Episode 10: Judah & Tamar: Part I

Biblical Times Podcast

Genesis Chapter 38

Tamar was about 11 years old when she married Er, Judah's firstborn son. Shortly after their marriage, God put Er to death. As required by the levirate marriage law, Judah married her to Onan, his second son, whom God also put to death. According to this law, Judah was supposed to marry her to Shelah, his third son, when he reached marriageable age.

During the years Tamar waited for Shelah, she was considered a married woman. Therefore, if she had sexual relations with another man, she would have been considered an adulteress and would have been executed.

However, when Shelah reached marriageable age, Judah decided not to marry Tamar to him, nor to release his ownership of her - and in doing so, he turned Tamar into an "anchor wife".

When Tamar realized she had no way out, she deliberately violated one of the most severe incest prohibitions in the book of Leviticus. She seduced Judah to sleep with her, and to become pregnant by him - and so it was.

As required by the terrible crime she committed, Judah intended to have her executed by burning. However, at the last minute, just before she was thrown into the fire, Judah admitted her righteousness - and Judah's confession, which represents the Bible's stance, sets a supreme moral standard!

The story of Judah and Tamar raises a long series of social, moral, legal, and theological questions, that we will deal with in this series.

In the first two episodes (10-11) of the series, we will focus on the social and legal questions that arise from their story. In the third episode, we will focus on the theological aspect of the story.

The first two episodes deal with the legal status of a woman whose husband passed away before they had children.

We will address the question of why the widow remained in the custody of her deceased husband's family, and what levirate marriage is, which obligated Judah to marry Tamar to his second son, and after his death, to marry her to his third son.

In the eyes of someone living in the modern society of the 21st century, this is a strange, arbitrary, and inconceivable law. However, the levirate marriage law is an ancient progressive law, designed to benefit the deceased, his family - and above all, his widow.

The question of what an "anchor wife" is, will also occupy us. According to the Bible, the fact that Judah anchored Tamar justifies the horrific incest she committed when she became pregnant by him. Indeed, instead of being punished, Tamar received a great reward for the terrible crime she committed!

We must not forget that the Bible is a theological book that reflects God's will for the Israelites. The fact that the Bible stands by Tamar's side sets a supreme moral standard, which determines that where the law conflicts with a woman's right to live - the woman's right prevails!

The third episode of the series (12) focuses on the theological aspect of the story.

Seemingly, Judah and Tamar were two simple people who lived almost 4,000 years ago. Yet, the truth is that they belonged to an ancient distinguished, and noble lineage, the lineage of David's fathers and mothers, which God chose on the sixth day of creation.

From a theological perspective, Tamar and Judah were supposed to marry each other and give birth to Perez, who was the next link in this distinguished lineage.

However, God's plans are hidden, yet they always come true. And Judah, who did not know that Tamar was destined to be his wife, innocently married her to his firstborn son - and therefore God put him to death. And when he married her to his second son, God also put him to death. And if he had married her to his third son, God would have put him to death as well!

In the third episode we show that in order to fulfill her destiny, Tamar had no choice but to violate the incest prohibitions and become pregnant by Judah - and that is exactly what happened.