Daily Bread for Jan 13, Gen 38-40
Look at the people in these closing chapters of
Genesis carefully. We're looking at the pillars of the Bible, the foundations
of our faith, the revered names and places we all know. We see them for exactly
who they are, ordinary people with typical struggles...just like you and me.
There's not a single individual in these passages that is a holy, sanctified,
super-spiritual man or woman of God. None of them get it right all the time.
Still, God is using them, refining them,
teaching them, loving them and moving them forward. Why? Certainly not because
they have earned His affection! But, because He is God and He will use every
day, flawed, struggling people to bring that plan to fruition.
We have hope, not because of who we are or what
we do, but because we have a God that can take our imperfections and make
something beautiful out of them, just as He's doing with Jacob.
Keep your eyes open. We're about to see that
God is gracious and loving (we've clearly seen that, so far)...but there is a
price to pay for disobedience.
Gen 38:1-2 make it clear that Jacob's sons are
beginning to slide further into doing the things they were told to avoid and
letting the native people have an ungodly influence on them. Judah takes a wife
from among the Canaanites. Marriage to a Canaanite woman has been forbidden up
to this point. Like Adam and Noah, Judah has three sons. The first two are
wicked. We’re not told much about the third.
Not having learned his lesson, Judah finds a
Canaanite wife (Tamar) for his first son, Er.
The events surrounding Judah and
Tamar occur in the small village of Chezib (Achzib)
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Things begin to deteriorate even more when Er
dies. Tamar goes to the second son, Onan. Onan dies, leaving Tamar without a
child and no prospective husband to father her children. The lineage of Judah
is threatened to come to an end. But, God has promised to make Jacob’s sons
into twelve mighty tribes. Is God's plan going askew?
Jacob’s only daughter-in-law, Tamar, conspires
to have Judah father twins by her (Gen 38:12-19). God uses Judah’s
exceptionally poor decisions and Tamar’s manipulation to preserve the bloodline
of Judah, except now it will include Canaanite blood. This development will
prove significant in the future and God’s plan to offer salvation to the Gentiles
beings to be made clear.
Notice that Judah's marriage outside his faith
is neither endorsed nor condemned by the author. Previous chapters have shown
that the practice is prohibited. Rather than looking at this incident as if
everything turned out OK, we should see the pain and grief that Judah’s poor
decisions have caused. Regardless of Judah's weakness and stumbling, God
redeems the situation and proves His faithfulness.
Meanwhile, in Gen 39, Joseph is prospering in Egypt, despite his brothers' evil intent
in selling him. Where Judah is weak and prone to disobedience, Joseph is a man
of integrity, refusing to have immoral relations with his master’s wife and
paying dearly (Gen 39:6-23).
God powerfully shows that
He can protect and prosper His children, even in the most trying circumstances.
In this instance, He does it by how He enables Joseph to interpret dreams while
he is in jail (Gen 40). Joseph is blessed and rewarded, but not yet removed
from prison.
What can we learn from Joseph’s incarceration?
God can demonstrate His sovereignty over any and all our situations but may not
necessarily remove us from them. He will, however, show us that He is with us
in those situations, patiently teaching us, leading us, enabling us and using
us for His glory.
As Joseph's story unfolds, we'll see that God
will use Joseph to remove Jacob and his backsliding sons from the evil
influence of the Canaanites.
We see God's grace once again in Judah's story
as He intervenes even when His children are unfaithful and weak. The Father
chastises them but continues to protect them and provide for them. Notice how
God is working in Joseph's life and the life of his family long before they can
see His hand moving. As we will see, God is laying the foundation for Jacob and
his clan’s move to Egypt!
It should make us wonder what foundations are
being built in our lives right now. What is God doing, behind the scenes in
each of our lives that will reveal His gracious provision and protection when
we need it most?
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