Transcript for Day 20: Judah and Tamar (2024)

Hi, I'm Father Mike Schmidt and you're listening to the Bible in the Your podcast or we encounter God's voice and live life through the lens of Scripture. The Bible in the Your podcast is brought to you by Ascension. Using the great adventure Bible timeline, we'll read all the way from Genesis to Revelation, discovering how the story of salvation unfolds and how we fit into that story today. This is day 20. So let's keep on going forward. On day 20, we're going to be reading from Genesis chapter 38, just one chapter today from Genesis 2 chapters from Joe, but that's Joe 29 and 30 and then Proverbs. Chapter 3, verses 28-32, as always, I'm reading from the revised standard version, the Catholic edition, and I'm using actually the great adventure Bible from a sentient. If you want to follow along in your own Bible, whether it's the great adventure Bible or whatever Bible you have around, you can download your Bible in a year reading plan by visiting ascensionpress.com, slash Bible in a year. Again, that's ascensionpress.com, slash Bible in a year. You can also hit subscribe and get these updates every single day. And you can also sign up for our email list by texting the word Catholic Bible to 33777. This is probably something you already have memorized. But I want to say it again because it's important to be reminded. You can text Catholic Bible to 3377 as I said today is Genesis chapter 38 start. Genesis chapter 38. It happened at that time that Judah went down from his brothers and turned into a certain Adulamite, whose name was Herah. Their Judah saw the daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua. He married her, and went into her, and she conceived in Boris' son, and he called his name Err. Again, she conceived in Boris' son, and she called his name Onan. Yet, again, she wore a son, and she called his name Shila. She was in Chizib when she bore him, and Judah took a wife for her, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar, but her, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord slew him. Then Judah said to Ownen, go into your brother's wife and perform the duty of a brother and law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother. But Onen knew that the offspring would not be his, so when he went into his brother's wife, he spilled the semen on the ground, left he should give offspring to his brother. And what he did was displeasing in the sight of the Lord, and he slew him also. Then Judas said to Tamar, his daughter-in-law, remain a widow in your father's house, till Sheila my son grows up. For he feared that he would die like his brothers, so Tamar went and dwelt in her father's house. In the course of time, the wife of Judah, she was daughter, died, And when Judah was comforted, he went up from Timna to his sheep shares. He and his friend Hirah, the Adulmite. And when Tamar was told, your father-in-law is going up to Timna to share his sheep. She put off her widow's garments and put on a veil, wrapping herself up and sat at the entrance to an aim, which is on the road to Timna. For she saw that Sheila was grown up, and she had not been given to him in marriage. When you'd have saw her, he thought her to be a harlot, for she had covered her face. He went over to her at the roadside and said, Come, let me come into you. For he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. She said, What will you give me that you may come into me?" He answered, I will send you a kid from the flock. And she said, Will you give me a pledge? Till you send it? He said, What pledge shall I give you? She replied, Your signet and your court and your staff that is in your hand. So he gave them to her and went into her and she conceived by him. Then she arose and went away and taking off her veil. She put on the garments of her widowhood. When Judas sent the kid by his friend, the adulamite, to receive the pledge from the woman's hand, he could not find her. And when he asked the men of the place, where's the harlot who was at aname by the wayside, they said, no harlot has been here. So he returned to Judah and said, I have not found her. And also the men of that place said, no harlot has been here. And you to reply, that or keep the things as her own, let's we be laughed at. You see, I sent this kid and you could not find her. About three months later, Judah was told, Tamar, your daughter-in-law, has played the Harlet and Morover, she is with child by Harletry. And Judah said, bring her out and let her be burned. As she was being brought out, she sent words to her father-in-law. By the man to whom these belong, I am with child. And she said, Mark, I beg you, whose these are the signet and the cord and the staff. Then Judah acknowledged them and said, she is more righteous than I, in as much as I did not give her to my son, Sheila. And he did not lie with her again. When the time of her delivery came, there were twins in her womb. And when she was in labor, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and bound on his hand, a scarlet thread saying, this came out first. But as he drew back his hand to behold, his brother came out, and she said, what a breach you have made for yourself. Therefore, his name was