|
Matthew 1:8
This is typical of just about every verse that appears up to and including verse 17. The words "son of" does not appear in the King James Version, which reads "begot." In the Bible, it means "descendant of," not necessarily a literal "son of." The person named may not be a son but a grandson, even a great-grandson. In this particular list, all of these people are related by blood, which bloodline ends in Jesus Christ. That is its importance. To confuse things a little bit further, every once in awhile, the Bible will speak of somebody as the son of, for example, Belial. In this case, "son of" does not even mean "descendant of" but "someone showing the characteristics of." Here, Belial means "foolishness," so a "son of Belial" is a son of foolishness. The person shows the characteristics of a fool.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Why Three Kings Are Missing From Matthew 1
|
