The Fall of Jericho

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Joshua 6:1) Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel; none went out and none came in.

In the last chapter and post, the Israelites had come into their promised land and were camped at Gilgal.  The kings and all their people in the Canaanite lands were terror-stricken because of the Israelites and all the miracles the Lord had wrought for them.  Jericho was nearest the Israelites' camp and where spies had gone to check out the land.  Now the city of Jericho was securely shut so that no one could go in nor go out.  This was surely due to their fear of the Israelites.

(2) And the Lord said to Joshua, "See, I have given into your hand Jericho and its king and the mighty men of valor."

The Lord, who appears to be the Lord Jesus as discovered at the end of the last chapter, spoke to Joshua and told him he could see that Jericho, its king, and its soldiers, had already been delivered into his hand, as was evident by their fear.

(3) "And you shall compass the city, all men of war, and go round about the city once. This you shall do six days."

The Lord told Joshua he and all the Israelite men of war, those of fighting age and fit, were to surround the city of Jericho, and march around the city one time.  They were to do that same thing for six days in a row.

(4) "And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams' horns, and the seventh day you shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets."

The Lord instructed Joshua that seven priests were to go before the ark of the covenant that was carried by other priests.  The seven priests would carry trumpets of rams' horns and blow their trumpets as the army marched around Jericho.  This was to bring attention to and proclaim the Lord represented by the ark was leading His people around Jericho, so there would be no doubt that the Lord Himself performed the coming miracle for His people.  On the seventh day the Israelites were to march around Jericho seven times.  All these sevens, seven priests, seven trumpets, seven days, were surely significant.  In the Bible, seven usually signifies completion and/or perfection.

(5) "And it shall come to pass that when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him."

On the seventh day, after going around Jericho seven times, the priests or one priest, as the horn is singular, would make one long blast, and when they heard that, all the people were to shout with a great shout and the wall of the city would fall down flat.  It probably wasn't the entire wall of the city, so that the inhabitants could not escape, but a section perhaps just large enough for the Israelite army to go up into the city in a procession just as they had been going around the wall of the city.

(6) And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, "Take up the ark of the covenant and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the Lord."

Joshua the son of Nun, or Joshua, the understanding one (Joshua 2:1 notes), called the priests and told them to take up the ark of the covenant of the Lord and let seven of them bear trumpets of rams' horns and go before the ark.

(7) And he said to the people, "Pass on and compass the city, and let him who is armed pass on before the ark of the Lord."

Joshua told the people to go forward and encircle the city.  The armed soldiers were to go before the ark probably to clear and make safe the way, then would go the seven priests with trumpets immediately before the ark, and the people would follow the ark.

(8) And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken to the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams' horns passed on before the Lord and blew with the trumpets, and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed them. (9) And the armed men went before the priests who blew with the trumpets, and the rear guard came after the ark while the trumpets went on blowing.

After Joshua spoke to the people, the armed men went out before the ark, followed by the seven priests with their trumpets sounding before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and the rear guard, or assembly, the people, followed the ark, while the trumpets continually blew.

(10) And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, "You shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall a word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you, 'Shout!' Then you shall shout."

Joshua had commanded the people before they started forth that they were not to shout, nor utter any word or make any sound until Joshua gave the order to shout, and only then were they to shout.

(11) So the ark of the Lord compassed the city, going around it once, and they came into the camp and lodged in the camp.

The ark of the Lord carried by the priests who followed the seven priests who followed the army, and with the people following it, went around the walls of the city of Jericho one time, and then returned to their camp where they lodged for the night.

(12) And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord.

The next morning Joshua rose up early, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord, prepared to go around the city for a second time.

(13) And seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the Lord went on continually and blew with the trumpets, and the armed men went before them, but the rear guard came after the ark of the Lord, while the trumpets continually blew.

Then gathered the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets to go before the ark, and the armed men went before them, and the assembly of people making up the rear guard went after the ark, while the trumpets continually blew.

(14) And the second day they compassed the city once and returned to the camp; so they did six days.

That second day the people went around the city walls one time and then returned to their camp.  They did that for six days.

(15) And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early about the dawning of the day and compassed the city after the same manner seven times; only on that day they compassed the city seven times.

