LESSON 21
Genesis for Today: Chapters 38-39
by Herb Drake

Copyright (c) 1998, 2020, Herb Drake.

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Judah and Tamar

Chapter 38 is perfectly placed for dramatic effect. The first-time reader will naturally want to find out what happens to Joseph, but as we read on we realize that we will have to wait. But the chapter also heightens tension on the question of which of the brothers will be the bearer of the promise.

Tamar's situation is based on leverite marriage, described in Deuteronomy 25:5-10, which requires the wife of a deceased brother to marry one of the other brothers and not to marry outside of the family. Another example of a character in Genesis being constrained by a law that won't be articulated until after Moses' time. The logic behind the rule is the preservation of the estate of the original husband's family.

Judah leaves Jacob's house and marries a Canaanite woman, who has three sons, Er, Onan, and Shelah. Tamar marries Er, who dies childless. Then Tamar marries Onan, who also dies childless. The rule requires that she now marry Shelah, which she earnestly desires to do lest she suffer the tragedy of be a widow with no children in her old age. But, in baseball terms, she is now two for three and there is only one brother left. At this point Judah has second thougths about her marrying his remaining son because he fears that his third son would suffer the same fate as the first two. So he offers the excuse that Shelah was too young to marry.

Desperate, Tamar devises a plan. She waits until Judah's wife dies, thus shutting down any possibilty that Judah might have a fourth son through her. She waits until the period of mourning has lapsed. Noticing that Shelah is now fully grown and had not been given to her in marriage, she blames Judah for failing to follow the leverite rule. She uses a veil to disguise herself as a prostitute and stands along the side of the road just before Judah passes. When Judah sees her, he is attracted to her and they have a tryst for the price of a kid which Judah promises to send her from his flock. Before they go their separate ways, however, Tamar manages to get Judah to surrender some items that will provide evidence of their sin together. Later, Judah selects a kid for the prostitute, but unable to find her. He eventually gives up and forgets the matter.

Pregnant with Judah's child, Tamar waits until her pregnancy becomes obvious and complaints arrive a Judah's doorstep. He orders her to die by fire for playing the harlot, but when Tamar presents her evidence that it was Judah who was to blame for her pregnancy, Jodah admits his part in the sin and accepts the blame for not offering Shelah to Tamar to fulfill the Leverite rule.

When the time comes for Tamar to deliver, she births twins who have the same kind of order-of-birth situation that we saw when Jacob and Esau were born. Since these two boys, Perez and Zerah, are sons of Judah, they need to be added to the list of candidates for bearer of the promise. But Judah's behavior during this seedy episode does not help their chances except for his repentance in v. 26.

Joseph and Potiphar's Wife

The LORD was explicitly behind Joseph as he entered the household of Potiphar, as he rose quickly to the point that he was trusted with everything except the food. The arrangement went so well that Potiphar's fields had abundant yields and he prospered, all this at the hand of the LORD.

That Joseph was good looking created a problem, as Potiphar's wife made several unwelcome attempts to seduce him. Potiphar's wife would not take "No" for an answer, however, and grabbed his garment. Jeseph fled, leaving the garment behind. Frustrated by Joseph's rebuke, she used the garment as evidence in making a false accusation of attempted rape against Joseph.

There are four reasons behind Joseph's refusal to lie with the wife:"

1. Joseph was aware of the confidence that his master placed in him, and is reluctant to violate that trust. "It is better to trust and be betrayed than to never trust at all."
2. The sin would have been against God. This gives us insights of Joseph's concept of God.
3. Joseph's own moral code regards the sin as "wickedness."
4. Joseph did not flirt with temptation. Instead, he flees from temptation "clad only in his honor."

Joesph's garment is mentioned six times; it is the second instance of the "garment" theme--it is the "Garment of Accusation." Potiphar's trust destroyed, and Joseph is sent to an Egyption priseon.

One has to wonder whether Potiphar really believed his wife's story, but it was expedient for him to blame Joseph rather than to deal with his wife. That, and the fact that God showed Joseph his hessed ("steadfast") love, saved him from execution.

Joseph the Prisoner

Just as he had in the Potiphar household, the LORD was with Joseph in the prison, where is he quickly appointed a position similar to a "trustee" on a modern jail, with duties carried out so faithfully that the jailer had confidence in him.

That Joseph has followed all the rules and has wound up in prison is a message that should not be lost on us. One can do everything right and still get into trouble.

Comparing these two chapters at this point would certainly regard Joseph as more righteous than Judah.

Genesis 36-37 | Genesis 40-41