The One-Percent Gospel of Matthew, Chapter One, Abridged (with Notes)

In case you missed it, I recently undertook the very special challenge of editing the Bible. What follows is the first chapter of the Gospel of Matthew (ESV) without all those cumbersome bits. The notes that follow offer a rationale for what's been edited out. Be blessed!

(For a look at the unabridged, unedited version, go here.)

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Chapter One

The book of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.*

Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. his mother Mary** was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man*** considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,****

When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

* The historical context of Jesus' birth might be mildly interesting, but it is ultimately irrelevant. What matters is that Jesus was, not where he was and through what ethnic lineage he came.
** It's imprudent to offer readers a means of legitimizing parenting out of wedlock, so the details of Jesus' parentage are omitted here.
*** These scandalous details of Jesus' earthly parentage are, similarly, omitted in order to eliminate any insinuation of his illegitimacy.
**** "God with us" is an assurance that is difficult to square with facts on the ground for most of the people in the world; furthermore, confidence that God is with us here, on this plane, in the midst of difficult circumstances, might encourage social disruption as less fortunate people consider that a society inhospitable to people whom God is with might be a fundamentally unjust society.

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Coming soon: chapter two of Matthew's Gospel, in which we meet Israel's king. You're gonna love it!