Genealogy - footnotes

Hagar
- Genesis 16: 3
  Thus after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, his wife Sarai took her maid, Hagar the Egyptian, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his concubine.
Commentary:
Sarai (Sarah) was the mother of Abraham's eldest son, Ishmael.
Ishmeal
- Genesis 21:21
  ...His home in the wilderness of Paran. His mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
Commentary:
Paran is in the Sinai to the west of Israel. From here Ishamel's descendants, the Arabs, migrated southwest. Muhammad traces His lineage to Abraham through Ishmael.
Katurah
- Genesis 25: 1
  Now Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah.
Commentary:
The six sons from Abraham's marriage to Katurah were eventually sent east towards Persia. Bahá'u'lláh traces His lineage to Abraham through Jokshan, son of Katurah, wife of Abraham.
Moses
- Deuteronomy 33:2
  The LORD came down from Sinai, and dawned on them from Seir; He shone forth from Mount Paran, and He came from the midst of ten thousands of holy ones; at His right hand there was a fiery law for them.
Commentary:
This is yet another chronological prophecy of the Manifestations since Moses. He (Moses) connects Mount Paran explicitly with the Prophetic line when, in His final blessing before His death, He describes the Prophets who will follow Him: "The Lord came from Sinai" (meaning Himself) and rose up from Seir . . . (meaning Jesus Christ); he shined forth from mount Paran (meaning Muhammad)..." (George Townshend, Christ and Baha'u'llah, p. 32) His coming "from the midst of ten thousands of holy ones" seems a clear indication of The Báb and the tens of thousands of Bábí' martyrs. "...at His right hand there was a fiery law for them" refers to Bahá'u'lláh's book of laws, the "Kitab-i-Aqdas" (Most Holy Book)

Jesus

Matthew 1: 16
Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, who was the mother of Jesus, called the Messiah. This was the way that Jesus Christ was born. His mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they were married she found out that she was going to have a baby by the Holy Spirit. Joseph, to whom she was engaged, was a man who always did what was right; but he did not want to disgrace Mary publicly, so he made plans to break the engagement secretly. While he was thinking about all this, an angel of the LORD appeared to him in a dream and said: "Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary to be your wife. For it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived".

Commentary:
The actual lineage of Jesus is problematic for two reasons: 1) Both lineages in the Bible trace to Joseph who was not the father of Jesus but the husband of the Levite Mary, and 2) the lineages in the Bible are contradictory:

Matthew:	Luke:
Abraham, father of	Abraham, father of
Isaac	Isaac
Jacob	Jacob
Judah	Judah
Perez	Perez
Hezron	Hezron
Ram	Arni
	Admin
Amminadab	Amminadab
Nahshon	Nahshon
Salmon	Salmon
Boaz	Boaz
Obed	Obed
Jesse	Jesse
David	David
Solomon	Nathan
Rehoboam	Mattatha
Abijah	Menna
Asa	Melea
Jehoshaphat	Eliakim
Joram	Jonam
Uzziah	Joseph
Jotham	Judah
Ahaz	Simeon
Hezekiah	Levi
Manasseh	Matthat
Amos	Jorim
Josiah	Eliezer
Jechoniah	Joshua
	Er
	Elmadam
	Cosam
	Addi
	Melchi
	Neri
She-alti-el	Shealtiel
Zerubbabel	Zerubbabel
Abiud	Rhesa
Eliakim	Joanan
Azor	Joda
Zadok	Josech
Achim	Semein
Eliud	Mattathias
Eleazar	Maath
	Naggai
	Nahum
	Amos
	Mattathias
	Joseph
	Jannai
	Melchi
	Levi
Matthan	Matthat
Jacob	Heli
Joseph	Joseph
Jesus	Jesus

Muhammad
- Deuteronomy 18:15
  A prophet like Me will the LORD, your God, raise up for from among your brethern; to Him you shall listen.
- Deuteronomy 18:18
  I will raise up for them a Prophet like You from among their brethern, and I will put My words into His mouth; He shall tell them all that I command Him.
Commentary:
These and related prophecies are discussed in detail in the document The Prophet and Elijah
The 12 Imams
- Genesis 17:20
  As for Ishmael, I am heeding you: I hereby bless him. I will make him fertile and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall become the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation.
- Revelation 12:1
  Then a great sign appeared in heaven: there was a woman whose dress was the sun and who had the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head.
Commentary:
Genesis 17 : 20 - Abraham's first son, Ishmael, was the father of the Arab race which became, under the influence of the Prophet's Faith, the great nation of Islam. The twelve Imams were the illustrious true leaders of Islam until 260AH.

