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: Tamar

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. -Matthew 1:1-3

Scriptures where she can be found:  Genesis 38:6-30, Ruth 4:12, Matthew 1:3, 1 Chronicles 2:3-6

Her story:

It came to pass at that time that Judah departed from his brothers, and visited a certain Adullamite whose name was Hirah.  And Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua, and he married her and went in to her. So she conceived and bore a son, and he called his name Er.  She conceived again and bore a son, and she called his name Onan.  And she conceived yet again and bore a son, and called his name Shelah. He was at Chezib when she bore him.

Then Judah took a wife for Er his firstborn, and her name was Tamar.  But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord killed him. And Judah said to Onan, “Go in to your brother’s wife and marry her, and raise up an heir to your brother.”  But Onan knew that the heir would not be his; and it came to pass, when he went in to his brother’s wife, that he emitted on the ground, lest he should give an heir to his brother.  And the thing which he did displeased the Lord; therefore He killed him also.

Then Judah said to Tamar his daughter-in-law, “Remain a widow in your father’s house till my son Shelah is grown.” For he said, “Lest he also die like his brothers.” And Tamar went and dwelt in her father’s house.

Now in the process of time the daughter of Shua, Judah’s wife, died; and Judah was comforted, and went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. And it was told Tamar, saying, “Look, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep.”  

So she took off her widow’s garments, covered herself with a veil and wrapped herself, and sat in an open place which was on the way to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah was grown, and she was not given to him as a wife.  When Judah saw her, he thought she was a harlot, because she had covered her face.  Then he turned to her by the way, and said, “Please let me come in to you”; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law.

So she said, “What will you give me, that you may come in to me?”

 And he said, “I will send a young goat from the flock.”

So she said, “Will you give me a pledge till you send it?”

 Then he said, “What pledge shall I give you?”

So she said, “Your signet and cord, and your staff that is in your hand.” Then he gave them to her, and went in to her, and she conceived by him.  So she arose and went away, and laid aside her veil and put on the garments of her widowhood.

 And Judah sent the young goat by the hand of his friend the Adullamite, to receive his pledge from the woman’s hand, but he did not find her.  Then he asked the men of that place, saying, “Where is the harlot who was openly by the roadside?”

And they said, “There was no harlot in this place.”

 So he returned to Judah and said, “I cannot find her. Also, the men of the place said there was no harlot in this place.”

 Then Judah said, “Let her take them for herself, lest we be shamed; for I sent this young goat and you have not found her.”

 And it came to pass, about three months after, that Judah was told, saying, “Tamar your daughter-in-law has played the harlot; furthermore she is with child by harlotry.”

So Judah said, “Bring her out and let her be burned!”

 When she was brought out, she sent to her father-in-law, saying, “By the man to whom these belong, I am with child.” And she said, “Please determine whose these are—the signet and cord, and staff.”

So Judah acknowledged them and said, “She has been more righteous than I, because I did not give her to Shelah my son.” And he never knew her again.

 Now it came to pass, at the time for giving birth, that behold, twins were in her womb.  And so it was, when she was giving birth, that the one put out his hand; and the midwife took a scarlet thread and bound it on his hand, saying, “This one came out first.”  Then it happened, as he drew back his hand, that his brother came out unexpectedly; and she said, “How did you break through?This breach be upon you!” Therefore his name was called Perez.  Afterward his brother came out who had the scarlet thread on his hand. And his name was called Zerah.

My thoughts:

I love her name.  It means "palm tree."  Palm trees are tall and beautiful.

One thing that always struck me as odd about her story was the placement. We are reading about Joseph in the book of Genesis, and then there is one chapter stuck in between Joseph's story about Judah and Tamar. 

For a long time, my opinion of Tamar was negative.  I thought she had acted like a prostitute, but the Bible says Judah "thought she was a harlot." That was his assumption. (*Note: Since I first wrote this, I have come to look at this a little differently.  You can read and see what you think for yourself. My thoughts now are what if she did pretend to be a prostitute? God still has the ability to work through our mistakes and shortcomings.)

She was given in an arranged marriage to a wicked man.  He died. And then she was given to another wicked brother.

Then her father-in-law sends her back to live in her father's home as a widow.  At this point, I would have been like, "Thank you.  No man for me."

Judah was supposed to give her his third son, but he didn't.  Why?  Because he was afraid of Tamar.  He thought it was her.  He couldn't see that his own sons were wicked.

Tamar, instead of going with my choice, decided to take matters into her own hands.  So, she disguised herself, and pursued Judah. 

I read somewhere that if the sons were unable to fulfill this obligation, that the father-in-law could as well.  Tamar must have known this, and since Judah's wife had passed, she felt like it was time.

Judah thinks the worst of her when it is reported to him that she is with child.  But she was smart, and got proof for herself.

Later on in the passage, Judah sees his error and says her actions were more "righteous" than his.  

Tamar could have done things a lot differently.  But she didn't.

She did the right thing, even though Judah wouldn't.  

And God blessed her, and technically Judah too. Tamar gave birth to two sons, twins, and was listed in the lineage of Jesus in Matthew chapter 1.

One last thing.  When Zerah was being born, he started to come out first. The midwife tied a scarlet thread onto his wrist, so she would know who was born first.  The scarlet thread runs through everything and points to Jesus.

But one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.-Revelation 5:5 (NKJV)



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