Rachel Held Evans is launching a series on her blog about “The Women of the Gospels” beginning with my post on “The Fab Four.” These four Old Testament women mentioned in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus—Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba—are some of my all-time favorite ezers.

If you’ve read The Book of Ruth: Loving God Enough to Break the Rules, you know that Ruth is my hero. Her story (recovered  in recent years from the passive, overly-submissive, romantic Cinderella version usually taught) was a total game-changer for me. And Tamar? I doubt I’ll ever get over the shock of learning how we’ve misunderstood her story and how much(!) we’ve lost as a consequence.  We need Tamar’s story!

So I jump at any opportunity I have to give the straight scoop about these strong ezers versus the negative portrayals we often hear.  Thank you Rachel for this privilege!

My post is just the first in this series. I’m personally looking forward to the others. Let me also say that if you aren’t a regular reader of Rachel’s blog you are missing out! Check out her website and prepare to think and engage!