Meet the family

Meet the family.

1 This is the genealogy[a] of Jesus the Messiah[b] the son of David, the son of Abraham:

2 Abraham was the father of Isaac,

Isaac the father of Jacob,

Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,

3 Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar...

Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth,

Obed the father of Jesse,

6 and Jesse the father of King David.

David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,

7 Solomon the father of Rehoboam,

Rehoboam the father of Abijah,

Abijah the father of Asa...

10 Hezekiah the father of Manasseh,

Manasseh the father of Amon,

Amon the father of Josiah,

11 and Josiah the father of Jeconiah[c] and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.

... Zadok the father of Akim,

Akim the father of Elihud,

15 Elihud the father of Eleazar,

Eleazar the father of Matthan,

Matthan the father of Jacob,

16 and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.

17 Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah.-Matthew1:1-17

Well, not really an impressive family tree but definitely just like any of us. Jesus' family tree is composed of men and women who were both saints and sinners, who were both great and weak, who were both a success and a failure, who failed and tried again. Abraham, the father of all nations, once denied Sarah as his wife. If it wasn't for Sarah's suggestion, he wouldn't have banished Hagar and Ishmael. Jacob had 2 wives and 2 concubines. Tamar fought for her rights indeed but it's a bit "way out there." David, almost perfect, ordered Uriah's death and took the latter's wife. Solomon, full of wisdom, fell unto his many wive's pagan worship. And so on...

How do we like history to remember us? Saint or Sinner?

Image courtesy: Aert de Gelder (Judah and Tamar)