PROLOGUE:
Matthew briefly covers the birth of Jesus up to the time Jesus started his preaching ministry in Galilee. It was the Jewish custom that men could not teach from the Law in the synagogues or become a Rabbi until the age of thirty. Therefore, when Jesus was thirty he went to John the Baptist to be baptized. After Jesus was baptized heaven opened up and the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus in the form of a dove to anoint Him for His ministry on earth. For the first time God spoke directly to man from heaven when He declared, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” You need to understand all the Jewish people were waiting expectantly for the Messiah to appear and they knew it was imminent. Based on Old Testament Scripture everyone knew the coming of the Messiah was the next big thing on God’s prophetic calendar. It’s similar to the situation we have today where Christians are waiting expectantly for the rapture which also is the next big thing on God’s prophetic calendar in our time.
The last time God had spoken to Israel was through the prophet Malachi 400 years before the birth of Jesus. Jesus started preaching at age thirty and three and a half years later He was crucified. So God was silent for 400 years before He acted to restore the fellowship between man and God which was culminated by the crucifixion of Jesus roughly 432-33 years from the time God last spoke to man through Malachi. When Israel was in bondage in Egypt God had not spoken to His chosen people for over 400 years. Then God sent Moses to restore fellowship between the Israelites and God by leading them out of bondage. Israel was in captivity roughly 432-33 years. It could be a coincidence but personally I see a corollary between the two similar timelines because I know God is precise. There is a lot we fail to see. Anyway, the Jews knew the coming of the Messiah was imminent and they were aware God promised in the Old Testament that the Messiah would be descended from the lineage of King David. All Jewish people kept detailed records of their ancestry and especially those who were of the line of David because all of them were hoping the Messiah would be born through their house.
When the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her she would carry the Messiah not only was Mary not surprised, she was pleased. It was like winning the lottery. Joseph wasn’t surprised either when he learned of the coming birth of Messiah through the Holy Spirit. Mary and Joseph were aware of the honor being bestowed upon them as parents of Jesus and having an important part in the promised Messiah sent to save not only Israel but all the world. What many people don’t realize is that Joseph was from the Davidic bloodline and should have been the rightful king of Israel instead of Herod. As the adopted first son of Joseph Jesus was the legal heir to the throne of the rightful king of Israel. Not only was Jesus the legal heir to the throne of Israel, He was the heir to the throne of Israel by blood through His mother Mary. Most people don’t realize that Mary was also a direct descendant of King David. God made sure Jesus was king of Israel both legally and by bloodline. God is precise in all He does if we can but see it.