Type “family tree” into your search engine and a wide range of "free" or "useful" web-site addresses appears. The same with terms like “genealogy” and “ancestry”. And programmes like the BBC’s “Who do you think you are?” which uncover the family history of celebrities, have proved both popular and intriguing.

But when we read the Bible, the temptation is to skip over the genealogies. They’re not very gripping reading compared to the rest of the narrative in, say, Genesis or the gospels. Just long, and sometimes apparently inconsistent lists. Not even Matthew and Luke can agree on the genealogy for Jesus!

Selective memory

Why do people need a genealogy? They may find as they get older that they don’t want to lose their connection with the past. Or perhaps many centuries ago they had a famous, or infamous, ancestor.

But how far back can you recite your family tree? Maybe only a couple of generations, and even then incompletely! Even if you had a famous ancestor, you would probably focus on that person and miss out intermediate generations.

In other words we are selective about which people we remember, or which branches in our family tree are important.

Accurate?

Until the late 19^th century it was taken as read that the biblical genealogies were an accurate and intrinsic part of the historical record of the time. But new archaeological activity within the near East resulted in an increase in material and documents which began to challenge this view.

Anthropologists were also gaining new understanding about how genealogies were compiled and maintained in different tribes in the region.

Traditions and motivations

They found that near Eastern tribes had selective memories, too. The political, religious or domestic requirements of the moment influenced which genealogy was recalled or which family tree became important. The sister of the king and her children, for instance, would cease to be in the official genealogy because she was not the ruler and nor would her children come into power. So that part was forgotten.

When there was more than one successor to the king and the most suitable appointee was not a direct successor then the genealogy would be “re-written” and become the official version.

Adam

Take the two genealogies of Adam in Genesis 4 and 5. There are probably two authors at work here. The differences between the lists would not have been a problem for the people of the time as they would be accustomed to dealing with genealogies.

The authors have different motivations. The version in Genesis 5 seems to be establishing Seth as Adam’s successor, rather than the murderer Cain. But interestingly, many of the names are the same or similar in root – Enoch, Mehujael and Mahalalel, Irad and Jared, Methushael and Methuselah, there is even a Kenan, a similar name in root to Cain.

Jesus

And what about the gospels? Matthew starts at Abraham and sets out the family tree in blocks of 14, using a way of reading back the Jewish heritage which will resonate with his readership. Note also the inclusion of five significant women in this otherwise orthodox list – Tamar Judah’s daughter-in-Law, Rahab the prostitute, Ruth the Moabitess, Bathsheba with whom King David committed adultery and Mary, the mother of Jesus.

Luke goes all the way back to Adam – well over 60 people, but still nowhere near enough to cover the related span of time. Even methodical Luke has been selective.

So what can genealogies tell us about the biblical writers and what they wanted to convey?

Bibliography: Wilson, R.W., (1977) Genealogy and History in the Biblical World, Yale University Press: London.

How do you approach the genealogies in the Bible?

What purpose do you think they serve?