God’s power is displayed by redeeming human failure and not avoiding it

Tamar bears a child by Judah

Judah’s firstborn son, Er, married Tamar, but because of his wickedness, the Lord put him to death. According to the levirate custom, Judah’s second son Onan was required to raise offspring for his deceased brother. However, Onan deliberately refused to fulfill this duty, exploiting Tamar for sexual gratification while preventing conception. Because of this selfish and immoral act, God also put Onan to death. Judah then promised Tamar his youngest son, Shelah, but out of fear and selfishness, he failed to keep his word, leaving Tamar unjustly childless and socially vulnerable.

When Judah saw her, he thought she was a harlot, because she had covered her face. 16 Then he turned to her by the way, and said, “Please let me come in to you”; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. .. (Genesis 38:15-16).

In response to this injustice, Tamar acted strategically by disguising herself, and Judah, unaware of her identity, slept with her, thinking she was a prostitute. When Tamar became pregnant, Judah initially condemned her, but upon discovering that he himself was responsible, he acknowledged, Tamar was more righteous than himself. This confession highlights Judah’s moral failure and Tamar’s pursuit of justice within a broken system.

 

The Scripture does not say that God caused Judah’s sin or directly willed the immoral act. Rather, the passage shows that God sovereignly worked through human sin and failure to accomplish His redemptive purposes. Tamar gave birth to Perez, through whom the royal line of David, and ultimately Jesus Christ would come [Matthew 1:3]. Thus, Genesis 38 teaches that while God never endorses sin, He remains sovereign and able to bring redemption even out of human wrongdoing, using flawed people to fulfill His covenant promises. God does not cause sin, but He overrules it for redemption. However, human responsibility remains, even when God’s purposes prevail.  

 

Tamar is vindicated, and Judah is reproved

When the widowed and unmarried Tamar became pregnant, society immediately assumed sexual immorality, since no lawful husband had been given to her. About three months later, Judah was informed, without investigation or mercy, Judah pronounced a harsh judgment, ordering that she be brought out and burned. Judah’s reaction revealed his hypocrisy and moral blindness. He showed no compassion for Tamar, who had been widowed twice and denied justice when Judah failed to give her his son Shelah as promised. While condemning Tamar, Judah did not reflect on his own sexual sin or his responsibility in creating the unjust situation she endured.

And it came to pass, about three months after, that Judah was told, saying, “Tamar your daughter-in-law has played the harlot; furthermore she is with child by harlotry.” So Judah said, “Bring her out and let her be burned!” (Genesis 38:24).

When the truth was revealed, Judah was forced to confront his failure. He acknowledged, that Tamar was more righteous as compared to him. This moment marks Judah’s recognition that the real fault lay not with Tamar, but with himself, for neglecting righteousness, justice, and his duty toward her.

 

Tamar gives birth to twins, Perez and Zerah

God sovereignly took the son born out of this deeply flawed and ungodly situation and placed him directly in the family line of the Messiah [Matthew 1:3; Luke 3:33]. During Tamar’s delivery, an unusual event occurred: one twin, Zerah, first extended his hand, and a scarlet thread was tied around his wrist to mark him as the firstborn. Yet he withdrew his hand, and his brother unexpectedly emerged first, and the child was named Perez, meaning “breach” or “breaking through”.  

Then it happened, as he drew back his hand, that his brother came out unexpectedly; and she said, “How did you break through? This breach be upon you!” Therefore his name was called Perez. 30 Afterward his brother came out who had the scarlet thread on his hand. And his name was called Zerah (Genesis 38:29-30).

This reversal of birth order is significant. Though Zerah appeared to be the firstborn by human expectation and visible sign, God chose Perez to carry the covenant line. Perez, not Zerah, became the ancestor of King David and ultimately Jesus Christ. This mysterious reversal echoes a recurring biblical theme: God’s purposes are not governed by human customs, symbols, or merit, but by His sovereign grace.

 

God chose flawed people like David, Rahab, and Tamar to be in the lineage of Jesus Christ to reveal the heart of the gospel itself that salvation is by grace, not by human merit, and that God’s redemptive plan works through broken humanity, not apart from it. Jesus did not come from a line of moral perfection but from a line of real sinners. Their inclusion in the lineage of Jesus is intentional and purposeful to teach us that no one earns a place in God’s plan. As Paul later explains, It is by grace we have been saved, through faith, and not by works [Ephesians 2:8–9].

 

 

God’s power is displayed not by avoiding human failure, but by redeeming it. He does not excuse sin, but He transforms sinners. David repented and was restored [Psalm 51], Rahab believed and acted in faith [Hebrews 11:31], and Tamar pursued justice within a corrupt system and was vindicated [Genesis 38:26]. Their stories testify that repentance and faith open the door to redemption.

 

Human sin could not derail God’s covenant. Even when people failed morally, God’s redemptive plan moved forward.

Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more (Romans 5:20).

The Messiah’s lineage proclaims that God’s purposes triumph over human weakness. By including sinners in Jesus’ genealogy [Matthew 1], God strips humanity of any claim to moral superiority. The Savior came for sinners, not the self-righteous [Luke 5:32]. This lineage humbles the proud and gives hope to the broken. To show that Jesus fully entered human brokenness. Christ did not descend from a sanitized lineage, He entered the full reality of fallen humanity. This affirms that Jesus came to redeem real lives, real histories, and real wounds.

 

Moreover, God uses the unlikely, Rahab was a Gentile woman. Tamar was marginalized. David was the youngest son. God delights in overturning human expectations so that His glory, not human achievement, stands out [1 Corinthians 1:27–29]. Judah and Tamar were not chosen because of their righteousness or moral perfection. Rather, God included them despite their failures, demonstrating that redemption flows from grace, not works. The scarlet thread on Zerah’s wrist, though not carrying the lineage, symbolically reminds readers that human markings do not determine divine election. God alone appoints whom He wills, often overturning expectations to display His mercy and sovereignty.

George G. Ruheni, PhD.