Genesis 38:2 And Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite, whose name was Shuah; and he took her, and went in unto her.

This is that time of year when we look to scriptures about the birth of Christ. Written in the first book of the New Testament is the lineage of Christ. Christ is born of the house of David, from the tribe of Judah. Here in Genesis 38 is the telling tale of Judah and his marriage to a Canaanite woman who gave birth to three sons.

Genesis 28:1 And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan.

This “charge” not to marry any daughter of Canaan was generational, passed down from father to son. Judah had three sons from this Canaanite woman. The first two sons died without fathering children. The woman chosen for the eldest was passed down from Er to Onan in marriage and yet never gave birth to a child by any of those sons born of the Canaanite woman. Her name was Tamar.

Genesis 28:14 And she put her widow’s garments off from her, and covered her with a vail, and wrapped herself, and sat in an open place, which is by the way to Timnath; for she saw that Shelah was grown, and she was not given unto him to wife.

For this reason Tamar played the harlot with Judah and became pregnant with a son, Pharez, who is in the lineage of Christ Jesus. Tamar and Judah were not wed when all this took place. Such is the lineage of our Lord as to include men and women who were disobedient and sinful.

So often we look to the virgin birth and say praise the Lord for having chosen such a virtuous woman to bare God’s son, but the truth is that His lineage is lined with sinners of all sorts. This is just the first of many cases in which the grace of God saw fit to bless those who were not worthy to be included in His lineage.

But they were blessed, and so are we.