Until recently, the genealogy of Jesus was a blur of names across generations to me. It had no real meaning. I however have been broadening my mindset by taking some courses and it got me thinking.
Jacob, who stole his brothers blessing. He was not the first born despite our obsession with having the first born male heir lead the family. Sometimes he just isn’t the best fit.
Did you know that Tamar, the daughter in law and later wife of Judah is one of the ancestors? Yes, the Tamar that pretended to be a prostitute and trapped Judah since he would not allow her to get married to his last son. As in the Lion of Judah- That Judah who had a whole Tribe of Israel named after him.
Did you know that Ruth also features? The one who slept by Boaz feet. I often wonder how Boaz other wives or wife reacted to this addition to the household. Did i mention that Boaz mother Rahab was a prostitute?
Let’s not forget David who killed Uriah and took his wife Bathsheba. Who was Solomon’s mum. Make a note here that Solomon was also not the first born. Can you comprehend the magnitude of David’s sin in our eyes? David was still anointed nonetheless and we have Psalms, Songs of Solomon and others writing to prove this.
Then there is Solomon. For the life of me, i cannot fathom why he needed 1000 women. Surely there is at least greed and lust in that equation. That did not prevent him from being the wisest man who ever lived.
Another notable mention is the wicked King Rehoboam who was responsible for the split of the Kingdom of Israel into two.
Then we come down many many generations to Joseph. Now here is where the real quagmire lies. We know the part he played in the conception of Jesus so i wonder why this genealogy is so elaborately detailed.
The thing that stands out for me is how flawed these people were despite the great anointing that they had received. In todays time, we are very quick to crucify people especially those in leadership or those leading churches. We have fallen into the trap of following people instead of following the word. So when these people sin as do we all, we lose our faith. Yet, the bible is filled with examples of numerous flawed human beings like us who were great not because of their own actions, but because he chose them and elevated them.
Righteousness is a bit of a moving target. We strive for it daily but none of us can ever say that we have achieved that goal for we are prone to sin. Why then do we set such unrealistic expectations for each other? Why are we so intolerant of each others sin?
God chose those people to be remembered for all time by their association to our saviour, and he chose the specific actions that they would be remembered by. Why do we condemn each other over 1 flaw when it may not take away the fact that despite their sin, they are still anointed? Why do we set for ourselves unattainable standards of perfection yet it is clear that such is not expected of us?
The word repentance comes to mind. A story for another day.
Megs' 