Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham

Gen 49,2.8-10; Ps 71,1-4ab.7-8.17; Mt 1,1-17.
17 DECEMBER

When the Evangelist Matthew writes his Gospel, the name of Jesus has already become one with his mission of the Lord’s Anointed. By now Jesus is Jesus Christ, Jesus Messiah, Jesus Anointed and Jesus King. Jesus is the King of kings and the Prince of the lords of the earth. Who is Jesus Christ for the Evangelist? He is the son of David and the son of Abraham. By saying that Jesus is the son of Abraham, it is meant to mean that the promise made by God to the Patriarch is fulfilled in him. It is the fruit of two obediences. The first invited him to leave his father’s house and to go to the place that would have been indicated to him. The second asked him to go to the mountain to sacrifice his only-begotten son, the son of his love. We know that Abraham obeyed with prompt and immediate response.

The Lord said to Abram: “Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk and from your father’s house to a land that I will show you. “I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. All the communities of the earth shall find blessing in you” (Gen 12,1-3). But the Lord’s messenger called to him from heaven, “Abraham, Abraham!” “Yes, Lord,” he answered. “Do not lay your hand on the boy,” said the messenger. “Do not do the least thing to him. I know now how devoted you are to God, since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.” As Abraham looked about, he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. So he went and took the ram and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son. Abraham named the site Yahweh-yireh; hence people now say, “On the mountain the Lord will see.” Again the Lord’s messenger called to Abraham from heaven and said: “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son, I will bless you abundantly and make your descendants as countless as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore; your descendants shall take possession of the gates of their enemies, and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing – all this because you obeyed my command” (Gen 22,11-18).

Instead, to David the Lord promised an endless kingdom, an eternal kingdom. It is Jesus the King with the eternal kingdom, because He is the immortal King. He comes to create the kingdom of God on earth, a kingdom against which the powers of the underworld will have no authority. Nobody might destroy it. Time will end, but the kingdom will not end. It is imperishable.

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham became the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse, Jesse the father of David the king. David became the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asaph. Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah. Uzziah became the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amos, Amos the father of Josiah. Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the Babylonian exile. After the Babylonian exile, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, Azor the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, Eliud the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Messiah. Thus the total number of generations from Abraham to David is fourteen generations; from David to the Babylonian exile, fourteen generations; from the Babylonian exile to the Messiah, fourteen generations.

These two promises of God go through a history of about a thousand and eight hundred years. Abraham dies, God’s promise is immortal. David also falls asleep with his fathers. God does not fall asleep, he watches to give life to his twofold promise. The , if we read the story of David’s lineage, we must confess that if the Lord had not watched over the kingdom, the lineage would have died out after a few centuries. It is urgent then to put a certainty in the heart: years, centuries, millennia, men and things pass, the Word pronounced by the Lord remains eternally stable. It is a truth that we can all see. Every Word of God has been tested by fire.

Mother of God, Angels and Saints, give us an ever more lively faith in the Word of God.