by angels and came right away. It certainly would have been a marvel to her, as she continued to see this plan of God’s played out (Nelson’s KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1267).

Speaking of the shepherds telling others of what they saw, consider that they met others on their way back, giving the impression that it was daytime by then, since other people were about. It also suggests that they made their way through populated areas to get back. There is a theory that Jesus was born in the tower Migdal Eder itself, where there was a pristine manger on the first floor, for feeding the sacrificial lambs. However, the shepherds wouldn’t have had far to go to get back to the top of their watch tower from the first floor. Not to say that they couldn’t have gone out of their way to find other people to tell, but in my opinion, the verse implies some distance was covered when it says the shepherds “came” and “went back”.

See the next post here https://onthepath.online/2019/01/16/jesus-presented-at-the-temple/

Scripture References

¹Lk 2:51 And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued in subjection to them; and His mother treasured all these things in her heart.

²Mt 9:8 But when the crowds saw this, they were awestruck, and glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

Mic 4:8 As for you, tower of the flock, Hill of the daughter of Zion, To you it will come— Even the former dominion will come, The kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.

Jesus is Born, Matthew 1:24-25, Luke 2:1-15, John 1:14

Matt 1:24 And Joseph [a]awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, 25 [b] but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son¹; and he called His name Jesus².

Luke 2:1 Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar³ Augustus, that a census be taken of all [a]the inhabited earth⁴. 2 [b]This was the first census taken while [c]Quirinius was governor of Syria⁵. 3 And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city. 4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David⁶, 5 in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. 6 While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. 7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son¹; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a [d]manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. 8 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord⁷ suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone⁸ around them; and they were terribly frightened. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid⁹; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; 11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior¹⁰, who is [e]Christ¹¹ the Lord¹². 12 This will be a sign¹³ for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a [f]manger.” 13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest¹⁴, And on earth peace among men [g]with whom He is pleased¹⁵.” 15 When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.”

John 1:14 And the Word¹⁶ became flesh¹⁷, and [a]dwelt¹⁸ among us, and we saw His glory¹⁹, glory as of [b]the only begotten from the Father, full of grace²⁰ and truth²¹.

Footnotes (Matthew):

1. Matthew 1:24 Lit got up
2. Matthew 1:25 Lit and was not knowing her

Footnotes (Luke):

1. Luke 2:1 I.e. the Roman empire
2. Luke 2:2 Or This took place as a first census
3. Luke 2:2 Gr Kyrenios
4. Luke 2:7 Or feeding trough
5. Luke 2:11 I.e. Messiah
6. Luke 2:12 Or feeding trough
7. Luke 2:14 Lit of good pleasure; or of good will

Footnotes (John):

1. John 1:14 Or tabernacled; i.e. lived temporarily
2. John 1:14 Or unique, only one of His kind

Commentary

It is believed that the Romans took a census every 14 years, and the Israelites, subordinate to the Roman empire, would likely have viewed the census negatively. It was seen as a means of exploiting the subjects, since their inclusion in the census made them subject to taxation, military drafts, and (sometimes forced) government labor. It was also used to solicit additional funds for public projects, as well as tithes to maintain religious institutions (The Word in Life Study Bible pg. 1767). So often, we think of God as causing miracles or circumstances, such as the conception of John the Baptist and Jesus, but many times, prophecy is fulfilled by an event that God foreknew and used for His purpose. The census, in itself, was not a religious endeavor, but when He said that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, He already knew the reason that would be the venue.

Similarly, when Jesus later says that there will be earthquakes in various places, and famine, and pestilence, leading up to His return (Mark 13:7-8), it may be that these natural disasters are caused by years of human abuse of the earth. Science and the Bible aren’t mutually exclusive; God knows these things will come to pass, and He knows the time when He will choose to return.

Likewise, as we discussed in an earlier article, history and the Bible are not mutually exclusive, either. Jesus’ life was corroborated by multiple sources outside the Bible (see this article for more on that https://www.bethinking.org/jesus/ancient-evidence-for-jesus-from-non-christian-sources). In the Luke passage here, we see more references to political figures with whom we are familiar from our studies of the Roman empire. Caesar Augustus, born Gaius Octavius and later renamed Octavian, “was given the title Augustus in 27 B.C. when he became emperor of Rome” (The Word in Life Study Bible pg. 1766). “During his 44 year reign, he established the Pax Romana (“Peace of Rome”), a state of control in which Roman culture flourished worldwide,” and he ended decades of Roman civil war (Word in Life Study Bible pg 1766). We also see the town of Bethlehem, translated “house/place of bread”, which was located 5 miles south of Jerusalem and known for agriculture. It is the same Bethlehem where David was anointed by Samuel, and it was the small town all of David’s descendants would refer to as their ancestral city (1 Sam 17:12). Micah records the prophecy that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem in Micah 5:2, and the specific stable in which Jesus was born was likely a cave near the city (The Word in Life Study Bible pg. 1768). In another example of the way God weaves his story together, Jesus was born in the city called the ‘place of bread’, and He is the ‘bread of life’.

It may be somewhat scandalous that I have left part of the shepherds’ story for a later study, but there was a lot to learn about the shepherds, their probable location in relation to the stable, and their role in society. Assuming that it took them at least some amount of time to get from their field to the stable, I decided to treat their visit as a separate event, so we could take a closer look at them on their own.

I don’t want to neglect the shorter passages from Matthew and John, either. I have seen quite a bit of discourse about the belief that Mary remained a virgin throughout her life. While I don’t think it is a belief that is central to salvation, I will point out that my translation of Matthew says she was a virgin ‘until’ she gave birth to Jesus, and, as I also referred to in a previous blog, Matthew’s gospel later mentions Jesus’ brothers and sisters.

Shifting focus to the verse from John, I loved the footnotes explaining some of the shades of meaning from the original translation here. When it says Jesus ‘dwelt’ among us, that word could also have been translated as ‘tabernacled’. Throughout the Old Testament, tabernacles were designated as a dwelling place for God, as well as temporary dwelling places for His people. They were typically movable and were of light construction, so even though they could be easily broken down, they could be reconstructed again in order for the people to be able to be in the presence of God always. Give some thought to the parallels we can draw to the life of Jesus. The word ‘tabernacle’ is also used in the scripture referenced with superscript 17 – Revelation 21:3. In fact, this one verse from John has probably the most scripture references I’ve seen in a single verse.

If you’re not familiar with the style of this study I’m doing, I look at every verse referenced in the text I’m reading, and I paste each verse below the commentary, with a superscript number that corresponds to the part of the passage it relates to in the text we’re studying. I normally organize the scripture references by their location in the Bible, so you end up having to search for the number, not really knowing where it will be. This time, I organized the reference section numerically, so you can follow the superscripts as they occur in the text. I hope you will because there are a lot of revelations to be had by connecting the various parts of the Bible together into one cohesive story.

See the next post here https://onthepath.online/2019/01/08/the-shepherds-visit-jesus/

Scripture References

^{10, 2}Mt 1:21 She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus², for He will save¹⁰ His people from their sins.”

²Lk 2:21 And when eight days had passed, before His circumcision, His name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.

³Mt 22:17 Tell us then, what do You think? Is it lawful to give a poll-tax to Caesar³, or not?”

³Lk 3:1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar³, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene,

⁴Mt 24:14 This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

⁵Mt 4:24 The news about Him spread throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all who were ill, those suffering with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, paralytics; and He healed them.

⁶Lk 1:27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.

⁷Lk 1:11 And an angel of the Lord⁷ appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense.

⁷Ac 5:19 But during the night an angel of the Lord⁷ opened the gates of the prison, and taking them out he said,

⁸Lk 24:4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling clothing;

⁸Ac 12:7 And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands.

