Genesis 38 Summary - 5 Minute Bible Study

Genesis 38

WHEN:

• Genesis 38:1 begins with the phrase “It happened at that time…”

• It appears the events of chapter 38 happened around the time Joseph was sold into slavery (chapter 37).

• Joseph was sold into slavery in Egypt around 1728 B.C.

CHARACTERS:

• Judah – Jacob’s fourth son with Leah.

• Judah’s Sons – Judah had three sons with a Canaanite woman. Their names were Er, Onan, and Shelah.

• Tamar – She was Judah’s daughter-in-law, originally married to his son Er.

WHERE:

• Judah lived in Chezib when his third son was born.

• Judah went to Timnah to sheer his sheep.

OUTLINE:

• JUDAH’S SONS AND TAMAR’S DILEMMA (38:1-11):

  • Judah, one of Jacob’s sons, married a Canaanite woman and she bore three sons with him (Er, Onan, and Shelah).

  • Judah found a woman named Tamar to be Er’s wife.

  • Er was “wicked in the sight of the LORD” and God killed him.

  • Judah told his middle child, Onan, to fulfill his role as a brother-in-law and have children with Tamar so his brother’s family line could continue.

  • But Onan, whenever he slept with Tamar, spilled his semen on the ground because he knew the offspring would be considered sons of his brother rather than his own.

  • God killed Onan because he did not fulfill his duty to his deceased brother and his wife.

  • Jacob told Tamar to remain a widow until his youngest son, Shelah, grew up.

• TAMAR TRICKS JUDAH (38:12-23):

  • In the course of time, Judah’s wife died and Shelah grew up, but Judah did not give him to Tamar as he had promised.

  • When Tamar learned Judah was going to Timnah to shear sheep, she disguised herself as a prostitute and waited along the road.

  • When Judah came by, he hired her, and gave her his signet, a cord, and his staff as collateral until he could send her a goat from his flock.

  • Judah slept with Tamar and she became pregnant.

  • He did not discover the “prostitute” was his daughter-in-law.

• TAMAR’S PREGANCY IS DISCOVERED AND JUDAH IS SHAMED (38:24-30):

  • Three months later, when Jacob was at home, it was discovered that Tamar was pregnant.

  • Jacob assumed she had been immoral and had slept with another man. He told his family, “Bring her out, and let her be burned.”

  • But Tamar revealed she was pregnant by Judah when she produced his signet, his cord, and his staff.

  • Judah admitted, “She is more righteous than I, since I did not give her to my son Shelah.”

  • Tamar gave birth to twin boys and named them Perez and Zerah.

APPLICATION:

• Don’t be a person who is quick to point out other people’s sins without addressing your own.

• Judah was quick to demand a punishment for the sin he assumed Tamar committed, but he failed to address his own sin of withholding his son from her.

• It is usually easier to see other people’s shortcomings than to see our own, but we need to be conscious of our own weaknesses if we want to avoid playing the hypocrite like Judah.