Have you ever thought about the genealogy of Jesus given in the first chapter of Matthew? Oh, genealogy, you say, that's technical stuff, boring, right?
Maybe so, but this particular list of ancestors has something very special to say about who Jesus was.
In the table at the right, we line up the list of the kings of Judah on one side, and the ancestors of Jesus on the other side. You know what? They're the same list — allowing for some spelling changes due to language translation, plus Matthew's habit of omitting a generation here and there.
Matthew is tracing Jesus' lineage, and it goes right through the kings, from David on!
The Jews had long expected a “Messiah”, a king who would be of the lineage of David, and would resume David's throne. When people called Jesus “son of David” (meaning “descendent of David”), they were saying they wanted Jesus to take up David's throne and kingdom.
The point of Matthew's genealogy is not just to list Jesus' ancestors — Matthew's point is that Jesus is the rightful heir to the throne of Israel!