⁹Mt 14:27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”

¹⁰Jn 4:42 and they were saying to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One is indeed the Savior of the world.”

¹⁰Ac 5:31 He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

¹¹Mt 1:16 Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.

¹¹Mt 16:16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

¹¹Mt 16:20 Then He warned the disciples that they should tell no one that He was the Christ.

¹¹Jn 11:27 She *said to Him, “Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world.”

¹²Lk 1:43 And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me?

¹²Ac 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.”

¹²Ac 10:36 The word which He sent to the sons of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ (He is Lord of all)—

¹³1 Sa 2:34 This will be the sign to you which will come concerning your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas: on the same day both of them will die.

¹³2 Ki 19:29 Then this shall be the sign for you: you will eat this year what grows of itself, in the second year what springs from the same, and in the third year sow, reap, plant vineyards, and eat their fruit.

¹³2 Ki 20:8 Now Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “What will be the sign that the Lord will heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of the Lord the third day?” 9 Isaiah said, “This shall be the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do the thing that He has spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten steps or go back ten steps?”

¹³Is 7:11 Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God; make it deep as Sheol or high as heaven.”

¹³Is 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.

¹⁴Mt 21:9 The crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David; Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest!”

¹⁴Lk 19:38 shouting: “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord; Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

¹⁵Lk 3:22 and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

¹⁵Eph 1:9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him

¹⁵Php 2:13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

¹⁶Rev 19:13 He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.

¹⁷Ro 1:3 concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh,

¹⁷Gal 4:4 But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law,

¹⁷Php 2:7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

¹⁷1 Ti 3:16 By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.

¹⁷Heb 2:14 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,

¹⁷1 Jn 1:1 What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life— 2 and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us—

¹⁷1 Jn 4:2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God;

¹⁷2 Jn 7 For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.

¹⁸Rev 21:3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,

¹⁹Lk 9:32 Now Peter and his companions had been overcome with sleep; but when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him.

¹⁹Jn 2:11 This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.

¹⁹Jn 17:22 The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one;

¹⁹Jn 17:24 Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.

¹⁹2 Pe 1:16  For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. 17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, “This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased”—

¹⁹1 Jn 1:1 What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life—

²⁰Jn 1:17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.

²⁰Ro 5:21 so that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

²⁰Ro 6:14 For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

²¹Jn 8:32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

²¹Jn 14:6 Jesus *said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

²¹Jn 18:37 Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”

Mk 13:7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened; those things must take place; but that is not yet the end. 8 For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will also be famines. These things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.

John the Baptist is Born, Luke 1:57-79

Luke 1:57 Now the time [a]had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and her relatives heard that the Lord had [b]displayed His great mercy toward her¹; and they were rejoicing with her. 59 And it happened that on the eighth day² they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to call him Zacharias, [c]after his father. 60 But his mother answered and said, “No indeed; but he shall be called John³.” 61 And they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by that name.” 62 And they made signs⁴ to his father, as to what he wanted him called. 63 And he asked for a tablet and wrote as follows, “His name is John³.” And they were all astonished. 64 And at once his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed⁵, and he began to speak in praise of God. 65 Fear came on all those living around them; and all these matters were being talked about in all the hill country⁶ of Judea. 66 All who heard them kept them in mind, saying, “What then will this child turn out to be?” For the hand of the Lord⁷ was certainly with him. 67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit⁸, and prophesied⁹, saying:

68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel¹⁰, For He has visited us and accomplished redemption¹¹ for His people,

69 And has raised up a horn¹² of salvation for us In the house of David¹³ His servant—

70 As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets¹⁴ from of old¹⁵—

71 [d]Salvation¹¹ from our enemies, And from the hand of all who hate us¹⁶;

72 To show mercy toward our fathers¹⁷, And to remember His holy covenant¹⁸,

73 The oath which He swore¹⁹ to Abraham our father,

74 To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies, Might serve Him without fear,

75 In holiness and righteousness²⁰ before Him all our days.

76 “And you, child, will be called the prophet²¹ of the Most High²²; For you will go on before the Lord²³ to prepare²⁴ His ways;

77 To give to His people the knowledge of salvation [e]By the forgiveness²⁵ of their sins,

78 Because of the tender mercy of our God, With which the Sunrise²⁶ from on high will visit us,

79 To shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death²⁷, To guide our feet into the way of peace²⁸.”

Footnotes:

1. Luke 1:57 Lit was fulfilled
2. Luke 1:58 Lit magnified
3. Luke 1:59 Lit after the name of
4. Luke 1:71 Or Deliverance
5. Luke 1:77 Or Consisting in

Commentary

In Hebrew, John means “Jehovah is gracious,” or “Jehovah’s gift” (Nelson’s KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1266). While I understand that Zacharias’ muteness and subsequent recovery, as well as he and Elizabeth’s advanced age, probably caused a stir, I was interested by the fact that the name was what really seemed to be sensational, to the extent that it was discussed throughout the entire region. In the story of creation, we see God naming “heaven”, “earth”, “day”, “night”, etc, and we also see him give Adam the job of naming all the animals. The singular form of the word ‘name’ occurs 770 times in the Old Testament, and the plural form occurs 84 times, so names understandably hold a position of esteem among God’s people. Related to the name of God Himself, His name gives comfort and strength to His people, and speaking in His name is equivalent to speaking on His behalf, as His representative (The Zondervan Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 4 pg. 360, 363).

The custom of waiting until the 8^th day to name a child is not found in the OT, and John’s naming ceremony is the first time we see it referenced in the Bible. Throughout the OT, names were used to indicate parents’ wishes or prophecy surrounding the future of the child, and in cases where individuals received a new name later in life, it was closely tied to their character and fortune. In fact, the Hebrew word for ‘name’ is more of an encompassing concept that includes personality, or a sum of a person’s internal and external characteristics. The name was the person. Patronymy, the practice of naming babies after their ancestors or relatives, is also prevalent in first and second Samuel, as well as some extrabiblical Phoenecian and Punic records from the third and fourth century B.C. Clearly, by the time John was born, it was very common (The Zondervan Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 4 pg. 363).

I mentioned in a previous article that it was interesting to consider how various conversations or speeches came to be recorded in the Bible, and the author Luke begins his book by saying that he has diligently gathered information from eyewitnesses, in order to compile a record for his acquaintance Theophilus (Luke 1:1-4). Not only was Luke a doctor and capable historian, but he was also a linguist and masterful writer. “Of all four Evangelists, he is preeminently a person of broad culture, capable of adapting his Greek diction to different occasions, writing sometimes formal, classical prose, sometimes a racy narrative style in the vernacular of his own day, and sometimes a Semitic “Bible Greek” in which the Septuagint was written. As a gifted literary artist he produced what has justly been described as “The most beautiful book in the world”” (College Edition New Revised Standard Version, The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, an Ecumenical Study Bible pg. 76 NT). For more on the authenticity of Biblical writings in the New Testament, see https://www.dailywire.com/news/39388/erickson-authenticity-virgin-birth-erick-erickson.

In keeping with the beauty of Luke’s account, Zacharias’ prophetic song, called the Benedictus, follows right on the heels of Mary’s Magnificat, and similarly includes references to the Old Testament scriptures. “In fact, there are no less than sixteen direct quotations or allusions to the Old Testament contained in [Zacharias’] few verses” (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary). My favorite part of this passage is that he refers to Jesus as the Sunrise. Jesus is referred to as “the light” several times, especially in the beginning of the book of John, but the idea of Jesus as the dawn is a beautiful picture.

