3. The Birth of Jesus
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew.
Such was his intention when, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
“Joseph, son of David,
do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.
For it is through the holy Spirit
that this child has been conceived in her.
She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,
because he will save his people from their sins.”
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
“Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,”
When Joseph awoke,
he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him
and took his wife into his home.
He had no relations with her until she bore a son,
and he named him Jesus.
MT 1:20-25
Lesson 3
Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promises
recorded in the Old Testament
Joseph’s decision to divorce Mary
is overcome by the heavenly command that he take her into his home and accept
the child as his own. The natural genealogical line is broken but the
promises to David are fulfilled; through Joseph’s adoption the child belongs to
the family of David.
In the Old Testament “the angel
of the Lord” a common designation of God in communication with a human
being. These dreams may be meant to recall the dreams of Joseph,
son of Jacob the patriarch (Genesis 37:5–11, 19).
Jesus: in first-century Judaism
the Hebrew name Joshua (Greek Iēsous)
meaning “Yahweh helps” was interpreted as “Yahweh saves.”
God is with us: God’s promise
of deliverance to Judah in Isaiah’s time is seen by Matthew as fulfilled in the
birth of Jesus, in whom God is with his people. The
name Emmanuel is alluded to at the end of the gospel where the risen Jesus
assures his disciples of his continued presence, “…I am with you always, until
the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).
Until she bore a son: the
evangelist is concerned to emphasize that Joseph was not responsible for the
conception of Jesus. The Greek word translated “until” does not imply normal
marital conduct after Jesus’ birth, nor does it exclude it.
Prayer
Father, we are filled with the
new light by the coming of Jesus among us.
May the light of faith shine in
our words and actions.
Amen.