Genealogy in the Bible

Do you see what I see in this picture? Read on to find out:

Often when we read through the Bible, we'll find that among the great stories and examples given, we'll hit "rough patches" of genealogy. For me, it's sometimes a trigger for boredom. I'd gloss over the verses as I read them, or skip them altogether in order to get into the "meat" elsewhere. It never really dawned on me as to why it was so important to learn whom begat whom. I knew it was important, otherwise why would it be in the Bible?

The answer came to me, as I walked across the bridge from work tonight. I missed my daily bus, but was blessed with a sunny day and an opportunity to cross the Willamette bridge on foot. It wasn't all that far to our part of town and my wife was ready to meet me on the other side of the bridge within a half an hour. So, with iTunes in hand, I started off on my walk across the river. As I was listening to the Daily Audio Bible podcast, the message from Luke 3:23 came through the headphones. It was more documentary on the lineage from Jesus' birth, back through David, then all the way through Abraham, Noah and Adam (and many in between). Finally, what started with God, ended with God.

I thought it was pretty neat to be able to connect the dots all the way back to Adam. It's the biological "cord" which tied many, many lives together, great and small. All of the pieces fit together in a way so that Jesus Christ could come into the world and save humanity. As I thought about it, I looked down at the very bridge I was walking on. It was a series of sections connected together. Each section was joined to another and another and so on. Some of the pieces had large, prominent pillars. However, the majority had single, modestly sized support beams. Each of these structures, unique in strength and function, was tied to other supporting members of the bridge. Through this integration, the purpose of arriving at the other side of the river could be realized. If it weren't for each component, the unit as a whole would fail.

Now, apply that same means of thinking to the biblical generations. Pretty cool, huh? When man fell, God engineered a 'bridge' to humanity through Jesus. Thank God for that bridge!

Luke 3:23-38 (New International Version)

23Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph,
the son of Heli, 24the son of Matthat,
the son of Levi, the son of Melki,
the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph,
25the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos,
the son of Nahum, the son of Esli,
the son of Naggai, 26the son of Maath,
the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein,
the son of Josech, the son of Joda,
27the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa,
the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel,
the son of Neri, 28the son of Melki,
the son of Addi, the son of Cosam,
the son of Elmadam, the son of Er,
29the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer,
the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat,
the son of Levi, 30the son of Simeon,
the son of Judah, the son of Joseph,
the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim,
31the son of Melea, the son of Menna,
the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan,
the son of David, 32the son of Jesse,
the son of Obed, the son of Boaz,
the son of Salmon,[a] the son of Nahshon,
33the son of Amminadab, the son of Ram,[b]
the son of Hezron, the son of Perez,
the son of Judah, 34the son of Jacob,
the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham,
the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,
35the son of Serug, the son of Reu,
the son of Peleg, the son of Eber,
the son of Shelah, 36the son of Cainan,
the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem,
the son of Noah, the son of Lamech,
37the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch,
the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel,
the son of Kenan, 38the son of Enosh,
the son of Seth, the son of Adam,
the son of God.

Good Night