Genealogy as Evidence

February 26, 2024

by Terry Wane Benton One thing about all the lists of names in the Bible (forget about the difficulty of pronunciation) is that they were kept meticulously to keep the record accurate and verifiable. When Genesis gave a genealogy, it was to show that the writer was being historical and factual. Families could keep their…

Read More

Isn’t Joseph the father of Jesus in Luke 3?

April 8, 2020

Question: Sir, Regarding your article about David being the father of Jesus.  ( the human father, of course.) You say that Mary, in the genealogy in Luke 3, is linked to David, but that is not so. Joseph is linked to David in both Matthew 1 and Luke 3. Or am I missing something? Joseph…

Read More

What about the lineage of Esther?

August 9, 2012

Question: What about the lineage of Esther?  Know anything about that? Answer: “In Shushan the citadel there was a certain Jew whose name was Mordecai the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite. Kish had been carried away from Jerusalem with the captives who had been captured with Jeconiah…

Read More

What was Naomi’s lineage?

August 9, 2012

Question: What was Naomi’s lineage? Answer: “The name of the man was Elimelech, the name of his wife was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion-Ephrathites of Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to the country of Moab and remained there” (Ruth 1:2). Ephrath is the old name for Bethlehem (Genesis…

Read More

Was the Hebrew lineage ever determined through the females in history?

April 5, 2010

Question: Regarding biblical lineage: Was there ever a time in the course of history when Hebrew lineage was recorded through the female? Answer: Lineage was traced through the males throughout the Bible. The only exception is in the case of Jesus because his father was God. You can see this in all the lineages where the…

Read More

Was Naomi related to Obed in any way?

January 22, 2010

Question: Was Naomi Obed’s grandmother or even related to him in any way? Answer: Obed was the son born to Boaz and Ruth. Ruth was Naomi’s widowed daughter-in-law. She had married Naomi’s son who had died. Boaz married Ruth in part because he was a near kinsman to Ruth’s husband. In particular, he was the…

Read More

Lessons from Genealogy

January 14, 2010

The “begots” and “begats” of the Bible can be laborious at times and difficult to pronounce. Often throughout the scriptures, time is devoted to accounting for the family lines of thousands of people. The chronology of these individuals is important for two reasons: The nation of Israel was confirmed through the lineage of Abraham (Genesis…

Read More

How do you know that Ham was the youngest son?

September 8, 2009

Question: How do you know that Ham was the youngest son? Answer: “So Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done to him” (Genesis 9:24). The word “younger,” or “youngest” depending on your translation, comes from the Hebrew word qatan. It is an adjective which can be translated as “small,” “insignificant,”…

Read More

What happened to Ishmael’s descendants?

March 17, 2005

Question: What happened to Ishmael’s descendants? Answer: God promised Abraham, “And as for Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall beget twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation” (Genesis 17:20). Ishmael’s initial descendants are recorded for us…

Read More

Who is the uncle of Moses?

February 10, 2005

Question: Who is the uncle of Moses? Answer: Moses’ parents were Amram and Jochebed. “Now Amram took for himself Jochebed, his father’s sister, as wife; and she bore him Aaron and Moses. And the years of the life of Amram were one hundred and thirty-seven” (Exodus 6:20). In other words, Amram married his aunt. Hence,…

Read More