Hearkening back to the idea of blending poetry with prophecy, I notice that, throughout the beginning of the gospel accounts, the superscript references send me back to Psalms. I saw a really interesting video about the way the book of Psalms is organized, and I realized why so much of the credible support for Messianic prophecy comes from Psalms; a significant portion of the book relates to the coming of the Messiah and what it will be like when that day comes. Check out the video here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpny22k_7uk. As this video states, David’s writings were later used as the inspiration for other psalmists, and as I reflect on the style and references of the Magnificat and the Benedictus, that idea rings true.

Scripture References

Ge 17:12 And every male among you who is eight days² old shall be circumcised throughout your generations, a servant who is born in the house or who is bought with money from any foreigner, who is not of your descendants.

¹Ge 19:19 Now behold, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have magnified your lovingkindness, which you have shown me by saving my life; but I cannot escape to the mountains, for the disaster will overtake me and I will die;

Ge 22:16 and said, “By Myself I have sworn¹⁹, declares the Lord, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies. 18 In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

Lv 12:3 On the eighth day² the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.

1 Sa 2:1 Then Hannah prayed and said, “My heart exults in the Lord; My horn¹² is exalted in the Lord, My mouth speaks boldly against my enemies, Because I rejoice in Your salvation.

1 Sa 2:10 “Those who contend with the Lord will be shattered; Against them He will thunder in the heavens, The Lord will judge the ends of the earth; And He will give strength to His king, And will exalt the horn¹² of His anointed.”

1 Ki 1:48 The king has also said thus, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel¹⁰, who has granted one to sit on my throne today while my own eyes see it.’”

Ps 18:2 The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn¹² of my salvation, my stronghold.

Ps 41:13 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel¹⁰, From everlasting to everlasting. Amen and Amen.

Ps 72:18 Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel¹⁰, Who alone works wonders.

Ps 89:17 For You are the glory of their strength, And by Your favor our horn¹² is exalted.

Ps 105:8 He has remembered His covenant¹⁸ forever, The word which He commanded to a thousand generations, 9 The covenant which He made with Abraham, And His oath to Isaac.

Ps 105:42 For He remembered His holy word¹⁸ With Abraham His servant;

Ps 106:10 So He saved them from the hand of the one who hated them¹⁶, And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.

Ps 106:45 And He remembered His covenant¹⁸ for their sake, And relented according to the greatness of His lovingkindness.

Ps 106:48 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel¹⁰, From everlasting even to everlasting. And let all the people say, “Amen.” Praise the Lord!

Ps 132:17 “There I will cause the horn¹² of David to spring forth; I have prepared a lamp for Mine anointed.

Is 9:2 The people who walk in darkness Will see a great light; Those who live in a dark land, The light will shine on them²⁷.

Is 59:8 They do not know the way of peace²⁸, And there is no justice in their tracks; They have made their paths crooked, Whoever treads on them does not know peace.

Jer 31:34 They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord, “for I will forgive²⁵ their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

Eze 29:21 “On that day I will make a horn¹² sprout for the house of Israel, and I will open your mouth in their midst. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

Joel 2:28 It will come about after this That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and daughters will prophesy⁹, Your old men will dream dreams, Your young men will see visions.

Mic 7:20 You will give truth to Jacob And unchanging love to Abraham, Which You swore to our forefathers¹⁷ From the days of old.

Mal 3:1 “Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me²³. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of hosts.

Mal 4:2 “But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise²⁶ with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall.

Mt 1:1 The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David¹³, the son of Abraham:

²⁸Mt 4:16 “The people who were sitting in darkness saw a great Light, And those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death, Upon them a Light dawned.”

Mt 11:9 But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and one who is more than a prophet²¹.

Mt 11:10 This is the one about whom it is written, ‘Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You²³, Who will prepare Your way before You.’

Mk 1:2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You²³, Who will prepare Your way;

Mk 1:4 John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness²⁵ of sins.

Lk 1:1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, 3 it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; 4 so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught.

Lk 1:13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John³.

Lk 1:17 It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared²⁴ for the Lord.”

⁵Lk 1:20 And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.”

Lk 1:22 But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them; and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he kept making signs⁴ to them, and remained mute.

Lk 1:32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High²²; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David;

Lk 1:39 Now at this time Mary arose and went in a hurry to the hill country⁶, to a city of Judah,

Lk 1:41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit⁸.

Lk 2:21 And when eight days² had passed, before His circumcision, His name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.

Lk 2:38 At that very moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and continued to speak of Him to all those who were looking for the redemption¹¹ of Jerusalem.

Lk 7:27 This is the one about whom it is written, ‘Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You²³, Who will prepare Your way before You.’

Ac 2:4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit⁸ and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.

⁸Ac 2:8 And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born?

Ac 3:21 whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time¹⁵.

Ac 9:17 So Ananias departed and entered the house, and after laying his hands on him said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you were coming, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit⁸.”

Ac 11:21 And the hand of the Lord⁷ was with them, and a large number who believed turned to the Lord.

Ro 1:2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets¹⁴ in the holy Scriptures,

Eph 4:24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness²⁰ of the truth.

²⁶Eph 5:14 For this reason it says, “Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you.”

Php 3:5 circumcised the eighth day², of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee;

Heb 6:13 For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore¹⁹ by Himself,

Heb 9:12 and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption¹¹.

2 Pe 1:19 So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star ari

The Angel Visits Joseph, Matthew 1:18-23

Matthew 1:18 Now the birth of Jesus [a]Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been [b]betrothed to Joseph, before they came together³ she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit¹². 19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned [c]to send her away secretly¹⁶. 20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David⁴, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for [d]the Child who has been [e]conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus⁷, for [f]He will save His people from their sins¹⁷.” 22 Now all this [g]took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name [h]Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.”

Footnotes:

1. Matthew 1:18 I.e. The Messiah
2. Matthew 1:18 The first stage of marriage in Jewish culture, usually lasting for a year before the wedding night, more legal than an engagement
3. Matthew 1:19 Or to divorce her
4. Matthew 1:20 Lit that which
5. Matthew 1:20 Lit begotten
6. Matthew 1:21 Lit He Himself
7. Matthew 1:22 Lit has happened
8. Matthew 1:23 Or Emmanuel

Commentary

I at first included this passage in the same study as Gabriel’s appearance to Mary, but then I realized it took place after Mary had visited Elizabeth, which would have made Joseph all the more suspicious since Mary had been away for three months around the time she conceived. Since I had already done the work of notating the passage, you will find that the numerical superscript references do not begin at number one.

In Luke and Matthew both, we get a look at the relationship between Mary and Joseph at the time. They lived in Nazareth, which had a reputation for corruption, sort of like Vegas, but they were both righteous people. See this great sermon by Greg Laurie, for more on the circumstances surrounding the angel’s announcement https://www.harvest.org/watch-and-listen/webcast/watch/christmas-the-big-announcement. In the Jewish tradition, affianced couples said vows at the betrothal, making it a legally binding agreement (Deut 20:7; Jer 2:2). A change of intention on the part of either the bride or the groom at this stage would have been a serious matter, sometimes subject to a fine. A groom would choose his bride, and his agent (a family member or friend) would negotiate an agreement with the bride’s family. The oaths at the betrothal were often accompanied by gifts to the bride and to the bride’s parents, as well as a celebration feast and in some cases, a ring (Word in Life Study Bible pg. 1762). However, there was a year interval before the bride could move into the groom’s home and consummate the relationship, at which point they would be considered married. The scriptural references from Deuteronomy point to the laws surrounding an illegitimate union, demonstrating that if Joseph had found Mary to be unfaithful during this time, her punishment would be death by stoning. Based on the fact that the Bible says Joseph considered divorce after it became obvious that Mary was pregnant, it does not appear that Mary had attempted to tell Joseph of her visit from the angel, and unsurprisingly so. It would have seemed pretty outrageous to him without his own angelic visit. However, his willingness to treat her with dignity of privacy under the circumstances demonstrates his noble character, and the angel even addresses his regal lineage and legitimacy by calling him the son of David (Nelson’s KJV Bible Commentary Pg. 1164).

