What Does Matthew 1:16 Mean in the King James?
And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The genealogy’s hinge is a birth traced from Mary and the title Christ, whose Greek root means “to anoint” and names the role carried by Jesus.
THE MEANING
The line places Jesus inside a human genealogy and names him with the title “the anointed one.” Joseph is identified as Mary’s husband, while the Greek wording “of whom” refers to Mary as the one from whom Jesus is born. The verse holds family lineage and a distinct role together.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the assumption that “Christ” is Jesus’s family name: the title names him as the anointed one.
THE ROOT
Χριστός
Christos
GROWS FROM
χρι-
To anoint; to mark or designate by applying oil.
The title grows from the verb χρίω, “to anoint,” so it names Jesus by an anointing role. The family line names descent; Christ names what he is designated to be.
ALSO GROWS
chriō: To anoint.
χρίω
This verb is the action carried in the title Christos.
chrisma: Anointing; ointment.
χρῖσμα
This noun shares χρι- and makes visible the anointing held within the title.
ἐγεννήθη
egennēthē
GROWS FROM
γενν-
To beget or give birth; to bring forth.
“was born” in this verse is egennēthē. The verse first uses the same γενν- family for Jacob “begat” Joseph, then for Jesus being born. The repeated root holds the generations together while the wording turns from Joseph’s begetting to Jesus’s birth from Mary.
ALSO GROWS
gennaō: To beget; to give birth.
γεννάω
This verb is the root family used for both “begat” and “was born” in the verse.
gennēsis: Birth; begetting.
γέννησις
This noun shares the γενν- stem and names the event around which the genealogy turns.
gennētos: Born; begotten.
γεννητός
This form shares the same stem and shows how the root describes one brought forth.
יֵשׁוּעַ
Yeshua
GROWS FROM
י־שׁ־ע
To deliver, bringing someone out of constriction into spaciousness.
“Jesus” in this verse is Yeshua. The Greek name Ἰησοῦς carries the Hebrew name Yeshua, from י־שׁ־ע, “deliver.” The verse joins that name’s nature with the title Christ: deliverance and anointing meet in the one being named.
ALSO GROWS
yasha: To deliver; to bring into safety and spaciousness.
יָשַׁע
This verb is the root from which the name Yeshua carries its meaning.
yeshuah: Deliverance.
יְשׁוּעָה
This noun shares the root consonants and expresses the movement contained in the name.
THE PATTERN
A biblical name or title can compress a person’s nature or vocation into the way that person is named.
Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.THE THREAD
How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.Matthew names Jesus “the Christ,” from χριστός (christos), “the anointed one”; Acts uses the related Greek verb χρίω (chriō), “anointed.” The title in Matthew carries the same action Acts states directly.
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