Then on the seventh day, the people rose early and went around the city seven times.  That was the only day they had gone around seven times.

(16) And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, "Shout! For the Lord has given you the city!"

Then after the seventh time around, the priests blew one long blast with their trumpets, and Joshua told the people to shout because the Lord had given them the city of Jericho.

(17) "And the city shall be accursed, it and all that are in it, to the Lord; only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all with her in the house because she hid the messengers that we sent."

It's interesting, the original word "cherem" that was translated as "accursed" can mean "cursed or doomed" or "devoted or dedicated to," seemingly opposite meanings.  However, it absolutely describes Jericho at that point.  The city was doomed and completely dedicated to the Lord to do with it as He wished.  Not only the city, but all who were in it, except Rahab and her family within her house, because of the kindness she had shown the spies.

(18) "And you, in any way, keep from the accursed thing, lest you become accursed when you take of the accursed thing and make the camp of Israel a curse and trouble it."

Joshua went on to tell the people that they were to avoid in every way possible the cursed thing of Jericho.  Mainly, that was taking of anything in Jericho that was cursed and bringing it into the Israelite camp to curse and trouble it.

(19) "But all the silver and gold and vessels of brass and iron, consecrated to the Lord, they shall come into the treasury of the Lord."

All the silver and gold, brass and iron, again both cursed and dedicated, were cursed for anyone in Jericho and for any of the Israelites, but they were dedicated only to the Lord to be brought into the treasury of the Lord.

(20) So the people shouted when the long blast of the trumpets blew, and it came to pass when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city.

The people did as Joshua told them and they shouted with a great shout when the long blast of the trumpets blew, and the city wall of Jericho fell down flat so that the people went up into the city in a procession, and they were able to take the city.  There was no doubt that God had toppled that wall.  Nothing that the people had done the past seven days should have made that wall fall except that God willed it.  However, He did command obedience from the Israelites to do as He instructed with regard to going around the wall seven days.  He taught them to trust in Him even when it seemed impossible or didn't make sense.  Just trust God.  He taught patience.  God said the wall would fall when they did as He commanded.  If some soldiers had decided that marching around a wall was fruitless and decided they had a chance to go over the wall and catch the enemy unaware, they would have demonstrated lack of faith in God and displayed faith only in themselves, and their actions would have surely failed.  By trusting in their Lord and obeying His word and believing it even though it took time, they were able to take the city.

(21) And they utterly destroyed all in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword.

As God had commanded, the Israelites completely destroyed the city, and every living thing in it, regardless of age or gender, humans and animals alike.  The inhabitants of Canaan were an abominably wicked people and deserved the righteous judgment of God.  The Judge of all the earth can do no wrong, so as this was ordered by Him, you can be sure it was righteous.  If any should worry that innocent children were killed, as God knows all, what was, what will be, and what would have been, you can be sure He is just.  If any children would have grown up innocent, then God took them home to be with Him to escape their life among the heathens.

(22) But Joshua had said to the two men who had spied out the country, "Go into the harlot's house and bring out from there the woman and all that she has, as you swore to her."

However, Rahab and her family were spared because Joshua had told the two spies she had hidden to bring them out of the city, as they had sworn to her they would do.

(23) And the young men who were spies went in and brought out Rahab, and her father, and her mother, and her brethren, and all that she had, and they brought out all her kindred and left them outside the camp of Israel.

The men who had been the spies went in the city and brought out Rahab and her entire family and kinsmen to the outside of their camp.  The entire extended family was saved because of the actions of one woman in their family.  Passages like this have always comforted me.  There are many examples in the Bible, even in the New Testament, that say "you and your household will be saved" (Acts 16:31).  However, we know that to be saved an individual must accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, but if God said all in the family will be saved, then each individual in that family will come to accept Jesus, I have no doubt.  Jesus said in Matthew 10:34-36 that He had come to set family members against each other.  That is because He would bring truth to one that would be in complete opposition to the beliefs of his family, and we all know how passionate those discussions can become.  However, once again, I believe that if God said your entire family would be saved, then those contentious family members will eventually come around.  But did God tell each of us that our entire household would be saved?  Maybe in some cases He did, but even if in doubt, we should continually pray for our family.  God's will is that all be saved (1 Timothy 2:4), so He will be continually drawing people to Himself.  I can't help but wonder sometimes who it was praying for me that I would eventually come to Jesus.

