The Promise of Perez

“May your house become like the house of Perez, the son Tamar bore to Judah.” —Ruth 4:12

When Ruth and Boaz were married, they received a special blessing: “May your house become like the house of Perez.” But who on earth was Perez?

Long before the time of Ruth and Boaz lived Judah, who had three sons. The older two were wicked and were put to death at the hand of the Lord. Then at some point, Judah was intimate with a woman masquerading as a prostitute, who became pregnant and gave birth to twin boys.

The woman, Tamar, was the widow of Judah’s older son. And the elder of the twin boys who were born to Judah and Tamar was Perez.

The whole story was a mess. But God’s heart beats in the rhythm of redemption. Through this illegitimate birth, the line of Perez would extend to Boaz, to David, and ultimately to Joseph (Matt. 1).

That’s the promise of Perez. We have a redeeming God who’s continually making all things new and who’s always working— even through our messy lives—to write His story and display His glory.

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Adorned: Living Out the Beauty of the Gospel Together ©2017 Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth

Scripture taken from The CSB