SCRIPTURE; GENESIS 38
IMPORTANT VERSE:
“She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not sleep with her again.” (Genesis 38:26)
JUDAH AND TAMAR (vs. 1-30)
At that time, Judah left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam named Hirah. There Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite woman named Shua. He married her and lay with her; she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, who was named Er. She conceived again and gave birth to a son and named him Onan. She gave birth to still another son and named him Shelah. It was at Kezib that she gave birth to him.
Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. But Er, Judah’s firstborn was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death.
Then Judah said to Onan, “Lie with your brother’s wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to produce offspring for your brother.” But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so whenever he lay with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from producing offspring for his brother. What he did was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so he put him to death also.
Judah then said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Live as a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up.” For he thought, “He may die too, just like his brothers.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s house.
After a long time Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua, died. When Judah had recovered from his grief, he went up to Timnah, to the men who were shearing his sheep and his friend Hirah the Adullamite went with him. When Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is on his way to Timnah to shear his sheep,” she took off her widow’s clothes, covered herself with a veil to disguise herself, and then sat down at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah. For she saw that, though Shelah had now grown up, she had not been given to him as his wife.
When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. Not realizing that she was his daughter-in-law, he went over to her by the roadside and said, “Come now, let me sleep with you.” “And what will y8ou give me to sleep with you?” she asked. “Ill send you a young goat from my flock,” he said. “Will you give me something as a pledge until you send it?” she asked. He said, “What pledge should I give you?” “Your seal and its cord, and the staff in your hand,” she answered. So he gave them to her and slept with her, and she became pregnant by him. After she left, she took off her veil and put on her widow’s clothes again.
Meanwhile Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite in order to get his pledge back from the woman, but he did not find her. He asked the men who live there, “Where is the shrine prostitute who was beside the road at Enaim? There hasn’t been any shrine prostitute here,” they said. So he went back to Judah and said, “I didn’t find her. Besides, the men who lived there said, “There hasn’t been any prostitute here,” they said.
So he went back to Judah and said, “I didn’t find her. Besides, the men who lived there said, “There hasn’t been any shrine prostitute here.'” Then Judah said, “Let her keep what she has, or we will become a laughing stock. After all, I did send her this young goat, but you didn’t find her.
About three months later, Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar is guilty of prostitution, and as a result she is now pregnant.” Judah said, “Bring her out and have her burned to death!” As she was being brought out, she sent a message to her father-in-law. “I am pregnant by the man who owns these,” she said. And she added, “See if you recognize whose seal and cord and staff these are.” Judah recognized them and said, “She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not sleep with her again.
When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. As she was giving birth, one of them put out his hand; so the midwife took a scarlet thread and tied it on his wrist and said, “This one came out first.” But when he drew back his hand, his brother came out, and she said, “So is how you have broken out!” and he was named Perez. Then his brother, who had the scarlet thread on his wrist, came out and he was given the name Zerah.
THOUGHTS: (From Life Application Study Bible)
It was their law to marry a widow in the family to ensure that a childless widow would have a son to receive her late husband’s inheritance and take care of her. God killed Judah’s son Er because he was wicked. Judah’s second son Onan refused to his brother and to Tamar, so God also killed him.
Prostitutes were common in pagan cultures such as Canaan. Public prostitutes served Canaanite goddesses and were common elements of the religious cults. Fornication was encouraged to improve fertility in crops and flocks. They were more highly respected than private prostitutes. Tamar was driven to seduce Judah because of her intense desire to have children and be the matriarch of Judah’s line. Judah was driven by his lust. Neither case was justified.
A woman’s most important function in Canaan was to bear children, who would perpetuate the family line. to ensure that children belonged to the husband, the bride was expected to be a virgin, and the wife was expected to have relations only with him. If a wife committed adultery, she could be executed. But some women were shrine prostitutes sup-ported by offerings or common prostitutes supported by the men who used their service. Their children were nobody’s heirs and men who hired them adulterated nobody’s bloodlines.
Judah saw no harm in hiring a prostitute for a night because he was more than willing to pay. However, he was ready to execute Tamar because if she was pregnant as a result of prostitution, his grandchild would not be part of his family line. Judah’s concern was for keeping his inheritance in the family. Ironically, it was Tamar, not Judah, who acted to provide him with legal heirs. But seducing him, she acted more in the spirit of the law than he did when he refused to send his third son to her.
A seal was a form of identification used to authenticate legal documents. Because Tamar had Judah’s seal, she could prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he had been with her.
When Tamar revealed she was pregnant, Judah, who unknowingly had gotten her pregnant, moved to have her killed. Judah had concealed his own sin, yet he came down harshly on Tamar. Often the sins we try to cover up are the ones that anger us most when we see them in others. If you become indignant at the sins of others, you may have a similar tendency to sin that you don’t wish to face. When we admit our sins and ask God to forgive us, forgiving others becomes easier.