# 358 Be A True Friend

The Book of Genesis

Day 358

Ge 38:19 So she arose and went away, and laid aside her veil and put on the garments of her widowhood.  20 And Judah sent the young goat by the hand of his friend the Adullamite, to receive his pledge from the woman's hand, but he did not find her.  21 Then he asked the men of that place, saying, "Where is the harlot who was openly by the roadside?" And they said, "There was no harlot in this place."  22 So he returned to Judah and said, "I cannot find her. Also, the men of the place said there was no harlot in this place."  23 Then Judah said, "Let her take them for herself, lest we be shamed; for I sent this young goat and you have not found her."

Tamar dons the garments of widowhood again and goes back home. Meanwhile Judah seeks to find the harlot in order to pay her the agreed price of a goat, so he can get his staff and signet back, but she is nowhere to be found!

At this point, let’s talk about Judah’s friend Hirah. He was with Judah when Judah went off on his little tryst. Hirah clearly knew what took place, and being a trusted friend, he sends Hirah back with the goat to reclaim his signet and staff from the harlot. Hirah comes back empty handed and Judah shrugs his shoulders and decides to forget the matter.

Note his reply to Hirah, “lest WE be shamed.” There is a lesson here of shared responsibility. Hirah did not enter into the deal with the harlot, yet he is now included in the shame of the event. He is Judah’s friend, and he could have sought to restrain Judah from engaging in this act of sexual sin. A true friend would say something like, “Hey Judah, I know you miss the physical act of sexual gratification, due to the passing of your wife, but hold on, this is not the way to respond!”

Well, we shouldn’t be too hard on Hirah, he is a Canaanite and he doesn’t know any better. The world could care less about the restraints concerning sexual activity spelled out in the Word of God.

But, it ought to be a different story for you and I. We know better and if we have a Christian brother or sister who have laid aside their Christianity for the sake of temporary pleasures, we need to be true friends and call them out! True friends take a stand. True friends help their brothers and sisters stand strong in the face of temptation. True friends help them to see the error of their ways so they might turn from their folly.

Jas 5:19 Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back,  20 let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.

“Save a soul from death?” Whoa! A real friend seeks to turn his erring brother back!

# 357 You Have A Name

The Book of Genesis

Day 357

Ge 38:11 Then Judah said to Tamar his daughter-in-law, "Remain a widow in your father's house till my son Shelah is grown." For he said, "Lest he also die like his brothers." And Tamar went and dwelt in her father's house.  12 Now in the process of time the daughter of Shua, Judah's wife, died; and Judah was comforted, and went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite.  13 And it was told Tamar, saying, "Look, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep."  14 So she took off her widow's garments, covered herself with a veil and wrapped herself, and sat in an open place which was on the way to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah was grown, and she was not given to him as a wife.  15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a harlot, because she had covered her face.  16 Then he turned to her by the way, and said, "Please let me come in to you"; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. So she said, "What will you give me, that you may come in to me?"  17 And he said, "I will send a young goat from the flock." So she said, "Will you give me a pledge till you send it?"  18 Then he said, "What pledge shall I give you?" So she said, "Your signet and cord, and your staff that is in your hand." Then he gave them to her, and went in to her, and she conceived by him.

In spite of the unwillingness around her, Tamar presses on in the work of raising up an heir. (Did she know that she was to be a vital part in the Old Testament commission of physically bringing Christ to the world?) If so, oh that we would have her zealousness and perseverance! We cannot condone her methods as she engaged in trickery and harlotry, and we certainly cannot condone the actions of Judah!

He shamelessly sleeps with what he thought was a harlot, THEN he hands over his family signet and staff as if they were some sort of trinkets. Both represented who he was! The signet, representing his name and his staff representing his occupation.  Although this was not the legal equivalent of selling one’s birthright, it amounts to about the same thing. Esau sold  his for a bowl of stew and Judah is selling his for a one night stand. He mustn’t have placed too much value on the family name!

Listen, as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we too have a family name. It is “Christian!” And the question needs to be asked, “What are we willing to lay aside our name “Christian” for?” Is it to engage in viewing a quick shot of pornography? An adulterous fling? A drunken binge? Gossip” Fornication? Cheating on your taxes or ripping someone off in a business deal? What sort of licentiousness are we willing to engage in that will require us to lay aside our Christianity for a time?

Be careful my friend, for when we lay it down, we may not get it back. Judah didn’t really care if he got his signet back, but God cared and he pursued Judah through the pregnancy of Tamar in order to restore him and his family name.  Perhaps you have been careless as Judah was, and laid aside your family name of “Christian.” Know this! God desires to restore you too! Repent! Turn back to Jesus and have your family name restored!

