Matthew 1:16

“And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.”

King James Version (KJV)

Other Translations

And Iacob begate Ioseph the husband of Mary, of whom was borne Iesus, who is called Christ.
- King James Version (1611) - View 1611 Bible Scan

Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.
- New American Standard Version (1995)

and Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
- American Standard Version (1901)

And the son of Jacob was Joseph the husband of Mary, who gave birth to Jesus, whose name is Christ.
- Basic English Bible

and Jacob begat Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
- Darby Bible

And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
- Webster's Bible

and Jacob of Joseph the husband of Mary, who was the mother of JESUS who is called CHRIST.
- Weymouth Bible

Jacob became the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, from whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
- World English Bible

Mathan bigat Jacob. Jacob bigat Joseph, the hosebonde of Marye, of whom Jhesus was borun, that is clepid Christ.
- Wycliffe Bible

and Jacob begat Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was begotten Jesus, who is named Christ.
- Youngs Literal Bible

Bible commentary

Wesley's Notes for Matthew 1:16


1:16 The husband of Mary - Jesus was generally believed to be the son of Joseph. It was needful for all who believed this, to know, that Joseph was sprung from David. Otherwise they would not allow Jesus to be the Christ. Jesus, who is called Christ - The name Jesus respects chiefly the promise of blessing made to Abraham: the name Christ, the promise of the Messiah's kingdom, which was made to David. It may be farther observed, that the word Christ in Greek, and Messiah in Hebrew, signify anointed, and imply the prophetic, priestly, and royal characters, which were to meet in the Messiah. Among the Jews, anointing was the ceremony whereby prophets, priests, and kings were initiated into those offices. And if we look into ourselves, we shall find a want of Christ in all these respects. We are by nature at a distance from God, alienated from him, and incapable of a free access to him. Hence we want a mediator, an intercessor, in a word, a Christ, in his priestly office. This regards our state with respect to God. And with respect to ourselves, we find a total darkness, blindness, ignorance of God, and the things of God. Now here we want Christ in his prophetic office, to enlighten our minds, and teach us the whole will of God. We find also within us a strange misrule of appetites and passions. For these we want Christ in his royal character, to reign in our hearts, and subdue all things to himself.


People's Bible Notes for Matthew 1:16


Mt 1:16 Jacob begat Joseph. The descendant of a long line of kings was a poor carpenter of Nazareth. As the husband of Mary he was the legal father of Jesus, and Matthew gives his line of descent. A comparison of the table given by Luke will show that it differs in part from that of Matthew. Between David and Joseph the lists are widely different. Several views, all possible, have been presented, but the most probable explanation is that Matthew gives the line of Joseph, the legal line, and that Luke gives the line of Mary, the mother of our Lord. As the Jews regarded only male descent, unless Joseph, the supposed father, was a descendant of David they would not have recognized the genealogy as a fulfillment of the prophecies that Christ should be the Son of David; while Luke, himself a Gentile and writing for Gentiles, was more particular to give the line that shows that Jesus is really the Son of David. If Mary was the daughter of Heli, especially if an heiress, Joseph, by marriage, would become the "son of Heli". That there is no contradiction between the two tables is shown by the fact that the Jews who best understood their genealogies never charged it. These tables were preserved with great care, for various reasons, until Christ was born, but it is asserted that Herod destroyed them. If this is incorrect, they did not survive the destruction of Jerusalem.

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