SHOF'TIM (judges)

SHOF'TIM (judges)

Dt. 16:18-21:9, Is. 51:12-52:12, Mt. 5:38-42; 18:15-20, Acts 3:13-26; 7:35-53, 1 Cor. 5:9-13; 1 Tim 5:17-22, Hebrews 10:28-31

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¹⁸Judges and officers shalt thou make thee in all thy gates, which the LORD thy God giveth thee, throughout thy tribes: and they shall judge the people with just judgment.

¹⁹Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words of the righteous.

²⁰That which is altogether just shalt thou follow, that thou mayest live, and inherit the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

²¹Thou shalt not plant thee a grove of any trees near unto the altar of the LORD thy God, which thou shalt make thee.

²²Neither shalt thou set thee up any image; which the LORD thy God hateth.

Deuteronomy 17

¹Thou shalt not sacrifice unto the LORD thy God any bullock, or sheep, wherein is blemish, or any evilfavouredness: for that is an abomination unto the LORD thy God.

²If there be found among you, within any of thy gates which the LORD thy God giveth thee, man or woman, that hath wrought wickedness in the sight of the LORD thy God, in transgressing his covenant,

³And hath gone and served other gods, and worshipped them, either the sun, or moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded;

⁴And it be told thee, and thou hast heard of it, and enquired diligently, and, behold, it be true, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought in Israel:

⁵Then shalt thou bring forth that man or that woman, which have committed that wicked thing, unto thy gates, even that man or that woman, and shalt stone them with stones, till they die.

⁶At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he that is worthy of death be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death.

⁷The hands of the witnesses shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterward the hands of all the people. So thou shalt put the evil away from among you.

⁸If there arise a matter too hard for thee in judgment, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, and between stroke and stroke, being matters of controversy within thy gates: then shalt thou arise, and get thee up into the place which the LORD thy God shall choose;

⁹And thou shalt come unto the priests the Levites, and unto the judge that shall be in those days, and enquire; and they shall shew thee the sentence of judgment:

¹⁰And thou shalt do according to the sentence, which they of that place which the LORD shall choose shall shew thee; and thou shalt observe to do according to all that they inform thee:

¹¹According to the sentence of the law which they shall teach thee, and according to the judgment which they shall tell thee, thou shalt do: thou shalt not decline from the sentence which they shall shew thee, to the right hand, nor to the left.

¹²And the man that will do presumptuously, and will not hearken unto the priest that standeth to minister there before the LORD thy God, or unto the judge, even that man shall die: and thou shalt put away the evil from Israel.

¹³And all the people shall hear, and fear, and do no more presumptuously.

¹⁴When thou art come unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me;

¹⁵Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother.

¹⁶But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way.

¹⁷Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.

¹⁸And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites:

¹⁹And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them:

²⁰That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel.

Deuteronomy 18

¹The priests the Levites, and all the tribe of Levi, shall have no part nor inheritance with Israel: they shall eat the offerings of the LORD made by fire, and his inheritance.

²Therefore shall they have no inheritance among their brethren: the LORD is their inheritance, as he hath said unto them.

³And this shall be the priest's due from the people, from them that offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep; and they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the maw.

⁴The firstfruit also of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him.

⁵For the LORD thy God hath chosen him out of all thy tribes, to stand to minister in the name of the LORD, him and his sons for ever.

⁶And if a Levite come from any of thy gates out of all Israel, where he sojourned, and come with all the desire of his mind unto the place which the LORD shall choose;

⁷Then he shall minister in the name of the LORD his God, as all his brethren the Levites do, which stand there before the LORD.

⁸They shall have like portions to eat, beside that which cometh of the sale of his patrimony.

⁹When thou art come into the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations.

¹⁰There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch.

¹¹Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer.

¹²For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.

¹³Thou shalt be perfect with the LORD thy God.

¹⁴For these nations, which thou shalt possess, hearkened unto observers of times, and unto diviners: but as for thee, the LORD thy God hath not suffered thee so to do.

¹⁵The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;

¹⁶According to all that thou desiredst of the LORD thy God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I die not.

¹⁷And the LORD said unto me, They have well spoken that which they have spoken.

¹⁸I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.

¹⁹And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.

²⁰But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die.

²¹And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken?

²²When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.

Deuteronomy 19

¹When the LORD thy God hath cut off the nations, whose land the LORD thy God giveth thee, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their cities, and in their houses;

²Thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it.

³Thou shalt prepare thee a way, and divide the coasts of thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every slayer may flee thither.

