The Birth of Jesus the Christ (1:18-25).
Jesus the Messiah having been introduced as a fulfilment of history from Abraham onwards, the narrative now commences with His birth. Given what a remarkable event it was the account is soberly told, and this underlines its reliability. An invented story would have greatly ‘improved' on what happened, as the apocryphal Gospels confirm. The comment about Joseph (Matthew 1:19) adds to its veracity. The description of him is as a man of noble heart who nevertheless is aware that he must uphold the family honour and do the right thing. No taint must be allowed to enter the house of David. It is only those who refuse to let God act in His world in His own way who have any difficulty with the story.
In his account in Luke's Gospel the writer only provides us with the details of Mary's experiences and behaviour, and he takes almost no interest in Joseph's part in things at all. For Luke was intent on stressing Jesus' manhood, alongside His Messiahship, as the son of Adam, and that manhood came through His mother. But Matthew stresses Joseph because he wants all attention on His kingship. He wants us to be quite clear that He was of royal lineage. Matthew's new material should not really surprise us. For we would expect something to be known about Joseph's side of the story, for that would actually have been the side most taken notice of by most Jews, (excluding the bits that Joseph wanted to keep secret). And it must be quite apparent to anyone who thinks about it that Joseph would have had to be prepared by God in his own way for what was to happen, in order for the scheme to go through successfully. He was after all a man of noble ancestry caught up in something that was beyond him. So without God's intervention the marriage would undoubtedly have foundered, with the baby being left without an earthly father. And yet unlike Mary he receives no direct vision of angels. He sees it all ‘in a dream'. From the divine point of view his part was secondary, and guidance was all that he required. However, from the point of view of Jesus' acceptance as the heir to David's kingship his part was crucial.
Luke's account would not have suited Matthew's purpose at all. Matthew was concerned to demonstrate that Jesus was the Messiah from the house of David, receiving His right to kingship through Joseph's royal ancestry, and he was thus deeply concerned that his readers should be involved in Joseph's side of the story, and see that Joseph fully accepted Jesus as his own son, and to this end he consigns Mary very much to the background. Matthew's source for the information may well have been Mary, but if so the story contains some hint of the reserve with which Joseph must have told her what had happened to him. It is always, however, possible that Matthew had met Joseph before Joseph actually died. Furthermore Matthew's stress should not surprise us for another reason. It was far more in line with what we would expect from a Jew, to whom the woman's side would not be so important. Luke, however, on his side continually lays great emphasis on women.
The genealogy has already revealed that Jesus comes in fulfilment of Scripture, and this is now confirmed. It should be noted that neither the details in the quotation nor the name given in it are then incorporated into the text of the story, an evidence that the text has not influenced the story. Yet it is through the text that we discover that, in Jesus the Messiah, ‘God is with us'.
Analysis of Matthew 1:18-25.
a The birth of JESUS the Christ came about in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph (Matthew 1:18 a),
b Before they came together she was found with child of the Holy Spirit, and Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privately, and when he thought on these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, you 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” (Matthew 1:18-20).
c “And she will bring forth a son, and you shall call his name JESUS, for it is he who will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).
b Now all this is come about that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Behold, the virgin will be with child, and will bring forth a son, and they will call his name Immanuel,” which is, being interpreted, God with us.' (Matthew 1:22-23).
a Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took to himself his wife, and knew her not until she had brought forth a son, and he called his name JESUS (Matthew 1:24-25).
Note the careful parallels. The statement concerning the birth and betrothal in ‘a' is paralleled in reverse order by Joseph's taking of his wife and ‘not knowing her' (similarly to a betrothal) and Jesus' birth. The description is then given in ‘b' of the inevitable consequence of a miraculous birth, so that Mary is found with child by the Holy Spirit, and in the parallel the Scriptural explanation of this is given, demonstrating that she will be with child through God's working. Central in ‘c' is the significance of the baby's birth, He will save His people from their sins. A further point to note is how central Jesus is throughout the passage:
a Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:18 a).
b The virgin-born child of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:18 b).
c Jesus (Matthew 1:21).
b The virgin-born child Immanuel (Matthew 1:23).
a Jesus (Matthew 1:25).