Why judah and tamar

Deuteronomy describes the punishment for a man who refused to obey the Levirate law. It was public and confronting. To us the punishment does not sound very much, but in the context of the time it meant public disgrace that could not be lived down. The action involving the sandal had symbolic meaning: the foot symbolized the male genitals, the sandal the female sexual organs, and the spittle, the semen.

Public shame was often used to enforce the law in ancient times. When Onan died without giving Tamar a child, she looked to the third son of Judah to be her husband. But this boy, Shelah, was too young to be a father.

So Judah sent Tamar back to her family, promising to send for her when Shelah was old enough. It may have been that Judah really meant to carry out his promise, but as time went by he became convinced Tamar was a jinx, bad luck, responsible for the deaths of his two eldest sons. Tamar waited patiently, but after a while it became clear that Judah did not mean to give her his third son Shelah as a husband. Judah refused to keep the Levirate law. When she saw that she was to be left a childless widow, Tamar decided to act.

She intended to get what was rightfully hers. She would trick on Judah, just as he had tricked her. The deceiver now became the deceived. She dressed in the special clothing of a prostitute which included a veil across her face that disguised her identity, waited for Judah at the city gates see below , and persuaded him to have sexual intercourse with her.

The city gates were something like the reconstruction above: massive mudbrick walls with a strong gateway that could be shut tight against an enemy, or closed at night for security. Here also the city prostitutes waited for customers. No respectable woman would sit there, or be there alone. She saw that Shelah was grown up, yet she had not been given to him in marriage.

When Judah saw her he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. It is possible, though unlikely, that Judah perceived Tamar as one of the sacred prostitutes.

The Hebrew words for a sacred prostitute kedeshah, sacred woman and a normal prostitute zonah are both used in this story. In Israel, prostitutes were required to cover their faces at all times. This extraordinary picture by Kevin Rolly adds a new dimension to the story of Tamar and Judah; the recently widowed Judah, gripped by grief at the loss of his wife, still wears his wedding ring.

Tamar may have followed a version of this practice, but she also asked for payment from Judah. He promised to send her a kid from his flock, and in the meantime, as a guarantee, he left his seal, cord and staff, all of which were personal items that could be identified. Judah decided on the fee, Tamar on the pledge.

Herodotus gives a description of the staff made specifically for each person, with a personal emblem carved on the top of it. It is even more astonishing that Judah gave up his staff. Photo by Brent R. In my experience, gospel teachers often choose to pass over the story of Judah and Tamar in Genesis 38, and understandably so. Readers may also wonder why it is inserted, seemingly at random, between Joseph being sold into Egypt and his rise to prominence in Egypt. Beyond those, other factors such as time limitations in the classroom may influence teachers to leave out Genesis One important reason may be the paucity of Latter-day Saint treatments.

The institute manual for Religion devotes roughly half of one page to chapter 38, providing a brief explanation of the pre-Mosaic levirate custom. I view the passing over of Genesis 38 as something regrettable because the chapter has some important things to teach us.

Second, I will outline some of the skillfully interwoven threads demonstrating a literary unity between Genesis 37 and 39 and the more extended Joseph story.

Finally, I will offer ideas on using parts of the Judah-Tamar story in teaching. Genesis 38 is filled with internal and external contrast, irony, and wordplay, but translation obscures much of it. The intent of my exposition is accurately captured by President Brigham Young when he said it is important to read and understand the scriptures as though we were in the place of those writing them.

Due to space limitations, I offer a summary with brief commentary instead of a full translation. Judah leaves his brothers, settles near an Adullamite, [14] and marries an unnamed Canaanite woman, who bears him three sons in quick literary succession—Er, Onan, and Shelah. Judah finds a wife for Er whose name is Tamar. Er is killed by the Lord because he is wicked, leaving Tamar a childless widow. Here also we have our first wordplay. Onan takes advantage of this by engaging repeatedly in sexual relations with Tamar but acting in such a way that she cannot conceive, thus displeasing God, who kills him.

The Mosaic version of the levirate law is found in Deuteronomy — Deuteronomy specifies that this duty belongs to a brother-in-law who may refuse in contrast to Genesis 38, where no right-of-refusal appears to exist. In pre-Mosaic times, the ultimate responsibility in assuring offspring fell to the father-in-law.

Time passes. Judah travels to the sheepshearing at Timnah. As Judah passes by, he takes Tamar for a prostitute and promptly propositions her. Judah later sends the kid, as promised, via his friend the Adullamite, who cannot find her.

The locals inform him that there has never been a prostitute there. Some time later, rumor reaches Judah that Tamar is pregnant by harlotry. He angrily condemns her to be burned. Judah, recognizing them as his own, suddenly understands what has taken place and declares that Tamar is in the right and he in the wrong. Tamar veils herself not because veils were traditionally worn by harlots, but to conceal her identity from Judah. Judah likely assumed she was a harlot because she was at a crossroads or city entrance, where harlots traditionally stationed themselves.

Nevertheless, Judah should not be castigated as the Israelite equivalent of a businessman planning to cheat on his wife while ostensibly on a business trip. The text attempts to minimize his sexual guilt through the inclusion of several details. The act was clearly not premeditated, as Judah encountered her by chance from his perspective on the normal route to sheep shearing and did not bring anything for payment.

Both deal with the spiritual blindness of father figures and the spiritual corruption and moral failure of young men. Both stories reveal injustices towards women and explore the consequences of sexual sin upon families.

But in both unusual accounts, the grace of God is on display for those willing to confess and repent from their sin. Who Was Who in the Bible? Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, As a former youth pastor, he has a heart for children and young adults and is passionate about engaging youth through film, literature, and theater. His blog, Perspectives Off the Page , discusses the creative and spiritual life through story and art.

Share this. Who Was Tamar in the Bible? Tamar was the name of two unique women whose unusual stories can be found in the Old Testament. The second was the sister of Absalom and daughter of King David who was raped by her half-brother Amnon. Joel Ryan Contributing Writer 6 Sep. His Story and Significance Today.