The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
The genealogy of Jesus that runs from verse two through sixteen of Matthew one contains references to five women, four of them by name. That in itself is unusual. Women were not typically included in Jewish genealogies. But not only are the women included, but the particular women included are significant. In verse three Judah was the father of Perez by Tamar. After being married to each of Judah’s sons and having them die without giving her a child, Tamar, in disguise, prostituted herself to her father-in-law Judah. That relationship resulted in the birth of twins, Perez and Zerah. In verse five Salmon is the father of Boaz by Rahab. Rahab was a Canaanite prostitute from the city of Jericho. Also in verse five, Ruth is mentioned. Ruth was a Moabite woman whom Boaz married. In verse six David fathered Solomon by the wife of Uriah. Bathsheba is not mentioned by name, but is simply called the wife of Uriah, bringing attention to the immorality of David. David committed adultery with Bathsheba and then had her husband killed to cover it up. The last woman’s name, and the very last name in the genealogy is Mary. The language changes in this verse to indicate not that Joseph fathered Jesus, but that Jesus was born of Mary. Five women, two served as prostitutes, three were foreigners, two of them became pregnant through immorality, and one was found to be pregnant while still a virgin. Why would Matthew include these names? I think there are at least two reasons. One was to elevate women. Throughout Jesus’s ministry women provided for him, followed him, and honored him. Women were never considered second-class citizens in Jesus’s kingdom. Second, to indicate that all are welcome. Sinners, broken, immoral, unsuitable, non-Jewish, all are welcome in Jesus’s kingdom. The story is not just about the Jewish Messiah, but about the King of all creation who welcomes all who will come to him. That is good news.
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