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| “The Reconciliation of Jacob and Laban” by Ciro Ferri, 1650’s |
Reading 1: Genesis 49:2, 8-10
Jacob called his sons and said to them:
“Assemble and listen, sons of Jacob,
listen to Israel
“You, Judah, shall your brothers praise
–your hand on the neck of your enemies;
the sons of your father shall bow down to you.
you have grown up on prey, my son.
He crouches like a lion recumbent,
the king of beasts–who would dare rouse him?
The scepter shall never depart from Judah
or the mace from between his legs,
While tribute is brought to him,
and he receives the people’s homage.”
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Commentary on Gn 49:2, 8-10
To set the context of this reading, Jacob (also known as “Israel,” son of Isaac, son of Abraham) is on his deathbed. He calls his sons to him and begins to speak to them prophetically, telling them what they will accomplish. After going through Reuben, Simeon, and Levi he comes to Judah. Judah, we hear, will be praised by his older brothers and his line shall produce kings over the land. This reading from Genesis is traditionally viewed as the beginning of the genealogy that leads first to King David and ultimately to the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ. The final verse (v.10) in Hebrew text is interpreted, "until he comes to whom it belongs."
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 72:1-2, 3-4ab, 7-8, 17
R. (see 7) Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
The mountains shall yield peace for the people,
and the hills justice.
He shall defend the afflicted among the people,
save the children of the poor.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
May his name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
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Commentary on Ps 72:1-2, 3-4ab, 7-8, 17
Psalm 72 is one of the royal Psalms. It was sung for the king who prayed to God for wisdom that he would be seen as dealing justly with the people and compassionately with the poor. David concludes this selection asking for God’s blessing for himself and all the people he governs. We see this psalm, placed between the beginning of the genealogy from Genesis and the genealogy of Christ from St. Matthew’s Gospel as a song extolling the generous and compassionate rule of the Messiah, the King to come.
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Gospel: Matthew 1:1-17
The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ,
the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Abraham became the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers.
whose mother was Tamar.
Perez became the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
Ram the father of Amminadab.
Amminadab became the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
Salmon the father of Boaz,
whose mother was Rahab.
Boaz became the father of Obed,
whose mother was Ruth.
Obed became the father of Jesse,
Jesse the father of David the king.
David became the father of Solomon,
whose mother had been the wife of Uriah.
Solomon became the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah,
Abijah the father of Asaph.
Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Joram,
Joram the father of Uzziah.
Uzziah became the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah.
Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amos,
Amos the father of Josiah.
Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers
at the time of the Babylonian exile.
After the Babylonian exile,
Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel the father of Abiud.
Abiud became the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
Azor the father of Zadok.
Zadok became the father of Achim,
Achim the father of Eliud,
Eliud the father of Eleazar.
Eleazar became the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary.
Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ.
Thus the total number of generations
from Abraham to David
is fourteen generations;
from David to the Babylonian exile, fourteen generations;
from the Babylonian exile to the Christ,
fourteen generations.
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Commentary on Mt 1:1-17
St. Matthew, speaking to a predominantly Jewish audience who call themselves “Sons of Abraham,” produces the genealogy of Jesus starting with Abraham. The critical purpose is to show that Jesus was of the line of King David. This was an important demonstration that Jesus was the Messiah as predicted in the prophetic scriptures of the Old Testament (the “Prophets” as they were known and referenced by the Jewish audience).
“Matthew calls his whole book the bibloz genesewx of Jesus Christ, the book of the ‘genesis’ of his ancestors, of his birth, of his coming among us in its manner, which reveals the promise he holds for us. How fitting that the first sentence of the canonical New Testament, the story of man’s re-creation through the grace of Christ, should contain the word ‘genesis’, which harkens back to the first creation of the world out of nothingness.” [4]
In the final verse of this reading we see the significance of Hebrew numerology as the numbers of generations are counted. Recalling that the most perfect number in this symbolic system is seven (7), we see the product of two sevens in the generations from Abraham and David, two more between King David and the Babylonian exile, and two more from the exile to the Messiah. Three (the formula for the most, e.g. holy, holy, holy equivalent to holy, holier, holiest) times the product of two sevens is six (6) sevens, one short of the perfection to be achieved when Christ will come again.
CCC: Mt 1:16 437
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Reflection:
Why, we may wonder, was it so important to list the genealogy of Jesus (beyond giving those who proclaim the Gospel a serious pronunciation challenge)? St. Matthew goes to great pains to demonstrate that Jesus was a true Son of Abraham and Son of David. The title ” Son of David” was a title applied prophetically to the Messiah and literally to Jesus. But why do we need to know that Amos was the father of Josiah or that “Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah”?
Certainly those who pursue genealogy in their own lines appreciate the desire to know who and where they came from. But is there a more important reason to formally chronicle this information? Jesus had no children and Joseph and Mary produced no other children either, so the blood line from that branch of the root of Jesse ended triumphantly on a cross at Calvary (using the Latin derivation for that hill, meaning the skull – Golgotha from the Hebrew). Did it not?
In asking that question we may have found the reason for this list of generations (beyond the obvious simple proof that Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of the Messiah by being of the house of David). Jesus himself insured that the blood line did not end. He adopted! He adopted like no other person in the history of humankind. He made his Apostles his heirs, giving the keys to his Kingdom to St. Peter, leaving him in charge of the earthly household until he returns.
Peter, in his turn, passed those keys on to a successor and the adoption of Christ was extended to another generation. Two hundred and sixty six times (Pope Francis being the 266th) this passing of the keys has taken place and the adoption of another generation is completed under that authority. The generations of Christ continue in us and it is our prayer that we may be worthy to accept the mantle of being known as children of the Most High.
Pax
O Antiphon for this date [5]:
O Wisdom of our God Most High,
guiding creation with power and love:
come to teach us the path of knowledge!
O Sapientia, quae ex ore Altissimi prodisti,
attingens a fine usque ad finem fortiter,
suaviter disponensque omnia:
veni ad docendum nos viam prudentiae.
attingens a fine usque ad finem fortiter,
suaviter disponensque omnia:
veni ad docendum nos viam prudentiae.
[1] The picture is “The Reconciliation of Jacob and Laban” by Ciro Ferri, 1650’s.
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[4] Fire of Mercy Heart of the Word Volume I, Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis, Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA, © 1996 p. 57.
[5] The Roman Church has been singing the "O" Antiphons since at least the eighth century. They are the antiphons that accompany the Magnificat canticle of Evening Prayer from December 17-23. They are a magnificent theology that uses ancient biblical imagery drawn from the messianic hopes of the Old Testament to proclaim the coming Christ as the fulfillment not only of Old Testament hopes, but present ones as well. Their repeated use of the imperative "Come!" embodies the longing of all for the Divine Messiah. (USCCB)
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