“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. When the time of her labor came, there were twins in her womb. And when she was in labor, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, “This one came out first.” But as he drew back his hand, behold, his brother came out. And she said, “What a breach you have made for yourself!” Therefore his name was called Perez. Afterward his brother came out with the scarlet thread on his hand, and his name was called Zerah.”
Genesis 38:26-30 ESV
As crazy as the 38th chapter of Genesis seems, it ought to be of tremendous comfort to us who are in Christ. But if we aren’t in Him, if we’ve gone astray, we should be moved by the Spirit to sweet repentance.
To start, we see that Judah has openly humbled himself before his community. What sins we refuse to privately confess to the Lord will someday be shouted from rooftops (Luke 12:3). Let us always remember that the Lord is both just and justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. This means that He won’t let our sins sit idly by. He disciplines those He loves and if you feel (are) stuck somewhere in life, if your tires are spinning helplessly in a muddy rut of circumstances, taking a humble assessment is a good idea. Is there a sin somewhere that you’re fiddling with? In Judah’s case, and in our own, there are warnings that the Lord sends, shots across the bow to turn us back. Indeed, He sends the red lights upon our life’s traffic to slow us and bring us to Himself and to the next level of growth needed for His purpose with us. To be stubborn as Judah was risks this type of public humiliation.
But, alas, Judah does indeed openly repent of exactly the sin he committed. The circumstances that brought him to this point show that he had been in the habit of suppressing the truth. Consider the kidnapping and enslavement of his brother, Joseph. Consider the ongoing lie to his father, Jacob…letting him think that his son had been killed brutally by a wild animal. Sin never gets better; the only way out is repentance. The callousness of Judah’s heart led him to a godless place where he had a godless marriage and two sons so evil that God executed them. But it was only at this point in Judah’s life, when circumstances force his hand, that Judah admits his sin.
We should be warned. We should fear the Lord.
He will accomplish His holy purposes and no one wrestles with the Almighty and wins.
Tamar’s boldness is rewarded and to her are born the twins. Why do we learn of all this during what is essentially Joseph’s story? The answer is easy. From Tamar’s womb and Judah’s seed comes the Messiah! From this crazed affair of human weakness and intrigue God brings forth the Lord Jesus Christ. To wit:
“This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of David and of Abraham: Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah (whose mother was Tamar). Perez was the father of Hezron. Hezron was the father of Ram. Ram was the father of Amminadab. Amminadab was the father of Nahshon. Nahshon was the father of Salmon. Salmon was the father of Boaz (whose mother was Rahab). Boaz was the father of Obed (whose mother was Ruth). Obed was the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon (whose mother was Bathsheba, the widow of Uriah).”
Matthew 1:1-6 NLT
Make no mistake: God’s people are blessed by the grace of God and Judah’s repentance, as well as Tamar’s boldness, both are deep parts of the story of our salvation. Tamar took extreme measures to assure that the covenant blessing given to Abraham would be fulfilled. What a hero in so humble a package! Oh, let us marvel at what amazing and mighty things the Lord does through those who submit faithfully to Him.
Also, let us ponder a few more pertinent points before moving back to Joseph.
1. Judah is forgiven and his mistakes/sins don’t cause him to lose God’s irrevocable blessing.
If you are in the Lord but have backslidden be sure that He’ll bring you back. Let us keep a “short account” (as Boice once put it) before Him, so that no sin deceives us. Look at the profound damage David’s sin with Bathsheba caused. Yes, we are forgiven when we repent, but we must be reminded that abuse of God’s grace has consequences. He’s no fool and there are consequences. Prideful, willful sin – especially that which harms others as Judah’s and David’s surely did – will have great consequences for us. Jesus Christ isn’t Santa Claus; He’s not a sentimental sap that we can manipulate. He’s no sucker for our lies. Judah lost two sons (we aren’t told how his wife died, but he was also a widower at this point), and his reputation is in tatters. The former sin back home still awaits him but God is also dealing with that too.
King David’s family and throne are both torn apart after his adultery with Bathsheba and murder of her honorable husband, Uriah. The sin also cost him a child. What Judah and David did in private, the Lord rebuked publicly – and, indeed, the consequences were severe. Let us never forget the fear of the Lord! His stop signs and red lights are there because of His patience and love for us. But He will not allow His children sin with impunity. And if He deals so strongly with His covenant children like Judah and David, do you imagine that He will overlook unrepentant sin in our own lives? If we have wronged anyone, let us go and make amends now! Today is still the day of salvation. If we are caught up in some manner of sin, turn from it today!
Again, though forgiven and restored, Judah’s sin had severe consequences. Sin is a serious thing and if a lesson like this won’t get our attention, the Lord will use stronger medicine later.
2. The Lord’s purpose will not be thwarted…but we don’t always know exactly what that is. Thus, we should be forever humble.
What do we make of Tamar dressing up as a prostitute in order to trick Judah? In Judah we see the dangers of a weak man in leadership. When leaders vacillate and delay obeying the Lord and fulfilling their vows, chaos reigns and, indeed, real people are hurt. Judah knew the right thing to do and didn’t do it. This was his pattern in life. He took the easy way out rather than stand up to his brothers or lead his family. There is much talk in today’s world – especially on social media – about leadership. It is simply thus: fear God and keep His commandments. This is the mark of the man or woman of God. Abusive men in the church who would like to deride women and their role must comprehend that real leadership is Jesus Christ and faith in Him. Tamar rose up in courage because Judah was a man of compromise. We see again and again that the Lord honors those that honor Him. Tamar’s actions assured, with the Lord’s blessing, that the Messianic line would carry on! Sin makes men weak and ineffectual and long before it is exposed publicly, it has taken root privately.
3. Contrary to what the culture tells us these days, our sins aren’t truly private. They always impact those around us, some much more than others. A clear sign that we’re in an impoverished spiritual state is how we uphold the relationships God has given us. In each relationship we have there’s a God-given order of both authority and responsibility. The conflicts of Judah’s life were direct results of his inaction in regard to keeping his vows within these spheres. All of our sin is, at bottom, a breakdown of our covenant faithfulness. In Judah’s case, he didn’t exercise the courage to face the sin around him. The great evil of his sons is evidence and warning of what happens when God’s men allow evil in their homes. Many of us will learn this lesson hard: if we don’t fight sin, we’ll fight those who fight sin. God’s men must learn to put out the little fires of sin so as to avoid later infernos. We must all learn the amazing privileges of being God’s covenant people (Tamar did), but also the responsibilities connected to that. Being faithful requires the courage to fight sin in Christ.
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