The angel tells Joseph to call the child by the Hebrew name Yehoshua (Jesus is the Greek form of Joshua), which means “Jehovah saves”, making the person and life of Jesus a foundational and central principle in the New Testament, since he is the Savior who was foretold. Matthew stops to call out that these things happened to fulfill the prophecy in Isaiah, and Matthew’s interpretation of the original Hebrew word ‘almah (he interprets it ‘parthenos’ in Greek, which means ‘virgin’) has been a source of much contention, since this is the foundation of legitimacy for the entire New Testament. There is a preponderance of evidence to support the fact that Isaiah’s original intent was to say that a virgin would give birth, so if you want to find out more about that, you can see E.J. Young, The Book of Isaiah, I, pp. 284-291; Studies in Isaiah, pp. 143-198; C Feinberg, “Virgin Birth in the Old Testament and Isaiah 7:14,” Bibliotheca Sacra 119, pp. 251-258; E. Hindson, Isaiah’s Immanuel, and “Development of the Interpretation of Isaiah 7:14,” Grace Journal, X, 1, 2 pp. 3-15, 19-25. Also, for more on the significance of the virgin birth, see R. Gromacki, The Virgin Birth: Doctrine of Deity; H. Hanke, The Validity of the Virgin Birth; J.G. Machen, The Virgin Birth of Christ (Nelson’s KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1164-1165).

I wonder about the difference in names between the prophecy in Isaiah, where he says the baby will be called Immanuel, and Gabriel’s prophecy, where he tells Mary and Joseph to call the baby Jesus. Some scholars contend that Immanuel is not a name, but a concept: that people will say Jesus’ presence on Earth is God dwelling with us, meaning that Immanuel is more than man. This makes sense because he could not be Jesus (Savior) without being Immanuel (God). In Isaiah 9:6, the child is called “Mighty God”. Matthew interpreted Immanuel in Matt. 1:23 via prophetic scriptures in Isaiah 7:14, 8:8, 8:10, where Isaiah delivers a prophecy that God would be with us, as a comfort to the threatened people of Judah and a climax to previous scripture references that God would be with us. In Exodus 3:12, God told Moses, “I will be with you.” Subsequently, when Moses asks what he should call God, He says, “I will be.” So the name of God = I will be, and when God says, “I will be with you,” we can interpret it as “God with you” (The Zondervan Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 3 pg. 259). Following that, the Israelites begin using the name YHWH, which means “the God who will be with us”, and based on the context in which that name appears in the Bible, it seems to refer to both a physical manifestation of God, as well as the Holy Spirit.

See the next post here https://onthepath.online/2018/12/24/john-the-baptist-is-born/

Scripture References

Ex 3:12 And He said, “Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain.”

Deut 20:7 And who is the man that is engaged to a woman and has not [a]married her? Let him depart and return to his house, otherwise he might die in the battle and another man [b]would marry her.

¹⁶Dt 22:20 “But if this charge is true, that the girl was not found a virgin, 21 then they shall bring out the girl to the doorway of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death because she has committed an act of folly in Israel by playing the harlot in her father’s house; thus you shall purge the evil from among you. 22 “If a man is found lying with a married woman, then both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman; thus you shall purge the evil from Israel. 23 “If there is a girl who is a virgin engaged to a man, and another man finds her in the city and lies with her, 24 then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city and you shall stone them to death; the girl, because she did not cry out in the city, and the man, because he has violated his neighbor’s wife. Thus you shall purge the evil from among you.

¹⁶Dt 24:1-4 “When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out from his house, 2 and she leaves his house and goes and becomes another man’s wife, 3 and if the latter husband turns against her and writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, or if the latter husband dies who took her to be his wife, 4 then her former husband who sent her away is not allowed to take her again to be his wife, since she has been defiled; for that is an abomination before the Lord, and you shall not bring sin on the land which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance.

Is 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin³ will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.

Is 8:8 Then it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass through, It will reach even to the neck; And the spread of its wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.

Is 8:10 Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; State a proposal, but it will not stand, For God is with us.

Jer 2:2 Go and proclaim in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, “I remember concerning you the devotion of your youth, The love of your betrothals, Your following after Me in the wilderness, Through a land not sown.

Mt 1:16 Jacob was the father of Joseph⁴ the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.

Mt 1:25 but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus⁷.

Mt 12:46 While He was still speaking to the crowds, behold, His mother³ and brothers were standing outside, seeking to speak to Him.

Luke 1:27 to a virgin³ engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants⁴ of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.

Lk 1:31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus⁷.

Lk 1:35 The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit¹² will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.

Lk 2:4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David⁴,

Lk 2:11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior¹⁷, who is Christ the Lord.

Lk 2:21 And when eight days had passed, before His circumcision, His name was then called Jesus⁷, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.

Jn 1:29 The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin¹⁷ of the world!

¹⁶Jn 8:4 they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. 5 Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?”

Ac 4:12 And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved¹⁷.”

Ac 5:31 He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins¹⁷.

Ac 13:23 From the descendants of this man, according to promise, God has brought to Israel a Savior¹⁷, Jesus,

Ac 13:38 Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through Him forgiveness of sins¹⁷ is proclaimed to you, 39 and through Him everyone who believes is freed¹⁷ from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses.

¹⁷Col 1:20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven. 21 And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, 22 yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach— 23 if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.

The Birth of John the Baptist Foretold, Luke 1:5-25

5 ¹In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named [a]Zacharias, of the ²division of [b]Abijah; and he had a wife [c]from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 They were both ³righteous in the sight of God, walking ⁴blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in [d]years.

8 Now it happened that while ⁵he was performing his priestly service before God in the appointed order of his division, 9 according to the custom of the priestly office, he was chosen by lot ⁶to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were in prayer ⁷outside at the hour of the incense offering. 11 And ⁸an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. 12 Zacharias was troubled when he saw the angel, and ⁹fear [e]gripped him. 13 But the angel said to him, “¹⁰Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will [f]give him ¹¹the name John. 14 You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. 15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will ¹²drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit [g]while yet in his mother’s womb. 16 And he will ¹³turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God. 17 It is he who will ¹⁴go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of ¹⁵Elijah, ¹⁶to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

18 Zacharias said to the angel, “How will I know this for certain? For ¹⁷I am an old man and my wife is advanced in [h]years.” 19 The angel answered and said to him, “I am ¹⁸Gabriel, who [i]stands ¹⁹in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 20 And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.”

21 The people were waiting for Zacharias, and were wondering at his delay in the temple. 22 But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them; and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he ²⁰kept [j]making signs to them, and remained mute. 23 When the days of his priestly service were ended, he went back home.

24 After these days Elizabeth his wife became pregnant, and she [k]kept herself in seclusion for five months, saying, 25 “This is the way the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He looked with favor upon me, to ²¹take away my disgrace among men.”

