It happened at that time that Judah went down from his brothers and turned aside to a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah. 2 There Judah saw the daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua. He took her and went in to her, 3 and she conceived and bore a son, and he called his name Er. 4 She conceived again and bore a son, and she called his name Onan. 5 Yet again she bore a son, and she called his name Shelah. Judah was in Chezib when she bore him.
6 And Judah took a wife for Er his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. 7 But Er, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord put him to death. 8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Go in to your brother's wife and perform the duty of a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother.” 9 But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his. So whenever he went in to his brother's wife he would waste the semen on the ground, so as not to give offspring to his brother. 10 And what he did was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and he put him to death also. 11 Then Judah said to Tamar his daughter-in-law, “Remain a widow in your father's house, till Shelah my son grows up”—for he feared that he would die, like his brothers. So Tamar went and remained in her father's house. 12 In the course of time the wife of Judah, Shua's daughter, died. When Judah was comforted, he went up to Timnah to his sheepshearers, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. 13 And when Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep,” 14 she took off her widow's garments and covered herself with a veil, wrapping herself up, and sat at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah. For she saw that Shelah was grown up, and she had not been given to him in marriage. 15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. 16 He turned to her at the roadside and said, “Come, let me come in to you,” for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. She said, “What will you give me, that you may come in to me?” 17 He answered, “I will send you a young goat from the flock.” And she said, “If you give me a pledge, until you send it—” 18 He said, “What pledge shall I give you?” She replied, “Your signet 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. 19 Then she arose and went away, and taking off her veil she put on the garments of her widowhood. 20 When Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite to take back the pledge from the woman's hand, he did not find her. 21 And he asked the men of the place, “Where is the cult prostitute[b] who was at Enaim at the roadside?” And they said, “No cult prostitute has been here.” 22 So he returned to Judah and said, “I have not found her. Also, the men of the place said, ‘No cult prostitute has been here.’” 23 And Judah replied, “Let her keep the things as her own, or we shall be laughed at. You see, I sent this young goat, and you did not find her.” 24 About three months later Judah was told, “Tamar your daughter-in-law has been immoral. Moreover, she is pregnant by immorality.” And Judah said, “Bring her out, and let her be burned.” 25 As she was being brought out, she sent word to her father-in-law, “By the man to whom these belong, I am pregnant.” And she said, “Please identify whose these are, the signet and the cord and the staff.” 26 Then Judah identified them and said, “She is more righteous than I, since I did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not know her again. 27 When the time of her labor came, there were twins in her womb. 28 And when she was in labor, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, “This one came out first.” 29 But as he drew back his hand, behold, his brother came out. And she said, “What a breach you have made for yourself!” Therefore his name was called Perez. 30 Afterward his brother came out with the scarlet thread on his hand, and his name was called Zerah. Meditation God’s sovereign grace is working all things according to the council of His will, even the dysfunction of our fallen world and the rebellion of human hearts. Genesis 38 highlights the beauty of God’s sovereign grace ordering all of redemptive history for God’s glory. Through this difficult chapter God births hope for humanity as Perez holds the promise of Genesis 49:10 and is the seedbed of fulfillment we celebrate in Matthew 1:3 and Luke 3:33. Take the time to click on those scripture links! Jesus specializes in bringing redemption to dysfunction and death. Jesus’ family tree highlights God’s sovereign grace and gives hope to broken people like you and me. Honestly diagnosing our need will help us grasp the greatness of God’s grace. We see the depth of human depravity through the rebellion of Judah’s sons, Judah’s rejection of God’s heart for widows, and the heartbreaking sadness of Judah’s encounter with Tamar. In our sin we are completely unable to live righteously, though we try. We must lament the deceitfulness of self-righteousness we see in both Tamar and Judah who justified their actions from a place of perceived moral superiority. “She is more righteous than I” cried Judah (26). The manipulation, self-preservation, self-gratification, and oppression reveal neither one of them is righteous. We need a Savior! The sovereign grace of God is working all things for His glory, even the dysfunction we despair over. God did not wipe out Judah and Tamar. God gave life and used their offspring to bring life and light to the world. God wants to give life and redeem your dysfunction, too. Will you trust His sovereign grace? Richly Dwelling -Are you overwhelmed by the difficulty and darkness of our fallen world? How do you cope? -Where do you identify with the depravity of the passage? The deceit, sexual dysfunction, self-protection, self-righteousness…? How does this deepen your awareness of your need for a Savior? -God’s sovereign grace births hope from the pain of our fallen world. God is working ALL THINGS according to His will, for His glory. How does this offer you both healing and hope? Key Verse 16 He turned to her at the roadside and said, “Come, let me come in to you,” for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. She said, “What will you give me, that you may come in to me?” Comments are closed.
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AuthorPastor Mitchell celebrates twenty-five years of marriage with Lisa and together they have four adventurous children. |