I had always heard that Rahab even became an ancestor of the Messiah Jesus Christ!  What an honor that one act of faith brought to her.  However, in studying that, I now find that may not be true.  In the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:5, the name is spelled differently.  That in itself doesn't disqualify it from being the same person as Rahab, as Boaz is also spelled differently in the same verse.  Often in the Bible we find different spellings of the same name and person.  However, this very smart article demonstrates that it cannot be automatically assumed that Rachab in Jesus's genealogy was the same as Rahab the harlot.

(24) And they burnt the city with fire and all that was in it; only the silver and the gold and the vessels of brass and iron they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord.

The Israelites burned the entire city of Jericho and everything that was in it, but they brought all the silver, gold, and brass and iron vessels out of the city and put them into the treasury of the house of the Lord.

(25) And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father's household and all that she had, and she dwells in Israel to this day because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

Joshua saved Rahab and all her family and all that she had from the destruction of the city.  She still lived in Israel at the time Joshua wrote this account.  This was due to her one faithful act of hiding God's messengers.  This is another passage that gives me great hope and encouragement.  We don't always have to do huge important things for the kingdom of God, but if we are faithful to do His will, whatever it may be, we shall be blessed.

(26) And Joshua charged at that time, saying, "Cursed the man before the Lord who rises up and builds this city Jericho; he shall lay its foundation in his firstborn, and in his youngest he shall set up its gates."

Joshua then pronounced a curse on anyone who rose up to rebuild Jericho.  He would begin building the foundation at the expense of the life of his firstborn and would lose his youngest as he finished the gates, suggesting that all his children would die along the way if he persisted in rebuilding Jericho.  Indeed, that appears to have happened as recorded in 1 Kings 16:34:  

In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation with Abiram his firstborn, and with his youngest son Segub he set up its gates, according to the word of the LORD, which He had spoken through Joshua the son of Nun.

(27) So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame was throughout the country.

The Lord was with Joshua as He had been with Moses because of his faith and obedience, and his fame spread throughout the country because of his wisdom and courage, and for the knowledge that the all-powerful God of the universe was with him, and that struck terror in the inhabitants of the land.

Rahab Hides the Israelite Spies

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Joshua 2:1) And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, "Go view the land, even Jericho." And they went and came into a harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there.

In the first chapter of Joshua in the last post, God had commissioned Joshua to take over in the place of Moses to lead the people into their promised land.  The first thing that comes to mind in this, the beginning of chapter 2, is the fact that Joshua is always called the son of Nun, as if Nun was a very important person.  However, I can find nothing that Nun did other than to father Joshua.  He is mentioned 29 times in the Bible, but always "Joshua, the son of Nun."  When would Joshua become important enough in his own right that "son of Nun" could be dropped?  I found a fascinating possible answer on this page:  Why is Joshua referred to in the Torah as “bin” Nun?  It seems that most of the time when someone was referred to as the son of someone, it was written as "ben."  The author of this page wrote that the Torah actually had the word as "bin" with Joshua and suggested that the words were not meant to be "bin Nun," but "binnun," a form of the word "binah" which meant something to the effect of "the understanding one."  Indeed, Joshua seems to have been an excellent student who would not depart from the tabernacle, even after Moses left (Exodus 33:11).  Therefore, this would have been a sort of new name given to Joshua, as the Lord often renamed His servants, Jacob to Israel, Simon to Peter, etc.  And as Judas Iscariot was almost always referred to as the one who betrayed Jesus, and James and John were the sons of thunder, this was Joshua, the understanding one.

Now back to commentary on Joshua 2:1, Joshua sent out two spies from their camp in Shittim in the plains of Moab, telling them to secretly check out the land, especially the land around Jericho.  The two spies went into the land and found lodging at Rahab the harlot's house.

(2) And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, "Behold, there came men here tonight of the children of Israel to search out the country."

It was told to the king of Jericho that men from the Israelites had come into their land that night to search out their country.

(3) And the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, "Bring forth the men that have come to you, who have entered into your house, for they have come to search out all the country."

It was evidently specifically told to the king that the Israelite men were lodging at Rahab's house, as he sent word to her to bring the men to him because he knew they had come to search out their country.

