Bethlehem

In Matthew's genealogy of Jesus, we see five women listed. The first four are within the context of the first 14 generations. Mary is in the last fourteen. They have so many things in common. 

In their stories we see pictures of forgiveness, redemption, the blood of Jesus, the extravagant grace of God, the marriage of the bride and Redeemer, the death of the lamb, and the engrafting of the Gentiles into the vine (see Romans 11). But, while I was studying, and asking questions, I found what I believe is another connection. 

I don't think God does anything randomly. He does things with purpose. He wants to answer our questions.

In chapter 2 of Matthew's Gospel, he repeats the prophecy of Micah 5:2. It says,

But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

are by no means least among the rulers of Judah,

for out of you will come a ruler

who will be the shepherd of My people Israel.’

This prophecy made me realize that they are all connected to this place, and the house of David in one way or another.

The descendents of Tamar produced the land of Judah. The land of Israel was divided into portions according to tribes. Bethlehem is in the portion assigned to Judah. Rahab would have lived in Bethlehem upon moving into that land after leaving Jericho with the Israelites. Ruth came to Bethlehem from Moab. David came out of Bethlehem and was married to Bathsheba, producing two sons through whom the kingly lineage would continue. And Mary and Joseph had to travel back to Bethlehem for Jesus to be born because they were both of the house of David.

From Darkness to Light

In Matthew's genealogy of Jesus there are four women mentioned, Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba, all with seedy pasts. Yes,  even Ruth. She was a Moabite. They sacrificed babies to their gods and their people was a product of Lot and one of his daughters, an incestuous relationship.

Today, I heard a minister, (someone I love), say that if he were writing the genealogy, he would have thought Sarah or Rebecca would have been more appealing to include. But they both were sinners too.

Sarah had her husband sleep with their slave, Hagar. And that created a huge division and strife in people groups. Rebecca conspired with Jacob to deceive her husband, Isaac, and steal the blessing that was supposed to belong to his brother Esau.

Those girls were no better than the list in Matthew's genealogy.

We are all in one of two places. We are either in Adam, or in Christ. We either belong to darkness or light.

And, truth be known, Jesus has already (past tense) reconciled you to God. You might just be finding out about it right now, in this moment. And that is so you can receive his payment and become part of the light, part of the Kingdom of God, part of Christ.

Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation,- 2 Corinthians 5:18 (NKJV)

No other human is better than you. You were the same before Jesus, and you are still on the same level playing field with the rest of the Body of Christ, when you step out of the dark and over into the Kingdom of Light.

All it takes is a moment of faith.

to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.-Acts 26:18 (NKJV)

Women in the Genealogy of Jesus

Did you know that there are only 5 women listed in the genealogy of Jesus? Don't you think that is interesting? I mean, men cannot have babies, right? So, why did God choose those five women to include?

The first woman tricked a man named Judah into sleeping with her, and God gave her two babies out of the union. Her name was Tamar. When one of the babies is born, the midwife ties a scarlet thread on his wrist, and is the first time we see the scarlet thread in the Bible.

The second woman was a prostitute named Rahab in the city of Jericho. She hid two spies, and helped the people of God. Her household was saved through the process. We also see the scarlet cord in her story.

The third woman was an outsider named Ruth. She was a Moabite. They were wicked people, but she followed her mother-in-law to be with the people of God. God gave her a husband who was, amazingly, the son of Rahab. I wonder if Rahab and Ruth ever met??

There has been much controversy surrounding the fourth woman. She was married to an outsider. He was a Hittite, but he was part of David's army, and mighty men. My personal belief is it wasn't her fault. (The prophet Nathan backs me up.)  David took something that wasn't his, and thus an adulterous situation ensued. Bathsheba's name isn't even mentioned in many translations in Matthew's genealogy. It just says the wife of Uriah the Hittite. But God took their story, and redeemed it, and out of the union of David and Bathsheba came Solomon, who was also called Jedidiah, or loved by God.

The fifth woman was his mother Mary. Her name means bitter. She was a wonderful girl, out of whom came our Savior. But she was still in need of Him too. Grace comes along and redeems the bitterness.

So, back to my original question, why did Matthew, and the Holy Spirit choose to include just those women?

Wouldn't it be better to choose women who seemed upright, and didn't have any blemish on their record?

In reality those women just don't exist. I don't care how good you think you are, or how good other people think you are. We are all like these women.

These women are a picture of the church. They are in need of a savior. And when Jesus steps in, they are redeemed. We also need a Savior. Jesus redeems our stories too.

Many blessings ad you grow in grace and the knowledge of Him,
Beth

Women in the Life of Jesus: Bathsheba, Part 2

The book of the geneagology of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:

Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers.  Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram. Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon.  Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king.  David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah.

Matthew 1:1-6 (NKJV)

Scriptures where she can be found: 2 Samuel 11 & 12, 1 Kings 1 & 2, 1 Chronicles 3, Matthew 1 (listed as wife of Uriah)

Her Story:

In part 1 of Bathsheba, we looked at 2 Samuel 11, where we are introduced to her.  Today, I am going to look at 2 Samuel 12, and discuss the events that take place when Nathan the prophet comes to David.

Then the Lord sent Nathan to David. And he came to him, and said to him: “There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor.  The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds. But the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his bosom; and it was like a daughter to him.  And a traveler came to the rich man, who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him; but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”

 So David’s anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this shall surely die!  And he shall restore fourfold for the lamb, because he did this thing and because he had no pity.”

 Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.  I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more!  Why have you despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon.

Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’  Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun.  For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.’”

 So David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”

And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die.  However, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also who is born to you shall surely die.” Then Nathan departed to his house.

