JECHONIAH, JECHONIAS, CONIAH

Satan and all those who prefer to believe his lies rather than believe God and His Word, continually try to convince mankind that God's Word cannot be trusted. He told Eve that she should not believe God (Gen. 3:1-5). Satan tried to convince Job that God had deserted him by destroying everything Job had, including the compassion of a loving wife (Job 1:1-2:9). In trying to tempt Jesus, he offered Him a short cut to His future rule as King of kings, and Lord of lords, and had Jesus accepted, the prophecies concerning His First and Second Comings would have become void (Matt. 4:1-10). As the father of lies, Satan is constantly on the prowl seeking to destroy the faith men have in God (Jn. 8:44; Eph. 6:11; 1 Pet. 5:8).

A perfect example of how Satan's fans challenge Scripture is their ridiculing of Matthew's math. In Matthew's presentation of the genealogy of Jesus, he wrote that there were forty-two generations from Abraham to Jesus (Matt. 1:1-17). If one counts the number of names, there are only forty-one. The list is divided into three groups, said to consist of fourteen names each, and yet, the last group only has thirteen. Before I attempt to explain the supposed mathematical error, let me say that every apparent contradiction has a logical explanation. If we cannot explain it, it is because we are ignorant of the truth regarding it. I have to admit that there are many things I am not able to explain, but I am absolutely convinced that every word is true. Perhaps we will have to wait until "we know, even as we are known" (1 Cor. 13:12; 1 Jn. 3;2).

While I cannot prove this, I believe that Jechoniah is counted twice, once as the heir of the throne, and once as having been cut off from it (Matt. 1:11-12). The reason is that he was the king of Judah prior to the Babylonian Captivity, but because of his sin, God no longer allowed him, or any of his descendants to rule on David's throne (Jer. 22:24-30). Therefore, when the genealogy resumes following their captivity, Jechoniah's lineage has a totally different status. He and his progeny no longer were legally considered eligible to be king. The next person to sit upon the throne of David will be Jesus during the Millennium (Rev. 19:11-16). He is the rightful heir to the throne because of Luke's genealogy (Lk. 3:23-38).

Satan also likes to question the fact that the two genealogies do not match, but neither do yours and mine. My father's family and my mother's family intersect for the first time when they marry. However, if it were possible to follow them back far enough, they certainly must intersect as the family of Noah. I, and many others, believe that the genealogy in Matthew's Gospel is that of Joseph, and Luke's Gospel presents Mary's. That is especially important since Joseph was not the father of Jesus (Matt. 1:16; Lk. 3:23). If he had been, other than the obvious problems with the deity of Christ, Jesus would not be eligible to sit on David's throne. God's Word it true, and Satan is a liar!