Matthew 1:6

Michelangelo's Jesse-David-Solomon. David is generally seen as the man on the left with Solomon the child behind him.

Matthew 1:6 is the sixth verse of the first chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. The verse is part of the section where the genealogy of Joseph, the legal father of Jesus, is listed.

In the King James Version of the Bible the text reads:

And Jesse begat David the king;

and David the king begat Solomon

of her that had been the wife of Urias;

The World English Bible translates the passage as:

Jesse became the father of King David.

David became the father of Solomon

by her who had been the wife of Uriah.

For a collection of other versions see BibRef Matthew 1:6

Analysis

This verse marks the end of the first third of the genealogy as the list and the transition from the list of descendants of Abraham to the list of the Kings of Judah. This change is marked by the reference to "David the king." Robert H. Gundry also sees the reference to "David the king", an Old Testament turn of phrase, as an attempt to present him as a prototype for "Jesus the king."^[1]

The genealogy of Luke 3 and Matthew diverge at this point. Previously the lists from Abraham to David were identical. While Matthew continues to Solomon, Luke links to David's less well known son Nathan. One explanation for this divergence is that Luke's genealogy is of Mary's father Heli rather than of Joseph. Gundry argues that the divergence is because while Luke was following Joseph's biological ancestry, Matthew is listing Jesus' predecessors as the leader of the Jewish people.

The wife of Uriah the Hittite mentioned as the mother of Solomon is Bathsheba. She is one of four women that are included in the genealogy. Mentioning her by only her first husband's name emphasizes both her foreigness and the adulterous nature of her union with David. See Matthew 1:3 for a full discussion of the inclusion of women in the genealogy.

References

1. • Gundry, Robert H. Matthew a Commentary on his Literary and Theological Art. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1982.

• Albright, W.F. and C.S. Mann. "Matthew." The Anchor Bible Series. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1971.