Is it okay to skip boring genealogies?
Question 1125
Let’s be honest: when you hit one of those long lists of names in the Bible, “And so-and-so begat so-and-so, who begat so-and-so,” your eyes may start to glaze over. Some of those genealogies go on for pages. Is it okay to skip them? Won’t God be disappointed if you don’t read every single name? Let me put your mind at ease while also showing you why those genealogies are there in the first place.
It’s Not a Test
First, reading the Bible is not an exam where skipping any section means failure. The genealogies are in Scripture for good reasons, and we’ll look at those. But if reading them becomes such a barrier that you stop reading altogether, it’s better to skip ahead and keep going than to give up in frustration.
The goal of Bible reading is to know God and grow in faith, not to prove you can muscle through every difficult section. Jesus summarised the law as loving God and loving neighbour, not as completing every reading plan without exception. Give yourself grace.
But Don’t Dismiss Them Entirely
With that said, the genealogies are Scripture. “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). If God included them, they matter. Here’s why.
Genealogies prove the Bible’s historical reality. These are not myths or fairy tales. These are records of real people who lived in real places at real times. When Luke traces Jesus’ genealogy back to Adam (Luke 3:23-38), he’s saying this is actual history, connected to the beginning of the human race. When Matthew traces Jesus to Abraham and David (Matthew 1:1-17), he’s demonstrating that Jesus fulfils the covenant promises. These names are evidence.
Genealogies show God’s faithfulness across generations. When you read the names in Matthew 1, you’re reading a record of God keeping His promise to David for a thousand years. Through exile, through foreign domination, through silent centuries, God preserved the line until the Messiah came. Every name represents a generation where God was faithful.
Genealogies reveal surprising grace. Look at the women mentioned in Matthew’s genealogy: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba. Each has a scandalous or unusual story. Tamar posed as a prostitute. Rahab was a prostitute. Ruth was a Moabite, from a nation cursed. Bathsheba was involved in adultery with David. Yet God wove them into the Messiah’s lineage. This is grace on display.
Genealogies connect the testaments. The genealogies in Genesis 5 and 10-11 connect creation to Abraham. The genealogies in Ruth connect the Judges period to David. The genealogies in Chronicles connect the patriarchs to the post-exilic community. They’re like the connective tissue of Scripture, showing how the whole story fits together.
How to Read Genealogies
If you want to get more out of genealogies, try these approaches:
Look for names you recognise. When you spot Rahab or David or Zerubbabel, pause and remember their story. The genealogy becomes a memory of God’s work in history.
Notice any unusual details. Matthew 1:17 points out the pattern of fourteen generations in each section. Genesis 5 repeatedly emphasises “and he died,” a grim refrain reminding us of the curse. These structural features carry meaning.
Read them quickly and move on. You don’t have to linger over every name. Read through at whatever pace works, recognise what you can, and continue to the narrative sections that follow. The genealogy often leads somewhere important.
Use study helps. A good study Bible will have notes explaining the significance of particular names or the structure of the genealogy. This can transform a tedious list into a treasure hunt.
Conclusion
Is it okay to skip genealogies? If you must, yes, it’s better to keep reading than to stop altogether. But don’t dismiss them permanently. They are part of God’s Word, and they carry real significance: historical reality, covenant faithfulness, surprising grace, and the connected story of redemption. When you’re ready, come back and read them with fresh eyes. You might find more there than you expected.
“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” Matthew 1:1