⁴And this is the case of the slayer, which shall flee thither, that he may live: Whoso killeth his neighbour ignorantly, whom he hated not in time past;

⁵As when a man goeth into the wood with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the head slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of those cities, and live:

⁶Lest the avenger of the blood pursue the slayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and slay him; whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past.

⁷Wherefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt separate three cities for thee.

⁸And if the LORD thy God enlarge thy coast, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers;

⁹If thou shalt keep all these commandments to do them, which I command thee this day, to love the LORD thy God, and to walk ever in his ways; then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, beside these three:

¹⁰That innocent blood be not shed in thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee.

¹¹But if any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die, and fleeth into one of these cities:

¹²Then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.

¹³Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with thee.

¹⁴Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour's landmark, which they of old time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land that the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it.

¹⁵One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established.

¹⁶If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong;

¹⁷Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days;

¹⁸And the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother;

¹⁹Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evil away from among you.

²⁰And those which remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil among you.

²¹And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Deuteronomy 20

¹When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, and a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the LORD thy God is with thee, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

²And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people,

³And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them;

⁴For the LORD your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.

⁵And the officers shall speak unto the people, saying, What man is there that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man dedicate it.

⁶And what man is he that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not yet eaten of it? let him also go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man eat of it.

⁷And what man is there that hath betrothed a wife, and hath not taken her? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man take her.

⁸And the officers shall speak further unto the people, and they shall say, What man is there that is fearful and fainthearted? let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren's heart faint as well as his heart.

⁹And it shall be, when the officers have made an end of speaking unto the people that they shall make captains of the armies to lead the people.

¹⁰When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it.

¹¹And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, that all the people that is found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee.

¹²And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it:

¹³And when the LORD thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword:

¹⁴But the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, even all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take unto thyself; and thou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the LORD thy God hath given thee.

¹⁵Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations.

¹⁶But of the cities of these people, which the LORD thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth:

¹⁷But thou shalt utterly destroy them; namely, the Hittites, and the Amorites, the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee:

¹⁸That they teach you not to do after all their abominations, which they have done unto their gods; so should ye sin against the LORD your God.

¹⁹When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man's life) to employ them in the siege:

²⁰Only the trees which thou knowest that they be not trees for meat, thou shalt destroy and cut them down; and thou shalt build bulwarks against the city that maketh war with thee, until it be subdued.

Deuteronomy 21

¹If one be found slain in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it, lying in the field, and it be not known who hath slain him:

²Then thy elders and thy judges shall come forth, and they shall measure unto the cities which are round about him that is slain:

³And it shall be, that the city which is next unto the slain man, even the elders of that city shall take an heifer, which hath not been wrought with, and which hath not drawn in the yoke;

⁴And the elders of that city shall bring down the heifer unto a rough valley, which is neither eared nor sown, and shall strike off the heifer's neck there in the valley:

⁵And the priests the sons of Levi shall come near; for them the LORD thy God hath chosen to minister unto him, and to bless in the name of the LORD; and by their word shall every controversy and every stroke be tried:

⁶And all the elders of that city, that are next unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer that is beheaded in the valley:

⁷And they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it.

⁸Be merciful, O LORD, unto thy people Israel, whom thou hast redeemed, and lay not innocent blood unto thy people of Israel's charge. And the blood shall be forgiven them.

⁹So shalt thou put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you, when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the LORD.

Isaiah 51

¹²I, even I, am he that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be made as grass;

¹³And forgettest the LORD thy maker, that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and hast feared continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? and where is the fury of the oppressor?

¹⁴The captive exile hasteneth that he may be loosed, and that he should not die in the pit, nor that his bread should fail.

¹⁵But I am the LORD thy God, that divided the sea, whose waves roared: The LORD of hosts is his name.

¹⁶And I have put my words in thy mouth, and I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou art my people.

¹⁷Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out.

¹⁸There is none to guide her among all the sons whom she hath brought forth; neither is there any that taketh her by the hand of all the sons that she hath brought up.

¹⁹These two things are come unto thee; who shall be sorry for thee? desolation, and destruction, and the famine, and the sword: by whom shall I comfort thee?

²⁰Thy sons have fainted, they lie at the head of all the streets, as a wild bull in a net: they are full of the fury of the LORD, the rebuke of thy God.

²¹Therefore hear now this, thou afflicted, and drunken, but not with wine:

²²Thus saith thy Lord the LORD, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again:

²³But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee; which have said to thy soul, Bow down, that we may go over: and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street, to them that went over.