-2 Samuel 12:1-15

The first verse in this passage says the Lord sent Nathan the prophet to David.  Nathan didn’t just go of his own accord, but God wanted this to be dealt with.

I find it interesting the story the prophet tells to David.  In the story, Bathsheba would be the sheep. The sheep would have been defenseless, unable to care for itself.  That is the responsibility of the shepherd or owner.

I have had many discussions about her accountability in this story.  Some people say that she knew what she was doing when she was bathing on the rooftop.  Or she could have said no to David. 

But the scriptures seem to indicate that the Lord held David responsible for this action.  He was the King. Bathsheba gets caught in a difficult situation. She is "encouraged" to be unfaithful to her husband, she loses that husband that she appears to love, and she then loses her first child.

I have struggled a lot with the last part.  It is a very difficult situation to think on.  Why would the baby have to die?

I prayed about it, and I think there are several things we need to consider in regards to how Bathsheba handles this, and how it is viewed by the Lord.  I can only go by what I know about God and what the scriptures say.

First, it must have been extremely painful for Bathsheba.  But the Bible says that God is the God of all comfort (2 Corinthians 1:3). I would like to believe He supernaturally comforted her above and beyond any natural comfort during this time.

Second, this is my thought, but it occurred to me, what if the child had lived? What would his life had been like?  He would have to live out his days knowing his father murdered his mother’s husband.  And that he was the result of his father exerting his influence.  Not only would that have been painful, but it would have quite possibly influenced his character and who he was to become.

The last thought I want to share is what came to me while I was praying.  Again, it doesn’t say this in the scriptures outright, but I endeavor to look for Jesus in every situation. 

According to Mosaic Law, both David and Bathsheba should have been put to death.  Both of them.  In Deuteronomy 22:22 we read,

 “If a man is found lying with a woman married to a husband, then both of them shall die—the man that lay with the woman, and the woman; so you shall put away the evil from Israel.”

David and Bathsheba were both considered guilty of adultery.  They both were to be put to death. But the prophet Nathan didn’t bring that up.  He said the baby boy would die.  He took their place.

Isn’t that a picture of Jesus?  He died and took our place.  God laid on Jesus the sin of all mankind forever.  He died so we didn’t have to.

After some time, the Bible says that David comforts Bathsheba, and they have another child.  He is David’s 7^th son, and the Bible says “the Lord loved him.”  The Bible says the Lord sent word by Nathan the prophet and he called his name “Jedidiah.”  Jedidiah means loved by God.  An interesting foot note in my Bible says “she” named him Jedidiah, indicating Bathsheba named him.  We know him as Solomon, the King of Israel who wrote several books in the Bible, and whose wisdom was great.

Bathsheba went on to have three more sons with David.  In Proverbs 31, Solomon pens the famous passage about the virtuous woman.  I believe one of two things.  Either Bathsheba dictated that to him, or he wrote it about her.

To read more posts in this series, go here to Women in the Life of Jesus.

Women in the Life of Jesus: Bathsheba, Part 1

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham

Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers.  Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram.  Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon.  Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king.

David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah.

Matthew 1:1-6

Scripture where she can be found: 2 Samuel 11 & 12, 1 Kings 1 & 2, 1 Chronicles 3, Matthew 1 (listed as wife of Uriah)

Her Story:  

The part of her story that most people are familiar with is when we are first introduced to her in the scriptures, in 2 Samuel 11 & 12.  Her story also continues elsewhere, but we are going to focus on just this portion.  

If you have a Bible, please read 2 Samuel 11 & 12.  You can also read it in its entirety online starting here.

And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem.

And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.

 And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?

 And David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness: and she returned unto her house.

 And the woman conceived, and sent and told David, and said, I am with child.

-2 Samuel 11:1-5

A couple of things to note about this portion of the story are:

1.  David was the King of Israel and should have been in battle.
2.  This took place during the time of her purification.  I don't know that much about the purification laws (something to study), but it was beyond the time of her menstrual cycle, which probably made her extremely fertile.

In order to fix the situation, David calls for her husband, who was in battle and where he should have been.

He sends a letter and the husband, who is a soldier, returns home.  David tells him to rest and go home.  But Uriah does not comply.

So, David calls him back, and this is Uriah's reply,

 And Uriah said unto David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing
.-2 Samuel 11:11 (KJV)

David is no faced with another choice.  He cannot trick Uriah into going and sleeping with his wife, so the child will appear to be his, so he has to come up with another solution.  This one is not good, and is going to compound the situation even further for David.

And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah.

 And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die.

 And it came to pass, when Joab observed the city, that he assigned Uriah unto a place where he knew that valiant men were.

 And the men of the city went out, and fought with Joab: and there fell some of the people of the servants of David; and Uriah the Hittite died also.-2 Samuel 11:14-17

Bathsheba is now a widow, and pregnant with another man's child.

Some people think that she was a willing active participant to the events, but I am not sure.  The Bible doesn't record David sending a message to her when she told him she was pregnant.  It only says he sent one to Uriah.  And since Uriah would not go home, she may not have known that he had even been sent for or was there in Jerusalem.  

The last two verses of Samuel 11 also support my thoughts.  

And when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband.

 And when the mourning was past, David sent and fetched her to his house, and she became his wife, and bare him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.
-2 Samuel 11:26-27

She was sad that her husband had died.  She loved him and mourned the loss of him.  And the Bible says, "the thing that David had done displeased the Lord."  Her name was not included in that.

Tomorrow, I will share more about Bathsheba in Part 2, which will be taken from 2 Samuel, chapter 12.

l fiction book about Bathsheba, check out my review of Bathsheba Bathed in Grace: How 8 Scandalous Women Changed the World by Carol Cook.

To read more posts in this series, go here to Women in the Life of Jesus.