1 Chronicles 2

Okay, ready for genealogy lesson number two? In this chapter, we revisit the genealogy of the twelve tribes of Israel. In it, we find the story of Er and Onan (the sons of Judah) and Tamar. Tamar was married to Er, but before they could have children, Er died. As Er’s brother, Onan was supposed to marry Tamar and continue the family line. He refused, and he died. Tamar appealed to Judah regarding her situation, but even he was unsympathetic.

Then, Tamar decided to dress up as a prostitute, and when Judah slept with her, she became pregnant. She bore two sons for Judah—Perez and Zerah. God chose Judah as the tribe through which He would eventually arrive on this planet. Incredible, considering they were a rather sordid bunch! But what I realized as I read this genealogy again was that Jesus’ line not only passed through the tribe of Judah, but it passed through Perez. It passed through one of these sons that was conceived in an illegitimate way.

But isn’t this just like God? He takes illegitimate sons and makes them legitimate. He takes outcasts and makes them insiders. When we have taken matters into our own hands and royally screwed things up, He makes beautiful things out of our mistakes. Instead of despising Perez, God gave him an honor only 70 people on the planet were given—to be an ancestor of Christ.

So, the next time you’re fretting over the mistakes you’ve made, remember that God makes beautiful things out of our mistakes. Just when it looks like things are hopelessly messed up, we discover that God has a way of weaving our screw-ups into His grand plan for our lives. You can trust Him—even with your mistakes.