Isaiah 52

¹Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.

²Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion.

³For thus saith the LORD, Ye have sold yourselves for nought; and ye shall be redeemed without money.

⁴For thus saith the Lord GOD, My people went down aforetime into Egypt to sojourn there; and the Assyrian oppressed them without cause.

⁵Now therefore, what have I here, saith the LORD, that my people is taken away for nought? they that rule over them make them to howl, saith the LORD; and my name continually every day is blasphemed.

⁶Therefore my people shall know my name: therefore they shall know in that day that I am he that doth speak: behold, it is I.

⁷How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!

⁸Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion.

⁹Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the LORD hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem.

¹⁰The LORD hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.

¹¹Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the LORD.

¹²For ye shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight: for the LORD will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your reward.

Matthew 5

³⁸Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:

³⁹But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

⁴⁰And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also.

⁴¹And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.

⁴²Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.

Matthew 18

¹⁵Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.

¹⁶But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.

¹⁷And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.

¹⁸Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

¹⁹Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.

²⁰For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

Acts 3

¹³The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go.

¹⁴But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;

¹⁵And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.

¹⁶And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.

¹⁷And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.

¹⁸But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.

¹⁹Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.

²⁰And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:

²¹Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

²²For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.

²³And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.

²⁴Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days.

²⁵Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.

²⁶Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.

Acts 7

³⁵This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush.

³⁶He brought them out, after that he had shewed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years.

³⁷This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear.

³⁸This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:

³⁹To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt,

⁴⁰Saying unto Aaron, Make us gods to go before us: for as for this Moses, which brought us out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.

⁴¹And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.

⁴²Then God turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, O ye house of Israel, have ye offered to me slain beasts and sacrifices by the space of forty years in the wilderness?

⁴³Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.

⁴⁴Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as he had appointed, speaking unto Moses, that he should make it according to the fashion that he had seen.

⁴⁵Which also our fathers that came after brought in with Jesus into the possession of the Gentiles, whom God drave out before the face of our fathers, unto the days of David;

⁴⁶Who found favour before God, and desired to find a tabernacle for the God of Jacob.

⁴⁷But Solomon built him an house.

⁴⁸Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet,

⁴⁹Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest?

⁵⁰Hath not my hand made all these things?

⁵¹Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.

⁵²Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:

⁵³Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.

1 Corinthians 5

⁹I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators:

¹⁰Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world.

¹¹But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolator, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.

¹²For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within?

¹³But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.

1 Timothy 5

¹⁷Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.

¹⁸For the scripture saith, thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward.

¹⁹Against an elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses.

²⁰Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.

²¹I charge thee before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that thou observe these things without preferring one before another, doing nothing by partiality.

²²Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be partaker of other men's sins: keep thyself pure.

Hebrews 10

²⁸He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:

²⁹Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?

³⁰For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.

³¹It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

RESTORING THE GENEOLOGY OF MESSIAH

Problem #1:

There are two (yes, TWO) completely different geneologies used for Messiah.

Look at the two geneologies, see if YOU can figure out who the father of Joseph is:

LUKE 3:23 - GENEOLOGY OF JESUS

23 And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli,

24 Which was the son of Matthat,
which was the son of Levi,
which was the son of Melchi, etc...


sooo according to Luke, Joseph is the son of Heli, right???
Are you SURE??? The bible won't lie, right?? Right?

Look at what Matthew has to say about that:

MATTHEW - CHAPTER 1 - GENEOLOGY OF JESUS

King James Version: Matthew Chapter 1

.....15 And Eliud begat Eleazar;
and Eleazar begat Matthan;
and Matthan begat Jacob;
16 And Jacob begat Joseph the HUSBAND of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

Jacob begat Joseph??? WHAT??? But Luke just said that Heli was the father of Joseph!!

This very issue right here - has turned MANY people away from Christ, particularly the Jews, the very people Christ came to save. They feel their intelligence has been insulted when they see this. They run back to their Old Testament, feeling safe that all the answers have already been discovered there. There are no contradictions and there are no "lies".

They see these differing geneologies and say to themselves, "Well, there ARE lies in the New Testament, if that one part isn't true - then all the rest must not be true!"

When I first discovered this, I also, began to wonder - did someone add this later? Why would they put this in here? If someone was TRYING to lie, wouldn't they at least make the stories line up?? How stupid do they think we are??

Then I thought, how stupid could THEY be - not making the stories line up???

Yes, surely, after alllllll these years, if the church was trying to "cover up" something, they would have fixed this little "problem" by now.