called Perez. Afterwards, his brother came out with the scarlet thread upon his hand. His name was called Zero. Job chapter 29 in 30. Job recalls past happiness. And Job again took up his discourse and said, O that I were as in the months of old, as in the days when God watched over me, when his lamp shone upon my head and by his light I walked through darkness as I was in my autumn days, when the friendship of God was upon me. When the Almighty was yet with me, when my children were about me. When my steps were washed with milk and the rock poured out from me streams of oil. When I went out to the gate of the city, when I prepared my seat in the square, the young man saw me and withdrew and the aged rose instead. The princes refrained from talking and laid their hands on their mouths, the voices of the noble were hushed, and their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth. When the ear heard, it called me blessed, and when the eyes saw, it approved, because I delivered the poor who cried, and the fatherless who had none to help him. The blessing of him, who was about to perish, came upon me, and I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy. I put on righteousness, and it clothed me. My justice was like a robe and a turban. I was eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame. I was a father to the poor, and I searched out the cause of him whom I did not know. I broke the fangs of the unrighteous, and made him drop his prey from his teeth. Then I thought, I shall die in my nest, and I shall multiply my days as the sand, my roots spread out to the waters, with the dew all night on my branches, my glory fresh with me, and my bow ever knew in my hand. men listened to me and waited, and kept silence for my counsel. After I spoke, they did not speak again, and my word dropped upon them, they waited for me as for the rain, and they opened their mouths as for the spring rain. I smiled on them when they had no confidence, and the light of my countenance they did not cast down. I chose their way, and sat as chief, and I dwelt like a king among his troops, like one who comforts mourners, But now, they make sport of me, men who are younger than I. Whose fathers I would have sustained to set with the dogs of my flock. What could I gain from the strength of their hands? Men whose vigor is gone. The want and heart hunger, they nod at the dry and desolate ground. They pick mollo, and the leaves of bushes, and to warm themselves the roots of the broom. The are driven out from among men. They shout after them as after the thief. In the gullies of the torrents, they must dwell in holes of the earth and of the rocks. Among the bushes they pray, under the nettles they huddled together, a senseless, distraputable brood. They have been whipped out of the land. And now I have become their song. I am a byward to them. They abhor me. They keep aloof from me. They do not hesitate to spit at the sight of me, because God has loosed my cord and humbled me. They have cast off restraint in my presence. On my right hand, the rabble rise. They drive me forth. They cast up against me their ways of destruction. They break up my path. They promote my calamity. No one restrains them. As little a wide breach they come amid the crash they roll on me. Terrorists are turned upon me. My honor is pursued as by the wind and my prosperity has passed away like a cloud. And now my soul is poured out within me. Days of affliction have taken hold of me, the night racks my bones, and the pain that nausees me takes no rest. With violence, it ceases my garment. It binds me about like the collar of my tunic. God has cast me into the mire, and I have become like dust in ashes. I cried to you and you do not answer me. I stand and you do not heed me. You have turned cruel to me. With the might of your hand you persecute me. You lift me up on the wind. You make me ride on it and you toss me about in the roar of the storm. Yes, I know that you will bring me to death and to the house appointed for all the living. Yet does not one in a heap of ruins stretch out his hand, and then is the saster cry for help. Did I not leap for him whose day was hard? Was not my soul grieved for the poor, but when I looked for good evil came, and when I waited for light, darkness came. My heart isn't turmoil and is never still days of affliction come to meet me. I go out blackened, but not by the sun. I stand up in the assembly and cry for help. I am a brother of jackals and a companion of ostriches. My skin turns black and falls from me and my bones burn with heat. My liar is turned to morning and my pipe to the voice of those who weep. Proverbs chapter 3 verses 28 through 32. Do not say to your neighbor, go and come again, tomorrow I will give it. When you have it with you. Do not plan evil against your neighbor who dwells trustingly beside you. Do not contend with a man for no reason when he has done you no harm. Do not envy a man of violence and do not choose any of his ways. For the perverse man is an abomination to the Lord. But the upright are in his confidence. Father and heaven, we give you praise and glory. Thank you so much for your word. Thank you for revealing your heart to us and revealing your will to us. We ask you, please meet us this morning. This afternoon, this evening, meet us at this moment because in this moment is where we find you and in this moment is where you find us. Help us to be found by you and help us to know your presence in this moment, in this circumstance, in this season of our lives. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. So once again in the book of Genesis we have a number, another story where keyword, brokenness, keyword, messiness, where you have Judah. Remember Judah is the fourth of the sons of Israel. Judah is name means praise. And so one of the great things about Judah is Not only that when Israel would go into battle, they'd say let the tribe of Judah go up first because Judah means praise. And so that sense of like when we face our day, and this is kind of a little, I think I learned from again our friend Jeff Kavins, we face our day to let Judah go up first. When we face the battles of life to let Judah go up first, which is to say let praise go up first. We're gonna get to that more as we continue to read through this sacred scripture. Today, of course, we heard a very disheartening story, such a broken story from Judah. And what happens is Judah has a couple of sons, the first son, Mary's is woman named Tamar, and he dies, and she's childless. So the second son is supposed to raise up a child for his brother, through his brother's widow, and he does not. This is one of the places in which we see a scriptural account for the connection between the sexual act And reproduction, basically, here is Onan, and he essentially separates the sexual act from the openness to life where he, as scripture says, spills his seed on the ground. And so it's the sin of Onanism, essentially, would be the sin. Whenever we separate the unitive aspect of the sexual act, from the pro-creative aspect of the sexual act, This is one of the places in Scripture that shows the connection between these because on and did this, he did something evil in the side of the Lord by separating the unitive act from the procured of act. He also did something evil in the side of the Lord since he was supposed to raise up a son for his deceased brother and his brother's widow. He doesn't, so Tamar, knowing that Judah is not going to follow through on his promise or his responsibility by giving the youngest son to Tamar to be her husband and raise up a child for her. Knowing that he's not doing this, Tamar takes matters into her own hands and dresses up like a harlot. Here's Judah, who stops by, and essentially has sexual relations with his sons widow. Again, brokenness, brokenness, and brokenness. Brokenness upon brokenness. Now, Judah does honor his pledges, essentially, because Tamar is able to prove that, yep, you did. You thought it was a harlot, and it was your daughter-in-law. Again, keywords, brokenness, messiness, and yet when we read the gospel of Matthew, when we read the genealogy of Jesus, one of the things that strikes us is that there are four women who are mentioned in the genealogy of our Lord and Savior Jesus. One woman is Bathsheba, who was the wife of your raya. But David had taken her as his own, so brokenness. One is Ruth, who is a foreigner. She was a Moabite, and yet she's part of the genealogy of Jesus. One is a woman named Rehab, who actually was a prostitute at Harlet. And the first woman mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus is this woman, Tamar, who is the mother of Perez and Zera. One of the things that this highlights is the fact that here is Jesus' own family tree that is marked by brokenness. Tamar, who played the prostitute and Judah, who was using at least in his mind, the prostitute, but instead his own daughter-in-law, Ray Habu was a harlot, Rufu was not even a child of Israel, and Pasiba, who was taken from her husband by King David in his sin. All of this sin in the line, in the family of Jesus. Highlights, one of the themes that we've been following for the last number of days, and that is that God can write straight with crooked lines. That God can do incredible things when he is the Lord of our lives. That God can actually bring about a phenomenally greater good, even when we choose evil. What a gift for us to know this. It's not a good thing. It's not a beautiful thing, but God can make something beautiful out of what's broken. That's an encouraging word for us today, and that's encouraging word for us every single day, particularly when we recognize our brokenness. God can take something broken and make it something beautiful, because nothing given to God is ever wasted. My friends, my name is Father Mike, and I am so grateful to be able to travel with you through the sacred scripture through our Lord's words revealed to us. The words of God in the words of manuscript, as the second Vatican Council described Holy Scriptures, please pray for each other. We are not on this journey alone. We are not broken alone. We are not being made beautiful alone, but we are broken together. we are being made beautiful together and we need each other so please continue to lift each other up in prayer as I lift you up in prayer and I hope that you're lifting me up in prayer. This is the Bible in your podcast and I cannot wait to see you again tomorrow. God bless.