QT 27 Feb 17, Matt 1:17, Babylon still separates people from God today

Matthew 1:17 (ESV) —

17 So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.

NOTE: So there is no way to get from 1407, the fall of Jericho, to the birth of David (1040), with only five generations, Salmon (and Rahab), the Father of Boaz (and Ruth), the Father of Obed, the Father of Jesse, the Father of David. I've worked out a number of options (very old births) and there is just too long a period. So, most likely Boaz is the son of Salmon and Rahab only in the sense of his seed. There must have been intervening generations. The use of fourteen is a not uncommon memory aid for the Jew. It does not make anything untrue, it just makes it easier to remember. Generations are skipped for brevity sake.

What is interesting is the dividing lines: Abraham to David, David to Babylon, and Babylon to the coming of Christ. Babylon separates the history of Israel in regard to the coming of Christ. Babylon, in its worldview (Rev 17 is the metaphorical Babylon and its worldview, Rev 18 is the physical Babylon), still separates people from Jesus Christ even today. The world and its vices pull us away from godliness and truth. It substitutes a truth that appears more interesting and even more believable to the unlearned and blind. Babylon, Babylon, you have done so much damage to people through the centuries. When will your rule end?