Opus 2018-292: What Happened to Admin?

One of the points of controversy in Christian circles deals with the age of the earth.  Bishop Ussher determined creation as happening on October 22, 4004 B.C. by going through all the ages listed in the Bible and taking it “literally”.  I came across an example that might mean that is not as accurate as we would want.  One of the points of the “old earth” school is that names could have been skipped.  I found an example of that in the genealogies of Jesus where a name is left out. 

Before you put me away on the dusty shelves I would like to proclaim that I am not an avid studier of things like genealogies.  I just happened to be looking through them to confirm something I had heard many times.  I had heard it said that both Mary and Joseph were decedents of David but through different lines.  So I compared the line in Matthew chapter 1 which goes from Abraham down to Jesus, through David.  In Luke starting in verse 23 you find a different genealogy.  It is different from Joseph to David.  Note how it is phrased.

(Luke 3:23 KJV)  And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli,

The key to the difference here is the “supposed”.  This is because of the virgin birth.  Since Joseph was not the physical father of Jesus it was necessary for Him to trace His physical descent through Mary.  I assume this has something to do with what modern, new agers have with the patriarchy. 

Luke also works backward while Matthew worked forward.  Luke goes all the way back to Adam, not just to Abraham.

I will let you find the missing name and come to your own conclusions. 

homo unius libri