This, then, is the family line of Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, Boaz the father of Obed, Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David.

–Parallel verses:
Matthew‬ ‭1‬:‭1‬-‭6‬a
This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham: Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was TAMAR, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was RAHAB, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was RUTH, Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of King David.

Genealogies are parts of the Bible that I used to skip over, but now, I find significance in the people and the generational change they represent. I have highlighted, in the above genealogies, three women who stood out in significance enough to the Apostle Matthew to be mentioned in his genealogy of Jesus Christ. I say this understanding that women at that time were typically not included in genealogies. The first was Tamar. She was the wife of Ur, Judah’s firstborn son. Judah was the firstborn of Jacob, one of the patriarchs, or founding fathers, of the Jews. Judah was one of the brothers who sold Joseph into slavery, and whom Joseph forgave and rescued out of poverty, when he was an Egyptian ruler.
So the story of Tamar was that Er, her husband, did evil in God’s eyes and God killed him. So she was given to Judah’s son who was next in line, Onan, to have a son with. But he did evil in God’s sight and God killed him. So Judah told Tamar to come live with him and when his youngest son, Shelah, was of age, she could marry him. But the time came and went, and Tamar was not given to Judah’s youngest son. So after Judah’s first wife died he went to town with a friend and hired a prostitute. He slept with her and gave her a pledge for payment. He then found out later that this prostitute was pregnant and the mother was his own daughter-in-law, Tamar. She had tricked him just as he had tricked her. So in a family of evil sons, and a father who sinned, Tamar gave birth with her father-in-law to Perez, who was in the royal lineage of King David. Talk about family disfunction! Next we go to Rahab. Rahab was the prostitute who saved the Jewish spies in Jericho when the soldiers came around to find them and have them killed. She was saved when they conquered Jericho and she was the mother of Boaz. So Boaz knew a thing or two about being an “outsider” or foreigner. He might have been made fun of at school for having a mom who was not Jewish and used to work as a prostitute. It was probably tougher growing up (speculation here) but it gave him a kind heart to the outcast and the foreigner. And now we see God’s generational plan come together. Boaz would marry Ruth, the faithful foreigner. Out of a family who was very sinful and full of evil, God redeemed the family line under Boaz and Ruth.

Doesn’t God have a funny way of pulling together broken people who are outcasts and making something beautiful out of them, when they are faithful? Just when we think we are not “good enough” or have blown it too many times, we find these stories in the Bible of people who were failures by human standards, but redeemed and precious to God — and USED GREATLY by him! So how will God use me today, this week? Will I be humble and available to his call?

Thank you, Lord, that you used these broken, yet faithful women to help tell your story of grace and redemption. Thank you that you redeemed me from the pit of despair I was heading in in my sin! May you redeem the future generations of the Anderson (insert your family name here) household. I am free to love and live in your grace!