If you google this issue - this issue has been debated since practically the birth of Christ. You will find MANY "theories" but none that seem to be really "satisfactory".

But I know MY God - there HAS to be an answer!!! It is up to US to search out the hidden mysteries!

Two different geneologies????

Is Joseph the son of Heli???
or the son of Jacob?

Why the discrepancy?

Many theories abound. The top theory is that one geneology is assumed to be for Mary and one geneology is for Joseph. However, according to earlier writings of Mary, her father's name was Joachim - not Heli or Jacob. To explain this away, they say those writings were not in the canon, so we can not believe those.

That gets us to Problem #2 :

Why is Joseph listed as the Father of Jesus, if he was not the biological father?

Some theorize that Joseph "adopted" Jesus according to the law. Well... okay....

But if that is the theory we are to go by, we have a HUGE problem! In Romans , Paul says that Jesus is born of the SEED of David ----ACCORDING TO THE FLESH!

Romans 1:3 (King James Version)

3Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;

How can Messiah be born from the SEED according to the FLESH if there was no father?

IF we are to go by the theory that Joseph "adopted" Jesus, then how is Jesus the "SEED ------- ACCORDING TO THE FLESH??"

This just makes a person's eyes roll trying to figure this all out! Did Paul not believe in the virgin birth of Messiah???

Many people think so!

I have been studying this out, researching it, hitting dead ends for MONTHS! My very faith really hinges on this issue! I know we are not to be "trifling over geneologies".

But - I am still mad that santa claus is not real! Then the easter bunny! Then the TOOTH FAIRY! All my beloved fantasy figures - taken away! Poof! They were lies!

This can be very tragic for a child! TRUST ME :D

Then, as if that wasnt bad enough, as an adult, I find out the whole christmas and easter thing were really just pagan holidays changed later to celebrate Messiah - but still the same customs.

Christ wasnt even really born on that day, nor did He die on that day!

Do you have ANY IDEA how many christmas plays and easter plays I have directed and been in??? Only to discover these are PAGAN TRADITIONS??

"DO NOT MIX THE HOLY WITH THE PROFANE"

So, if I believed in all that - and then found out they were all lies..... is Jesus not really from a virgin ?? Is this just another lie???

"My sheep know my voice...." I kept getting this... Like God was just quietly standing by, shaking His head at me.

I know God is real! I have had tooo many countless experiences, miracles, to even deny His existence.

But the VIRGIN BIRTH???

MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME???

This was my cry!

Then yesterday, I see a verse that lept out at me. "You are thinking as a man thinks, You are not thinking as God thinks!" Now, I can't even find that verse to put it in here! I saw it somewhere and it ate at me all day!

HOW WOULD GOD THINK??????

Ah... But alas!!!

The "key" lies in Matthew's Geneology of Jesus!!

When reviewing biblical geneologies, the lineage is ALWAYS traced through the fathers.

Notice what Matthew has done:

MATTHEW - CHAPTER 1 - GENEOLOGY OF JESUS

King James Version: Matthew Chapter 1

1 The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

2 Abraham begat Isaac;
and Isaac begat Jacob;
and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren;

3 And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; (ADMITS THE INCEST - why is SHE listed???)
and Phares begat Esrom;
and Esrom begat Aram;

4 And Aram begat Aminadab;
and Aminadab begat Naasson;
and Naasson begat Salmon;

5 And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; (RACHAB -A HARLOT... A CONVERT? why is SHE mentioned?)
and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; (RUTH- THE MOABITE - THEY WERE CURSED - CONVERT - why is she mentioned?)
and Obed begat Jesse;

6 And Jesse begat David the king
and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias; (NOT JEW, ADULTERY/MURDER - ADMITS THE SIN - why is she in here?)

7 And Solomon begat Roboam;
and Roboam begat Abia;
and Abia begat Asa;

8 And Asa begat Josaphat;
and Josaphat begat Joram;
and Joram begat Ozias;

9 And Ozias begat Joatham
; and Joatham begat Achaz;
and Achaz begat Ezekias;

10 And Ezekias begat Manasses;
and Manasses begat Amon
; and Amon begat Josias;

11 And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon:

12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel;
and Salathiel begat Zorobabel;

13 And Zorobabel begat Abiud;
and Abiud begat Eliakim;
and Eliakim begat Azor;

14 And Azor begat Sadoc;
and Sadoc begat Achim;
and Achim begat Eliud;

15 And Eliud begat Eleazar;
and Eleazar begat Matthan;
and Matthan begat Jacob;

16 And Jacob begat Joseph the HUSBAND of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

Why are these women listed in the lineage of Messiah?