Footnotes

1. Luke 1:5 I.e. Zechariah
2. Luke 1:5 Gr Abia
3. Luke 1:5 I.e. of priestly descent
4. Luke 1:7 Lit days
5. Luke 1:12 Or fell upon
6. Luke 1:13 Lit call his name
7. Luke 1:15 Lit from
8. Luke 1:18 Lit days
9. Luke 1:19 Lit stand beside
10. Luke 1:22 Or beckoning to or nodding to
11. Luke 1:24 Lit was hidden

Commentary

Luke, in accordance with his objective to write a historical account, records events in the context of other well-known historical figures and occurrences. Herod began his reign in 47 BC and was nearing the end of his life when John the Baptist and Jesus were born. I had never made the connection before, but apparently, he was friends with Mark Antony, and he was a charming statesman. However, he became increasingly disturbed and violent toward the end of his life, ordering the execution of three of his sons, one of his wives (as well as her entire family), and made an attempt at his own life (https://www.britannica.com/biography/Herod-king-of-Judaea). He was a descendant of Esau (Gen 27:39-40) and ultimately passed in 4 BC (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1265), splitting his kingdom among his sons Archelaus (Mt 2:22), Phillip (Lk 3:1), and Herod Antipas (Lk 23:7-12, 15) (https://www.britannica.com/biography/Herod-king-of-Judaea).

Zacharias (Zechariah) was serving in the temple that Herod was in the process of expanding since 20 BC (Jn 2:20) and was offering incense alone (Lv 16:17) when the angel appeared to him (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1265). Incense offerings expressed prayer (Ps 141:2; Rev 5:8; 8:3,4) and atoned for sin (Num 16:46,47). The smoke also “veiled the mercy seat from the eyes of the high priest so that he would not die from seeing God’s glory” on the Day of Atonement (Lev 16:13) and may have had the practical benefit of overcoming the smell of animal sacrifices (The Zondervian Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 3 pg. 276).

We can safely assume that Zechariah had prayed both for a son and for the birth of the Messiah (praying for the Messiah was a common petition among the priests praying on behalf of the people), and both of these were fulfilled with the angel’s prophecy. The name Zacharias means ‘God remembers’, so even though Zacharias might have stopped praying for a child in his old age, God still remembered his prayers, and He also remembered his covenant (Elizabeth means ‘Oath of God’) when he promised a Messiah, as well as one who would come before Him. Malachi had foretold a messenger, who would come before the Lord, and Gabriel’s prophecy confirms this will be fulfilled in the person of John (Mal 3:1; 4:5-6). Because of Elizabeth’s barrenness, she may have been considered cursed at the time. Luke is sure to call out that Zacharias and Elizabeth were blameless, lest the reader think that her barrenness to that point was due to personal sin, rather than God’s divine plan (https://www.harvest.org/watch-and-listen/tv/watch/christmas-the-story-before-the-story).

Both Zacharias and Elizabeth were descended from Aaron, and Elizabeth shared the same name as Aaron’s wife. John is often referred to as the last of the Old Testament prophets, or the link between the Old and the New Testament, and this is supported by the fact that Elizabeth’s previous barrenness and elderly motherhood hearkens to other Old Testament figures, namely Sarah and Hannah (The Zondervan Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 2 pg. 293). I haven’t found any references that comment on the significance of Elizabeth’s heritage in Luke’s account, but I find it interesting that Luke includes her lineage, and I wonder if that lent an additional air of credibility to John’s ministry, that both his mother and father were from the priestly line of Aaron.

Zacharias was also the recipient of the first recorded revelation from God in over 400 years, so that would have been a shocking and humbling experience in itself, more so, of course, due to the idea that his elderly wife was to conceive a son with the spirit and power of Elijah, no less (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1265). Additionally, he was in the presence of Gabriel, an angel who, before Zechariah met him, had only been named twice in scripture by Daniel. The term angel comes from the Greek word meaning ‘messenger’, so the people understood that God had special correspondents who were assigned to bring special messages to them on Earth (https://biblehub.com/parallel/luke/1-11.htm).

Per tradition, the people were expecting a blessing when Zechariah exited the tent, but he was not able to give it, since he couldn’t speak. However, Luke contrasts this event by concluding his story with Jesus’ blessing while He ascends into Heaven (Lk 24:50-51) (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1265).

See the next post here https://onthepath.online/2018/12/21/the-birth-of-jesus-foretold/

Scripture References

Mt 2:1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea ¹in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying,

1 Ch 24:10  the seventh for Hakkoz, the eighth for ²Abijah,

Ge 7:1 Then the Lord said to Noah, “Enter the ark, you and all your household, for you alone I have seen to be ³righteous before Me in this time.

³Ac 2:25 For David says of Him, ‘I saw the Lord always in my presence; For He is at my right hand, so that I will not be shaken.

³Ac 8:21 You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.

Php 2:15 so that you will prove yourselves to be ⁴blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world,

Php 3:6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found ⁴blameless.

1 Th 3:13  so that He may establish your hearts without ⁴blame in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints.

⁵1 Ch 24:19  These were their offices for their ministry when they came in to the house of the Lord according to the ordinance given to them through Aaron their father, just as the Lord God of Israel had commanded him.

⁵2 Ch 8:14 Now according to the ordinance of his father David, he appointed the divisions of the priests for their service, and the Levites for their duties of praise and ministering before the priests according to the daily rule, and the gatekeepers by their divisions at every gate; for David the man of God had so commanded.

⁵2 Ch 31:2 And Hezekiah appointed the divisions of the priests and the Levites by their divisions, each according to his service, both the priests and the Levites, for burnt offerings and for peace offerings, to minister and to give thanks and to praise in the gates of the camp of the Lord.

⁶Ex 30:7 Aaron shall burn fragrant incense on it; he shall burn it every morning when he trims the lamps. 8 When Aaron trims the lamps at twilight, he shall burn incense. There shall be perpetual incense before the Lord throughout your generations.

⁷Lv 16:17 When he goes in to make atonement in the holy place, no one shall be in the tent of meeting until he comes out, that he may make atonement for himself and for his household and for all the assembly of Israel.

Lk 2:9 And ⁸an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly ⁹frightened.

Ac 5:19 But during the night ⁸an angel of the Lord opened the gates of the prison, and taking them out he said,

Mt 14:27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take courage, it is I; ¹⁰do not be afraid.”

Lk 1:30 The angel said to her, “¹⁰Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God.

Lk 1:60 But his mother answered and said, “No indeed; but he shall be ¹¹called John.”

Lk 1:63 And he asked for a tablet and wrote as follows, “His ¹¹name is John.” And they were all astonished.

Nu 6:3 he shall ¹²abstain from wine and strong drink; he shall drink no vinegar, whether made from wine or strong drink, nor shall he drink any grape juice nor eat fresh or dried grapes.

Jdg 13:4 Now therefore, be careful ¹²not to drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing.

Mt 11:18 For John came neither eating ¹²nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon!’

Lk 7:33 For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and ¹²drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon!’

Mt 3:2 “¹³Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

¹³Mt 3:6 and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed their sins.

Lk 3:3 And he came into all the district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of ¹³repentance for the forgiveness of sins;

Lk 1:76 “And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; For you will ¹⁴go on before the Lord to prepare His ways;

Mt 11:14 And if you are willing to accept it, John himself is ¹⁵Elijah who was to come.

Mal 4:6 He will ¹⁶restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.”

Ge 17:17 Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Will a child be born to ¹⁷a man one hundred years old? And will Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?”

Da 8:16 And I heard the voice of a man between the banks of Ulai, and he called out and said, “¹⁸Gabriel, give this man an understanding of the vision.”

Da 9:21 while I was still speaking in prayer, then the man ¹⁸Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision previously, came to me in my extreme weariness about the time of the evening offering.

Lk 1:26 Now in the sixth month the angel ¹⁸Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth,

Mt 18:10 “See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven continually ¹⁹see the face of My Father who is in heaven.

Lk 1:62 And they ²⁰made signs to his father, as to what he wanted him called.

Ge 30:23 So she conceived and bore a son and said, “God has ²¹taken away my reproach.”