(4) And the woman took the two men and hid them, and said, "There came men to me, but I knew not where they were from."

However, Rahab hid the two Israelite spies and reported back to the king that men had come to her, but she didn't know where they had come from.  I find it interesting that most of the old commentators I study, John Wesley, Albert Barnes, Matthew Henry, Adam Clarke, and John Gill, made a big deal of Rahab lying, writing that lying was never justified.  I hope that it's not me trying to justify a sin, but I honestly don't read, "Never tell a lie" in the Ten Commandments.  The ninth commandment says, "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor."  You don't tell a lie about someone that will hurt them.  You don't falsely accuse them of something.  Rahab's lie helped the men.  In Hebrews 11:31, Rahab is honored for her act of faith, and there is no caveat that her unjust lie was forgiven her.  I admit that there are other scriptures that specifically say, "Do not lie" (Colossians 3:9, Leviticus 19:11, Proverbs 6:16-17, and others).  However, most of these refer to cheating and defrauding people.  I concede that telling insignificant lies that don't appear to hurt anyone might lead one down a slippery slope of telling lies more easily, so they should always be avoided.  However, as Peter and the apostles said in Acts 5:29, "We ought to obey God rather than men."  Certainly, when we are called to do or say something against God, we are to obey God even if that requires lying.  My point is not to condone lying, but I don't see that lying to the enemies of God to protect His men should be called out as an evil that had to be forgiven.  As a heathen and a harlot, Rahab surely must have been led by the Spirit of God to protect the men.  So was her lying to save them really an evil sin?

(5) "And it came to pass at the shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out; where the men went, I do not know; pursue after them quickly, for you shall overtake them."

Rahab went on to tell the men looking for the Israelite spies, that when it was dark, the spies left her house, and she did not know where they had gone.  She encouraged them to pursue them quickly, as they might be able to overtake them, but of course, she was still lying and knew that was not the case.

(6) But she had brought them up to the roof of the house and hid them with the stalks of flax which she had laid in order on the roof.

Rahab had actually brought the spies up to the roof of her house and had hidden them under stalks of flax that she had laid on her roof, probably to dry them.

(7) And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan to the fords, and as soon as they who pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate.

The men went out to the fords of the Jordan, assuming the spies had gone that way back to their camp.  Verse 5 spoke of the shutting of the gate, but apparently Rahab had meant that it was the time for the shutting of the city gate, but it actually wasn't shut until the men pursuing the spies had gone out of it.

(8) And before they lay down, she came up to them on the roof, (9) And she said to the men, "I know that the Lord has given you the land and that your terror has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you."

Before the spies had lain down under the flax, probably meaning to go to sleep, as they were already hiding under the flax, Rahab had gone up to the roof to talk to them.  She said that she knew the Lord had given them their land, which would appear to be a divine revelation to her.  She knew God's people were a formidable people who struck terror in the hearts of the inhabitants of their land.

(10) "For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites on the other side of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed."

Rahab told the spies that she and her people had heard how the Lord had dried up the Red Sea to allow His people to escape from the Egyptians, as well as how they had completely destroyed the Amorites and their kings.

(11) "And as soon as we had heard, our hearts melted; neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you, for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath."

Rahab said that when she and her people had heard what God was doing for the Israelites, their countrymen melted in fear and had no courage.  Whether others did or not, Rahab herself realized that the Israelites' God must be the one true God of heaven and earth.  I still believe there was some divine revelation to Rahab to have her come to this conclusion about their God.

(12) "Now therefore, I pray you, swear to me by the Lord, since I have shown you kindness, that you will also show kindness to my father's house and give me a true token, (13) And you will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death."

Rahab asked the spies to swear to her that since she had done a great kindness to them in hiding them from their enemies, that they would in return show kindness to her and her father's house.  She asked for some sort of token that would assure her that her entire family would be spared from death.

(14) And the men answered her, "Our life for yours if you do not utter this business of ours. And it shall be, when the Lord has given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with you."

The spies pledged their lives for hers as long as she (and her family) did not discuss this arrangement with her to anyone else.  Rahab had done what she did because she had faith in the one true God of the spies.  They could not have people trying to mimic Rahab's actions just to save themselves, so she must keep their agreement to herself.  They assured her that when the Lord had given them their land, they would indeed deal kindly and truly with Rahab and her family.

