Read with Me
Genesis 38:20-26 (HCSB)
When Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite in order to get back the items he had left with the woman, he could not find her. He asked the men of the place, “Where is the cult prostitute who was beside the road at Enaim?”
“There has been no cult prostitute here,” they answered.
So the Adullamite returned to Judah, saying, “I couldn’t find her, and furthermore, the men of the place said, ‘There has been no cult prostitute here.’ ”
Judah replied, “Let her keep the items for herself; otherwise we will become a laughingstock. After all, I did send this young goat, but you couldn’t find her.”
About three months later Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law, Tamar, has been acting like a prostitute, and now she is pregnant.”
“Bring her out!” Judah said. “Let her be burned to death!”
”As she was being brought out, she sent her father-in-law this message: “I am pregnant by the man to whom these items belong.” And she added, “Examine them. Whose signet ring, cord, and staff are these?”
Judah recognized them and said, “She is more in the right than I, since I did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not know her intimately again.
Listen with Me
Tamar’s plan worked. She had become pregnant by Judah in their single sexual encounter. It is important to keep in mind that even though playing the prostitute was an act of deception, and even though she and Judah were not married that the time of their sexual encounter, the courts in the land would have judged her actions as justified, even if they were definitely not holy.
As the legitimate wife of one, actually of two, of Judah’s sons, the laws of the time saw her as legally entitled to be married to the next closest relative in order to conceive and bear a son who would not only continue the dead man’s line, but who would then provide for her. Judah had withheld his remaining son, Shelah, from her, which actually left himself as the next closest male relative.
But Judah wasn’t thinking along those lines at all. And when he heard that Tamar was pregnant, the assumption of everyone was that she had turned to prostitution in order to sustain herself. It is odd to modern sensibilities that Judah would consider burning Tamar alive as an appropriate punishment for prostitution while using prostitutes himself. But that is a reflection not only of the allowed double standard of the time, but also of the character deficiencies of Judah himself.
Tamar had realized all along that this turn of events was a real possibility. So, she had prepared for it by asking for and keeping Judah’s seal with its cord and his staff, both of which would be instantly recognizable. All she could hope was that Judah would admit that the items were his and step up to his responsibility for the pregnancy.
And to his credit, he did. He took Tamar into his household, he claimed the children (even though there is no indication here that the elder was ever named for either Er or Onan), and he provided for them all. But Moses was careful to note that Judah did not have further relations with Tamar, even though he was legally entitled to it. He had unwillingly fulfilled his legal obligation, but that was all that he was willing to do.
Pray with Me
Father, this is an interesting episode in the history of Your people. But You were using all these things to mold and reshape Judah’s character, as well as to provide a concrete example of some things NOT to do. Lord, help me to always stay soft in my heart and in my will, so that You don’t have to use such drastic measures to mold me into what You want me to become. Amen.