The Genealogies of Jesus: Matthew, Luke, Jewish Tradition, and the Apocryphal Gospels

The genealogies of Jesus in Matthew 1:1–17 and Luke 3:23–38 present one of the most persistent interpretive problems in the New Testament. Both genealogies seek to establish Jesus within the biblical history of Israel, yet they differ substantially in names, sequence, structure, and apparent relationships. Matthew traces Jesus from Abraham through David and Solomon to Joseph, while Luke traces Jesus backward from Joseph through a different branch of David's family and ultimately to Adam. The problem becomes more complex because both Matthew and Luke present Jesus' conception as occurring through the Holy Spirit rather than through ordinary biological fatherhood by Joseph.
This paper examines these discrepancies in the context of Old Testament genealogy, Jewish concepts of lineage, inheritance, legal sonship, Davidic kingship, levirate marriage, and messianic expectation. It also considers the contribution of the apocryphal gospels, particularly the Protoevangelium of James, to later Christian understanding of Mary and Joseph. The paper argues that the genealogies should not automatically be interpreted as modern biological family trees. Ancient Jewish genealogies could communicate ancestry, tribal identity, inheritance, legal status, dynastic legitimacy, and theological purpose. Matthew appears particularly concerned with Jesus as the Davidic Messiah and legitimate heir to the royal promises, while Luke places Jesus within the broader history of humanity, extending the genealogy to Adam and God. The differences remain historically significant and cannot be completely harmonized from the surviving evidence, but they need not be regarded as fatal contradictions to the Christian theological claim. Their ultimate purpose is to establish Jesus within the biblical story of Abraham and David while the wider New Testament makes the much greater claim that the Davidic Messiah is also the Son of God.

Genealogies, substantially, Testament.

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