“法勒斯生希斯伦；… 俄备得生耶西；耶西生大卫。” - 得 4:18-22

大卫的名字在圣经中首次出现，是在路得记。大卫的故事，是神的另一个更加伟大的故事的组成部份。透过大卫和很多其他人的生命，神为祂自己塑造和建立了一个民族，神呼召信众无论男女，与祂建立一个充满恩典、责任、和冒险的关系。

路得的故事包括失望、死亡、和忧伤；然而，神在路得和波阿斯的生命中作工，鼓舞、喜乐、和盼望便开始渐露光芒。路得和波阿斯则成为大卫的祖先。

大卫的一生建立在弥赛亚的家族谱系上，他家族的故事，是他身份的一个重要的组成部份，就如尤金. 毕德生所说的：“这个家谱显明，路得和波阿斯的故事不只是一个二人偶然堕入爱河的小故事；它乃是一个蔓延开去的宏大爱情故事，因为大卫是透过路得和波阿斯的婚姻衍生出来的后裔” （出自他的著作Conversations）。

在某种程度上，家谱让我们看到神在世上的工作。耶西告诉他的儿女关于法勒斯、希斯仑、兰、… 路得与波阿斯、和俄备得的故事，来提醒他们神在世世代代中都是信实的，而那些故事则可以追溯至很久以前一对名叫亚伯拉罕和撒拉的夫妇，那时神曾呼召他们与祂自己建立关系（创世记 12）。就是在大卫未出生以先，这些已经是他承受的产业的一部份了。

祷告

主我们的神啊，我们感谢你，因你是信实的，你又呼召我们与你建立关系，让我们每一个人的生命在你的故事中成为不可缺一部份。阿们。

路得记 4:18-22

18法勒斯的后代记在下面：法勒斯生希斯仑，
19希斯仑生兰，兰生亚米拿达，
20亚米拿达生拿顺，拿顺生撒门，
21撒门生波阿斯，波阿斯生俄备得，
22俄备得生耶西，耶西生大卫。

Family Connections

"Perez was the father of Hezron . . . Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David." - Ruth 4:18-22

The first mention of David in the Bible comes in the book of Ruth. David’s story was part of God’s much bigger story. Through the lives of David and many others, God was shaping and molding a people for himself. God called men and women into a relationship of grace, responsibility, and adventure.

The story of Ruth included disappointment, death, and discouragement. But as God worked in the lives of Ruth and Boaz, encouragement, joy, and hope began to shine through. Ruth and Boaz became ancestors of David.

Family connections anchored David’s life, making his family story an important part of his identity. As Eugene Peterson noted, “The genealogy shows that the story of Ruth and Boaz wasn’t simply a small love story into which they had accidentally fallen; rather it was a sprawling love story of epic proportions. For through the union of Ruth and Boaz came David” (Conversations).

Genealogies show us, in part, how God works in the world. Jesse told his children the stories of Perez, Hezron, Ram . . . Ruth and Boaz, and Obed as reminders of God’s faithfulness throughout the generations. And the thread of those stories went farther back to a couple named Abraham and Sarah, whom God had called into a relationship with himself (Genesis 12). This was part of the inheritance David had even before he was born.

Prayer

Lord and God, thank you for your faithfulness and for calling me into a relationship with you as part of your story of life for us all. Amen.