Genesis 38

11 Judah should then have arranged for his third son Shelah to marry Tamar—he was almost old enough—but Judah was afraid that Shelah might die like his two older brothers had died. So, in spite of his false assurances to Tamar, Judah decided not to arrange the marriage—even after Shelah had grown up (verse 14). In this, Judah was even more at fault than Shelah. Meanwhile Tamar, giving up hope of having a child, returned to her own father’s house.

12–14 Some time later Tamar heard that Judah, her father-in-law, was passing nearby, so she disguised herself as a prostitute and went to wait for him by the road-side. Her intention was to trick Judah into having intercourse with her, in the hope he would provide her with a son.

15–23 The trick worked. With foresight, Tamar demanded a pledge from Judah in addition to his payment of a goat; she asked for his seal and its cord¹²⁰ (verses 17–18). Then she put on her widow’s clothes again and returned to her father’s house.

24–26 Some months later Judah was told that his daughter-in-law Tamar was pregnant and therefore must be guilty of prostitution. Judah quickly pronounced judgment on her and ordered her to be put to death—an accepted punishment for promiscuity in Old Testament times (Leviticus 21:9; Deuteronomy 22:20–21). Notice that those who judge others most harshly are often guilty of similar sins (Romans 2:1).

As she was about to be burned to death, Tamar displayed Judah’s seal and cord, and said, “I am pregnant by the man who owns these” (verse 25). Judah recognized them as his, and suddenly realized what had happened. He acknowledged that he, not Tamar, was the one most at fault. She, through her trickery, had produced a son not only for her first husband but also for Judah himself. When Judah failed to take the necessary steps to produce an heir, Tamar did it for him. Though her act was sinful(Leviticus 18:15), she ended up being more righteous than Judah, who not only had committed fornication but also had neglected his duty to his daughter-in-law (verse 26). Tamar’s act was all the more significant in that it resulted in twin sons, one of whom, Perez (verse 29), would become the ancestor of Israel’s King David and ultimately of Christ Himself (Matthew 1:3).

27–30 Tamar gave birth to twin boys. One boy seemed to be coming out first because his hand appeared, and the midwife marked it by tying a thread around the wrist. But it was actually the other twin who “broke out” first and thus became the firstborn. He was named Perez, which means “breaking out.” Once again, as with Isaac and Ishmael, and with Jacob and Esau, we see God reversing the order and causing the son who should have been second to become the first and thus obtain the birthright.

In this way the line of Judah was preserved through Perez and on through Old Testament history (Ruth 4:18–22), culminating in the birth of Jesus the Messiah. Once again we see God’s purposes being fulfilled, even through the sins and failings of ordinary people like Judah and Tamar.