From David to Jesus: Mapping Matthew & Luke Against History
This post sets Matthew’s “Solomon-line” and Luke’s “Nathan-line” side-by-side, then places both on a historical timeline from King David to the late Second Temple era. It also notes how Isaiah 7:14 (maiden/virgin) and Exodus 3:14 (“I AM”) travel through translation into New Testament theology.
5) Context: Husband vs. Father in Genealogical Language
Samson’s proverb (Judges 14:18) shows how agricultural idioms could blur into family language: *“If you had not plowed with my heifer, you would not have solved my riddle.”* This kind of metaphor demonstrates how “begat” and “husbandry” intertwine in genealogical texts.
Yet Torah law (Leviticus 20) makes it impossible that Mary could have married her own father. Thus, the secure Greek reading — Joseph, the husband of Mary — is upheld, while the “father of Mary” reading in some medieval Hebrew manuscripts reflects either a translation slip or a polemical distortion, not the original Matthew.
6) Quick Reference Table
| Topic | Matthew 1 (ISR/OJB) | Luke 3 (ISR/OJB) | Historical Fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Davidic Path | Via Solomon; legal/royal succession | Via Nathan; often read as Mary’s line | Divergent branches within David’s house |
| Joseph’s Father | Jacob | Heli (“as was supposed”) | Explained via son-in-law/adoption or dual traditions |
| Structure | Three “fourteens” (symbolic/gematria) | Long chain back to Adam (universal scope) | Different theological emphases |
| Late Names | … Eleazar → Matthan → Jacob → Joseph | … (many) → Heli → Joseph | Placed c. 2nd–1st c. BCE → turn of era |
| Isa 7:14 | Hebrew “maiden” → LXX “virgin”; Matthew cites “virgin” | Translation choice shaped doctrine | |
| Exo 3:14 | Hebrew “I will be” → LXX “I AM” → NT “I AM” | From dynamic presence to ontological being | |
Notes & Disclaimers: Dates for named ancestors are approximate; placement is by historical fit. The ISR and Orthodox Jewish Bible follow the Greek NT genealogies. This post is informational and not doctrinally binding.
Texts: ISR Matthew 1 · ISR Luke 3 · OJB Matthew 1 · OJB Luke 3
⚖️ Attribution: This post was prepared with the assistance of AI (OpenAI GPT-5) for research, synthesis, and formatting. Interpretations remain the responsibility of the author.
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