Christians can be uptight about sin and brokenness. We can be quick to judge others who mess up, but we do not like to talk about our own messes. When we read the Bible from cover to cover, we can see that God is not nearly as upset about sin and brokenness as people tend to be. The Lord has recorded many true stories about broken sinners whom He uses for His purposes. An example of this is found in Genesis 38.
The main characters in this true story include Judah, one of the sons of Jacob, and his daugther-in-law Tamar. Judah did not follow God’s design when he intermarried with one of the accursed Canaanite women named Shua and fathered three sons (38:1-5; cf. 23-4; 27:46-28:2). Judah gave a young Canaanite woman named Tamar to be the wife of his firstborn son, Er (38:6). But Er “was wicked in the sight of the Lord,” so “the Lord killed him” (38:7).
In accordance with the Levirate marriage customs (the marriage of a man to his deceased brother’s wife to provide his brother with an heir), Judah instructed his second born son, Onan, to marry Tamar to “raise up an heir” for Er (38:8). But Onan was a selfish man who wanted his deceased brother’s inheritance for himself, so he refused to father a child through Tamar (38:9). Because of his disobedience, Onan was “killed” by the Lord because descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were an important part of God’s plans (38:10; cf. 12:7; 13:15-16; 17:7-10; 26:3-4; 28:13-14).
Judah wrongfully forced Tamar to live as a “widow” as he blamed her for the deaths of his two sons (38:11). When Tamar was informed that Judah was going up to his sheepshearers at Timnah after his Canaanite wife died, she masqueraded as a prostitute there and tricked Judah into giving her his seal and staff in exchange for having sex with her (38:12-18). When Judah learned that Tamar was pregnant, he quickly judged her and said, “Bring her out and let her be burned” (38:24b)! Like many Christians, Judah was eager to focus on the sins of others, rather than deal with his own sin.
But to his credit, when Judah learned that he was the one responsible for Tamar’s pregnancy, he humbly repented and said, “She has been more righteous than I, because I did not give her to Shelah my son” (38:26a). An evidence of his genuine repentance was that “he never knew her (sexually) again” (38:26b).
When we hear a story like this, we may be repulsed that Judah and Tamar would do such wicked things! “Such abhorrent acts should never be found among God’s people!” we may say to ourselves. We may even tell ourselves, “I would never consider doing such things!” Christians can show very little mercy or compassion to broken sinners like Judah and Tamar. They may conclude that such people are not deserving of God’s mercy and grace or that God could never use such wicked people like that.
If that is what you are thinking, then you especially need to hear the rest of this story. Tamar gave birth to twins and the firstborn, Perez, became the ancestor of King David and Jesus the Messiah (38:28-30; cf. Ruth 4:18-22; Matthew 1:3, 16). Did Tamar deserve to be a part of the Messianic lineage? Not at all. But there is more.
Later in the book of Revelation Jesus Christ is referred to as “the Lion of the tribe of Judah” who alone is worthy to open the scroll and break the seven seals containing judgments (Revelation 5:5). Did Judah deserve to have his name in a title for the coming King of kings and Lord of lords? Of course not. None of us do. But God’s grace makes these aforementioned privileges possible for both Tamar and Judah.
God did not let Judah’s selfishness and promiscuity nor Tamar’s deception and incest keep Him from bringing the Messiah into the world through Jacob’s lineage. Nor does God’s grace let our sin and brokenness keep Him from using us for His eternal purposes. It is humbling to realize that God’s grace still uses imperfect sinners like you and me to bring His Son to others through the preaching of the gospel. God takes undeserving people and uses them greatly for His glory! That is grace!!!
Prayer: Father God, forgive me for being quick to judge the sins of others while I struggle with my own sin every day. Thank You for recording the story of Judah and Tamar to remind me that Your grace uses undeserving people like me to accomplish Your eternal purposes. Help me to show Your grace to someone today whose sin and shame has led them to think that You could never love them or use them. In Jesus’ name. Amen.