(15) Then she let them down by a cord through the window, for her house was on the town wall, and she dwelt upon the wall.

Rahab's house was on the town wall.  Perhaps the back wall of her house was part of the town wall which made it possible for escape even though the town gates were shut.  Rahab let the spies down by a cord through a window on the town wall.

(16) And she said to them, "Get to the mountain, lest the pursuers meet you, and hide yourselves there three days until the pursuers have returned, and afterward you may go your way."

Rahab told the spies to go to a mountain that was obviously near the city and hide themselves there so that their pursuers would not meet them on their way back from the fords.  She advised them that they stay in the mountain for three days to be sure the pursuers had returned, and then they could go on their way.

(17) And the men said to her, "We are blameless of this your oath which you have made us swear."

I believe what the spies meant to say to Rahab was that they would indeed faithfully adhere to the oath they made with her, and in that way they would be blameless, providing she upheld her part of the oath and did not tell a soul about their agreement (v. 14) and that she would do the following:

(18) "Behold, when we come into the land, you shall bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which you let us down by, and you shall bring your father, and your mother, and your brethren, and all your father's household, home to you."

The spies told Rahab that when they came back into her land to conquer it, she was to take a scarlet cord, probably the one by which she had let them down, and hang it in the window, the same one by which she had let them down, and bring all her father's family into her home.

(19) "And it shall be, whoever shall go out of the doors of your house into the street, his blood be on his head and we guiltless, and whoever shall be with you in the house, his blood be on our head if any hand be on him."

The spies went on to tell Rahab that as long as every member of her family stayed inside her house, they would be safe.  However, if any of them went outside her house, it would be their own fault when their blood was spilled, but if anyone within her house was harmed, their blood would be on the heads of the spies for not upholding their oath.

(20) "And if you utter this our business, then we will be quit of your oath which you have made us to swear."

The spies reiterated the fact that Rahab must not utter a word about their agreement, or they would not be bound by their oath.

(21) And she said, "According to your words, so be it." And she sent them away, and they departed. And she bound the scarlet line in the window.

Rahab agreed that she would do as the men said, and she sent them away.  She then went ahead and immediately bound the scarlet cord to her window.

(22) And they went and came to the mountain and abode there three days, until the pursuers were returned. And the pursuers sought them throughout all the way but did not find them.

The spies went to the mountain as Rahab had directed them and stayed there three days until the pursuers returned from searching for the spies throughout all the way from Jericho to the Jordan and back again.  They did not find them, of course, because Rahab had hidden them and then directed that they hide in the mountain.

(23) So the two men returned and descended from the mountain and passed over and came to Joshua the son of Nun and told him all that befell them.

After the three days, the men descended from the mountain, passed back over the Jordan River, and returned to Joshua, where they told him everything that had happened to them.

(24) And they said to Joshua, "Truly the Lord has delivered into our hands all the land, for even all the inhabitants of the country faint because of us."

Unlike the spies Moses sent to search out the land of Canaan back in Numbers 13, who reported that they would be unable to go against the people of Canaan, these two spies were confident that their Lord had delivered the land to them because of Rahab's report that their whole country was terrorized and in fear because of the Israelites.  Whereas the spies of Moses did not have faith enough to trust the word of their Lord that they should go in and possess their land He had given them, these two spies had no need to see or hear anymore, but trusted that God had indeed delivered the land to them.

Genealogy of Jesus Christ, Part 1

I have been challenged to stop my current chronological Bible study and study only what Jesus said.  Although I feel like God gave us the entire Bible for a reason, and those who pick and choose only the parts they like are "...according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables" (2 Timothy 4:3-4).  The argument was that Jesus fulfilled the law, meaning there is no more law, and the letters can't be trusted because they were just written by men who were only writing their interpretation of what it was to follow Christ.  Only Jesus's words mattered, and Jesus never said anything about homosexuality or abortion or transgenderism or much of any of today's cultural issues.  (Never mind the fact that men wrote down what Jesus said.)  However, I accepted the challenge.  I know that regardless of any arguments, I will learn a lot from the words of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

(Matthew 1:1) The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham: 

The first verse of Matthew acts as a sort of title for what was to follow:  The genealogy of Jesus Christ, Son of David, and Son of Abraham.  Jesus came from the line of David and Abraham.  It had been promised to Abraham that the Christ should descend from him, "...in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed" (Genesis 12:3), and, "In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice" (Genesis 22:18).  There is only One who could bless every family of every nation on earth, and that is Jesus Christ.  The prophecy was also made to David and by David, "When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish His kingdom" (2 Samuel 7:12), and, "The LORD has sworn in truth to David; He will not turn from it, 'I will set upon your throne the fruit of your body'" (Psalm 132:11).

