Matthew 1 in plain modern English. New Ground English Translation.
Time Period
c. 6-4 BC
Location
Bethlehem, Judea
Audience
Jewish Christians in the Roman Empire (c. AD 60-80)
Situation
Matthew opens his Gospel with Jesus' genealogy from Abraham to Joseph, proving his messianic lineage, followed by the divine announcement of Mary's virgin conception.
Key Background
Genealogies were vital in Jewish culture to establish legal and royal descent, linking Jesus to Abraham (father of Israel) and David (royal ancestor). The structure uses three sets of 14 generations, possibly symbolic or mnemonic, skipping some names for emphasis. Written amid Roman occupation and Jewish unrest, it counters skepticism by fulfilling prophecies like Isaiah 7:14 on the virgin birth.
This is the of Jesus, The — descendant of descendant of
Abraham Isaac. Isaac Jacob. Jacob and his brothers.
Judah fathered Perez and Zerah (their mother was Perez fathered Hezron. Hezron fathered Ram.
Ram fathered Amminadab. Amminadab fathered Nahshon. Nahshon fathered Salmon.
Salmon fathered Boaz (his mother was Boaz fathered Obed (his mother was Obed fathered Jesse.
Jesse fathered King David. David fathered Solomon (his mother had been
Solomon fathered Rehoboam. Rehoboam fathered Abijah. Abijah fathered Asa.
Asa fathered Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat fathered Joram. Joram fathered Uzziah.
Uzziah fathered Jotham. Jotham fathered Ahaz. Ahaz fathered Hezekiah.
Hezekiah fathered Manasseh. Manasseh fathered Amon. Amon fathered Josiah.
Josiah fathered Jeconiah and his brothers around the time of the to
After the exile to Babylon: Jeconiah fathered Shealtiel. Shealtiel fathered
Zerubbabel fathered Abiud. Abiud fathered Eliakim. Eliakim fathered Azor.
Azor fathered Zadok. Zadok fathered Achim. Achim fathered Eliud.
Eliud fathered Eleazar. Eleazar fathered Matthan. Matthan fathered Jacob.
Jacob fathered the husband of — and it was who gave birth to Jesus, the called The
So all together: from Abraham to David, from David to the exile to Babylon, and from the Babylonian exile to The One.
Here's how the birth of Jesus, The One, happened: His mother Mary was to Joseph, but before they came together, she turned out to be pregnant through the of
Now Joseph, husband, was a and didn't want to so he planned to the quietly.
But while he was thinking this over, a from appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, of — don't be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what's been in her is from the Breath of God."
She's going to have a son, and you are to name him — because he will his people from their
All of this happened to what Yahweh had spoken through the
"Look — the will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name him (which means "God with us").
When Joseph woke up, he did what the messenger from Yahweh had told him — he as
But he with until she had given birth to a son. And he