The Messiah must be a physical descendant of David


The Messiah must be a physical descendant of David (Rom. 1:3, Acts 2:30). Yet, how could Jesus meet this requirement since his genealogies in Matt. 1 and Luke 3 show he descended from David through Joseph, who was not his natural father (the Virgin Birth)?

Biblical Errancy Pamphlets by Dennis McKinsey Pamphlet 2 Q16.

The verses McKinsey mentions are:

Rom 1:3 regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David,

(Acts 2:29-30 NIV) "Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. {30} But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne.


Both Matthew and Luke list king David in the genealogy of Jesus, Matthew mentions David three times in his genealogy, in Matthews case the genealogy lists king Solomon as David's son.

(Mat 1:1 NIV) A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham:

(Mat 1:6 NIV) and Jesse the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah's wife,

(Mat 1:17 NIV) Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Christ.

Luke mentions David once in his genealogy, in his genealogy Luke lists Nathan as the son of David.

(Luke 3:31 NIV) the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David,

Luke also takes great pains to indicate that Jesus descended from David (apart from the genealogies):

(Luke 1:27 NIV) to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary.

(Luke 1:32 NIV) He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,

(Luke 1:68-70 NIV) "Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people. {69} He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David {70} (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),

(Luke 2:4 NIV) So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.

Luke also emphasises the virgin birth:

(Luke 1:34-35 NIV) "How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" {35} The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

(Luke 3:23 NIV) Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph, the son of Heli,

As does Matthew

Mat 1:18 This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.... (Mat 1:23 NIV) "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" --which means, "God with us."

There are four important OT messianic prophecies: the first says that the Messiah will come from Bethlehem; and the second says that he will be born of a virgin; and third and fourth that says that he will be descended from David.

Mic 5:2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. "

(2 Sam 7:12 NIV) When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom.

(Isa 7:14 NIV) Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

(Isa 9:6-7 NIV) For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. {7} Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

Matthew traces his ancestry through his legal father Joseph and Luke his ancestry through his actual mother, both of who are descended from David. Paul is clear that as to his human nature, Jesus descended from David.

(Rom 1:1-3 NIV) Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God-- {2} the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures {3} regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David,

If Jesus were not descended from David then both the apostles Peter and Paul got it wrong.

Firstly Peter, the apostle to the Jews

(Acts 2:29-32 NIV) "Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. {30} But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. {31} Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. {32} God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact.

Secondly Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles:

(Acts 13:22-23 NIV) After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.' {23} "From this man's descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised.

(Rom 1:3 NIV) regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David,

(2 Tim 2:8 NIV) Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel,

It is clearly both Matthew and Luke's aim to show that Jesus descended from David. The legal claim to David's throne is clearly established through Joseph, this is quite clear. Both Peter and Paul accept and affirm this in their preaching. Further Jesus affirms this in Rev 22:16.

(Rev 22:16 NIV) "I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star."

Tekton's comments here, Glenn Miller's comments see CARM's answer here.


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