Women in jesus genealogy the good book blog biola university. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she. We know that the passages in joshua, hebrews and james are speaking of the same woman, so it is very reasonable to assume that the rahab in matthew is the same woman. Study the bible online using commentary on genesis 38 and more. Tamar, rahab, ruth, bathsheeba who were all associated with some sort of immorality. The lists are identical between abraham and david, but differ radically from that point. Loving your enemy, turning your other cheek to be slapped again, walking the extra mile and not taking action against those who have hurt you all are impossible acts to do by the commonb man in this society whose mentality is focused on getting even with your fellow man. Tamar is a youngadult novel by mal peet, published by walker books in 2005. Tamar incest, rahab harlotry, ruth a descendant of moab who committed incest and bathsheba adultery.
And judah said to onan, go in to your brothers wife and marry her, and raise up an heir to your brother. After all, the story of joseph genesis 3750, has a lot more preaching material and great spiritual lessons. This is unusual because in this period women were not generally included in genealogies. Tamar was the name of two unique women whose unusual stories can be found in the old testament. Ive put together some observations about the book of matthew to help you see what makes this account unique. After clicking register, you will receive an email with a link to verify your account and to complete your registration. She is the daughterinlaw of judah, who acquires her for his firstborn son, er. The first tamar we read about in scripture was the widow of er and onan, sons of judah, jacobs fourthborn son. He was real, so real he chose imperfect people, on purpose, to bring his only begotten into the world. Genesis 38 commentary matthew henry commentary on the.
These women are likely included in an otherwise allmale genealogy because there is something outstanding in the way each one came to be an ancestress of jesus. The women do not appear in the genealogy in luke 3. Matthew in the picture study bible the book of matthew with. In that culture, it was customary for a woman to marry the brother of her deceased husband in order to be provided for and remain a part of the family. 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 tamarmatthew 1. Dec 30, 2016 tamar married the eldest son, er, but the man was a wicked man in the lords sight, so the lord took his life genesis 38. Matthew mentions four women in his genealogy which is not typical for jewish genealogical records. Tamar was the beautiful daughter of the great king david and maacah, a princess from a neighboring kingdom her halfbrother amnon became obsessed with her he lured her to his room and raped her, then refused to marry her. Not surprisingly, jesus genealogy is an illustrious one, including jacob, judah, david, solomon and hezekiah. Contextual overview 1 the book of the generation of jesus christ, the son of david, the son of abraham. I would like to focus on the stories of four women who are mentioned in the genealogy of jesus christ.
The opening verses of the gospel of matthew trace the ancestry of jesus back to the patriarch abraham. As do all four gospel accounts, matthew focuses on christs threeyear ministry and his death and resurrection. A recurring theme is the conflict between jesus and the religious leaders, culminating in his pronouncement of seven woes upon them ch. He can take all your mess and create a miracle that will change history, as he did in the lives of tamar, rahab, ruth, bathsheba, and mary. There is something significant in the fates of those women, something that gets to the very core of the gospel. Tamar was the daughterinlaw of judah jesus was to come from the tribe of judah. The other four are rahab and ruth, both nonisraelite women. The most incredible mention of tamar in the bible is in matthew chapter. Is rahab the harlot in joshua the rahab in matthew 1. Matthew 1, new king james version nkjv the bible app. Jewish priests added to the tamar bible, taking care not to delete anything from that sacred scripture. This phrase is viewed by some as matthews title for the entire gospel.
Genesis 38 is the story of judah sleeping with his daughterinlaw tamar. Read genesis 38 commentary using matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete. Judah said, she is more righteous than i am genesis 38. The first of five women listed in matthews genealogy of the messiah.
Edited by jacob aleksander brooks and isaac gerald herrin. Near the beginning of matthews genealogy we see tamar a most unlikely ancestor of jesus. According to the gospel of matthew, judah and tamar are ancestors of jesus through their son perez. His mother, mary, was engaged to be married to joseph. But er, judah s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the lord, and the lord took his life. Genesis 38 new international version niv judah and tamar. To sum it up, judah had three sons and before it was over, none of them produced any offspring for the tribe to continue. The story of judah and tamar is certainly not the most pleasant story in the bible. The scandal of tamar in jesus family tree true and faithful. Upon recognizing these items as his security, judah released tamar from her sentence. Again, satan had tried to destroy the line of christ, but god prevailed. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the lord descended from. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the holy spirit.
