Yes—Matthew records only four women, and Les reads their presence as a deliberate display of God's grace rather than a list of honor.
In the biblical record, the women are Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and the wife of Uriah. Les calls them the four women most people would not want in their family tree, and he says all four were immoral women. Their inclusion, he says, points not to license but to the grace of God.
Matthew 1:1 — Establishes that the genealogy is the book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham, which is the context for the four women.
Matthew 1:3 — Names Tamar as the first of the only four women in the genealogy.
Matthew 1:5 — Names Rahab and Ruth as two more women in the genealogy.
Matthew 1:6 — Names the fourth woman, the former wife of Uriah, in the genealogy.
Matthew 1 opens by calling Jesus Christ 'the son of David, the son of Abraham' and then traces His royal line. In that list, only four women are named. Tamar appears in verse 3, Rahab and Ruth appear in verse 5, and the wife of Uriah appears in verse 6. The text does not stop to explain why these women are included; it simply records them in the generations leading to Jesus. The genealogy itself gives no commentary on the women's character or why they were chosen.
Les emphasizes that Matthew 1 contains only four women, and he says these are the four women that most people would not want in their family tree. He teaches that all four were immoral women, and their presence points to 'the grace of God. Not the license, but the grace of God.' For Les, the list is not an accident; it is a display of God's grace operating through unlikely people. He uses Rahab as an example of someone whose faith God recognized, placing her in the family line of the Messiah, and Ruth as an example of someone whose marriage to Boaz put her in the genealogy of Christ. Les does not claim to fully explain why God stopped at exactly four women; instead, he uses the four to point to grace and to encourage people to search the Scriptures for themselves.
The biblical list in Matthew 1 names Tamar in verse 3, Rahab and Ruth in verse 5, and 'her that had been the wife of Urias' in verse 6. In the teaching clips, Les specifically highlights Rahab and Ruth. He names Rahab as one of the four women in the genealogy and explains that Ruth's marriage to Boaz put her in the line of Christ.
Les asks his audience to notice that these are exactly the women most people would prefer to leave out. He says 'not a one of us would like to have had any one of those four women in our genealogy, because they were all immoral women, every one of them.' Then he asks what their presence points out: 'Oh, the grace of God. Not the license, but the grace of God.'
Rahab's inclusion is tied to her faith: Les says her little bit of faith was sufficient and God recognized that faith, so she appears in the family line of the Messiah. Ruth's inclusion is tied to God's direction: Les calls attention to the fact that she ended up in the field she needed to be in to meet Boaz, and that marriage placed her in the genealogy of Christ.
Les explains that Matthew stops at Abraham, even though Abraham was not the beginning of the human race, because Jesus' being the King is tied to the promise God made to Abraham. He also notes that Matthew's genealogy is considered Joseph's line, while Luke's is the line people usually think is Mary's.
He does not claim to. His focus is on what the four show us about God: they were women none of us would want in our family tree, yet God included them, and the result is the demonstration of His grace. He also says his goal is to get people to search the Scriptures, not to make them agree with him.
Search the Scriptures
Les describes his teaching goal as helping people study the Bible for themselves, which frames his approach to difficult questions like this one.
Four Women in the Genealogy
Les notes that Rahab is one of only four women in Matthew 1 and that these are the women most people would not want in their family tree.
Grace, Not License
Les says all four women were immoral and that their presence in the genealogy points to the grace of God, not license.
Ruth's Divine Appointment
Les points out that Ruth landed in the exact field where she needed to be to meet Boaz, which led to her place in the genealogy.
Why Jesus Told His Disciples: Don't Go to Gentiles
The Jew couldn't condescend to acknowledging that this Nazarene was the son of David, but this Canaanite woman did. Now I'm going to make a point. This is only one of two Gentiles that Jesus ministers to in His whole earthly ministry. Only two. This Canaanite woman, and a Roman centurion. Other than that, there is no account that He had anything to do with Gentiles.
Ruth Marries Boaz
Les connects Ruth's marriage to Boaz with her inclusion in the genealogy of Christ in Matthew 1.
Genealogy Begins With Abraham
Les explains why Matthew's genealogy starts at Abraham and distinguishes Matthew's line from Luke's.
Was Cornelius Really Saved? Acts 10 Explained Verse by Verse
A Gentile lady who also wanted the Lord to do something for her. And so she approaches Jesus during His earthly ministry, of course, in Matthew 15, and I'm going to start at verse 22. Matthew 15, verse 22. And behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same borders and cried unto Him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David. My daughter is grievously vexed with a demon.
Matthew 1:1: The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
The opening line of the genealogy shows the royal and Abrahamic focus of Matthew's list.
Matthew 1:3: And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram;
This verse names Tamar as the first of the four women in the genealogy.
Matthew 1:5: And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse;
This verse names Rahab and Ruth as two more women in the ancestral line of Jesus.
Matthew 1:6: And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias;
This verse names the fourth woman, identified only as the former wife of Uriah.
Ruth 2:1: And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech; and his name was Boaz.
Les uses this verse to show how Ruth's story led to Boaz and to her place in Jesus' genealogy.
The Bible names Tamar in Matthew 1:3, Rahab and Ruth in Matthew 1:5, and 'her that had been the wife of Urias' in Matthew 1:6. Les specifically highlights Rahab and Ruth in his teaching.
Les says all four women were immoral and that their inclusion points out 'the grace of God. Not the license, but the grace of God.' He does not present their presence as a reward for sin, but as a display of grace.
No. He uses the four women to show God's grace and encourages readers to search the Scriptures for themselves rather than offering an exhaustive answer to the number four.
Les says Rahab's small measure of faith was sufficient and God recognized that faith, so she is in the family line of the Messiah.
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