Why is the genealogy of the Lord Jesus presented in the Gospel of Matthew different from that presented in the Gospel of Luke?

Question:

I have a question about the genealogy of Matthew and the genealogy of Luke. Why are these 2 genealogies not identical? 

It is true that the genealogy of the Lord Jesus presented by the evangelist Matthew is very different from that presented by the evangelist Luke. 

The evangelist Matthew presents the genealogy of the Lord Jesus from Abraham to the Lord Jesus, and the evangelist Luke begins from the Lord Jesus in a descending sense to the God who created Adam. 

The difference between these two genealogies is not a minor one: comparing these two genealogies, we notice that the segment between Joseph, Mary’s husband (mother of Jesus) and King David has nothing in common. According to the genealogy of Matthew, the Lord Jesus is the descendant of David of Solomon (Matthew 1:6-7), and according to the genealogy of the Gospel of Luke, the Lord Jesus is the descendant of David of Nathan (2 Samuel 5:14). 

Most scholars of the Bible are of the opinion that in the Gospel of Luke the genealogy of the Lord Jesus is presented in the maternal line, that is, of Mary. Luke 3:23 writes of the Lord Jesus as being believed to be the son of Joseph, because in reality He could not be the son of Joseph, since Joseph did not know Mary until the Lord Jesus was born. Mary conceived from the Holy Spirit. 

 When He began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years old, being, as was commonly held, the son of Joseph, the son of Eli, … (Luke 3:23 NASB)

 But Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; for that reason also the holy Child will be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:34-35 NASB)

So the Lord Jesus has nothing to do with Joseph, except that He was born of his betrothed. However, from a human perspective, He was the son of Joseph, who was a descendant of David. On the other hand, through Mary, the Lord Jesus was a descendant of David through Nathan. 

…the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David… (Luke 3:31 NASB)

Translated by Nicoleta Vicliuc