| Subject: Genesis 38 vss 24-30 Post 184 |
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Hillbilly
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Date Posted: 08:13:11 02/20/12 Mon
Genesis 38:24-30 And it came to pass about three months after, that it was told Judah, saying, Tamar thy daughter in law hath played the harlot; and also, behold, she is with child by whoredom. And Judah said, Bring her forth, and let her be burnt. 25 When she was brought forth, she sent to her father in law, saying, By the man, whose these are, am I with child: and she said, Discern, I pray thee, whose are these, the signet, and bracelets, and staff. 26 And Judah acknowledged them, and said, She hath been more righteous than I; because that I gave her not to Shelah my son. And he knew her again no more. 27 And it came to pass in the time of her travail, that, behold, twins were in her womb. 28 And it came to pass, when she travailed, that the one put out his hand: and the midwife took and bound upon his hand a scarlet thread, saying, This came out first. 29 And it came to pass, as he drew back his hand, that, behold, his brother came out: and she said, How hast thou broken forth? this breach be upon thee: therefore his name was called Pharez. 30 And afterward came out his brother, that had the scarlet thread upon his hand: and his name was called Zarah.
As we learned in the last study Judah has given in to his animal nature and has gone and had a sexual relationship with a person he thought to be a harlot. As it turns out the harlot is Tamar who has not been given Judah's youngest son to raise up a child to her dead husband and brother of Shelah, Judah's youngest. While it is hard for us to understand and accept the customs such as this we should remember her future was in children that could take care of her. In order to have a living she had to either have a husband that supplied for her or a son who could take care of her. There was no factory or convenience store to work in no more than there was a secretaries or CEO position a woman could fill in those days. Tribal customs and laws were designed to carry on the family name and wealth.
Judah had left a pledge of personal items that could easily identify him with the woman he had lain with and when he sent the payment for the woman's favors she could not be found because she did not intend to be found. Judah was left to drop the matter or be found out as a man who had consorted with a harlot.
Judah had sown his seed and the crop was sprouting. Tamar in 3 months was showing "big time." She, unknowingly, was carrying twins so it was impossible to hide her condition any longer than she had. It was told Judah that his daughter in law was pregnant and she had "played the whore". Judah incensed at this revelation and probably secretly relishing in the fact that now he wouldn't have to give his youngest son to this woman ordered her to be brought forth and burnt.
The Bible never glosses over man's sin nor his hypocrisy. Judah was just as guilty as his daughter in law even though at this point he did not realize he was the one who got her pregnant. He, as David in the matter with Bathsheba, (2 Sam. 11 & 12) was more willing to mete justice than to accept and receive judgment. Tamar, seeing the strait she was in, gets the ring, bracelets and staff of Judah and sends them before her as being the possessions of the man who had gotten her pregnant. Judah cannot hide his guilt. It is as the prophet Nathan said to David; "Thou art the man!" Judah stands with those who brought the woman caught in the very act of adultry to Jesus yet did not bring the man. He was by law was just as guilty and deserved the punishment of stoning just as much as she did. (John 8:3-5)
Judah, as David, acknowledged his sin and said: "She hath been more righteous than I". Legion has been the ones who have tried to cross boundaries that God has set and commanded they not be crossed. As was cited in the last study "be sure your sin will find you out" it is as sure as the sun rising and setting that secret sins will come to the light. If not in this life they will surely show up at the judgment where the blinding and brilliant light of God's righteousness will shine to the darkest corners and recesses of a person's life to lay bare before all the sin that was hidden. " For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." (Ecclesiastes 12:14)
Judah is rightly shamed and never takes Tamar to himself again but the crop that is planted is surely going to spring up. Tamar goes into labor and it is found she is carrying twins. Pharez and Zarah come into the world as Esau and Jacob. God's is in the order of the twins birth as he was in Esau and Jacob's birth. Zarah is supposed to be the first born as he stuck his hand out of his mother's womb first and a scarlet thread was tied to his hand. He then withdrew his hand and Pharez was born first. Pharez is in the genealogy of Christ after Judah.(Matthew 1:3)
Side note: It is in details such as this that people have such difficulty with the righteousness of Christ. They say how can a perfect sinless man be born to those who have led such unrighteous and even evil lives and the simple answer is that Jesus was born from the overshadowing of the virgin Mary by the Holy Ghost. Jesus, while born of a woman (and not of a man) did not inherit sinful flesh as you and I because sin is passed through the man and not the woman. The egg of the woman is passive until fertilized by the man. When reading through New Testament passages concerning the inheritance notice Eve is omitted and Adam is credited.. (Rom. 5:12,14, 1 Cor 15:22) Another thing that is missed by those who scoff at a sinless birth is failure to realize that Jesus was God incarnate. He was the Creator of all things who took on flesh. Jesus was, is and always will be God! Jesus took on Himself the flesh He created but the God who took on the flesh of man was not created. He is eternal past and future. He is not, as the Mormons teach, the brother of Lucifer nor did was the God Jesus born from a carnal act between God and Mary.
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