DID MATTHEW NOT KNOW THAT WOMEN ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE INCLUDED IN THE GENEOLOGY?? DID HE NOT GET THE "IDIOT'S GUIDE FOR BIBLICAL RULES FOR GENEOLOGY"???

I ACTUALLY HAD A JEWISH FRIEND TELL ME THIS! (YA, YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!) ;)

Lets go do a quick biblical review of each of these women and see if we can find a solution:

Tamar's Story:

Genesis 38

Tamar married Judah's firstborn son, Er. Er, being wicked was killed by the Lord. Then Judah tells his next son, Onan, to marry Tamar and to raise offspring for Er. Onan knew the children wouldn't be his, so he prevented conception, "lest he should raise up a child for his brother". Therefore, the Lord slew him also. Then Judah told Tamar to remain a widow until his youngest son, Shelah, is grown. Judah worried if Shelah married her, he might die also. Shelah grew up and she was not given to him as his wife. So Tamar dressed up as a prostitute, covered her face and stood out by the road. Judah lay with her, for he did not know that she was his daughter in law. Tamar became pregnant with twins. When Judah discovered what had happened, he said:

"She has been more righteous and just than I, because I did not give her to Shelah my son."

So here we see, brothers were to fill in and have children in the deceased brothers name in accordance with the law of God:

Deuteronomy 25:5

5If brothers live together and one of them dies and has no son, his wife shall not be married outside the family to a stranger [an excluded man]. Her husband's brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband's brother to her.6 And the firstborn son shall succeed to the name of the dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel.

However, Judah was not obedient by giving Shelah to Tamar, so his sons were blotted out of Israel.

Had Tamar conceived a child from one of Er's brothers, that child would have been listed as the SEED of the dead brother according to GOD's LAW!

This is why Onan was viewed as EVIL in God's eyes!

God wanted a child of JUDAH to carry on the lineage of Messiah!

It is considered a GREAT SIN to not be fruitful and multiply. So Tamar HAD to do something to be considered "fruitful" and redeem herself! She did not go outside the family, but stayed within the family, as Judah himself says, "She has been more righteous and just than I, because I did not give her to Shelah my son."

However, Judah, himself was not obedient by giving Shelah to Tamar, so his sons were blotted out of Israel, and God had to list Tamar as having conceived by Judah!

TAMAR - BECAUSE SHE WAS OBEDIENT, AND DID NOT GO OUTSIDE THE FAMILY LINEAGE, SHE WAS COUNTED WORTHY OF BEING LISTED IN THE LINEAGE OF MESSIAH - WHEN WOMEN ARE NOT EVER LISTED IN THE GENEOLOGIES!

To look at this from a "MAN's viewpoint" - we see this as sin! A father lay with his sons widow! But God sees this as RIGHTEOUSNESS on Tamars part and rewards her by listing her in the Geneology!!

"And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar"

Rahab the Harlot's Story

Joshua 2 1JOSHUA SON of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as scouts, saying, Go, view the land, especially Jericho. And they went and came to the house of a harlot named Rahab and lodged there... 9And she said to the men, I know that the Lord has given you the land and that your terror is fallen upon us and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you. ..12Now then, I pray you, swear to me by the Lord, since I have shown you kindness, that you also will show kindness to my father's house, and give me a sure sign 13And save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all they have, and deliver us from death. 14And the men said to her, Our lives for yours! If you do not tell this business of ours, then when the Lord gives us the land we will deal kindly and faithfully with you......25And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father's household, and all that she had; and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day; because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

Rahab the Harlot because of her help to Israel, made Joshua "Swear to her by the Lord" that her and her family would be redeemed and saved. Based on that oath that was sworn by the Lord's name, her and her whole family were redeemed and she is listed in the geneology of Messiah!

A HARLOT!!! REDEEMED AND COUNTED WORTHY OF MESSIAH! FOREVER WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF HIS GENEOLOGY! WHEN WOMEN ARE NOT EVEN SUPPOSED TO BE LISTED!!! A HARLOT!!!

"And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab"

Ruth the Moabite, born under the curse of God

The curse of Ruth:

Deuteronomy 23 3An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD; even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the LORD for ever: 4Because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt; and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor of Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee.