(2) Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judah and his brothers.

Abraham's son was Isaac, and from Isaac came Jacob, and from Jacob came Judah.  There were also prophecies about Jesus (Shiloh) being descended from Judah, one being, "The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be" (Genesis 49:10).  The meaning of Shiloh was "tranquility, safety" and both of those describe the Messiah who would make peace between God and men, and would save men from their sins.  Another prophecy is, "Yet Judah prevailed over his brothers, and from him came the chief ruler, although the birthright was Joseph’s" (1 Chronicles 5:2).  Jesus is called the Lion of Judah:  "And one of the elders said to me, 'Weep not; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the book, and to loose its seven seals'" (Revelation 5:5).  Also of note about Judah, as well as other of Jesus's ancestors like Jacob, David, and others, the ancestor was often a younger brother, demonstrating that the preeminence of Christ did not come from the primogeniture of His ancestors, as earthly princes did, but from the will of God.

(3) Judah begat Pharez and Zerah by Tamar, Pharez begat Hezron, and Hezron begat Aram.

Judah had twins Pharez and Zerah by Tamar, his daughter-in-law, and Jesus descended from Pharez through his son Hezron, and Hezron's son Aram, called Ram in the Old Testament.  It is interesting to note that Tamar was actually an adulteress and played a prostitute to seduce her father-in-law, although when you read her entire story, she was deemed more righteous than Judah.  Bathsheba, also in the line of Christ, as David's wife, was an adulteress.  Rahab, also an ancestor of Christ, was a Canaanite harlot.  In Deuteronomy 23, we just learned that descendants of an illegitimate child were forbidden from ever entering "into the congregation of the Lord", yet God sent "His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh" (Romans 8:3). Additionally, Ruth, also in the line of Christ, was a Moabitess, and we were also told in Deuteronomy 23 that a Moabite was forbidden from entering into the congregation of the Lord.  However, there came Jesus Christ, the Messiah, as prophesied in Isaiah 56, through whom God would give to all such imperfect sinful people in His house and within His walls "a place and a name better than that of sons and daughters." 

(4) And Aram begat Amminadab; and Amminadab begat Nahshon; and Nahshon begat Salmon.

Aram's son was Amminadab, and Amminadab's son was Nahshon, who was named prince of the tribe of Judah in the book of Numbers.  Nahshon fathered Salmon.

(5) And Salmon begat Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz begat Obed by Ruth, and Obed begat Jesse.

Salmon and Rahab, the Canaanite harlot who was justified by works when she received the Israelite spies into her house and sent them out a secret way (Joshua 2, James 2:25), brought forth Boaz.  Boaz married Ruth, the Moabitess, and they begat Obed, who was the father of Jesse.  John Wesley, in his Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible, pointed out that "Salmon, Boaz, and Obed, must each of them have been near a hundred years old, at the birth of his son here recorded."  Wesley suggested that it was owing to "the providence of God (that) was peculiarly shown in this."  However, Dr. John Gill, in his Exposition of the Entire Bible, wrote that "Jesse is thought to be, not the immediate son of Obed, but to be of the fourth generation from him; though no others are mentioned between them in Ruth, any more than here.  A Jewish writer observes, that 'the wise men of the Gentiles say, that there were other generations between them; perhaps,' says he, 'they have taken this from the wise men of Israel, and so it is thought.'"  Even if this were true, Jesse may be said to be begotten by Obed, just as others in scripture are said to be sons when in fact they might have been grandsons or great-grandsons.  We can be sure that Jesse was a direct descendant of Obed.

I will stop this post with this, as Blogger only allows twenty labels per post, and all these names of Jesus's direct ancestors are important to note.  The genealogy of Jesus is continued in the next post:

Genealogy of Jesus Christ, Part 2