Genesis 38

Father God, we thank you for this is the day that You have made and we shall be glad and rejoice in it in the name of Jesus. May Your name forever be magnified in all of the ends of the earth and in all of our lives in the name of Jesus, Amen. Glory to God.

I believe the book of Genesis is one of the books in the Bible that accurately depicts the grace of God. God did not base His love on the actions of His people but rather He based it on who He is. 1 John 4:8 reminds us that God is love. Love is not just something He does whenever He feels like expressing it, it is constantly and consistently who He is.

In the New Testament, God's love is amplified through His Son, Christ who invites us to eternal life through salvation. Yes, we are saved by God's grace (Ephesians 2:8) and God is love which is an undisputable truth. However, a child of God who chooses to walk in sin and disobedience will experience an inferior quality of life that is devoid of God's power and joy which are all contrary to the plans and purposes He prepared for them.

This chapter is about the lineage of Judah, Jacob's fourth son through Leah. If you recall, Judah was the son that Leah gave conceived out of praise and her reverence for God as opposed to the other children she conceived in hope that Jacob would love her more than her sister, Rachel (Genesis 29:35).

When Judah departed from his brothers, he married a Canaanite woman, Shuah, (Genesis 38:1-2 NKJV) and they had three sons together. Judah married off his first born to a Caananite woman called Tamar. Unfortunately, her husband, Er, died because he did wickedly before the LORD's eyes (Genesis 38:7 NKJV). Judah proceeds to hand over his second born, Onan, to Tamar in marriage who also died because he did wickedly before the LORD (Genesis 38:9-10). Back then it was important that the deceased first born son leaves an heir behind through his brother that is still alive at the time.

So Judah promises Tamar to give off his last born in marriage to her but when the boy was old enough to be married, his father never kept his promise.

As time passed by, Judah's wife passed away (Genesis 38:12 NKJV). When Tamar heard of this, she decided to act as a harlot and slept with her father-in-law unknown to Judah who was at the time seeking comfort after the death of his wife. As a means of compensation to Tamar who was disguised as the harlot, Judah had provided his signet ring, cord and staff as a pledge that he would keep this promise (Genesis 38:15-18 NKJV). Clearly, Tamar had known Judah to not keep his word so she needed some sort of evidence which worked to her advantage.

When Judah got around to fulfilling his pledge by sending a young goat, it so happened that no one knew of a harlot in that area (Genesis 38:20-21 NKJV). At the same time, it was reported to him that his daughter-in-law was a harlot as she was pregnant without a husband. So Judah said, "Bring her out and let her be burned!" (Genesis 38:24 NKJV). Thankfully, for Tamar she still had kept the items that Judah had offered as a pledge. Genesis 38:26 NKJV tells us, "So Judah acknowledged them and said, "She has been more righteous than I, because I did not give her to Shelah my son." And he never knew her again." Shelah was Judah's last born that he was meant to give to Tamar when he was of age but he did not want his son to marry Tamar (Genesis 38:11).

Eventually, Tamar gives birth to twin boys, Perez and Zerah, by Judah himself! I find Tamar's story happens to be a story of redemption not only for herself but also for future generations as her first born son, Perez, was a part of the ancestral lineage of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:3 and Luke 3:33).

The twin boys I believe were a part of Judah's redemption as well for he had previously lost his wife and two of his children. It is interesting that Judah desired so much for his first born son to have an heir but God in His infinite wisdom desired an heir from Judah's linenage - for His glory! Revelation 5:5 refers to Jesus Christ as the Lion of the tribe of Judah.

May I submit to you that the story of Judah and Tamar just like some of the stories we have been looking at in the book of Genesis, portray that sometimes what is considered good in the eyes of man may not always align with God's best as His wisdom and His ways are better than our ways. This is because our natural human understanding is limited in nature. Isaiah 55:8-9 NKJV is a reminder, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, says the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

On the other hand, what may appear as a disgraceful situation could ultimately be aligning with God's good plans and purposes for your life and for His glory. This is the reason it is always important to seek God's discernment and understanding in all things before making any final conclusions on a matter.

I'll end with this Word found in Ephesians 2:8-10 (NKJV)

"8.For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

9.not of works, lest anyone should boast.

10.For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before hand that we should walk in them."

AMEN. Thank you LORD.

Invitation to salvation: I invite you to make this confession that invites you to new covenant of love that is found in the precious blood of Jesus Christ where we get to have a personal relationship with God, the Father and are kept safe in all of His blessings for His children:

"I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that; Jesus Christ, the Son of God came in a human body to die for my sins so that I could have a new life where I am dead to sin and alive to God. I repent of my past sins and enter the Kingdom of light where I choose relationship with Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour and with God as my loving Father today and forever." AMEN.

Congratulations, by grace you are saved and are now a new creation in Christ Jesus. The old life has passed away and you have received the free gift of salvation into your life (2 Corinthians 5:17) where you get to freely access everything I've shared in this post. To the glory of the Almighty God. Amen.

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PS: In case you have not already, please remember to read Genesis 38 alongside this post in your personal devotional time and share your thoughts in the comments below!