# 356 Persevere In Telling Your Story

The Book of Genesis

Day 356

Ge 38:11 Then Judah said to Tamar his daughter-in-law, "Remain a widow in your father's house till my son Shelah is grown." For he said, "Lest he also die like his brothers." And Tamar went and dwelt in her father's house.  12 Now in the process of time the daughter of Shua, Judah's wife, died; and Judah was comforted, and went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite.  13 And it was told Tamar, saying, "Look, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep."  14 So she took off her widow's garments, covered herself with a veil and wrapped herself, and sat in an open place which was on the way to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah was grown, and she was not given to him as a wife.  15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a harlot, because she had covered her face.  16 Then he turned to her by the way, and said, "Please let me come in to you"; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. So she said, "What will you give me, that you may come in to me?"  17 And he said, "I will send a young goat from the flock." So she said, "Will you give me a pledge till you send it?"  18 Then he said, "What pledge shall I give you?" So she said, "Your signet and cord, and your staff that is in your hand." Then he gave them to her, and went in to her, and she conceived by him.

Two women come to mind in the matter of the levirate law in Scripture, Ruth and Tamar. Ruth of course is one of the Bible’s most lovable characters. She forsook her own country and their gods in order to remain with Naomi and follow her God, and perhaps provide a levirate inheritance for her.

Tamar on the other hand is usually associated with a harlot, but guess what folks, you will find her name in the genealogy of Christ. In fact her name shows up in the first verse of the first Book of the New Testament!

In spite of all the odds against her, she persevered in the matter of getting an inheritance through the line of Judah. The Bible doesn’t condone her tactics of deceit and harlotry, but it doesn’t cover them up either. There she is, front in center in Matthews account of the genealogy of Jesus Christ!

Ruth was at least given an option to follow Naomi, poor Tamar was sent packing back to her father’s house, yet she waited. She counted the years and knew that Shelah was well past the age of being given to her for the purpose of fulfilling the levirate law, but obviously Judah  had forgotten his pledge.

Out of fear of being neglected, she took matters into her own hands. If Judah would not provide opportunities for her to be a part of the Old Testament great commission of bringing Christ physically to the world, she would manufacture her own. Her tactics were nothing to write home about, but her zealousness for the cause is worthy to note.  If Judah is doing his job, Tamar doesn’t need to resort to these questionable tactics.

Oh that we would have the zealousness of Tamar, (without any shady practices) in the matter of bringing Christ to the world. It’s really quite simple. Be prepared at any time to tell your story, and live in a manner that backs it up!

# 355 Get Involved With the Great Commission

The Book of Genesis

Day 355

Ge 38:11 Then Judah said to Tamar his daughter-in-law, "Remain a widow in your father's house till my son Shelah is grown." For he said, "Lest he also die like his brothers." And Tamar went and dwelt in her father's house.

Judah has lost two sons and now he is afraid of losing another, so he decides to remove Tamar from the picture. As if she had something to do with their deaths. He misses the point of course, his sons were killed because they were wicked and displeased the Lord. Truth be known, she was more righteous than this whole family when it came to obeying the Law of the Levirate.

But alas, many times we are blinded by the wickedness of ourselves and those closest to us, and we look for others to blame, we look for scapegoats.  So Judah sends Tamar back to her father with the promise that when the younger son is full grown, he will allow him to perform the levirate duty for her. But look what happens when he puts off that duty, he eventually forgets all about it. Out of sight, out of mind!

Remember the purpose of the levirate law, it was put in place in order to fulfill the Old Testament great commission of bring Christ physically into our world. The seed of Abraham was vital to this commission.

Judah’s handling of Tamar is very similar to our own attitude about the great commission of the New Testament, where we, the church, are charged with bringing Christ to the world in a spiritual sense. 

We have a tendency to get cold feet when things get a little stormy, or we get so caught up in our own lives that we put the great commission on hold. Let’s face it, sharing the gospel with others can bring trial and tribulation, in fact it should! But rather than putting it on the back burner for a while we ought to press on, lest we become like Judah and forget. Was Judah shipping Tamar off to her father’s house, hoping someone else would raise up an heir, thereby excusing him?

How about you and I? Have we forgotten our responsibilities in the great commission, hoping others will bring the good news.  Let’s rethink our role and the urgency of the great commission in our world today, and as the Holy Spirit spoke through Peter in 1Pe 3:15, “ But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;”

# 354 Playing at God

The Book of Genesis

Day 354

Gen 38:8 And Judah said to Onan, "Go in to your brother's wife and marry her, and raise up an heir to your brother."  9 But Onan knew that the heir would not be his; and it came to pass, when he went in to his brother's wife, that he emitted on the ground, lest he should give an heir to his brother.  10 And the thing which he did displeased the LORD; therefore He killed him also.

Why was God so displeased with Onan? It was because of his refusal to participate in the great commission of the Old Testament, that of bringing Christ into the world physically. Onan wanted to keep his own inheritance intact. He sold out for material things.  This is the primary lesson to be learned from the death of Onan. As New Testament followers of Jesus Christ, we have been charged with participating sacrificially in bringing Christ to the world, “spiritually,” through the great commission!