The Book of Ruth:

During a famine in the land, Naomi and her family go to Moab. Naomi's sons marry women they meet there. Ruth, a moabite, becomes Naomi's daughter in law. They both become widowed. Ruth tells Naomi, "Your people shall be my people, and your God shall be my God". So the two head back to Bethlehem together. Through a series of events, Ruth meets Boaz, a wealthy kinsmen of Naomi. Boaz sees all that Ruth does for her Mother in law and says to her:

"The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust."
(the curse on her is reversed for her kindness to Naomi, a child of Ephraim)

Naomi attempts to set Ruth up with Boaz, since he is the next of kin to her. Ruth has not had any children yet either. AGAIN - this is considered a GREAT SIN - "BE FRUITFUL AND MULTIPLY" Boaz tells her there is a relative closer to her than he is. Boaz assures he will handle the matter.

Now watch the following scene and notice the great attention to detail:
Ruth 4 1Then went Boaz up to the gate, and sat him down there: and, behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz spake came by; unto whom he said, Ho, such a one! turn aside, sit down here. ... 2And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said, Sit ye down here... 3And he said unto the kinsman, Naomi, that is come again out of the country of Moab, selleth a parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech's: 4And I thought to advertise thee, saying, Buy it before the inhabitants, and before the elders of my people. If thou wilt redeem it, redeem it: but if thou wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know: for there is none to redeem it beside thee; and I am after thee. And he said, I will redeem it. 5Then said Boaz, What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance. 6And the kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: redeem thou my right to thyself; for I cannot redeem it. 7Now this was the manner in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning changing, for to confirm all things; a man plucked off his shoe, and gave it to his neighbour: and this was a testimony in Israel.8Therefore the kinsman said unto Boaz, Buy it for thee. So he drew off his shoe. 9And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech's, and all that was Chilion's and Mahlon's, of the hand of Naomi.10Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren.

So in the story of Ruth, we see the law in Deuteronomy 25 being used again in the Geneology of Messiah.
Boaz "redeems" Ruth from the curse of God's law for her help to his relative.
Boaz, as the next of kin, marries her in accordance with the law of God, staying within the lineage.

This time the rest of the law of God is in play:

Deuteronomy 25:5 If brethren dwell together, and one of them die, and have no child, the wife of the dead shall not marry without unto a stranger: her husband's brother shall go in unto her, and take her to him to wife, and perform the duty of an husband's brother unto her. 6And it shall be, that the firstborn which she beareth shall succeed in the name of his brother which is dead, that his name be not put out of Israel. 7And if the man like not to take his brother's wife, then let his brother's wife go up to the gate unto the elders, and say, My husband's brother refuseth to raise up unto his brother a name in Israel, he will not perform the duty of my husband's brother.8Then the elders of his city shall call him, and speak unto him: and if he stand to it, and say, I like not to take her; 9Then shall his brother's wife come unto him in the presence of the elders, and loose his shoe from off his foot, and spit in his face, and shall answer and say, So shall it be done unto that man that will not build up his brother's house. 10And his name shall be called in Israel, The house of him that hath his shoe loosed.

So here we see, God has used so far, TWICE the Deuteronomy 25 Law in the lineage of Christ.

In the case of Ruth, so much detail is put into the SHOE, its almost like God is shouting to us,

"HELLO, THIS IS A HUGE CLUE!!!!"

Also, so far we have seen these women WERE ALL IN NEED OF A REDEEMER.

"The Wife of Uriah"

2 Samuel 11

During the spring, while all kings go out to battle, King David stays home. While walking out on his roof, he spots a beautiful woman bathing. David sent messengers to take her and bring her to him. She is brought to him and he lays with her. Then she returns to her house. Later, she sends a message to the King that she is pregnant. David requests for her husband, Uriah, to be brought to him. Uriah arrives and the King asks him about the war and how everyone was doing. He then tells him to go home and sends gifts of food to his house. But Uriah did not go home, instead he slept at the door of the kings house. When the King asked Uriah why he did not go home, Uriah replies that the ark and all of Israel are in the tents, he can not go home and eat and drink and lie with his wife. The King tells Uriah he can go back to the battle the next day. David invited him to eat with him again and made him drunk; but Uriah still did not go to his house. The next morning, David wrote a letter to Joab, the commander of the army and sent it with Uriah. The letter commanded for Uriah to be placed in the front line of the heaviest fighting and to withdraw from him so that he is killed. When Bathsheba heard her husband had been killed she mourned for him. After her period of mourning, David brought her to his house, and married her and she bore him a son. But the Lord was not pleased at the evil David had done. The first child was put to death by the Lord. Bathsheba later bore Solomon.