Revelation 12:1 - This woman is that bride, the Law of God that descended upon Muhammad. The sun with which she was clothed, and the moon which was under her feet, are the two nations which are under the shadow of that Law, the Persian and Ottoman kingdoms; for the emblem of Persia is the sun, and that of the Ottoman Empire is the crescent moon. Thus the sun and moon are the emblems of two kingdoms which are under the power of the Law of God. Afterward it is said: "upon her head is a crown of twelve stars." These twelve stars are the twelve Imams, who were the promoters of the Law of Muhammad and the educators of the people, shining like stars in the heaven of guidance. ('Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 68)
Bahá'u'lláh - The stem of Jesse
- Isaiah 11:1-12
  (1) Then a Shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.
  (2) And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
  (3)And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, and He will not judge by what His eyes see, nor make a decision by what His ears hear;
  (4) But with righteousness He will judge the poor, and decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; and He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.
  (5) Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, and faithfulness the belt about His waist.
  (6) And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the kid, and the calf and the young lion and the fat ling together; and the little boy will lead them.
  (7) Also the cow and the bear will graze; their young will lie down together; and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
  (8) And the nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child will put his hand on the viper's den.
  (9) They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.
  (10) Then it will come about in that day that the nations will resort to the root of Jesse, who will stand as a signal for the peoples; and His resting place will be *glorious (*Literally: Glory).
  (11) Then it will happen on that day that the LORD will again recover the second time with His hand the remnant of His people, who will remain, from Assyria, Egypt, Pathos, Gush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.
  (12) And He will lift up a standard for the nations, and will assemble the banished ones of Israel, and will gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.
Commentary:
Verse 1 - Bahá'u'lláh was also a descendant of Jesse. He is the "Branch" that "shall grow out of his roots" as promised by Isaiah.
Verse 2 through 5 - Bahá'u'lláh was not a theologian or commentator - He was the Manifestation of the one true God, and the Revealer of God's Word. See comments on Isaiah 9: 6, 7 (Note 10).
Verse 6 through 8 - But these verses apply word for word to Bahá'u'lláh. Likewise in this marvelous cycle the earth will be transformed, and the world of humanity arrayed in tranquillity and beauty. Disputes, quarrels and murders will be replaced by peace, truth and concord; among the nations, peoples, races and countries, love and amity will appear. Cooperation and union will be established, and finally war will be entirely suppressed. When the laws of the Most Holy Book are enforced, contentions and disputes will find a final sentence of absolute justice before a general tribunal of the nations and kingdoms, and the difficulties that appear will be solved. The five continents of the world will form but one, the numerous nations will become one, the surface of the earth will become one land, and mankind will be a single community. The relations between the countries -- the mingling, union and friendship of the peoples and communities -- will reach to such a degree that the human race will be like one family and kindred. The light of heavenly love will shine, and the darkness of enmity and hatred will be dispelled from the world. Universal peace will raise its tent in the center of the earth, and the blessed Tree of Life will grow and spread to such an extent that it will overshadow the East and the West. Strong and weak, rich and poor, antagonistic sects and hostile nations -- which are like the wolf and the lamb, the leopard and kid, the lion and the calf -- will act toward each other with the most complete love, friendship, justice and equity. The world will be filled with science, with the knowledge of the reality of the mysteries of beings, and with the knowledge of God. (Abdu'l-Baha, Some Answered Questions, p. 62)
Verse 9 - But "they shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." These conditions did not prevail in the time of the manifestation of Christ; for until today various and antagonistic nations exist in the world: very few acknowledge the God of Israel, and the greater number are without the knowledge of God. In the same way, universal peace did not come into existence in the time of Christ -- that is to say, between the antagonistic and hostile nations there was neither peace nor concord, disputes and disagreements did not cease, and reconciliation and sincerity did not appear. So, even at this day, among the Christian sects and nations themselves, enmity, hatred and the most violent hostility are met with. (Abdu'l-Baha, Some Answered Questions, p. 62)
Now consider, in this great century which is the cycle of Bahá'u'lláh, what progress science and knowledge have made, how many secrets of existence have been discovered, how many great inventions have been brought to light and are day by day multiplying in number. Before long, material science and learning, as well as the knowledge of God, will make such progress and will show forth such wonders that the beholders will be amazed. Then the mystery of this verse in Isaiah, "For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord," will be completely evident. (Abdu'l-Baha, Some Answered Questions, p. 62)
Reflect also that in the short time since Bahá'u'lláh has appeared, people from all countries, nations and races have entered under the shadow of this Cause. Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, Buddhists, Hindus and Persians all associate together with the greatest friendship and love, as if indeed these people had been related and connected together, they and theirs, for a thousand years; for they are like father and child, mother and daughter, sister and brother. This is one of the meanings of the companionship of the wolf and the lamb, the leopard and the kid, and the lion and the calf. (Abdu'l-Baha, Some Answered Questions, p. 64)
One of the great events which is to occur in the Day of the manifestation of that Incomparable Branch (Bahá'u'lláh) is the hoisting of the Standard of God among all nations. By this is meant that all nations and kindreds will be gathered together under the shadow of this Divine Banner, which is no other than the Lordly Branch itself, and will become a single nation. Religious and sectarian antagonism, the hostility of races and peoples, and differences among nations, will be eliminated. All men will adhere to one religion, will have one common faith, will be blended into one race, and become a single people. All will dwell in one common fatherland, which is the planet itself. Universal peace and concord will be realized between all the nations, and that Incomparable Branch will gather together all Israel, signifying that in this cycle Israel will be gathered in the Holy Land, and that the Jewish people who are scattered to the East and West, South and North, will be assembled together. (Abdu'l-Baha, Some Answered Questions, p. 64)
Verse 10 - Bahá'u'lláh is descended from Jesse, and His name means "the Glory of God."
Verse 11 through 12 - In talks of Abdu'l-Baha recorded between 1904-1906, He said Now see: these events did not take place in the Christian cycle, for the nations did not come under the One Standard which is the Divine Branch. But in this cycle of the Lord of Hosts all the nations and peoples will enter under the shadow of this Flag. In the same way, Israel, scattered all over the world, was not reassembled in the Holy Land in the Christian cycle; but in the beginning of the cycle of Bahá'u'lláh this divine promise, as is clearly stated in all the Books of the Prophets, has begun to be manifest. You can see that from all the parts of the world tribes of Jews are coming to the Holy Land; they live in villages and lands which they make their own, and day by day they are increasing to such an extent that all Palestine will become their home. (Abdu'l-Baha, Some Answered Questions, p. 65)
In fact, Jews had been allowed to return to Palestine (Israel) since the Sultan's Edict of Toleration of 1844CE (1260AH) - the year of the Báb's declaration in the year 1BE; The state of Israel was established and recognized by the United Nations in 1947.