Word to the Wise
Tuesday, December 18, 2012 -
[Jeremiah 23:5-8 and Matthew 1:18-25]Behold the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up a righteous shoot to David...[Jeremiah] Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her.
After providing the genealogy of Jesus' origins, Matthew tells the story of Jesus' conception. It is not the same story that we get from the Gospel of Luke, but neither does it contradict that story. The purpose is simple: to demonstrate that Jesus is the fulfillment of God's promise to King David, as foretold in the prophecy of Jeremiah. In short, Matthew is identifying Jesus' credentials! None of that should take away from the charm of the story, however, since it is skillfully designed to accomplish its purpose. Notice that Joseph learns through dreams, which identifies him with the ancient patriarch, Joseph, in the Book of Genesis, who was also a "dreamer." We are also told that he is a righteous man and obedient to the will of God!
Perhaps when you are setting up that nativity scene, you might pause with the figure of Joseph, read the passage from Matthew and consider all that this man had to deal with. He may have been from the lineage of David, but he had to be a dad as well! AMEN
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