Is 4:1 For seven women will take hold of one man in that day, saying, “We will eat our own bread and wear our own clothes, only let us be called by your name; ²¹take away our reproach!”

Is 25:8 He will swallow up death for all time, And the Lord [a]God will wipe tears away from all faces, And He will ²¹remove the reproach of His people from all the earth; For the Lord has spoken.

Ge 27:39-40 Then Isaac his father answered and said to him, “Behold, away from the fertility of the earth shall be your dwelling, And away from the dew of heaven from above. 40  “By your sword you shall live, And your brother you shall serve; But it shall come about when you become restless, That you will break his yoke from your neck.”

Mt 2:22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Then after being warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee,

Lk 3:1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene,

Lk 23:7-12 And when he learned that He belonged to Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent Him to Herod, who himself also was in Jerusalem at that time. 8 Now Herod was very glad when he saw Jesus; for he had wanted to see Him for a long time, because he had been hearing about Him and was hoping to see some sign performed by Him. 9 And he questioned Him at some length; but He answered him nothing. 10 And the chief priests and the scribes were standing there, accusing Him vehemently. 11 And Herod with his soldiers, after treating Him with contempt and mocking Him, dressed Him in a gorgeous robe and sent Him back to Pilate. 12 Now Herod and Pilate became friends with one another that very day; for before they had been enemies with each other.

Lk 23:15 No, nor has Herod, for he sent Him back to us; and behold, nothing deserving death has been done by Him.

Lk 24:50-51 And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. 51 While He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven.

Jn 2:20 The Jews then said, “It took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?”

Ps 141:2 May my prayer be [a]counted as incense before You; The lifting up of my hands as the evening offering.

Rev 5:8 When He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

Rev 8:3-4 Another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer; and much incense was given to him, so that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar which was before the throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel’s hand.

Num 16:46-47 Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer and put in it fire from the altar, and lay incense on it; then bring it quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them, for wrath has gone forth from the Lord, the plague has begun!” 47 Then Aaron took it as Moses had spoken, and ran into the midst of the assembly, for behold, the plague had begun among the people. So he put on the incense and made atonement for the people.

Mal 3:1 “Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of hosts.

Mal 4:5-6 “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. 6 He will [a]restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a [b]curse.”

Extrabiblical References

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Herod-king-of-Judaeahttps://www.britannica.com/biography/Herod-king-of-Judaea

Matthew 1:1-17, Luke 3:23-38 The Genealogy of Christ

Matt 1:1 The [a]record of the genealogy of [b]Jesus [c]the Messiah, ¹the son of David, ²the son of Abraham: 2 Abraham [d]was the father of Isaac, [e]Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of [f]Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, ³Perez was the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of [g]Ram. 4 Ram was the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon. 5 Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab, Boaz was the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of ¹¹Jesse. 6 Jesse was the father of David the king. David ⁴was the father of Solomon by [h]Bathsheba who had been the wife of Uriah. 7 Solomon ⁵was the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of [i]Asa. 8 Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of [j]Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah. 9 Uzziah was the father of [k]Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. 10 Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of [l]Amon, and Amon the ⁶father of Josiah. 11 Josiah became the father of [m]Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the ⁷deportation to Babylon. 12 After the deportation to Babylon: Jeconiah became the father of [n]Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of ¹⁰Zerubbabel. 13 Zerubbabel was the father of [o]Abihud, Abihud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor. 14 Azor was the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud. 15 Eliud was the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob. 16 Jacob was the father of ⁹Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, ⁸who is called [p]the Messiah. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to [q]the Messiah, fourteen generations.

Luke 3:23 being, [r]as was supposed, the son of ⁹Joseph, [s]the son of [t]Eli, 24 the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, 25 the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of [u]Hesli, the son of Naggai, 26 the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda, 27 the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, ¹⁰the son of Zerubbabel, the son of [v]Shealtiel, the son of Neri, 28 the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, 29 the son of [w]Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, 30 the son of Simeon, the son of [x]Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, 31 the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, 32 the son of ¹¹Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of [y]Salmon, the son of [z]Nahshon, 33 the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of [aa]Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, 34 the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, ^2,12the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, 35 the son of Serug, the son of [bb]Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of [cc]Heber, the son of Shelah, 36 the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, ¹³the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, 37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, 38 the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.

Footnotes

1. Matthew 1:1 Lit book
2. Matthew 1:1 Heb Yeshua (Joshua), meaning The Lord saves
3. Matthew 1:1 Gr Christos (Christ), Gr for Messiah, which means Anointed One
4. Matthew 1:2 Lit fathered, and throughout the genealogy
5. Matthew 1:2 Lit and…, and throughout the genealogy
6. Matthew 1:2 Gr Judas; names of people in the Old Testament are given in their Old Testament form
7. Matthew 1:3 Gr Aram
8. Matthew 1:6 Lit her of Uriah
9. Matthew 1:7 Gr Asaph
10. Matthew 1:8 Also Gr for Jehoram in 2 King 8:16; cf 1 Chron 3:11
11. Matthew 1:9 Gr Joatham
12. Matthew 1:10 Gr Amos
13. Matthew 1:11 Jehoiachin in 2 Kin 24:15
14. Matthew 1:12 Gr Salathiel
15. Matthew 1:13 Gr Abioud, usually spelled Abiud
16. Matthew 1:16 Gr Christos (Christ)
17. Matthew 1:17 Gr Christos (Christ)
18. Luke 3:23 Lit as it was being thought
19. Luke 3:23 Lit of Eli, and so throughout the genealogy
20. Luke 3:23 Also spelled Heli
21. Luke 3:25 Also spelled Esli
22. Luke 3:27 Gr Salathiel; names of people in the Old Testament are given in their Old Testament form through v 38
23. Luke 3:29 Gr Jesus
24. Luke 3:30 Gr Judas
25. Luke 3:32 Gr Sala
26. Luke 3:32 Gr Naasson
27. Luke 3:33 Gr Arni
28. Luke 3:35 Gr Ragau
29. Luke 3:35 Gr Eber

Commentary

For the Jews, the coming of a Messiah was and is a foundational principle. Many have come and gone, claiming to be the Messiah, and they have been dismissed by Jewish leaders for not meeting the criteria detailed in Old Testament prophecy. The inclusion of Jesus’ genealogy is one of the ways the gospel writers intended to demonstrate that Jesus was the one who had been foretold. The Messiah would be a descendant of Abraham (Gen. 12:3) as well as David (2 Sam. 7:16) (The Word in Life Study Bible pg. 1613). Additionally, Jewish tradition interpreted Gen 49:8-12 to foretell that the Messiah would come from the line of Judah (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1162). They also wanted to emphasize that He was fully human, since many people at the time believed Jesus was a spiritual being who only appeared to be in human form (The Word in Life Study Bible pg. 1774). Additionally, Matthew in particular meant to show “that Jesus is also the international Christ, the Savior of the whole world. His genealogy reaches beyond Jews to include several ethnic groups that populated the Middle East during Israel’s Old Testament history” (The Word in Life Study Bible pg. 1617). Matthew’s gospel stylistically mirrors the Old Testament Torah in many ways, and genealogies held a place of importance in much of the Jewish history (The Word in Life Study Bible pg. 18), demonstrating God’s grace to His chosen people and to the rest of the world (The Word in Life Study Bible pg. 692).

Culturally, genealogies were important to families because they figured into legal matters and were a source of pride. Joseph would surely have had records of his lineage that he kept with great care. The genealogies of Christ in Matthew and Luke both make it clear that Joseph is the legal, not actual, father of Jesus, and that Joseph is a descendant of David. However, I was stricken by the differences in the accounts of the lineage between David and Joseph. Matthew records David’s son Solomon as Joseph’s ancestor, whereas Luke has Joseph descending from the line of Nathan (Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 2 pg. 675-676).

