There are only 4 women mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus Christ: Tamar, who seduced her father-in-law Judah and bore twin sons through him; Ruth, a Gentile woman, Rahab, a prostitute, and Uriah's wife . . . well, we all know about Bathsheba, and King David's adultery and murder on account of her."A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham" (Matthew 1:1)
Why were these women, three of them quite notorious, specifically singled out in a Jewish genealogy where only fathers mattered and the mothers counted for nothing at all?
And why, of all of Jacob's 12 sons, did Jesus Christ descend through the line of Judah through one of those twin boys, and why, of all of David's numerous sons, was Jesus Christ born through the line of Solomon, whose mother was Bathsheba?
Jesus came from such a people as this. His human ancestry includes not only these women but some of the most evil and notorious kings in Israel's history.
Instead of covering up these facts, Matthew makes particular note of them. I can't think of a very good reason for this except that maybe he was emphasizing how much Jesus the Son of God condescended to become the Son of Man; how much Jesus humiliated Himself in leaving His eternal glory forever to become '"Immanuel", which means "God with us"' (Matthew 1:23). In Jesus's ancestry we see all the best and worst of people--people like you and me.
Jesus, in His humanity, came from such a people as this. And He came to redeem such a people as this.
8 comments:
As I was reading all of the names, I too was thinking there were some bad boys and girls in this lineage...but didn't think about in the way Dulla posted.
I think your post was so insightful. He could have chosen a line with less notoriety. Perhaps the lineage with the least faults. But this shows the enormity of what was done by God becoming man.
Thanks for your post!
Isaiah 6 talked about God's Infinite Holiness. How God allowed Isaiah to see the God sitting on the Throne. "I saw the Lord sitting on a throne." When he saw the holiness of God, he confessed verse 6:5, "Woe is me, for I am ruined.... because I am a man of unclean lips." In the purity of God's holiness, our sinfulness is exposed. We see who we are in the light of who God is. When Isaiah saw his sins in the light of God's holiness. Moreover, when he felt he was unequipped to do his work as a messenger of God, God offered him forgiveness. In verse 6-7, it says "With a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched mouth with it and said, 'behold, this has touched your lips: and your inequity is taken away and your sin forgive'“Because of His holiness, God cannot simply let us off the hook and justifies us as a righteous one. He cannot dismiss our sin without a substitute. The very substitute is God's only son, Jesus Christ who accepted the punishment for our sins and died in our place. Through his death, we are offered full and complete forgiveness. Thanking God today for My Jesus, my Savior, and My Messiah.
...it causes me to be humble to know that Christ gave up so much (we never fully understand on this side of eternity) to dwell amongst such lowly beings as us... the name "Emanuel" has a deeper meaning than I thought possible!
This made me think about an issue a little off the subject...about whether or not bringing a new life into a world so full of wrongness, dangers, etc. would be a good idea. Trying to watch over a child of your own is such a great responsibility of it's own but to try in such a harsh world seems so daunting and discouraging. But then to think: even our Jesus came into such a world, through such a people, the very type of people I'd be afraid to be associated with and want to shelter my own child from... It's something I have to think over, and in a different perspective now.
I think this is a good point. He chose to come in very human way instead like from loyal family. Unlike the three wise men thought he must be in King's palace, he was lying on a manger...
This is such an interesting point that you make. I couldn't help but feel so grateful for God's love for us. Despite our wickedness and sinful nature, God sent His one and only Son to die on the cross...for us all.
Also, another thought that comes to mind is how God can use anyone to have His will be done, even sinful and dirty people like us. I always think I'm not worthy enough or too sinful to be used by God, but God does not judge the way we might judge ourselves or one another.
Sorry for the late comment...no excuses. >_<
I never really thought about how scandalous Jesus's genealogy really was.
But the nifty thing about this is thatyou're right, God does use all sorts of people to fit according to His will.
If we focus on the smaller picture and look at the individuals, it can be very discouraging to see his blood line tainted like that and they seem very insignificant and useless by themselves. And the pieces just don't sense why they are there.
However, when you look at the bigger picture, you can see how pieces fit together to create something so amazing and beautiful. It gives significance and beauty to something that when standing alone would be looked as nothing, ugly, or scandalous.
In a way, this gives people hope because they may not know why they are here but what they do, no matter how insignificant it seems to them, God can use them later on for something great that will benefit and further his kingdom.
michelle, i don't care that your comment was late. it was very insightful and i'm just so glad you posted one!
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