But there are other lessons to be learned from this incident with Onan. Onan’s act of defiance in spilling his seed upon  the ground was nothing more than a primitive form of birth control. We are much more sophisticated in our modern day methods of seeking to block the divine creation of new life.  “No God, we will determine when life will come forth into this world!.” “Don’t You see God, a child right now would cramp our style and we won’t be able to have the nice material things we desire.” Further, if we start a family now, we won’t be able to do the things we want to do!”

“and the thing which Onan did displeased the Lord.”

We don’t know the plans God has for the seed in our body, but we do know He has plans! “Jer 1:5 says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; and I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” (Note the word “before!”)

Will all be prophets like Jeremiah? Of course not, but all of God’s prospective creations in the womb matter to Him. They are all souls that will live eternally. They are souls that Jesus died for, so that they might spend eternity with God. Maybe we ought to start looking at our reproductive life through the lens of eternity, perhaps then we will appreciate the sovereignty of God in this matter, and turn over the size of our families to Him.

# 353 The Sin of Onan

The Book of Genesis

Day 353

Ge 38:8 And Judah said to Onan, "Go in to your brother's wife and marry her, and raise up an heir to your brother."  9 But Onan knew that the heir would not be his; and it came to pass, when he went in to his brother's wife, that he emitted on the ground, lest he should give an heir to his brother.  10 And the thing which he did displeased the LORD; therefore He killed him also.

This obscure levirate law was so important that God took out Onan for his refusal to follow through with his duty to “raise up an heir.”  Why was this so important? Why was God so displeased with Onan?

I think we can trace it back to Abraham, and even to Adam and Eve. God told Abraham that in his seed all the nations of the earth would be blessed! He had told Eve that her seed would one day rise up and crush Satan. The Messiah would come from the seed of the children of Abraham. Need we say more?

Onan’s purposeful emitting on the ground, was the equivalent of saying, “I’m not interested in the world getting a Savior, I am only interested in MY inheritance…..my worldy possessions. Let someone else do it!”

Onan paid the price for his selfish attitude.

This whole scenario is about bringing Christ to the world. This is the great commission of the OT patriarchs. Christ was to be brought to the world physically through the seed of Abraham. In the NT, Christ is to be brought to the world through the “spiritual” seed of Abraham and that’s you and I folks….that’s the church.

Failure to participate in this NT commission puts our very souls in jeopardy! It puts us in the category of the unproductive servant who buries his talent. Onan’s seed wound up in the ground as did the talent of the unproductive servant and both paid for it with their eternal lives! God has given each one of us a part to play in the great commission, and maybe it’s time for each one of us to discover that part and plug it in our local congregation. Failure to do so is committing the NT equivalent of the sin of Onan.

Lu 9:26 "For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels.

# 352 More On The Levirate Law

The Book of Genesis

Day 352

Ge 38:8 And Judah said to Onan, "Go in to your brother's wife and marry her, and raise up an heir to your brother."  9 But Onan knew that the heir would not be his; and it came to pass, when he went in to his brother's wife, that he emitted on the ground, lest he should give an heir to his brother.  10 And the thing which he did displeased the LORD; therefore He killed him also.

Continuing our look at the Levirate Law today, in order to get some answers concerning God’s deep displeasure with Onan. More insight into this matter can be found in the Book of Ruth where the Law is brought forth again.

Ruth was a Moabitess, who was widowed while living in Moab. Her mother-in-law, Naomi was an Israelite whose husband was from Bethlehem a city of Judah. They had two sons, and they had to leave Judah because of famine.  It was while they were in Moab that their two sons married Moabite women.

Naomi’s husband died as did her two sons, and suddenly she was left without an heir.  It was in this heirless state that she decided to head back home to Judah. To get an idea of how ingrained this Law was to the Israelites, Naomi tells her two daughters-in-law to turn back to their own people because she (Naomi) was too old to bear any more children, much less sons. And even if she would bear sons, they would be too young for the women to wait for in order to produce heirs.  So she releases both daughters from the Law of the Levirate in order that they may find husbands in their homeland and build a new life there.

But Ruth, refuses to leave her mother-in-law and upon returning to Judah, they meet a man named Boaz. Boaz was a relative of Naomi’s deceased husband that can be traced back to Perez. (Ironically, we will read about Perez later in this chapter, because he was one of the twins born to Tamar, who was fathered by the illicit act of Judah.) This is an incredible tangled web, that God will untangle and turn out for good.

It was the refusal of Judah’s sons to play the role of the levirate that led to these events and the eventual marriage of Boaz to Ruth. It was Boaz who accepted the duty of the levirate and became Naomi’s and Ruth’s “kinsmen redeemer,” God used Boaz and Ruth and the levirate law to untangle the mess and get things back on track as it concerns the lineage of Christ through the seed of David. 

Again, a reminder to us of the sovereignty of God, and still more cause for us to bow down and worship our Lord. He had this circumstance all along, and He has yours as well. Keep trusting. Keep obeying, and see what God will bring forth in your life!