Matthew’s genealogy has some interesting inclusions and exclusions that are worth noting. He groups the generations into three sets of fourteen, arriving “at this scheme through selection and omission in accord with OT practice” (Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 2 pg. 676). He also included women, which was almost unheard of in official genealogical records. Many believe that this is because Jewish leaders were trying to cast a shadow if illegitimacy on Jesus’ heritage, and Matthew wanted to point out that many of the women that were held in high esteem from the OT were not above reproach (Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 2 pg. 676). Tamar posed as a prostitute on the side of the road to trick her father-in-law into a conjugal relationship which would give her an heir (this was in fact an act of faith and perseverance that preserved Judah’s line and served as a turning point in Judah’s life), Rahab was a Canaanite prostitute in Jericho, who saved the lives of the Isrealite spies. Ruth was a Moabitess who presumptuously laid herself at the feet of an inebriated Boaz in the middle of the night, another act of faith, which this time resulted in the birth of David’s grandfather. Bathsheba was the victim of David’s lust and was coerced into an extramarital relationship that God later redeemed with the birth of Solomon (The Word in Life Study Bible pg. 1618). Mary’s virginity certainly would have been met with scrutiny because a virgin birth would have been a direct fulfillment of prophecy (Is 7:14), so Matthew wanted to remind the Jews that God has always worked in mysterious ways. A great supplemental message about Matthew’s account is a sermon by Alistair Begg on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSUo_3_eL7g.

Luke’s genealogy, in addition to citing a different line than Matthew, has considerably more entries than that of Matthew and is presented in a less official way. One theory about the differing lineage between the two accounts is that Luke actually depicted the line of Mary. In Mark 6:3, Jesus is called the son of Mary, rather than the son of Joseph, which, in that male society would have been something of a slur. In one interpretation of Luke 3:23, the text can read “Jesus, being the son (as it was supposed, of Joseph) of Heli, etc.” Luke does not include any other women in his record, and while the suppression of Mary’s name weakens this theory, it could be that Mary had no brothers and that by marrying her, Joseph became the son and heir of Heli (The Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 2 pg. 676). One benefit of this theory is that the Lukan genealogy (Nelson’s KJV Bible Commentary assumes this is Mary’s line, also) excludes Zeconiah, who was held as the last true king of the Israelites and was cursed in Jeremiah 22:30 against bearing any sovereign line (Nelson’s KJV Bible Commentary Pg. 1269).

Another explanation for the discrepancy is that Matthew’s account is focused on Joseph’s legal heritage, whereas Luke’s is focused on his physical ancestry. In the law of levirate marriage, if a married man died with no heir, his brother (or in some traditions, if he had no brothers and his father was a widower, his father) could marry the widow of the deceased, and the child from that union would become legally the heir of the deceased and not his brother’s. Assuming Heli and Jacob could have had the same mother but different fathers (although Matthat and Matthan may have been the same person), and also that Heli later married Jacob’s widow, Joseph would have been the legal heir of one and the physical heir of the other. This theory, while not infeasible, is predicated on several happy coincidences, but then again, God’s plan often works that way. Either way, the two credible theories at least serve to demonstrate that the differing genealogies are not irreconcilable (The Pictoral Encyclopedia of the Bible Vol. 2 pg. 676-677).

As I was researching the Scriptural references from Matthew 1:1, I got hung up on 2 Samuel 7:14. I thought the whole passage was supposed to be referring to Jesus, but on reading a number of commentaries, it sounds as though the entire passage was given to David regarding his son Solomon. Parts of it are foreshadowing the Messiah, but it is also intended literally to be about Solomon. That is why God speaks of disciplining his child when he commits iniquities. There are so many parts of the genealogy, as well as the referenced scriptures, that are tempting to explore further, but I’m afraid to go down too much of a rabbit hole when my focus is on the study of the gospels. Certainly, the Old and New Testaments need to be considered as one volume, the history of God’s relationship to man, so let me encourage you to take a deeper look into all these topics on your own.

See the next post here https://onthepath.online/2018/12/20/the-birth-of-john-the-baptist-foretold/

Scriptural References

Ge 5:3 When Adam had lived one hundred and thirty years, he became the father of a son in his own likeness, according to his image, and named him Seth. 4 Then the days of Adam after he became the father of Seth were eight hundred years, and he had other sons and daughters. 5 So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years, and he died. 6 Seth lived one hundred and five years, and became the father of Enosh. 7 Then Seth lived eight hundred and seven years after he became the father of Enosh, and he had other sons and daughters. 8 So all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years, and he died. 9 Enosh lived ninety years, and became the father of Kenan. 10 Then Enosh lived eight hundred and fifteen years after he became the father of Kenan, and he had other sons and daughters. 11 So all the days of Enosh were nine hundred and five years, and he died. 12 Kenan lived seventy years, and became the father of Mahalalel. 13 Then Kenan lived eight hundred and forty years after he became the father of Mahalalel, and he had other sons and daughters. 14 So all the days of Kenan were nine hundred and ten years, and he died. 15 Mahalalel lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Jared. 16 Then Mahalalel lived eight hundred and thirty years after he became the father of Jared, and he had other sons and daughters. 17 So all the days of Mahalalel were eight hundred and ninety-five years, and he died. 18 Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years, and became the father of Enoch. 19 Then Jared lived eight hundred years after he became the father of Enoch, and he had other sons and daughters. 20 So all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years, and he died. 21 Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah. 22 Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. 23 So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. 24 Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him. 25 Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-seven years, and became the father of Lamech. 26 Then Methuselah lived seven hundred and eighty-two years after he became the father of Lamech, and he had other sons and daughters. 27 So all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred and sixty-nine years, and he died. 28 Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and became the father of a son. 29 Now he called his name ¹³Noah, saying, “This one will give us rest from our work and from the toil of our hands arising from the ground which the Lord has cursed.” 30 Then Lamech lived five hundred and ninety-five years after he became the father of Noah, and he had other sons and daughters. 31 So all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy-seven years, and he died. 32 Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Ge 11:26 Terah lived seventy years, and became the father of ¹²Abram, Nahor and Haran. 27 Now these are the records of the generations of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran; and Haran became the father of Lot. 28 Haran died [a]in the presence of his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldeans. 29 Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah [b]and Iscah. 30 Sarai was barren; she had no child.

Gen 12:3 “And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”

²Ge 22:18 “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

Ge 49:8-12 “Judah, your brothers shall praise you; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s sons shall bow down to you. 9 “Judah is a lion’s whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He couches, he lies down as a lion, And as a lion, who dares rouse him up? 10 “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes, And to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. 11 “He ties his foal to the vine, And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine; He washes his garments in wine, And his robes in the blood of grapes. 12 “His eyes are dull from wine, And his teeth white from milk.

Ru 4:18 Now these are the generations of ³Perez: to Perez was born Hezron, 19 and to Hezron was born Ram, and to Ram, Amminadab, 20 and to Amminadab was born Nahshon, and to Nahshon, Salmon, 21 and to Salmon was born Boaz, and to Boaz, Obed, 22 and to Obed was born Jesse, and to Jesse, David.

¹2 Sa 7:12 When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men, 15 but My lovingkindness shall not depart from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.

⁴2 Sa 11:27 When the time of mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house and she became his wife; then she bore him a son. But the thing that David had done was evil in the sight of the Lord.

2 Sa 12:24 Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and went in to her and lay with her; and she gave birth to a son, and he named him ⁴Solomon. Now the Lord loved him

[j]2 King 8:16 Now in the fifth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel, Jehoshaphat being then the king of Judah, Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah became king.

