What's She Doing Here? The Messy Women in Jesus' Genealogy

Seductress. Prostitute. Outcast. Adulterer. Pregnant unwed Teen. Who would highlight that kind of ancestry? Jesus would. The only person who ever got to choose His family, doesn’t hide the messes. He highlights them for all to see. He unashamedly says they’re His. The Gospel of Matthew begins with Jesus’s family tree, an unusual one not only because it includes women, but messy women: Tamar, who tricked her father-in-law to impregnate her; Rahab, the Jericho prostitute who betrayed her countrymen; Ruth, the widowed Moabitess turn beggar; and Bathsheba, listed only by her murdered husband’s name. Then there was Mary. Although we know her innocence and submission to God, those around her questioned her purity and the legitimacy of the Child she bore. Join Susan Tyner in examining how God wove the messy stories of these five women together into His Big Story of salvation. And learn how He continues to redeem His children—one messy story at a time. INCLUDES free Bible Timeline for use with study. Who is the author? Susan Tyner serves as Women’s Ministry Coordinator at Trinity Presbyterian Church. She is a regular contributor for the EnCourage blog and podcast, was one of the contributing authors of the Hinged Bible study and enjoys speaking at conferences and retreats. Susan and her husband, Lee, have five children, and an almost empty nest.