Genesis 38:1-11

Levirite marriage (the marriage of a man to his deceased brother’s wife to provide his brother with an heir) was a common custom in the ancient Near East at this time (Genesis 38:8-10). [Note: de Vaux, pp. 37-38. See Mathews, Genesis 11:27-50:26, pp. 705-10, for an excursus on levirate marrage.] It was common also in Asia, Africa, and other areas, but it evidently originated in Mesopotamia. The Mosaic Law did not abolish it but restricted it in Israel to preserve the sanctity of marriage (cf. Deuteronomy 25:5-10).

"The enormity of Onan’s sin is in its studied outrage against the family, against his brother’s widow and against his own body. The standard English versions fail to make clear that this was his persistent practice. When (9) should be translated ’whenever.’" [Note: Kidner, p. 188.]

Onan’s refusal to give Tamar a child not only demonstrated a lack of love for his deceased brother. It also revealed Onan’s selfish heart that wanted for himself what would have gone to his elder brother’s heir. If Tamar had borne him a son, that child would have been the perpetuator of Er’s name as well as that of Onan (cf. Ruth 4:5; Ruth 4:21-22). God judged Onan’s sin severely because descendants were important in His plans for the Israelite patriarchs. Onan was frustrating the fulfillment of God’s promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (cf. Genesis 11:4). This is the first text that states explicitly that God put someone to death.

Judah sinned against Tamar by forcing her to live as a widow (Genesis 38:11). He wrongly blamed Tamar for the death of his sons (cf. Genesis 38:26) rather than blaming his sons. Tamar had every right to children. Moreover as a member of the chosen family, Judah should have made certain that she had another legitimate opportunity to bear children.

Judah comes across at the beginning of this incident again as a hard and callous man. He had previously suggested selling Joseph into slavery to make money from him and deceiving Jacob despite Reuben’s protests (Genesis 37:26-27; Genesis 37:29-30). Now the writer portrayed him as showing no grief over the deaths of his sons, in contrast to Jacob who mourned inconsolably over Joseph’s apparent death (Genesis 37:34-35). Judah also ordered the burning of his daughter-in-law (Genesis 38:24).