Articles
“Judah and Tamar”
It happened at that time that Judah went down from his brothers and turned aside to a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah. There Judah saw the daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua. He took her and went in to her, and she conceived and bore a son, and he called his name Er. She conceived again and bore a son, and she called his name Onan. Yet again she bore a son, and she called his name Shelah. Judah was in Chezib when she bore him.
Genesis 38:1-3a
Genesis is divided into two sections. The primeval history (chs. 1-11) recounts the origins of the world, humanity, sin, and judgment, culminating in the Tower of Babel and the scattering of the nations. The patriarchal history (chs. 12-50) shifts the focus to Abraham and God's covenant relationship with his family, who would later become the nation of Israel. While there is some overlap, each patriarch has a primary narrative section in which he is the central figure: Abraham (11:27-25:11), Isaac (25:19-28:9), Jacob (25:19-36:43), and Joseph (37-50). Chapter 38 stands out sharply, interrupting the flow of Joseph’s story with the shocking and morally complex account of Tamar’s pursuit of justice.
First, let’s summarize the events of chapter 38. Judah separates from his brothers and marries Shua, a Canaanite woman—an inauspicious decision, especially in light of Esau’s disastrous choice to marry Canaanite women (26:34-35; 28:6-9). Judah has three sons: Er, Onan, and Shelah. Tamar becomes the wife of Er, but Er is wicked and dies under God’s judgment. Following custom (later codified in the Law of Moses as the Levirate marriage law), Judah gives Tamar to Onan. However, Onan also dies after refusing to fulfill his duty to provide an heir for his deceased brother. Fearing for the life of his youngest son, Shelah, Judah does not give him to Tamar—despite having promised to do so.
Tamar, realizing she’s being denied justice, disguises herself as a prostitute and tricks Judah into sleeping with her. She becomes pregnant by him and, after three months, starts to show. People bring news of her pregnancy—and assumed immorality—to Judah, who responds with hypocritical indignation: “bring her out, and let her be burned” (24). But Tamar is ready to play her trump card. She produces evidence that proves that Judah was the man who impregnated her (his seal, cord, and staff). When confronted with his sin, Judah declares, “She is more righteous than I, since I did not give her to my son Shelah.” (26). The narrative concludes with Tamar giving birth to twins, Perez and Zerah.
What is the significance of this story and why does it interrupt the Joseph narrative? To answer this question, let’s ask three more questions!
What do we learn from Judah? In chapter 38, Judah is presented as a moral failure, which helps explain why this chapter interrupts Joseph’s story. Judah stands in stark contrast to righteous Joseph: while Judah pays to engage in sexual immorality, Joseph resists temptation and flees from Potiphar’s wife; while Judah fails his family by denying Tamar an heir, Joseph preserves his from extinction during a time of famine. By highlighting Judah’s moral failings, the author of Genesis emphasizes Joseph’s integrity.
But Judah’s story doesn’t end in disgrace. This low point sets the stage for his transformation later when he steps forward with selfless leadership, offering himself in Benjamin’s place (ch. 44). Ultimately, Judah is chosen to be the ancestor of kings (49:10) and is included in the genealogy of the Messiah (Mt. 1:3), showing how God can redeem even the most broken lives for his purposes.
What do we learn from Tamar? While Tamar is not presented as a moral example (she intentionally deceives and manipulates Judah), she is presented sympathetically. Denied justice and left vulnerable in a culture that offered little protection or status to childless widows, she acted resourcefully to secure her rightful place and future. Judah spoke rightly when he said, “She is more righteous than I.”
Tamar’s inclusion in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus highlights her significance as part of a broader pattern: God working through the marginalized and overlooked. She is one of only four women named in Christ’s lineage—Tamar, Rahab, Bathsheba, and Mary—a striking detail, since Jewish genealogies typically excluded women. Notably, each of these women was associated with some form of scandal or social stigma, whether real or perceived. Tamar’s story is undeniably sordid, yet Scripture neither hides nor sanitizes it. Instead, it shows God’s redemption, weaving the story into the larger narrative of his grace—a grace that would one day be revealed in Christ, the Savior of the downtrodden and forgotten.
What do we learn from Perez? When Tamar was in labor with her twins, the midwife tied a scarlet thread around Zerah’s hand to mark him as the firstborn, but before Zerah was fully born, his twin brother emerged ahead of him. Tamar named him Perez, meaning “breach” or “breaking out.”
By this point in Genesis, the reader is well acquainted with the pattern of God choosing the younger over the older, overturning human customs and expectations—Abel over Cain, Isaac over Ishmael, Jacob over Esau, and now Perez over Zerah. Perez’s birth becomes a vivid symbol of the divine reversals so often seen in God’s redemptive work. God brings his promise forward—even through broken, messy, or unlikely circumstances. His eternal purpose overcomes every obstacle: a vulnerable widow denied justice, a patriarch caught in multiple transgressions, or a second-born son in a culture that prized the firstborn. And in the greatest reversal of all, it is through Perez, not Zerah, that David—and ultimately Jesus the Messiah—would come (Mt. 1:3).
Genesis 38 may seem like an literary interruption, but it is actually a deliberate juxtaposition enhancing themes of sin, redemption, and providence. The chapter serves as a striking contrast to Joseph’s righteousness, highlighting Judah’s moral failure while preparing us for his eventual transformation. It introduces the beginning of Judah’s redemptive arc, a journey from selfishness to sacrificial leadership. At the same time, the story reveals God’s grace toward victims of injustice, as seen in his vindication of Tamar. It stands as another example of how God often works through the unexpected, choosing unlikely people and broken situations to accomplish his purposes. Ultimately, Genesis 38 preserves a lineage of grace, reminding us that God’s redemptive plan advances not because of human perfection, but by his grace and wisdom.
