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The question I have is this; family lineage was traced through the father, not the mother, if I am not mistaken. Since Joseph was not the biological father of Jesus, why is Jesus considered to be descended from the house of David? A friend of mine recently asked me this question, and I found that I did not have an answer. I think that I must be missing something, I just don’t know what it is. Thank you very much.

There is a bit of a discussion in a Bible study group I’m in on the topic of Jesus’ ancestry, and part of the discussion focuses on Mary’s ancestry. Your website asserts that “Mary and Joseph were both of the tribe of Judah and descendants of David”, and “Mary’s line was through Solomon’s brother Nathan (Luke 3:31).” Since Luke 3:23 begins Jesus’ lineage with “He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph, “, how can this be said to be Mary’s lineage?

I’ve always believed without too much critical analysis what your website says, but now I want solid Biblical underpinning.

I was wondering if there is a mistranslation in the bible regarding the lineage of Mary/Joseph.

God states that Jesus will be a direct descendant of David, but since Jesus’ Father is God, Jesus has to be a direct descendant of David through Mary’s lineage (otherwise there is no blood relation to David). In Matthew 1:2-16 it provides a ‘family tree’ that claims to end with “Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Messiah.” This indicates Jesus is connected to David only through the marriage of Mary to Joseph, who is then a descendant of David. This doesn’t make Jesus a DIRECT descendant…

Furthermore, Matthew 1:17 states “Thus the total number of generations from Abraham to David is fourteen generations; from David to the Babylonian exile, fourteen generations; from the Babylonian exile to the Messiah, fourteen generations.” By my count there are only 13 in the 3rd group.

Luke 1:5 reads; “In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron.” So we see that both Zechariah and Elizabeth were of Levitical lineage, of Aaronic descent, making John the Baptist a full blooded Aaronic priest, and rightfully so. My confusion comes from Luke 1:36, “Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month.” From Mary’s genealogy in Luke 3:23-38 it is apparent that she is of Judean lineage, of Davidic descent. Therefore, Jesus is rightly called the son of David. How can Elizabeth and Mary be related when they come from completely different tribes?

An issue which bothers me is this, I know Jesus was conceived by a virgin. How then is he being linked in genealogy to Abraham and David if Joseph is not his father. Joseph, husband to Mary is also listed in this genealogy as giving legitimacy to the fact that Jesus as a man is a descendant of Abraham. It does not challenge my faith but it keeps on popping up as a question in my mind. Probably the devil trying to twist me around to doubt my faith. What can you say about it.

I’ve recently read your article regarding Messianic prophecy in the O.T. You mentioned that Matthew’s genealogy traces Joseph’s line, while Luke’s traces that of Mary, mother of Jesus. But I’m struggling to see how Luke shows the line of Mary – albeit v.11 mentions Nathan, David’s brother. But how does that relate to Mary?

A Bible Study by Jack Kelley

In the time after their sin and expulsion from the Garden Adam and Eve must have felt incredible despair. They had experienced life both before and after the curse, the only ones to do so, and had first-hand knowledge of the difference.