⁷2 Ki 24:14 Then he led away into exile all Jerusalem and all the captains and all the mighty men of valor, ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and the smiths. None remained except the poorest people of the land. 15 [m] So he led Jehoiachin away into exile to Babylon; also the king’s mother and the king’s wives and his officials and the leading men of the land, he led away into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.

1 Ch 1:1 Adam, Seth, Enosh, 2 Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, 3 Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, 4 ¹³Noah, Shem, Ham and Japheth.

1 Ch 1:24 Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah, 25 Eber, Peleg, Reu, 26 Serug, Nahor, Terah, 27 Abram, that is ¹²Abraham.

1 Ch 2:1 These are the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, 2 Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad and Asher. 3 The sons of Judah were Er, Onan and Shelah; these three were born to him by Bath-shua the Canaanitess. And Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the Lord, so He put him to death. 4 Tamar his daughter-in-law bore him ³Perez and Zerah. Judah had five sons in all. 5 The sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul. 6 The sons of Zerah were Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol and Dara; five of them in all. 7 The son of Carmi was Achar, the troubler of Israel, who violated the ban. 8 The son of Ethan was Azariah. 9 Now the sons of Hezron, who were born to him were Jerahmeel, Ram and Chelubai. 10 Ram became the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, leader of the sons of Judah; 11 Nahshon became the father of Salma, Salma became the father of Boaz, 12 Boaz became the father of Obed, and Obed became the father of Jesse; 13 and Jesse became the father of Eliab his firstborn, then Abinadab the second, Shimea the third, 14 Nethanel the fourth, Raddai the fifth, 15 Ozem the sixth, David the seventh;

1 Ch 3:10 Now Solomon’s son was ⁵Rehoboam, Abijah was his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son, 11 Joram his son, Ahaziah his son, Joash his son, 12 Amaziah his son, Azariah his son, Jotham his son, 13 Ahaz his son, Hezekiah his son, Manasseh his son, 14 Amon his son, Josiah his son. 15 The sons of Josiah were Johanan the firstborn, and the second was Jehoiakim, the third Zedekiah, the fourth Shallum. 16 The sons of Jehoiakim were Jeconiah his son, Zedekiah his son. 17 The sons of Jeconiah, the prisoner, were Shealtiel his son, 18 and Malchiram, Pedaiah, Shenazzar, Jekamiah, Hoshama and Nedabiah. 19 The sons of Pedaiah were Zerubbabel and Shimei. And the sons of Zerubbabel were Meshullam and Hananiah, and Shelomith was their sister; 20 and Hashubah, Ohel, Berechiah, Hasadiah and Jushab-hesed, five. 21 The sons of Hananiah were Pelatiah and Jeshaiah, the sons of Rephaiah, the sons of Arnan, the sons of Obadiah, the sons of Shecaniah. 22 The descendants of Shecaniah were Shemaiah, and the sons of Shemaiah: Hattush, Igal, Bariah, Neariah and Shaphat, six. 23 The sons of Neariah were Elioenai, Hizkiah and Azrikam, three. 24 The sons of Elioenai were Hodaviah, Eliashib, Pelaiah, Akkub, Johanan, Delaiah and Anani, seven.

[j]1 Chron 3:11 [compare] Joram his son, Ahaziah his son, Joash his son,

1 Ch 3:14 Amon his son, ⁶Josiah his son.

¹Ps 89:3 I have made a covenant with My chosen; I have sworn to David My servant,

¹Ps 132:11 The Lord has sworn to David A truth from which He will not turn back: Of the fruit of your body I will set upon your throne.

¹Is 9:6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

¹Is 11:1 Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit.

Jer 22:30 “Thus says the Lord, ‘Write this man down childless, A man who will not prosper in his days; For no man of his descendants will prosper Sitting on the throne of David Or ruling again in Judah.’”

Jer 27:20 which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take when he ⁷carried into exile Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem.

Mt 9:27 As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out, “Have mercy on us, ¹Son of David!”

Mt 27:17 So when the people gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you? Barabbas, or Jesus ⁸who is called Christ?”

Mt 27:22 Pilate *said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus ⁸who is called Christ?” They all *said, “Crucify Him!”

Mark 6:3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? Are not His sisters here with us?” And they took offense at Him.

Lk 1:32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 ¹and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.

Lk 1:69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of David ¹His servant—

Lk 2:11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, ⁸who is Christ the Lord.

Jn 4:25 The woman *said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming (He ⁸who is called Christ); when that One comes, He will declare all things to us.”

Jn 7:42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the ¹descendants of David, and from Bethlehem, the village where David was?

Ac 13:23 ¹From the descendants of this man, according to promise, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus,

Ro 1:3 concerning His Son, who was born ¹of a descendant of David according to the flesh,

²Gal 3:16 Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as referring to many, but rather to one, “And to your seed,” that is, Christ.

Rev 22:16 “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the ¹descendant of David, the bright morning star.”

Starting a Blog

See the companion video to this post here https://youtu.be/5pVRS4k-K3E

I’ve been thinking about blogging for a long time, and it’s strange to say, but I haven’t known what the content should be. That sounds silly because, why would I blog if I don’t have a particular message? The problem isn’t so much that I have nothing to say, but that I have too much to say. I have a lot of interests and experiences that I wonder if others would find interesting or compelling, and narrowing the scope of my blog was an obstacle I allowed to keep me from the hard work of starting. Finally, I decided that choosing to begin was better than knowing the ending.

Hopefully, this blog can grow and adapt with the content God leads me to post, but for now, I’m starting with something I’ve been working on every day – studying the Bible. Specifically, studying the 4 gospels, taking each event in chronological order across all 4 books. The object of this study will be to bring you along with me on my journey while I learn. I’m taking the time to study, anyway, so why not write down what I find out and share it with you? The reason I decided to take an in-depth look into the gospel books was I was really convicted by 1 Peter 3:15, which says, “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence.” So much of the “account for my hope” was my personal experience, which, while a very important part of my testimony, I felt could be coupled with some further analysis to give credence to Jesus as the Messiah.

I will probably reiterate this in many posts, but I want to be sure to convey that I am not a trained theologian. The point of this blog series will be for you to follow me as I learn, and hopefully you will get a lot out of it, as well. I encourage you to do your own studying and research because this has been a huge shift in the way I look at the Bible. If you want to study along with me, I recommend getting together with a small group of people, and each person can bring their tablet or other device. Then each of you can be responsible to look up one type of reference, and the group can all share about the findings of each individual. After being a Christian for my whole life, I feel as though I’m finally starting to learn how to study the Bible for myself, and it’s giving me insight into both the great tapestry of God’s story, as well as the individual threads that make up that tapestry. I’m really excited to share this experience with you because I get really jazzed whenever I have a new revelation about something I never fully understood before.

Here are a couple of notes about my approach to each weekly study. One of the first things I do with each event recorded in the gospel accounts is to take each reference noted with superscript letters and numbers in the passage, and I paste all the footnotes and verses associated with each. Then I read through the various reference materials my husband and I have accrued, as well as sermons or other online resources. Whenever possible, I like to go through the literal translations of the original language because I see a lot of shades of meaning I never would have gotten from the various English versions available. If I can find any extrabiblical references to the events, I like to read those, too, since it helps me connect figures and events I always learned about in history class with events recorded in the Bible, and suddenly the picture in my mind’s eye all comes together as one unified account.

Ok, I think that’s enough for one post! Look for the first study to come soon! Since I want to try to post the study of the Christmas story on Christmas, my goal is to post a couple of times a week until then, in order to catch up. Then I will post once a week for the foreseeable future after that. Thanks for taking the time to read this introduction, and I look forward to sharing more with you soon!

See the next post here https://onthepath.online/2018/12/18/the-deity-of-christ/