Jesus’ Genealogy

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By Religion and the Absurd
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Religion and the Absurd A Skeptics View of
Judaeo-Christian Scripture and Tradition
Jesus Genealogy
To show the Jewish messianic legitimacy of Jesus,
Matthew traces Davids line down to Joseph. The
problem is that Luke also traces Jesus
genealogy, but his is almost completely different
from that of Matthew! Most damaging of all for
the credibility of this section is the assertion
that the Holy Spirit, not Joseph, impregnates
Mary, so that the whole genealogy to Joseph is
pointless! Hence Jesus is NOT from the line of
David, whether or not Joseph is.
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Genealogies from David to Jesus
According to Luke
According to Matthew

• David
• Natha
• Mattatha
• Menan
• Melea
• Eliakim
• Jonan
• Joseph
• Juda
• Simeon
• Levi
• Matthat
• Jorim
• Elizier
• Jose
• Er
• Elmodan
• Cosam
• Addi

• Zorabable
• Rhesa
• Joanna
• Juda
• Joseph
• Semei
• Mattathias
• Maath
• Nagge
• Esli
• Naum
• Amos
• Mattathias
• Joseaph
• Janna
• Melchi
• Levi
• Matthat
• Heli

• Josias
• Jechonias
• Salathiel
• Zorababel
• Abiud
• Eliakim
• Azor
• Sadoc
• Achim
• Eliud
• Eleazar
• Matthan
• Jacob
• Joseph
• Jesus

• David
• Solomon
• Roboam
• Abia
• Asa
• Josaphat
• Joram
• Ozias
• Joatham
• Achaz
• Ezekias
• Manasses
• Amon

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• Genealogies become important during the
  Babylonian Captivity. The exiled priestly and
  ruling classes of Judah decide that YHWH brought
  the Babylonians to destroy Jerusalem and the
  Temple because of marriage to unclean local
  women, through whom worship of other gods spread.
  Thus, they each have to show their own
  genealogical purity by inventing a family tree
  that stretches back to David. This rejection of
  aliens is also the origin of the intense
  xenophobia that is still a hallmark of Judaism
  today.

• Another, perhaps even more fundamental, motive
  for these genealogies is their use in asserting
  claim to the land in Judah lost to the unclean
  lower classes during the Exile. Still, the root
  cause for early Christians to assert the Davidic
  origin of Jesus is the prophecy that the Messiah
  will spring from Davids line.
• Its interesting to note that Lukes genealogy
  lists the father of Salathiel, the king-in-exile
  during the Babylonian Captivity, not as Jeconias,
  the king of Judah before him, but as Neri, an
  otherwise unknown individual with a unisex Hebrew
  name meaning my candle.

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