Go here to hear JR Cochran talk about this passage. I created this artwork and poem for last year’s Advent Exhibition. It fit then. It fits now. Thanks be to God. http://thewellresources.com/the-well-sermons/
Jesus’ Family Tree: Broken and Redeemed
Matthew 1:1-17
Five live oak leaves in segments of three,
Grace in the story of a special family.
Abraham to David is fourteen.
Fourteen more from him to captivity.
Christ comes next to make forty-two.
A trinity of double perfect seven can dos.
All the time opposing God in sinful brokenness,
Christ before us and beside us redeeming, redirects.
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3 = number of the Godhead/Trinity
5 = grace
7 = perfection
14 = a double measure of perfection
42 = the working out of man’s opposition to God
Oaks = Christ; strength of faith and virtue
“The oak was one of the several species of trees that were looked upon as the tree from which the Cross was made.
Because of its solidity and endurance, the oak is also a symbol of the strength of faith and virtue, and of the endurance of the Christian against adversity.”1
--For information about symbols in the Bible, here are some great resources.
E.W. Bullinger’s Number in Scripture: Its Supernatural Design and Spiritual Significance
1George Ferguson’s Signs & Symbols in Christian Art
James Hall’s Dictionary of Subject and Symbols in Art