The new testament provides two accounts of the genealogy of jesus, one in the gospel of matthew and another in the gospel of luke. Within a 1995 frame story, where a 15yearold girl inherits papers and other mementos from her deceased grandfather, it is set in the occupied netherlands near the end of the second world war. Matthew 1, new living translation nlt the bible app. From sholom aleichem to avram davidson, isaac bashevis singer to tony kushner, the jewish. In fact, most commentaries on the book of genesis dont spend much time on this chapter. The identification of tamar was covered in the authors book tamar, first author of the bible, now revised and updated in a 2nd edition. King david and later jesus christ, the messiah, were born matthew 1. Beagle, michael chabon, neil gaiman, lavie tidhar, tamar yellin, jane yolen, matthew kressel, rachel swirsky, sean wallace on. Tamar, having thus secured her place in the family as well as judahs posterity, gave birth to twins, perez and zerah.
So matthew tells you the back story in the genealogy of christ. In the book of matthew, the author gives us the list of jesus ancestors in the first chapter. These were all gentile women, and are named for this reason, and for their remarkable history. Her first book, friends with everyone, is available on. In the book of revelation, jesus is called the lion of the tribe of judah. Notice verse 3, and judah the father of perez and zerah by tamar, and perez the father of hezron, and hezron the father of ram. In the list of ancestors, matthew includes four women.
The list begins prestigiously enough with abraham, isaac and jacob. Women in jesus genealogy the good book blog bible study tools. There were stains upon the character of tamar ge 38. Dec 22, 2012 he was real, so real he chose imperfect people, on purpose, to bring his only begotten into the world. Tamar, the wife of judah, is the first of four women that are added to matthews genealogy. By way of a levirate union, judah asked his second son, onan, to provide offspring for tamar so that the family line might continue. The first place to start when christians are asked what we believe, would be at the beginning, and that is the book of matthew, the first b. Judah and tamar devotional reflections from the bible. Matthew was primarily written for a jewish audience.
Tamar disguised herself as a prostitute and had sex with her fatherinlaw judah. In genesis chapter 38, tamar is first described as marrying judahs eldest son, er. Judah the father of perez and zerah, whose mother was tamar. Somewhat unusually, however, the list includes four women from the hebrew bible. We know this is an important story because tamar is the first woman listed in jesus genealogy in matthew 1. Matthew acknowledges tamars rights by including her in the messiahs genealogy. The lion of the tribe of judah needed this determined woman to form his. Sep 24, 2009 the identification of tamar was covered in the authors book tamar, first author of the bible, now revised and updated in a 2nd edition. Tamar married the eldest son, er, but the man was a wicked man in the lords sight, so the lord took his life genesis 38. Tamar in the bible daughter in law of judah preach it. She is the daughter in law of judah, who acquires her for his firstborn son, er. One of the unique features of jesus genealogy in the book of matthew is the inclusion of four women, not counting mary. Salmon the father of boaz, whose mother was rahab, boaz the father of obed, whose mother was ruth. Tamar, rahab, ruth, and bathsheba matthew calls her the wife of uriah.
Genesis 38 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Jun, 2017 if you havent studied matthew, mark, luke, and john closely, you may have trouble recalling what sets each of these books apart. This is a record of the ancestors of jesus the messiah, a descendant of david and of abraham. Dec 02, 2001 near the beginning of matthews genealogy we see tamar a most unlikely ancestor of jesus. Matthew starts with abraham, while luke begins with adam.
Tamar, not closeted away or whitewashed over, but brazenly called out by name in jesus family tree. Perez carried the messiahs bloodline and his mother, tamar, was one of only five women mentioned in the genealogy of jesus christ. Tamar, whose story is embedded in the ancestor narratives of genesis, is the ancestress of much of the tribe of judah and, in particular, of the house of david. Through pharez judah and tamar became ancestors of jesus matthew 1. We saw that jesus not only came to a world fractured and hurting, but. The first tamar we read about in scripture was the widow of er and onan.
The greek phrase translated book of the generation is. The completed registration allows us to send order and donation receipts to the email address you provided. The story of judah and tamar growing christians ministries. Matthew 1 niv bible this is the genealogy of jesus the.
The most incredible mention of tamar in the bible is in matthew chapter one of the new testament, appearing in the genealogical line of jesus christ. Tamar sent the staff, seal, and cord to judah with a message declaring that the owner of these items was the man who had made her pregnant. Yesterday we saw that in a list of patriarchs, fathers and sons, matthew named five women. Judah was the father of perez and zerah whose mother was tamar. The verse is part of the section where the genealogy of joseph, the legal father of jesus, is listed. You can read tamars story in the book of genesis genesis 38. And judah begat perez and zerah out of tamar, and perez begat hezron, and. The second was the sister of absalom and daughter of king david who was raped by her halfbrother amnon.