Links for today’s readings:
Read: Nehemiah 2 Listen: (3:42)
Read: Revelation 11 Listen: (3:24)
Links for this weekend’s readings:
Read: Nehemiah 3 Listen: (5:43), Read: Revelation 12 Listen: (2:58)
Read: Nehemiah 4 Listen: (3:38), Read: Revelation 13 Listen: (3:20)
Scripture Focus: Matthew 1:1, 17
1 This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham
17 Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah.
Nehemiah 2:3-5
3 but I said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?”
4 The king said to me, “What is it you want?”
Then I prayed to the God of heaven, 5 and I answered the king, “If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it.”
Reflection: Jesus’ Family Tree — Joy of Advent
By Jon Polk
You may have never read the first seventeen verses of Matthew 1. You should, after all, it’s Jesus’ family tree. If you pay attention, you might even recognize a few names.
So go ahead. Here it is. I’ll wait.
In the old King James, Matthew 1 is the “begat” section. So-and-so begat so-and-so and one hard to pronounce name begat another funny sounding name. It’s the passage to be feared if called upon to read aloud in church.
Ancient genealogies were written with a purpose in mind. Names can obviously refer to a specific person, but they can also reference a family name. The phrase “the son of” can mean literally “direct offspring of” or it can mean more generally “descendent of.”
Matthew carefully shapes Jesus’ ancestry with a goal in mind. Matthew traces Jesus’ lineage back to Abraham and outlines three sets of fourteen generations: Abraham to David, David to the Babylonian exile, and the exile to the Messiah.
Do the math and this equals six sets of seven generations, making Jesus the beginning of the seventh. Seven is a biblical number representing completion. Therefore, Jesus inaugurates the fulfillment of God’s plan for the world.
As expected, there are prominent names in Jesus’ lineage that anyone would love to have in their family tree: Abraham, faithful father of many nations; Judah, the royal tribe through which the Messiah would come; David, a man after God’s own heart; and Zerubbabel, who led exiles back from Babylonian captivity.
Not a bad pedigree.
But wait, there’s more!
Surprisingly, there are a few scoundrels on the list as well: Jacob, who tricked his father out of the family blessing; Rehoboam, son of Solomon who brought about the divided kingdom; and even David, who committed adultery and murder.
Everyone has a few stories in their family history that they would like to keep secret. Even Jesus.
And you thought there were interesting characters in your family?
As we draw near to the holiday break, maybe you’re dreading interactions with your crazy uncle or your weirdo cousin. Perhaps there is tension between members of your extended family. You might be preparing to tread lightly if certain topics come up in conversation.
Somehow there is an odd comfort in knowing that even Jesus’ earthly family history was less than perfect. So go easy on your family this year. Allow the grace of God to saturate every conversation, every interaction.
Because you never know, to someone else, you may be the weirdo cousin.
Divine Hours Prayer: A Reading
Now his mother and his brothers arrived, and standing outside, sent in a message asking for him. A crowd was sitting round him at the time the message was passed to him, “Look, your mother and brothers and sisters are outside asking for you.” He replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers? Anyone who does the will of God, that person is my brother and sister and mother.” — Mark 3.31-35
– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime by Phyllis Tickle.
Read more about Bathsheba’s Story — Love of Advent
These are the matriarchs of Jesus: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, and Mary. This is Bathsheba’s story.
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