How did each of the five women in the genealogy of Christ take a risk that resulted in preserving the line to the Messiah?
Another deeper look at the women of the Bible than most books provide is a book by Carolyn Custis Jones entitled “Lost Women of the Bible.” The link that she sees between the five women is that each one took a risk that resulted in the line to Christ being unbroken. How can you see it in:
Tamar (Genesis 38)
Rahab (Joshua 2)
Ruth (Ruth 3)
Bathsheba (1 Kings 1:15-21)*
Mary (Luke 1:38) (Painting to the left is of the annunciation)
*In the genealogy Bathsheba is simply called Uriah’s wife. Tim Keller says that is not a slam at Bathsheba, but at David, since he betrayed his good friend Uriah. He feels the Lord is saying, “Even though there is a King in the genealogy of Christ, it is a King that needed redemption — in other words, Christ’s genealogy continually shows how He brought the outcast in.
But my question for each of the five women above is “How did they each take a risk that preserved the line to Christ?”
How does Ruth complete the puzzle of the women in the genealogy of Christ?
Ruth is the third woman in the genealogy of Christ (we’ll come back to her mother-in-law, Rahab, later.) Here we have a scene in Bethlehem one starry night. Ruth was true in relationship: true to Naomi, who has asked her to take an enormous risk and go to Boaz and ask him to be their “kinsman-redeemer” who would marry her, care for her, and give her a son. She makes a symbolic request, which Boaz understood, when she asks him to “cover her.”
We already know that the genealogy of Christ is full of “outcasts” — He went out to bring them in. And often, when there is preaching on the women in the genealogy of Christ, we are only told this negative side — that they were immoral, or outcasts — yet Christ brought them in.
But there is a tremendously positive side linking Tamar, Rahab, and Ruth — and it can be seen most clearly in Ruth.
Here are some clues to help you answer the above question.
Clue 1: Boaz, like the sons of Judah, was in the position of being a near kinsman of Ruth’s late husband — so he had the power to carry on her (as well as Naomi’s) late husbands name by marrying her and giving her a son. But he had not stepped up to his responsibility yet.
Clue 2: Tamar and Rahab and Ruth all took risks that proved them true in relationships.
Clue 3: Look at the prayer of the elders at the gate in Ruth 4:11-12.
“How does Ruth complete the puzzle of the women in the genealogy of Christ?”
Why did Judah say Tamar was “more righteous” than he was?
Tamar is the first woman listed in Matthew’s genealogy of Christ — be sure you look at the right Tamar. (There are three Tamar’s mentioned in Scripture — but this one’s story is in Genesis 38.) You may find this story surprising — especially that Tamar, who poses as a prostitute and sleeps with her father-in-law, is commended, both by him — and later, indirectly, by the women of Bethlehem (Ruth 4:12), and finally, by being the first woman in the genealogy of Christ.
Is God condoning prostitution? Incest?
No. But as you read the story in Genesis 38, let me give you a little background and also a clue in order to help you find the answer to the above question.
Family was extremely important in biblical days — and when a woman’s husband died and left her with no children, God had a way for that husband’s name to not die out. A brother or a near kinsman was to marry her and raise up the first son in the late husband’s name. Tamar knew that. She loved her late husband. She knew that her father-in-law had an obligation to help her carry on her late husband’s name. Read the story in Genesis 38 with that in mind.
Then, here’s the clue: It’s actually another question — one posed by Jerram Barrs in his book, “Through His Eyes: God’s Perspective on Women in the Bible.” Dr. Barrs is one of the godliest men I know, a leading professor at Covenant Seminary. His book is one of the best I’ve read on women in the Bible. After his chapter on Tamar, he asks: “What is your response that righteousness is not about observing a set of rules, of holding to legality, or even simply about keeping a written code of morality, but that righteousness is, at its heart, a matter of proving oneself true in relationships?”
I also recommend Tim Keller’s excellent sermon, titled, simply, “Tamar.” You can find it at the sermon store at redeemer.com — It’s 2.50 to download an MP3.
Read Genesis 38 carefully — with this background and Jerram Barr’s thought-provoking question in mind. I am looking forward to hearing your thoughts on “Why did Judah say Tamar was “more righteous” than he was?”