The genealogy of Jesus Christ. Matthew began this Gospel by portraying the lineage of the Lord Jesus to prove to the Jews that Hew was the Messiah announced in the Scriptures, the One they waited so long for (Isa. 11.1-5). The genealogies were important to the people of Israel, especially when the entered the land of Canaan, where each tribe would take possession of their inheritance.

It was necessary to have a perfect record of everyone’s ancestors to determine which tribe they belonged to.

For example, if a man wanted to become a priest, he would have to prove that he belonged to a the tribe of Levi and were of priestly lineage. That is why Matthew carefully recorded the generations that followed from Abraham to David, to prove that the prophecies were perfectly fulfilled in the Lord Jesus. God had promised that the Messiah woudl be a descendant of Abraham to David, to prove that the prophecies were perfectly fulfillied in the Lord Jesus. God had promised that the Messiah would be a descendant of Abraham (Gen. 12.3; 22.18; 49.10), which made Him a Jew and a descendant of David (2 Sam. 7.12-16; Jer. 23.5), giving Him a legal right to the throne.