Uriah had a sincere love and devotion for Israel. God includes his name (not Bathsheba's) in the geneology of Messiah so that his name would not be forgotten from Israel.

Was Uriah the father?
Nope!

But God wanted to honor him for putting Israel first - above everything else, even his own life.

This is how "GOD SEES"

"and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias".

So, now, let's go back to the geneologies of Joseph? Why are they different?

hee hee!! It was THERE ALL ALONG!!!

Look again - and see if THIS TIME, after you have read all those other "clues" - see if you can find something "ODD"

LUKE 3:23 - GENEOLOGY OF JESUS

23 And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli,

24 Which was the son of Matthat,
which was the son of Levi,
which was the son of Melchi, etc...

MATTHEW - CHAPTER 1 - GENEOLOGY OF JESUS

King James Version: Matthew Chapter 1

.....15 And Eliud begat Eleazar;
and Eleazar begat Matthan;
and Matthan begat Jacob;
16 And Jacob begat Joseph the HUSBAND of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.


Here we see Eleazar had Matthan had Jacob, Jacob had Joseph...
and then we see Levi had Matthat had Heli, Heli had Joseph

Huge mess here, huh??? The only similarity we have are the names JOSEPH and MATTHAN/T

So MATTHAN and/or MATTHAT is our next CLUE!

The answer to the differing geneologies are found in the works of the historian Julius Africanus, who composed a History of the World, in five volumes.

I.-The Epistle to Aristides.

For(7) whereas in Israel the names of their generations were enumerated either according to nature or according to law,-according to nature, indeed, by the succession of legitimate offspring, and according to law whenever another raised up children to the name of a brother dying childless; for because no clear hope of resurrection was yet given them, they had a representation of the future promise in a kind of mortal resurrection, with the view of perpetuating the name of one deceased;-whereas, then, of those entered in this genealogy, some succeeded by legitimate descent as son to father, while others begotten in one family were introduced to another in name, mention is therefore made of both-of those who were progenitors in fact, and of those who were so only in name. Thus neither of the evangelists is in error, as the one reckons by nature and the other by law. For the several generations, viz., those descending from Solomon and those from Nathan, were so intermingled(8) by the raising up of children to the childless,(9) and by second marriages, and the raising up of seed, that the same persons are quite justly reckoned to belong at one time to the one, and at another to the other, i.e., to their reputed or to their actual fathers. And hence it is that both these accounts are true, and come down to Joseph, with considerable intricacy indeed, but yet quite accurately VI.Matthan, descended from Solomon, begat Jacob. Matthan dying, Melchi, descended from Nathan, begat Hell by the same wife. Therefore Hell and Jacob are uterine brothers. Hell dying childless, Jacob raised up seed to him and begat Joseph, his own son by nature, but the son of Hell by law. Thus Joseph was the son of both.(24)

So we see... Matthan had Jacob.... then Mathhan died.

Melchi marries Mathan's wife and has Heli.

Soooo.... Heli and Jacob are brothers. Heli dies childless.

Jacob, according to Deut. 25 Law, raises up SEED for Heli and begat Joseph!!!!!

If you have ANY questions as to the rest of the geneology - rest assured - its the SAME story! The Historian has a lonnnng account explaining this. CLICK on his name above and you can go read it for yourself. That would be another days worth of writing to explain that. But it's all the same story. DEUTERONOMY 25!

I have tried to do my OWN geneology and even these days without using Deuteronomy 25 and with all the birth records available on the internet - it is still a HUGE and complicated MESS!

The Historian says that the Gospel accounts are stated with, "considerable intricacy indeed, but yet quite accurately"

So to reiterate:

The historian explains the two pedigrees of Messiah, namely that Joseph's two fathers, Jacob and Heli, were half-brothers of the same mother, that Heli died without children, and ....

Jacob took his wife to raise up seed to his dead brother according to the law in Deuteronomy 25:5

and again the LAW OF GOD states:
5If brothers live together and one of them dies and has no son, his wife shall not be married outside the family to a stranger [an excluded man]. Her husband's brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband's brother to her.6 And the firstborn son shall succeed to the name of the dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel.

So Joseph was not the biological son of Heli - but according to the LAW OF GOD - HE WAS THE SEED ACCORDING TO THE FLESH!

So both geneologies are correct!

And to see this in "GOD'S EYES" - Heli is the correct Father! Joseph is the seed of Heli - although Heli had died before Joseph had been born!

It's as if God put BOTH of these geneologies to SHOW US - one is in the "EYES OF MAN" - that Jacob was the biological father.

