The gospel writers all chose different starting points when telling the story of Jesus. Luke starts with the birth narrative, Mark begins with the baptism and ministry of Jesus, John takes us back to pre-creation, and Matthew starts with the family tree of Jesus. And what a family tree it is! It's filled with kings who were righteous and kings who were evil. You'll find the elite from history and you'll find names not mentioned anywhere else in scripture. There are nobles, murderers, and prostitutes. Quite the family tree indeed.