BIBLE WOMEN - Marriage and childbirth              BIBLE WOMEN: TAMAR - Fighting for justice

          
            TAMAR

FAMOUS PAINTINGS
OF TAMAR AND JUDAH

WOMAN DEMANDS HER RIGHTS

  PEOPLE IN THE STORY

  FAMOUS QUOTES

  BIBLE REFERENCE

  INTERESTING WEBSITES

  BOOK EXTRACTS

  ACTIVITIES/QUESTIONS

TAMAR'S HUSBAND SPILLS HIS SEED
Tamar was a young Jewish woman who married into the family of Judah, son of Jacob and Leah. Judah was, by and large, a good man: he had defended his young brother Joseph when all his other brothers had wanted to kill Joseph - he persuaded them to sell Joseph to passing traders instead of killing him.

Tamar had married Er, the eldest son, and she hoped for children - this was a Jewish woman's greatest wish. But her husband practised a form of birth control, spilling his seed, and Tamar did not conceive. Er died, and Tamar was left childless.

Tamar resorted to the Levirate Law, as expressed in Deuteronomy 25:5-10. If a man died childless, his widow could demand sexual intercourse with the dead man's brother until she bore a son who would inherit the property that would have gone to the dead man, had he lived.

HER SECOND HUSBAND DOES THE SAME
Er's younger brother Onan agreed to have sexual intercourse with Tamar, but he practised the same form of birth control as Er, and Tamar did not conceive - 'onanism' has now become the technical term for uncompleted coition and masturbation.

Tamar had the right to ask to have sexual intercourse with the third son Shelah, when he was old enough, but time passed and this did not happen. Judah, it seemed, had began to look on Tamar as a jinx,  responsible in some way for the death of his two sons. 

TAMAR SOLICITS AS A PROSTITUTE
So Tamar began to look for other ways to get what was rightfully hers. She knew that Judah used the services of prostitutes, so she disguised herself as one of them - they wore face-coverings that hid their identity. Judah would not know it was his own daughter-in-law who approached him. Then she waited for him at the side of the road and solicited him when he passed. Only recently widowed, Judah was happy to comply.

'She knew that Judah used the services of prostitutes, so she disguised herself as one of them. Then she waited for him at the side of the road and solicited him when he passed.'

____________________________________

But when it came time to pay, Judah did not have any money. He offered instead to send her a goat from his flock. In the meantime he left his tribal leader's staff and his personal seal and cord as a pledge. The seal, cord and staff had a person's emblem carved on them, and were items of great personal worth. 

Later when Judah’s friend came to make payment to the unknown prostitute and reclaim Judah’s seal, the woman was nowhere to be found. Tamar had gone home, without telling anyone who she was. But she had become pregnant, and achieved her aim. 

TAMAR CONDEMNED TO DEATH
Some months later when it became obvious she was pregnant Tamar was branded as a whore, and condemned by the unsuspecting Judah to burn to death.

At this dramatic moment Tamar produced the staff, seal and cord. These, she said, had belonged to the father of her child. Confronted by the evidence, Judah had little choice but to acknowledge that he had been wrong, and that she had been within the law.

A HAPPY ENDING
In time, Tamar gave birth to not one but two twin boys, whom she named Perez and Zerah. Through Perez she became the direct forebear of King David. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

BIBLE REFERENCE
Genesis 38

PEOPLE IN THE STORY
Tamar: a young woman who married first Er and then Onan, but who remained childless
Judah: son of Jacob and Leah, and head of his clan
Er and Onan: the two sons of Jacob who refused to give Tamar a child
Shelah: Judah's youngest son who should have been married to Tamar, but was not

FAMOUS QUOTES
'But Er was wicked in the sight of the Lord....' Genesis 38:7
'She is more in the right than I am.' 38:26

INTERESTING SITES - stories, pictures, reconstructions                         

A story of one woman's fight for justice
BIBLE WOMEN: TAMAR 

Choosing a husband, and marrying him
BIBLE WOMEN: MAJOR EVENTS 

The sort of work that Tamar would have done - second section of web page
BIBLE ARCHAEOLOGY: WORK 

The sexually charged moment when Tamar met Judah - famous paintings of the scene
BIBLE ART: TAMAR

Excavated city gates at Dan - a different city, but similar to the ones in Tamar's story
BIBLE ARCHAEOLOGY: CITIES

Marriage and childbirth in ancient Israel
WOMEN IN THE BIBLE: MAJOR EVENTS

_____________________________________________________________________________

BOOK EXTRACTS

'Eventually, news of Tamar's pregnancy reaches Judah, who fiercely sentences her to death for disregarding her betrothal vow. Infidelity during betrothal counted as adultery, and therefore merited the death penalty (Deuteronomy 22:13-21, 23-24). Under Old Testament law, if Tamar was culpable, so was her partner. Consequently, if he but realized it, Judah in sentencing her to death has also condemned himself to the same fate. At the last moment Tamar makes her point, proving that Judas was indeed the father of the child. Judah admits his guilt, "She is in the right, not I" (38:26). She is innocent, he admits, because I forced her to take this action by refusing to give my son Shelah to her in marriage. She, unlike me, was concerned to perpetuate the family line, to produce descendants for Abraham.'
'Word biblical Commentary: Genesis 16-50', Gordon Wenham, p370.

________________________________________________________________________

ACTIVITIES  AND FOCUS QUESTIONS

Seeking Justice  
 Have you ever been in a situation where you were unjustly treated? Describe this event, first by writing a personal journal-entry, then by talking to a study partner.

In the journal entry, describe the event and your reaction to it. What happened, and how did you feel about it?  
Describe the event to your learning partner, then discuss ways you might have dealt with the unjust treatment you received.

In depth study of one person's story
Choose one of the people whose stories are told on this site and develop a PowerPoint presentation about them.
The presentation must be at least 10 slides long and should include 
 *  a supporting image/picture/painting of each person 
 *  a map of Israel showing the cities and areas where the story took place.  
You may call up other websites to support your ideas.

In your presentation (approximately 10 minutes), answer the following questions:

1. What are the main events of the person's life? Tell the story.

2. What were their main qualities? What made them stand out from the crowd?

3. What obstacles did they face? Did they overcome them, or go with the flow? Explain.

4. How did they use their abilities to do God’s work?  

5. Which part of their story appeals to you most? Why?

You must include three short quotations from the Bible texts to illustrate the points you are making. 

Researching ancient laws  
The biblical law ‘an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth’ was in fact an attempt to limit revenge killings, and stop the blood feuds that were common in the ancient world. Use a search engine to learn about laws in the ancient world, particularly the laws of Hammurabi. How do these ancient laws contrast with laws in the modern world?

Focus Questions
1. What are the most interesting moments in Tamar's story? 
2. In the story, who speaks and who listens? Who acts? Who gets what they want? If you were in the story, which person would you want to be friends with? Which person would you want to avoid?
3. What is God's interaction with the main characters? What does this tell you about the narrator's image of God? Do you agree with this image?
4. What is happening on either side of the story, in the chapters before and after it? Does this help you understand what is happening?
5. The narrator/editor has chosen to tell some things and leave other things out. What has been left out of the story that you would like to know?
6. Are the characteristics and actions of the people in the story still present in the world? How is the story relevant to modern life, especially your own? 

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Bible Stories: People of the Old Testament - Bible Study Resource: Tamar and Judah