But the other geneology shows us through the "EYES OF GOD" How God SEES it! Joseph is of the SEED OF HELI, ACCORDING TO THE FLESH - according to the LAW OF GOD!

It's as if God put this law there, planning ahead how He was going to use it!


So that gets us back to: Why is Joseph listed as the father of Jesus? If there was NO FATHER -

DEAD OR ALIVE????

So far all these examples have been raising seed for dead people. If a person dies - then the other brother raises "seed" for the no longer existing father......

the no longer existing father...

for the father that does not exist....any longer....

Again, we need to see the answer from "God's eyes".

and again - we have already seen prior examples where fathers were listed, according to the LAW OF GOD, which were NOT the biological fathers, nor did they even EXIST - any longer...

So back to the bible for more "clues".

In biblical geneology women are not counted (except, as we have seen, in Matthew)

In the wilderness, the children of Israel, in the numbers - only the men were counted.

All throughout the bible, when numbers are taken, ONLY THE MEN ARE COUNTED!

Sexist? Do women not count in the eyes of God???

Why is this???

The answer is sooo simple!

It is because .... In the "EYES OF GOD" - they are viewed as "one flesh"!!!!!!

Gen. 2:24:

‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and cling to his wife, and they become one flesh.’

THIS IS ONE OF THE FIRST LAWS OF GOD!!!

ITS AT THE FRONT OF THE BOOK!
THE ANSWER HAS BEEN THERE ALL ALONG!

Man kind begins with Adam - he was MALE AND FEMALE!
ONE FLESH!
ONE!!!

GOD DOES NOT COUNT "MARY'S" GENEOLOGY - BECAUSE HER AND JOSEPH ARE ONE FLESH!

Ya, but WAIT A MINUTE - THEY WEREN'T EVEN MARRIED!!!!

BUT THEY WERE BETROTHED!!!

"In ancient Jewish society, the betrothal stage was separate from the marriage ceremony, yet betrothal itself effected a change in legal status between the man and woman."

DID ADAM AND EVE GET MARRIED??? NOOOOOO!!!!!

YET THEY WERE ONE FLESH IN THE EYES OF GOD!!!!

Joseph and Mary were one flesh in God’s eyes!

Mary, from whatever lineage she had been of, was now of the lineage of King David through SOLOMON, by her husband Joseph.

All through the other examples, SEED - ACCORDING TO THE FLESH - were raised up by people who no longer existed!

Joseph was of the SAME FLESH as MARY - in the EYES OF GOD!

That’s why it was essential for Joseph and Mary to have been betrothed before Gabriel came to Mary. Mary had become ‘one flesh’ with Joseph!!!!

Now the Child would be conceived and born under Joseph’s physical lineage, THE SEED ACCORDING TO THE FLESH!

Now compare this to US - A husband and wife become as one flesh in the eyes of God. As we see Mary and Joseph are one through the eyes of God.

Jesus prays that we become ONE with Him, as He is ONE with the Father.

Those that claim that Christ is their Messiah are now the BETROTHED Bride of Messiah (Rev. 19:7; 21:2, 9)

As the betrothed, we are one with Messiah now - in the eyes of God

So we can bear fruit unto God (Rom. 7:4) in His name and be fruitful and multiply

Yet the consummation of our Marriage won’t happen until Judgment Day!

Our lineage doesn’t go back to a fallen and carnal Adam & Eve, but to the eternal lineage of Messiah Yeshua.

We have come out of the side of Yeshua (His sacrificial death; Jn. 19:34-35), just as Eve came out of Adam’s side (Gen. 2:21-24).

We have a divine genealogy now,

being one flesh with Messiah Yeshua!!!

Yeshua, from the Seed of King David, through the SEED of SOLOMON, according to the FLESH!!

Just as the Scriptures speak of!!!!!

‘Wives, be subject to your husbands as you are to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife just as Messiah is the Head of the Assembly, the body of which He is the Savior. Just as the Assembly is subject to Messiah, so also wives ought to be, in everything, to their husbands.’

‘Husbands, love your wives, just as Messiah loved the Assembly and gave Himself up for her, in order to make her holy by cleansing her with the washing of Water by the Word, so as to present the Assembly to Himself in splendor, without a spot or wrinkle or anything of the kind—yes, so that she may be holy and without blemish. In the same way, husbands should love their wives as they do their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hates his own body, but he nourishes and tenderly cares for it, just as Messiah does for the Assembly, because we are members of His Body. “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” This is a great mystery, and I am applying it to Messiah and the Assembly.” (Eph. 5:22-32)