Verse 6, of Matthew chapter 1, ends with the identification of another woman in the genealogy of Jesus. It reads, “And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah.” It doesn’t give her name. But we all know who she is. She’s the woman who committed adultery with David and whose husband David murdered to cover it up. Whereas it’s clear that Ruth, the Moabite, was a woman of great character, we don’t necessarily see that with Bathsheba. Every one of the women in the genealogy of Jesus present us with a difficulty; Tamar the adulteress, Rahab the prostitute, Ruth of Moab, (From incest), Bathsheba the adulteress. Even Mary, the Mother of Jesus, was accused of conception out of wedlock when the religious leaders referred to Jesus as illegitimate.
That God included such women in the genealogy of His son is remarkable to say the least. Having the right parents, especially the right mother, was extremely important in Israel. In those days the only absolute verifiable fact of parenthood was the mother, not the father. This is important and is seen in the fact that all the mothers of the Southern Kingdom of Judah are listed except the mothers of Jehoram and Ahaz.
There is another woman who figures into the genealogy of Jesus that’s not mentioned by name either. That woman is “Naamah.” She’s the mother of Rehoboam, Solomon’s son. He’s listed in the genealogy. Naamah was an “Ammonite” and not a legitimate Israelite. But Solomon was famous for marrying foreign women. Interestingly it was his marriage to all these foreign women that led to God’s judgment in dividing the Kingdom at his death. The half Israelite, half Ammonite son of Solomon is the only Son specifically attributed to Solomon. This half-breed king, Rehoboam, lost all but one tribe (Judah) because he was the product of the wrong mother.
This miraculous inclusion of “wrong mothers” in the genealogy that ended with the birth of the Messiah is followed up by many, many miracles of which I am one. You are too. It was from unacceptable sources God brings forth His Son into the world. From that time until now it’s also through unacceptable sources, you and me that he desires to make known His Son in our present world. We’ve been grafted into the lineage through our personal faith in the one and only King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
Chuck
“So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations. “ (Matthew 1:17)