the
son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonan, the son of Eliakim, the son of Melea, the son of Menan, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon, the son of Amminadab, the son of Aram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.
Luke 3:30-38
Luke 3 [23.] Jesus himself, when he began to teach, was about thirty years old, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai, the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Joseph, the son of Judah, the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri, the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmodam, the son of Er, the son of Jose, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi,
Luke 3 [30.] the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonan, the son of Eliakim, the son of Melea, the son of Menan, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon, the son of Amminadab, the son of Aram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,
Luke 3 [35.] the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.
Luke 4 [1.] Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. He ate nothing in those days. Afterward, when they were completed, he was hungry. The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”
Meaning:
Luke’s genealogy of Jesus began with Joseph and the generations after the exile (Luke 3:23-29). These verses complete it, climbing back through King David, the patriarchs and the earliest generations of humanity to Adam, and finally to God. Matthew’s genealogy starts with Abraham, because Matthew writes especially to show Jesus as the Messiah of Israel (Matthew 1:1-4). Luke goes further back, because the Saviour he presents belongs to the whole human race.
- “the son of Nathan, the son of David, the son of Jesse”
Matthew traces Joseph’s line through Solomon, the king who succeeded David. Luke traces it through Nathan, another son of David born in Jerusalem, who never reigned. Nathan’s branch had no crown and no palace, yet God’s promise did not depend on which brother held power. Out of the quieter line came the King who would reign forever. The two lines meet again for a time at Shealtiel and Zerubbabel. Either way, Jesus belongs to the family of David, son of Jesse of Bethlehem, to whom God had promised an everlasting kingdom (2 Samuel 7:12-13). Isaiah had foreseen that “A shoot will come out of the stock of Jesse” (Isaiah 11:1).
- “the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon”
Before David the line passes through the tribe of Judah and through families whose stories are told in the Old Testament. Boaz married Ruth, a woman from Moab, and became the great-grandfather of David. Nahshon was the leader of the tribe of Judah in the wilderness in the days of Moses. Perez and Judah, Jacob, Isaac and Abraham follow. To Abraham God had promised, “All the families of the earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12:3). Luke’s list shows that the blessing promised to Abraham comes to the world through his descendant Jesus. The footnote on the PIB page notes that some manuscripts read “Admin, the son of Arni” in place of “Aram”; this does not change the line itself.
- “the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech”
Beyond Abraham the names come from the genealogies of Genesis 5 and 11. Shem was the son of Noah through whom the line continued after the flood. Enoch, seven generations from Adam, walked with God so closely that God took him without his dying. Methuselah, his son, is remembered for his long life. Luke includes a second Cainan between Arphaxad and Shelah, a name found in the Greek translation of Genesis that Luke used. These ancient names remind us that the story of Jesus is joined to the story of the whole world from its beginning: “This is the book of the generations of Adam” (Genesis 5:1).
- “the son of Adam, the son of God”
The genealogy ends where human history began. Adam had no human father. He was created directly by God and made in his image (Genesis 1:27), and in that sense Luke calls him “the son of God.” By tracing Jesus to Adam, Luke shows that Jesus is related to every person on earth, not only to Israel. Paul says God “made from one blood every nation of men” (Acts 17:26). Paul also contrasts Adam and Christ: “Therefore as sin entered into the world through one man, and death through sin” (Romans 5:12), but “so also in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22). He calls Jesus “The last Adam” (1 Corinthians 15:45). The first son of God, Adam, failed when he was tempted. The very next scene in Luke shows the devil saying to Jesus, “If you are the Son of God” (Luke 4:1-4). Where Adam fell, the true Son of God stands firm.
The Significance of Luke 3:30-38
- A Saviour for all people
Because Jesus is the son of Adam, no nation, race or class stands outside his concern. In him “There is neither Jew nor Greek” (Galatians 3:28); all can belong to God’s family.
- A new beginning for humanity
Adam’s disobedience brought sin and death to all his descendants. Jesus, the last Adam, begins a new humanity. All who belong to him share his life.
- God’s long patience
From Adam to Jesus the genealogy spans the whole of Old Testament history. Through floods, wanderings, slavery and exile, God carried his plan of salvation forward until the right time had come.
Cross-References:
Genesis 12:3: “All the families of the earth will be blessed through you.” The promise to Abraham fulfilled in Jesus.
Romans 5:12: “Therefore as sin entered into the world through one man, and death through sin;” What came through Adam.
1 Corinthians 15:22: “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.” What comes through Christ.
Acts 17:26: “He made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the surface of the earth,” One human family.
Conclusion: Luke 3:30-38 completes the genealogy of Jesus, tracing it through Nathan and David, Judah and Abraham, Noah and Enoch, back to Adam, “the son of God.” Luke shows that Jesus is the heir of David, the promised seed of Abraham and a true son of Adam. He belongs to all humanity, and as the last Adam he succeeds where the first Adam failed, opening a new beginning for every nation.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible