Tamar Gives Birth to Twins - Genesis 38:27-30

And it came about at the times she was giving birth, that behold, there were twins in her womb. Moreover, it took place while she was giving birth, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, “This one came out first.” But it came about as he drew back his hand, that behold, his brother came out. Then she said, “What a breach you have made for yourself! So he was named Perez. And afterward his brother came out who had the scarlet thread on his hand; and he was named Zerah.

So rather than being burned as was the custom for a woman who had sex outside of marriage, Tamar, Judah’s daughter-in-law, was spared as he admitted his part in her pregnancy. In a few short months, Tamar was about to give birth to twins. What happened on that day as the midwife facilitated those births was both interesting and significant. One of the twins managed to stick his hand out of Tamar’s birth canal. Seeing it, the midwife immediately tied a scarlet thread on it to indentify that child as being the firstborn. But it appears that God had other plans. The ‘newly marked’ child withdrew his hand back into the womb and his brother exited the canal first instead.

Surprised at this turn of events, the midwife declares the actual firstborn as having “created a breach” and thus names him Perez (or Pharez in the King James Version). This is indeed the child through which God had intended to fulfill the covenant He had first made with Abraham. This genealogy was to be through Tamar, Judah’s daughter-in-law and not through the sons that his wife Shuah had given him before she died. Why? Perhaps to simply demonstrate to us that God’s ways are indeed not always our ways. Perhaps to show He can use even those who play the role of a prostitute. There is no person that has stooped so low that God cannot make into a beautiful vessel for His purposes. The word ‘perez’ actually means breach or violation. This child broke the rules on who was to be first. God is no respecter of persons when it comes to being first or second or last.

Recently I had the chance of watching a short clip on Jim Cymbala, the Brooklyn Tabernacle Senior Pastor’s series on prayer. It depicted the life of a renowned makeup artist who at one time was commanding three thousand dollars per day but had ended up in the streets because of his drug addictions. Through of the witness and love and care of one model who introduced him to Christ, this man is now back on his feet, working, loving God, involved in the Church, and being a testimony to Christ around the world. There are millions of stories just like his. God is the ultimate Repairman.

The infant with the scarlet thread tied on his hand in our scripture portion is then named Zerah (which means rising) once he was born.

Tamar’s is a story that once again illustrates the “grace of God” in choosing who He wants to call upon and use for His purposes. Regardless of the role she chose to take on, God’s grace extended His Hand to Tamar and she became chosen for His purposes.

No matter how badly you and I have screwed up or have been misused by others today, we need to remember it is impossible for us to have fallen so far down that God cannot reach our up stretched arm and lift us to His loving heart. May you know really know that today.

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Judah Learns Who The Harlot Was - Genesis 38:25-26

It was while she was being brought out that she sent to her father-in-law, saying, “I am with child by the man to whom these things belong.” And she said, “Please examine and see, whose signet ring and cords and staff are these?” And Judah recognized them, and said, “She is more righteous than I, inasmuch as I did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not have relations with her again.

When Judah had learned that Tamar, his widowed daughter-in-law, was pregnant, he ordered that she be brought out and burned in accordance with the practice of the day for women caught in immorality. While such arrangements were being made, Tamar sent Judah the signet ring, the cords, and staff that Judah had left with her when he thought he had availed himself of the services of a prostitute. With them, she sent him a message that simply said, “Take a look at these. These belong to the man who got me pregnant.”

It is not clear whether anyone else recognized these items. Most likely his friend the Adullamite would have done so, had he seen them at this time. Certainly Judah recognized them with great horror as he realized the ‘harlot’ he had slept with was Tamar. And his remarks are most interesting. “She is more righteous than I.” What was he saying?

It is possible he saw what was at the bottom of this and that he indeed was to blame for what happened because he had failed to give Tamar his last son, Shelah, to have as a husband who could give her children. There are other things to note from this passage as well. Judah had acted in secrecy, visiting who he thought was a prostitute. No one would know except those he had chosen to tell. We often think just that as we do things we hope no one sees or knows about. Yet, almost always, a day of reckoning does arrive.

There are those who think this whole episode especially the part of Tamar sending Judah his things and saying, “see, these belong to the man who got me pregnant, check to see if you recognize them” is a dramatic irony that parallels he and his other brothers sending his brother Joseph’s blood stained coat and asking their father if he recognized it as his son’s (Genesis 37:32,33). With the words he now utters, Judah convicts himself and indirectly confesses his sin.

Perhaps the saddest thing is that after being instrumental in saving the life of Joseph (Genesis 37:26, 27), history now records his sin and unrighteousness, for which he is remembered. While the words “And he did not sleep with her again” tells us he never repeated his sin, it is not clear as to whether or not those that he wronged forgave him. Nevertheless, as we pursue God’s forgiveness of our own sins, this passage serves to remind us that the evidence of true repentance is that the sin be abandoned.

It should be so with us. Let us not sin in secret. Let us recognize the need for forgiveness when we do. Let us abandon the sin we have been forgiven for. Let us forgive others who sin against us. And as we shall soon see, let us always look for the “purpose of God” in all that happens in our lives.

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Judah Learns Tamar is Pregnant - Genesis 38:24

Now it was about three months later that Judah was informed, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has played the harlot, and behold, she is also with child by harlotry.” Then Judah said, “Bring her out and let her be burned!”

Let’s review the story so far. Judah’s eldest marries Tamar and then he dies leaving her childless. The second oldest brother refuses to do his duty and give her a child and he dies. Judah tells Tamar to go back to her father and wait for his third son to become of age, fearing that he too might die. Tamar is heartbroken and feels ill done by but does go to live with her family. Judah’s own wife eventually dies and Judah avails himself of someone he thought was a temple prostitute. When he sent a friend back to pay the prostitute with the young animal he had promised in exchange for the bond (his personal seal ring and his walking rod), she is nowhere to be found. We now pick up the story again.

Three months after his inability to retrieve his bond and complete the transaction as planned, Judah is informed that his daughter-in-law Tamar, a widow, living with her family, had played a prostitute and through that act became pregnant. In his fury, Judah immediately demands that she be “brought forth and be burned” presumably to death.

What’s the lesson? It has often been said that once we walk in another person’s shoes, we can better understand their predicament. We know, for example, that we can understand the mourning of those that have lost loved ones, if we ourselves have experienced such a loss. We understand war better if we have served in armed combat. And so on. Or taken to another plain, we know that we are not perfect. We know that only those without sin should be casting stones at those who have been caught in sin. And we know that people who live in glass houses should not be throwing stones at all. The list of expressions that can apply to some extent or another in Judah’s situation is endless.

There is no doubt he should have taken the time to think things out before he reacted so assertively. Many a series of questions in advance of a judgment would have been wise. Maybe a self-examination. In my role as President of a Mission organization for over eight years now, I find it much easier to understand and explain some of the decisions and actions of other Mission Presidents, church leaders, and even some government officials. I know how things happen and why sometimes those decisions are the best ones no matter what others think or what the media portrays.

On the other hand, at this very moment of writing, I am dealing with a matter in one of our churches, not against an ultimate decision that was made by the leadership, but rather the statements surrounding that decision – that is, where the two parties affected by the decision are saying diametrically opposed things were said and/or happened. The unwillingness of the leadership to deal with this difference openly and in love, rather than just maintain they are right, maintain they alone are telling the truth, and as leaders must automatically be trusted and not questioned, does nothing for that church but to divide it further. Some are opposed to those who seek the truth, claiming that we “should not touch God’s anointed” and any opposition is “the work of the Enemy”. Or, “please, for the sake of unity, let’s let this pass.” Nice thoughts but I am convinced that nothing in the Christian church should trump “truth” because He is Truth and Truth is what we are all about. Jesus would never compromise ‘truth’ for the sake of unity, or to protect one of His chosen twelve. Yes, the Enemy is involved, but only because we fail to operate as spiritual Christians. Otherwise, he would have no toehold. He is the father of lies and when he believes that lies have been uttered he moves right in and goes to town. We need to be careful not to blame the “truth seekers” just because they are raising the heat in the church.

So that is our first lesson from this single verse: when we hear of news that we do not like and feel should be addressed, take time to ask questions so you have all the information, take time to think, and then run the information through a self-examination. Finally, run it through Scripture.

The second lesson, as we will soon find out, is “be sure your sins will find you out” especially as you go after the sins of others. That does not mean you had better never have sinned. No. But it does mean you have dealt with that sin, you have made amends, you have changed your life. You have let God remold you and be available for God to use you again for His Kingdom. Then you move forward with the assurance that as you do what you are required to do, you are under His direction and protection – no matter what that will look like. I pray it will be so with you.

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Judah Tries But Cannot Pay the Harlot - Genesis 38:20-23

When Judah sent the kid by his friend the Adullamite, to receive the pledge from the woman’s hand, he did not find her. And he asked the men of her place, saying, “Where is the temple prostitute who was by the road at Enaim?” But they said, “There has been no temple prostitute here.” So he returned to Judah, and said, “I did not find her; and furthermore, the men of the place said, ‘There has been no temple prostitute here.’” Then Judah said, “Let her keep them, lest we become a laughingstock. After all, I sent this kid, but you did not find her.”

You will remember that Judah left some personal belongings with someone he thought was a prostitute until he could send her the young goat he promised for payment in exchange for her sexual services. He sends his friend the Adullamite with the animal to find her, to compete the deal, and get his personal things back. Having no success in locating her, his friend makes several enquiries as to where he could find the “temple prostitute that was by the road at Enaim”. To his surprise, he is informed that there had never been such a person and he returns to tell Judah.

Judah appears frustrated at the news, but decides to let the matter go lest in any further attempts to find her, he becomes a laughing-stock. He absolves himself of any guilt in the matter by rationalizing that he made a reasonable effort to fulfill his share of the bargain but was unable to. The prostitute could keep Judah’s personal belongings.

As I studied these four verses I struggled as to what possible lesson God might have in this portion of scripture for us. Here are some thoughts:

First, as honorably as we may try to behave after some inappropriate action we have taken in order to ensure that we keep our part of any arrangement, we cannot expect God and others to cooperate fully. I am reminded of my grandchildren. One hits the other after being told not to, and is sent to her room for a “time out”. On her way upstairs, with tears running down her face, she cries out, “but I said I’m sorry!” There is often a consequence that still needs to be experienced.

Second, Judah was smart enough to know when to cut his losses. There is a time in the course of events after we have sinned to just stop trying to justify ourselves. We must leave the matter to God. Even if there are later consequences to be faced, it is best to face them with God rather than without Him.

Third, when we leave something behind as evidence of our sin as Judah did by leaving his personal things with Tamar his daughter-in-law whom he mistook for a prostitute, as inevitably there always is something left behind, we need to realize that this will always serve as a reminder of our sin. We need to learn how to best utilize that reminder to live a more godly and spirit-filled life acceptable to our Creator. Judah did not know what was ahead for him, but I am convinced he was always conscious of the fact that someone had evidence of what he had done. That is often the case with us. We may have sinned; asked forgiveness from those involved; and even received it. But there is always the knowledge that we did sin and that from the world’s perspective, not God’s, that sin may still have its consequences. It is in that realization that we must be fully dependent on our God to see us through. It is in that realization that we must realize that we are indeed at his mercy, not because He may want to punish us when we next step out of line, but because sin, even forgiven sin, has consequences. It is in that realization that only His grace can see us through whatever lies ahead.

Whatever your history or your current situation may be, realize that God hates sin but He loves you. You can be forgiven by Him of any sin you have committed if you ask and have accepted His gift of a personal relationship with Him and of salvation for eternity. And then, no matter what lies ahead, you can be assured of His carrying you through it. I pray you will know the peace He alone can give you today and live with the assurance of being His responsibility going forward, as you fellowship with Him.

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Tamar Plays the Harlot - Genesis 38:12-19

Now after a considerable time Shua's daughter, the wife of Judah, died; and when the time of mourning was ended, Judah went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. It was told to Tamar, "Behold, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep." So she removed her widow's garments and covered herself with a veil, and wrapped herself, and sat in the gateway of Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah had grown up, and she had not been given to him as a wife. When Judah saw her, he thought she was a harlot, for she had covered her face. So he turned aside to her by the road, and said, "Here now, let me come in to you"; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. And she said, "What will you give me, that you may come in to me?" He said, therefore, "I will send you a young goat from the flock." She said, moreover, "Will you give a pledge until you send it?" He said, "What pledge shall I give you?" And she said, "Your seal and your cord, and your staff that is in your hand." So he gave them to her and went in to her, and she conceived by him. Then she arose and departed, and removed her veil and put on her widow's garments.

We only know Judah’s wife by her father’s name, thus “Shua’s daughter”. When she dies Judah mourns the appropriate amount of time and then takes off to visit those that were or would be shearing his flocks at Timnah. Timnah is a small town, in the hill country, bordering on the land eventually given to Judah and the land given to Dan. If I read the sentence structure correctly, Judah went with his friend Hirah the Adullamite who you may remember had possibly introduced him to Shua whose daughter he married. So, with all those people knowing about Judah’s visit to Timnah, it was not long before Tamar, now staying with her father, was told about it as well.

Tamar had not forgotten how Judah had set her aside after her own husband died and how he did not demand that his other sons give her children in accordance with the common practice at the time, but rather sent her home to her father’s until his youngest son got older. So, is it time to pay him back? Maybe yes, maybe not. You see Judah had not kept his promise of giving her his youngest son Shelah to provide children for her as he had promised and Shelah had grown up by now. So what does she do? She takes off her mourning clothes which indicated she was a widow, veiled her face, wrapped herself in plain clothes, and went and sat in from of the gate of Enaim, a small city in the lowlands of the land of Judah, on the way to Timnah.

So Judah comes along, sees her, and, as her faced was covered, mistakes her for a prostitute sitting at the gate of the city waiting for customers. Being a widower and seeking sexual pleasure strictly to meet his physical needs, he propositions her. The thought of this being his daughter-in-law never entered his mind.

Tamar of course had a plan that she continued to implement. She asks Judah how he intended to pay her for her services. Judah tells her he will send her a young animal from his flock. In all likelihood, that was very good compensation for the services of a harlot in those days. But Tamar wanted to know what proof of promise she would have until such a payment would be made later. It is not clear whether or he was a bit taken aback by her demand for such proof or whether he repeated her question sincerely asking her to name what she wanted as that proof. In any case, she asked that Judah give her his seal, cord, and staff that he was carrying until the goat he promised had been brought to her. The seal was most likely a signet ring. The cord was likely the fancy twisted thread, which attached the seal or signet ring to his person. The staff was a rod or walking stick that he carried.

Judah quickly (we know not how willingly) agrees to give Tamar who was posing as a prostitute what she requested in order to avail himself of her services and sexual intercourse takes place. The text is very interesting here as it indicates, “she conceived by Judah” prior to even getting up from the actual sex act she had been involved in with Judah. The long-term evident consequences of sin waste no time in starting to appear in one’s life and complicating matters – even if the sinner is not aware of it.

Having delivered her services and having fulfilled her desire to get back at Judah for his failure to deliver on an earlier promise, Tamar now gets up and leaves him. It is later on that she removes her veil and once again dons her widow’s outfit. And she didn’t even know that by having sex with Judah she also met her need for having a child.

So what are we to take from all this? Well for starters, we need to think about any responsibilities to others that we have failed to carry out in our lives. They may well come back to thwart our plans for our own future. Secondly, be sure you know whom you are really dealing with at all times. In my career as a civil servant I was taught early never to say or do anything that I would not be prepared to see in the headlines of the national media the next day. I think that all Christians should live their lives like that. It’s sound advice. Finally, there is a lesson that clearly suggests we would be wise to meet our physical sexual needs in the way that God intended us to. Even for those that are single or widowed, we are to seek God’s will as to whether or not He may want you to marry or remarry as the case may be, and if not, to seek His help and strength in living a life of celibacy, relying on Him for companionship and spiritual intimacy. God bless you today as you live for Him.

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Er’s Wife, Tamar - Genesis 38:6-11

Now Judah took a wife for Er his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. But Er, Judah's firstborn, was evil in the sight of the LORD, so the LORD took his life. Then Judah said to Onan, "Go in to your brother's wife, and perform your duty as a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother." Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so when he went in to his brother's wife, he wasted his seed on the ground in order not to give offspring to his brother. But what he did was displeasing in the sight of the LORD; so He took his life also. Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, "Remain a widow in your father's house until my son Shelah grows up"; for he thought, "I am afraid that he too may die like his brothers." So Tamar went and lived in her father's house.

You have to love scripture. It’s so shocking at times that it makes today’s soap operas look amateurish in comparison when it comes to depicting the drama of life. Here is a story that would normally be beyond belief except for the fact that it is in Scripture and God is the main character. Let’s follow it for a moment.

Judah takes a wife (who is unnamed) and has three sons. Judah gives his eldest son Er a wife whose name is Tamar. But Er was not a good man in God’s sight, so God ended his life, leaving Tamar a widow with no children.

In keeping with custom, Judah goes to Tamar’s brother-in-law (the dead Er’s next oldest brother), Onan, and tells him to sleep with Tamar in order to give his deceased brother some offspring. Later in Scripture, we will see this actually being a Mosaic law required of the Hebrews. Of course, no one knows if anyone asked Tamar about this or whether or not she welcomed it. Most women of that culture, like many Middle Eastern cultures today, simply agreed in silence to what was expected of them by the men in their lives. However, it should be pointed out that as a law of God, there was good reason for it and in this case, this practice did provide widows with children that could later support her. God has a purpose for what He ordains for his children.

Now Onan is no “yes father” type of son. Well, actually he’s an “okay, but it won’t work, cause I’ll outsmart you” type. He agrees to marry Tamar as partial compliance to the custom. Recognizing that any children Tamar has by him won’t be his, he uses the withdrawal method at the time of ejaculation and his sperm is wasted. He did not want to give his brother any children. We can make some notations here.
First, we do not know the real relationship between Onan and his brother prior to Er’s death. We do not know if it was a congenial one or not and that may have somehow influenced Onan’s desire not to cooperate. We do not know if Onan had his own wife. We do not know how Tamar felt about what he did. Neither do we know whether Judah found out from her right away (as compared to finding out months later that indeed she was not pregnant) about Onan’s deed. And if Judah found out, we have no record of what he did about it. All of that is left unsaid and thus to our imagination. What we do know is that God was not pleased with his actions and He ended his life as well. This can be a very emotionally charged portion of Scripture for numerous reasons. Let me explain.

First of all, we have here in just a few verses, not one, but two cases, where God was not pleased with someone’s actions and He took their lives. As some of us have discovered, that kind of action by God does not enamor Him to those who have not yet accepted His Lordship. Why would anyone want to love and worship that kind of God? Every time you mess up morally, you stand a good chance of having your life end. True, the wages of sin are indeed still death today and that was also true back then. God is indeed a Holy God who detests sin. As the Creator, He gets to call the shots. But as God’s letter of love to us unfolds in the rest of the Old Testament and in the entire New Testament, we see how He has provided a way out of this dilemma. I encourage you to skip ahead thousands of studies, verses (and years) to find out about that arrangement.

Secondly, this is the portion of scripture that is used when one is trying to figure out just what the Bible may be saying on the issue of contraception through the withdrawal method and perhaps even masturbation, in which the end result is the same – semen being deposited elsewhere than in a woman’s vagina. I do not purport to be an expert in either of these fields, nor do I wish to get entangled in a discussion on the theological implications of either. What I believe I can say is that scripture is silent on both these topics. Why then did God take Onan’s life? It is possible that God took his life because he was disobedient to what was required of him by custom (or possibly the instruction of God). That is, to provide offspring for his deceased brother. It is disobedience that God will not tolerate. As far as the topics of ‘coitus interruptus’ (the withdrawal method of contraception) and masturbation are concerned, we are best to remain silent on them as the scripture is and allow each family and each couple or individual to determine what he/she should do as God persuades them in their own minds.

But now back to Judah. He has one more son, Shelah, who is too young to marry. He has lost two sons and does not want to take a chance on losing his youngest. Instead he asks Tamar to return to her father’s house and wait until Shelah gets older. Now “what’s wrong with this picture?” you may ask. Well, sending Tamar to her father’s house is the worst thing that could happen to young woman. It is embarrassing no matter what the reason, but especially if she goes there childless after having two husbands and now has to wait for a young boy to grow up before she can get married again. But more importantly, Tamar should have remained as Judah’s responsibility, not her father’s. The onus was on his family, as long as there was another brother living to keep her in the family and supply her sustenance. Instead, he sends her home to be out of sight and out of mind for a while. And Tamar, being left with no other choice, goes.

So again, what are the lessons for us today? I think there are a number. First, we need to realize God does not like man’s disobedience and one way or another He has to deal with it. I know that we are no longer under “the Law” of the Old Testament as Judah and his family was but we still have to be aware of God’s displeasure with our disobedience to what He is convicting us of today in our hearts. And He will address that disobedience. Perhaps it will not be by taking our life because we are His children who have accepted His Son as Lord and Savior. But perhaps it will be by our missing out on a fuller blessing in life today or in rewards in eternity that could have otherwise been ours.

Secondly, I think we need to be careful that we not assume we know exactly why God takes certain action that He does unless He specifically makes that clear to us. Onan died because of disobedience, not because of anything else.

Thirdly, we must realize we have a responsibility to those that come into our family through marriage, even when something goes wrong – like an illness, a separation, or in some cases a divorce where our own relative may be at fault. We cannot just forget about them. That is also true of circumstances where our own blood relative may have died and the “in law” – daughter, son, etc. still lives. And it is especially true where grandchildren are in the picture. One of our good friends had an only daughter who died in childbirth. Her son-in-law has stayed very close to her and allowed her to share quite fully in the life of her grandson. After several years of being a widower, he was remarried to another lovely Christian girl. They now have more children and our friend is still very much a part of their lives. I think that is the way God intends us to respond to the circumstances of life – always loving, always being obedient to God, and always putting others first. Again, may it be so with us.

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