Redeemer Reformed Church of Oklahoma City

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.” 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.” 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. –Genesis 38:24-26

Judah has a first son who was married to Tamar and yet was so wicked, the Lord just killed him without explanation to us. His name was Er, which spells “evil” backwards in Hebrew. Onan, the second of Judah’s sons, married Tamar but refused to give her a child, so the Lord put him to death too. Now it was time for the third son, Shelah, to marry her. He was young, maybe 10 or 11, so Judah tells her to wait on him. Judah is not excited about this because, well, the boys aren’t faring so well with her.

At this point of course, Judah should have protected her as if he were her husband, but he just lets her go around as a widow in poverty and disgrace and then withholds the promised third son from her. He encounters her, not recognizing her because of her veil, and treats her as a prostitute getting her pregnant. He leaves his “wallet” (signet, cord, and staff) behind.

When he finds out his daughter-in-law is pregnant, he gives a quick command: “Bring her out [to the city gate] and let her be burned.” He is cruel, hypocritical, and merciless. She sends word as she’s being dragged out for him to hakker-na “recognize” the “wallet.” She is using hakker-na here, but Judah is quite familiar with the word, since, in the last chapter he presented Joseph’s goat-blood-stained robe to Jacob asking, “Hakker-na?” (“recognize this?”). Ouch! That’s the wages of sin for you.

This is a breakthrough for Judah. Instead of justifying himself, just like when Nathan the prophet confronts David, he owns up to his sin. And then the Lord uses him…a lot! One of the twins born from this union is Perez, which means “breakthrough.” And it is a breakthrough indeed, for this is the child is the 10^th great grandfather of David, from whom comes our savior, Jesus Christ. Tamar is one of the four women in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus, all of whom come from outside Israel and have potentially scandalous marriages.

Judah had wanted to murder Joseph his brother, then sold him, then deceived his father about it, abandoned his daughter-in-law, got her pregnant, and sentenced her to death by burning. What a guy! Now he is being restored as the bearing of blessing to bring forth the seed of the woman who would crush the head of the seed of the serpent. Sin certainly abounded, but grace abounded all the more!

And that’s the gospel! Come hear it preached and enacted in the supper with Jesus this Sunday.

The related hymns we’ll sing are:
Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven
The Beatitudes
When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

SUNDAY SCHOOL
Sunday school for children (in Genesis) and adults (in Galatians) is continues. Coffee and other treats are served at 9:15, teaching begins at 9:30, and we break to get ready for worship at 10:15. 

Visitors are always welcome!