The goodness and severity of God. These occurrences in the family of Judah would seem Judah is a wanderer from his brethren; a sensual, self-willed, degenerate man; yet it is in the line of this same wanderer that the promised seed shall appear. The whole is a lesson on the evil of separation from the people of God . Luther asks why such things were placed in Scripture, and answers, read more
Judah's sin with Tamar. I. COMMITTED . 1. Suddenly . It was occasioned by the sight of a supposed courtesan. Much evil enters by the eye (cf. 2 Samuel 11:2 ). Great need for the prayer of David ( Psalms 119:37 ). 2. Openly . Judah was in the company of Hirah, his friend, when he beheld Tamar sitting in the gate of Enajim, and, without attempting to hide it from his friend, went to seek her society. Shamelessness in sin betokens great depravity. 3. Willfully . ... read more
When (literally, and) Judah saw her, he (literally, and he) thought her to be an harlot ;—literally, thought her ( i.e. took her for) an harlot, like λογίζεσθαι τινα de r& (cf. 1 Samuel 1:13 ; Job 13:24 ), or to זוֹנָה (fem. part. of זָנַה , commit fornication); vide Genesis 34:31 — because she had covered her face —more meretricis . read more
And he turned unto her by the way, and said, Go to, I pray thee, let me come in unto thee ; ( for he knew not that she was his daughter-in-law ). Though willing to commit adultery or fornication, Judah would have shrank from the sin of incest. And she said, What wilt thou give me, that thou mayest come in unto me? The conduct of Tamer, though in every way reprehensible, is not to be attributed to mere lust, or inordinate desire for offspring, if not from the son Shelah, then from the... read more
And he said, I will send thee a kid from the flock —literally, a kid of the goats ( Genesis 38:20 ; cf. 15:1 ). And she said, Wilt thou give me a pledge, till thou send it? —literally, if thou wilt give me a pledge until thy sending (sc. then I consent to thy proposal). read more
.— And he said, What pledge shall I give thee? And she said, Thy signet,— the chotham, or signet, was either worn on the finger, δακτυλίον ( LXX .) or suspended round the neck by a pithil , or silk string. Its impression was a sign of property and a means of security (cf. Matthew 27:66 ; John 3:33 ; Ephesians 1:13 , &c.;). Among the ancient Babylonians it was customary for every one to wear such a ring (Herod; 1.195); and modern Arabians in towns wear a seal-ring on the... read more
And she arose, and went away, and laid by her vail from her, and put on the garments of her widowhood . read more
- The Family of Judah1. עדלם ‛ǎdûllâm, ‘Adullam, “righteousness.” חירה chı̂yrâh Chirah, “nobility?”2. שׁוּע shûa‛, Shua‘, “luck, riches, cry.”3. ער ‛êr, ‘Er, “watching.”4. אונן 'ônân, Onan, “strong.”5. שׁלה shēlâh, Shelah, “request? rest.” כזיב kezı̂yb Kezib, “falsehood.”6. תמר tāmār, Tamar, “palm.”12. תמנה tı̂mnâh, Timnah, “counted or assigned.”14. עינים 'êynayı̂m, ‘Enaim, “two fountains.”29. פרץ perets, Perets, “breach.”This strange narrative is an episode in the history of... read more
Genesis 38:17-21 . A kid from the flock A goodly price at which her chastity and honour were valued! Had the consideration been a thousand rams, and ten thousands of rivers of oil, it had not been a valuable consideration. The favour of God, the purity of the soul, the peace of the conscience, and the hope of heaven, are too precious to be exposed to sale at any such rates. It is a good account, if it be but true, of any place, that which they here gave, that there is no harlot in this... read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 38:1-30
The house of Judah: a family record of sin and shame. I. THE WICKEDNESS OF ER AND ONAN . 1. Early . On any hypothesis Er and Onan can have been little more than boys when they were married, and yet they appear to have arrived at a remarkable precocity in sin. Nor was it simply that they had shed the innocence and purity of youth, but they had also acquired a shameful proficiency in vice. Young scholars are mostly apt learners, especially in the devil's school. 2.... read more