In his handbook on Joshua, Victor Hamilton asks: What does a story like Joshua 6 tell us about God and about ourselves? Here are his answers that apply not only to Joshua, but also to the time of Judah and his relationship with Tamar.
(1) God has sovereignly determined to be dependent upon imperfect, sinful human beings in bringing to pass his plans for his creation and for history.
(2) God works in His world with what is available to Him, and that includes both flawed human beings and flawed structures by which any society operates.
(3) We will probably never have a perfect understanding of what it means to be an instrument of God in the achievement of His purposes.
(4) For God to be absent from tragedies such as war (or what we read of Judah and Tamar) would be more a cause for despair than anything, because for God to withdraw from such realities means that human beings, and human beings alone, are now solely responsible for achieving their own brand and reading of justice and the pursuit of their own agendas.
Judah and Tamar
Judah and Tamar are two of the imperfect, sinful human beings that God used to bring about his plan.
Earlier, Judah had denied Tamar the right to bear a child through one of his sons. She deceived him and pretended to be a prostitute in order to become pregnant by him.
Now, Judah tries to make good on his relationship with Tamar, but finds out that the situation has changed.
Judah sent his friend to pay the prostitute and retrieve his pledge, but the friend couldn’t find her. The townspeople denied knowing any prostitute there. The friend returned to Judah empty-handed, and Judah, concerned about public ridicule, decided to let the matter drop.
About three months later Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has prostituted herself; moreover, she is pregnant as a result of prostitution.”
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, “It was the owner of these who made me pregnant.” And she said, “Take note, please, whose these are, the signet and the cord and the staff.” (Genesis 38-24-25).
The story of Judah and Tamar bears a striking resemblance to the prophet Nathan’s parable to King David, found in 2 Samuel 12. Nathan recounted a tale of a wealthy man unjustly taking a poor man’s single sheep, eliciting David’s fierce judgment.
Then, Nathan delivered the powerful rebuke, ‘You are the man!’ Similarly, Judah’s own actions, particularly his judgment of Tamar’s supposed behavior, reflected his own moral failing.
Then Judah acknowledged 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 lie with her again (Genesis 38:26).
Perez and Zerah
Tamar gave birth to twins. During labor, one twin extended his hand, and the midwife marked it with a crimson thread, intending to signify him as the firstborn. However, the hand withdrew, and the other twin emerged first, named Perez. The twin with the crimson thread was born second and named Zerah.
Much like Hamilton’s third point, it’s probable that Judith and Tamar didn’t realize that God was using them to accomplish His will.
Though Tamar’s sons’ births involved difficult and questionable actions, they played a vital part in God’s overarching plan for humanity.
- Perez is significant because his line leads to King David and, ultimately, to Jesus Christ. His descendants are recorded in genealogies in the Book of Ruth and the Gospel of Matthew.
- Like Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, Zerah is best known as being the brother of Perez.
Reflections
I hope you will take another look at Hamilton’s list at the beginning of the article. Use it to reflect on your place in God’s world.
Let it encourage you in moments of failure, as well as of success.
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross, Bruce Kirby, and I discussed this passage on YouTube today.
Real Voices 