Read an Excerpt
Matthew
The Coming of the King
By John MacArthur Thomas Nelson
Copyright © 2007 John MacArthur
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-7180-3520-4
CHAPTER 1
The Coming of the King
Matthew 1:1–2:23
Drawing Near
The Gospel of Matthew opens with the miracle of Jesus' birth! Describe some of the Christmas activities and traditions you and your family observe.
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If someone from another culture (unfamiliar with the significance of the holiday) visited you during this time, what would he or she conclude about the meaning of Christmas?
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The Context
Matthew records the good news about the most significant events in all of history — the birth, life, sacrificial death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. Each Gospel writer wrote from a unique perspective and for a different audience. As a result, each Gospel contains distinctive elements. Taken together, the four Gospels form a complete testimony about Jesus Christ.
Matthew wrote primarily to a Jewish audience, presenting Jesus of Nazareth as Israel's long-awaited Messiah and rightful King. He opens his book with a genealogy which, unlike Luke's, focuses on Jesus' royal descent from Israel's greatest king, David. The primary purpose of chapters one and two is to establish Jesus' right to Israel's kingship. To any honest observer, and certainly to Jews who knew and believed their own Scriptures, these two chapters vindicate Jesus' claim before Pilate: "You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world" (John 18:37 NKJV).
Consistent with this purpose of revealing Jesus to be the Christ (Messiah) and the King of the Jews, Matthew begins his Gospel by showing Jesus' lineage from the royal line of Israel. If Jesus is to be heralded and proclaimed King, there must be proof that He comes from the recognized royal family.
Keys to the Text
Gospel: The English word gospel derives from the Anglo-Saxon word godspell, which can mean either "a story about God" or "a good story" The latter meaning is in harmony with the Greek word euangellion, which means "good news" Matthew and the other Gospels record the good news of Jesus' life. They are not biographies in the modern sense of the word, since they do not intend to present a complete life of Jesus. Apart from the birth narratives, they give little information about the first thirty years of Jesus' life. Though they are completely accurate historically and present important biographical details of Jesus' life, the primary purposes of the Gospels are theological and apologetic. They provide authoritative answers to questions about Jesus' life and ministry, and they strengthen believers' assurance regarding the reality of their faith.
Kingdom of Heaven: This refers to the place where God rules and reigns. Matthew alone uses this phrase, avoiding the parallel phrase "kingdom of God" because of the unbiblical connotations it had in first-century Jewish thought. Matthew wrote his Gospel, then, to strengthen the faith of Jewish Christians, and it provides a useful apologetic tool for Jewish evangelism.
Unleashing the Text
Read 1:1–2:23, noting the key words and definitions next to the passage.
Matthew 1:1–2:23 (NKJV)
1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:
2 Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers.
3 Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram.
4 Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon.
5 Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse,
6 and Jesse begot David the king. David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah.
7 Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa.
8 Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah.
9 Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah.
10 Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon, and Amon begot Josiah.
11 Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon.
12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel.
13 Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor.
14 Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud.
15 Eliud begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob.
16 And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.
17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations.
18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.
19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.
20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins."
22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:
23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel" which is translated, "God with us"
24 Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife,
25 and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus.
2:1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,
2 saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."
3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
5 So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
6 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.' "
7 Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.
8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."
9 When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.
10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.
13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."
14 When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt,
15 and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."
16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.
17 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:
18 "A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted, Because they are no more."
19 Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,
20 saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."
21 Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.
22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.
23 And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."
1) Looking back over chapter 1, what are some of the titles and descriptions used to describe Jesus?
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2) What do these chapters reveal about Joseph, the "stepfather" of Christ?
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3) How did Herod respond to the news of Jesus' birth?
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4) How do our traditions about "the wise men" compare with what the biblical text actually says?
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Going Deeper
Read Luke 2:1–20, the other account of the coming of Christ into the world.
1 And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.
2 This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria.
3 So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.
4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David,
5 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child.
6 So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered.
7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
8 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.
10 Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.
11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
12 And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger."
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:
14 "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"
15 So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, "Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us."
16 And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger.
17 Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child.
18 And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds.
19 But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.
20 Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.
Exploring the Meaning
5) What new details or insights do you find in Luke 2, to add to your growing understanding of the Incarnation — God becoming flesh in the person of Christ?
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6) Why does Matthew begin his Gospel with the genealogical records of Christ?
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7) What is the significance of the statement that Mary was "found with child of the Holy Spirit" (1:18)?
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8) The wise men sought and worshiped Christ; Herod attempted to kill Him. In what ways (if any) are these men representative of people's response to Jesus?
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Truth for Today
The supernatural birth of Jesus is the only way to account for the life that He lived. A skeptic who denied the virgin birth once asked a Christian, "If I told you that child over there was born without a human father, would you believe me?" The believer replied, "Yes, if he lived as Jesus lived" The greatest outward evidence of Jesus' supernatural birth and deity is His life.
Reflecting on the Text
9) Mary and Joseph faced a very unusual "crisis" Though she was a virgin, she was pregnant. How do you think others viewed their relationship and treated them? What can modern Christians learn from their response to an extremely trying situation?
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10) What are the life lessons we can glean from the "wise men"? See if you can list at least five.
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11) In the first two chapters of Matthew you have met some fascinating people — some who honored Christ and served Him, and some who opposed Him fiercely. What two things will you do differently, as a result of this study, to demonstrate your love and devotion to Christ?
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12) Compose a short prayer of praise to God, thanking Him for sending Christ the Savior into a dark, dying world.
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Personal Response
Write out additional reflections, questions you may have, or a prayer.
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(Continues...)
Excerpted from Matthew by John MacArthur. Copyright © 2007 John MacArthur. Excerpted by permission of Thomas Nelson.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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