Genesis 38

         This chapter suddenly shifts focus from Joseph to Judah, the fourth son of Israel by Leah. The abrupt swerve of the spotlight is jarring to the reader, not only because the events of this entire passage cover a span of several years, but also because this storyline seems to have no connection at all to the story of Joseph. Thus far in Genesis, the pattern has been to introduce a man, highlight the important events of his life, record his death, and then begin the story of his son, highlight the important events of his life, record his death, and so on. From Abraham to Isaac to Jacob and Esau, this storytelling template, along with the occasional genealogical list of related descendants, has helped guide the reader through the early generations of patriarchs that led to the birth of the nation of Israel, God’s chosen people.
       So it seems rather odd that, just as we are introduced to Joseph, and just as we are left with a cliffhanger ending from the previous chapter, that Moses abruptly changes focus in this chapter to a series of events that seem to have no connection whatsoever to the story of Joseph and his life down in Egypt. But we also know that every word of every chapter of every book in the Bible is set down in precise order for a reason. This is God’s holy word, and He doesn’t waste time, pages or ink with frivolous or meaningless stories and records. The story of Judah at this point in Genesis is here for a reason.
         Keep in mind that it is Israel’s twelve sons from whom the twelve tribes of Israel are formed several generations later, after the exodus from Egypt. Therefore, we must step back for a moment and look at the much larger picture. The meaning of the word ‘genesis’ is ‘beginning’. It records the beginning of time, of creation, of the earth, of mankind, and then of the nation of Israel. Ever since the introduction of Abram/Abraham in chapter 12, the book of Genesis has been one long genealogy of the patriarchs and their descendants from whom God chose his people, the nation of Israel. These last fourteen chapters of Genesis are not only the story of the twilight years of Jacob/Israel, but also the story of his twelve sons. Yes, the spotlight is primarily on Joseph, but Joseph’s saga is closely intertwined with that of his brothers. It is because of them that Joseph ends up as a slave in Egypt in the first place. Thus, when viewed in this context, it makes sense that Moses pauses after introducing Joseph to insert a chapter on Judah. What happens here will have relevance later on in Joseph’s story.
          One more thing to keep in mind is that Israel’s sons were all conceived and born over a span of about twenty-three years. Thus, by the time Joseph is seventeen, Judah is well into his thirties. This chapter tells us how and where Judah married, how many sons he bore, and what happened to those sons. This passage then concludes with Judah’s transgression against his daughter in law and the birth of Pharez and Zarah, both of whom are listed in the genealogy of Christ. (Matthew 1:3)
 
          Verses 1-6: According to my study Bible, “ ‘Adullamite’ describes a person from Adullam, a Canaanite town situated on the route through Azekah and Sochoh, halfway between Lachish and Jerusalem. It controlled one of the principle passes into the hill country of Judah from the northern Shephelah. It was about 15 miles northwest of Hebron.” Judah married a Canaanite woman, the daughter of a man named Shuah, whom he met in Adullam, and she bore him three sons: Er, Onan and Shelah. When Er came of age, Judah selected for him Tamar, also (presumably) a Canaanite woman.
 
         Verses 7-11: We are not told exactly what Er’s wickedness is, but knowing the culture of the Canaanites (Sodom and Gomorrah being just one example), we can easily imagine any number of vile transgressions that condemned Er to God’s wrath and judgment. And since Er left no heir, it was the custom and law of that time in the ancient Near East for his widow to marry the next oldest brother, Onan. (This was later incorporated into the law of Moses. Deuteronomy 25:5) However, Onan is selfish and doesn’t want to provide an heir for his brother’s widow, so he refuses to consummate the marriage on the wedding night. This too, is an offense to God, and He slays Onan.
     It's evident from these verses that Judah failed in his responsibility as a father to rear godly and upright sons. This is further proof of the wicked, prideful and rebellious culture of the Canaanites. Judah tells Tamar to go live in her father’s house until his youngest son, Shelah, comes of age. At that time he will give Shelah to Tamar as a husband.
 
       Verses 12-18: In the meantime, Judah’s wife dies, and he is comforted by friends and family. After some time, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite, go to Timnath to have their flocks sheared. It’s implied from verse 12 that a few more years have passed since the death of Onan, and Shelah is by now of age to marry, which is confirmed in verse 14. But Judah has neglected to honor his agreement with Tamar. When Tamar is told in verse 13 of Judah’s trip to Timnath, she takes matters into her own hands.
        Tamar changes out of her widow garments and dresses as a harlot, complete with a veil over her face to disguise herself. She sits down at a spot somewhere on the road to Timnath and waits for Judah. As expected, he takes notice of her when he’s passing by, and he propositions her. Tamar asks him what he’ll give her as payment, and Judah promises her a kid of the goats from his flock. But that’s not enough for Tamar. She insists on a pledge, asking him for his signet, bracelets and staff. Judah willingly gives them to her, and she invites him into her tent for the night.
          In a similar fashion to the deception of Laban by giving Jacob Leah instead of Rachel on his wedding night, it seems Tamar pulled off the same ruse here. Judah was never aware, even during the act of intercourse, that he was bedding his daughter in law, which implies some form of custom or ritual of this time period where the bride’s face remained veiled the whole time, or the deed was done entirely in the dark. In any case, Judah remained ignorant of his transgression, and Tamar conceived by her father in law.
 
         Verses 19-23: Tamar returns to her father’s house and Judah later sends Hirah back to Timnath with the young goat to deliver to the harlot. But Hirah can’t find this mystery woman, even after inquiring all over the region. According to the local men, there was never a harlot in their city. So he returns to Judah with the goat and the report of his failure. Judah’s response in verse 23 is, basically, “Oh well, we tried.” He shrugs it off and continues on his way.
 
        Verses 24-26: Three months later, when Tamar’s pregnancy starts showing, it’s reported to Judah. Because she’s still unmarried, it is correctly assumed by everyone that she played the role of harlot. Judah orders Tamar to be brought out and killed for her transgression, according to the cultural custom of that time. But as soon as she’s brought before him, Tamar shows everyone present the signet, bracelets and staff. She tells Judah that the father of her child is the owner of these things. Unable to deny the truth, especially in a public setting, Judah admits that Tamar acted more honorably than he in this matter. He recognizes his initial sin by not granting her Shelah for a husband, and so he releases Tamar, allowing her to return to her father’s house. Judah has no further contact with her.
 
         Verses 27-30: Tamar gives birth to twins, Pharez and Zarah. Zarah starts to come out of the womb first, but then withdraws and Pharez, whose name means “breach”, comes out first instead. As mentioned earlier, both of these men are listed in Matthew’s genealogy of Christ.
 
           This story of Judah and Tamar, as well as the events related to us in the previous chapter, helps shed some light on the character of Joseph’s brothers. These are not godly, upright men. They are jealous, conniving, greedy, selfish men who behave accordingly. That’s the main reason this chapter on Judah is presented to us here, just after we begin Joseph’s story. The righteous, godly character of Joseph, as seen in the remaining chapters of Genesis, stands out in sharp contrast to that of his brothers. By the time he’s reunited with them several years later, neither he nor they are the same men that we first meet here in chapters 37 and 38, and that’s one of the reasons that the saga of Joseph is so compelling.