When opening the New Testament many readers encounter a difficulty when comparing the genealogy of Jesus given in Matthew chapter 1 with that found in Luke chapter 3. At first glance the impression is formed in the reader’s mind that in both passages the lineage of Jesus is traced by listing the ancestors of Joseph, (the husband of Mary). In other words, many readers believe that in both instances we have before us the genealogy of Joseph. But according to Matthew 1:16, the father of Joseph was a man named Jacob, while Luke 3:23 appears to state that Heli was the father of Joseph. “Aha! A discrepancy,” say the enemies of the Bible! Is it a contradiction?
A man named Robert Ingersoll once found himself unable to harmonize the genealogies of Jesus. He wrote, “Is it not wonderful [incredible] that Luke and Matthew do not agree on a single name of Christ’s ancestors for thirty-seven generations?”1 The reply came from one L. A. Lambert, who answered Ingersoll, “It is wonderful only to those who are ignorant of the fact that Matthew gives the ancestors of Joseph, while Luke gives the ancestors of Mary. Are your ancestors on your mother’s side all Ingersolls? Must your maternal and paternal ancestors necessarily have the same name?”
To continue reading this Bible article, click here.
Author: Johnson, Arndt and Haley
Keywords: Genealogy of Christ, Genealogies of Christ, Genealogy of Jesus Christ, Genealogies of Jesus, Jesus' genealogy, Jesus's genealogy, Jesus' family tree, Jesus's family tree, Bible discrepancies, Bible discrepancy, Discrepancies in the Bible, Mary's genealogy, Joseph's genealogy
Bible reference(s): Matthew 1:1-17, Luke 3:23-38
Source: Carl G. Johnson, W. Arndt and John W. Haley (compiled).
Page indexed by: inWORD Bible Software.