Genesis 38.1-Judah Departs From His Brothers At Dothan and Meets Hirah
Thursday November 9, 2006
Genesis: Genesis 38:1-Judah Departs from His Brothers at Dothan and Meets an Adullamite Named Hirah
Lesson # 236
Please turn in your Bibles to Genesis 38:1.
This evening we will begin a study of Genesis 38, which is divided into two segments: (1) Genesis 38:1-11 records that Judah marries the daughter of a prominent Canaanite named Shua who bears him three sons, Er, Onan and Shelah. (2) Genesis 38:12-30 records that Judah unknowingly has sex with his daughter-in-law Tamar, who bears him twins, Perez and Zerah.
Genesis 38:1-11 can also can be divided into two sections: (1) Genesis 38:1-5 records Judah marries the daughter of the Canaanite Shua and fathers three sons. (2) Genesis 38:6-11 records the arranged marriages of Judah’s three sons to Tamar.
Judah’s marriage to a Canaanite woman disregards the divine curse upon the Canaanites that is recorded in the prophecy of Noah that appears in Genesis 9:24-27.
Genesis 9:25, “So he said, ‘Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants He shall be to his brothers.’”
The fact that the patriarchs were prohibited from marrying Canaanites is indicated in that Abraham prohibited Eliezer his servant from getting Isaac his son a Canaanite woman (Genesis 24:3) and Isaac issued the same prohibition to Jacob (See Genesis 28:1).
In fact, Esau’s Hittite wives who were also Canaanites brought grief to his parents, Isaac and Rebekah because their godless lifestyle was repulsive to his parents who possessed a covenant relationship with the Lord (See Genesis 26:35).
Now, we must remember that this curse upon Canaan was conditional meaning that any Canaanite who placed their faith in the God of Israel, Jesus Christ, could escape it such as Rahab the harlot who was a Canaanite.
As we will note, like Rahab, Tamar, a Canaanite woman embraces the faith of Judah, her father-in-law.
Keil and Delitzsch commenting on Genesis 38, write, “The following sketch from the life of Judah is intended to point out the origin of the three leading families of the future princely tribe in Israel, and at the same time to show in what danger the sons of Jacob would have been of forgetting the sacred vocation of their race, through marriages with Canaanitish women, and of perishing in the sin of Canaan, if the mercy of God had not interposed, and by leading Joseph into Egypt prepared the way for the removal of the whole house of Jacob into that land, and thus protected the family, just as it was expanding into a nation, from the corrupting influence of the manners and customs of Canaan. This being the intention of the narrative, it is no episode or interpolation, but an integral part of the early history of Israel, which is woven here into the history of Jacob, because the events occurred subsequently to the sale of Joseph.” (Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)
When approaching the study of Genesis 38, we must understand that this chapter is a “parenthesis” providing the account of events that took place over a number of years.
Therefore, Genesis 39:1 is a continuation of Genesis 37.
Bruce K. Waltke commenting on the fact that Genesis 38 is a parenthesis, writes, “The scene abruptly interrupts the main narrative that traces the sale of Joseph into Egypt (cf. 37:36 with 39:1). However, in the concentric pattern that unifies Book 10, this scene traces Jacob’s blessing on Judah as ruler over his brothers. In fact, Judah’s prominence in Genesis 37:26-27 foreshadowed his rise to prominence in this scene” (Genesis, A Commentary, page 506).
Indicating that Genesis 38 is a parenthesis is the repetition that appears when comparing Genesis 37:36 with Genesis 39:1, where both passages record that Joseph was sold to Potiphar, Pharaoh’s officer, the captain of the bodyguard.
The events recorded in Genesis 38 are a reminder that the tenth book contained in Genesis 37:2-50:26 is “not” the story of Joseph but rather the story of the character transformation of Jacob’s sons under the providential care and protection of God.
Genesis 37:2-50:26 contains the account of God providentially working in the life of Jacob and of his sons through the instrumentality of Joseph.
Joseph is certainly the central figure in these chapters, but he is not the only figure since God is forming a nation out of all the sons of Jacob and not just Joseph.
In fact, Judah was chosen to carry on the line of Christ while Joseph inherited the birthright in the family.
Gordon J. Wenham provides an insightful comment when approaching Genesis 38, he writes, “The relationship of this episode to the theme of Genesis must be explored. Again on first sight, this chapter apparently has nothing to do with the promises to Abraham of land, nationhood and blessing to the nations. But the central problem of chapter 38 is childlessness. Onan dies because he refuses to procreate. He did not want to produce children for his brother, and by implication for his father and grandfather. In other words, by his action Onan demonstrates his disregard for the patriarchal promises. On the other hand, Tamar, a Canaanite girl, is most anxious to have children. Despite the deaths of her first two husbands, she is anxious to marry Shelah. And when she is thwarted by her father-in-law, she manages to find a way of having children through him. Such determination to propagate descendants of Abraham, especially by a Canaanite woman, is remarkable, and so despite her foreign background and irregular behavior, Tamar emerges as the heroine of this story. She is like Melchizedek (chapter 14) and Abimelech (chapter 26), one of those foreigners who see God’s hand at work in Abraham and his descendants and therefore, align themselves with Israel. In the likes of Tamar the promise that ‘all the families of the earth will find blessing in you’ starts to be fulfilled. She is the forerunner of Ruth who said, ‘Your people shall be my people and your God my God’ (Ruth 1:16), as well as being ancestor of Ruth’s husband Boaz. (Word Biblical Commentary, volume 2, 16-50, Nelson Reference and Electronic, page 365).
A span of over twenty two years expires between the sale of Joseph and the settlement of Jacob’s family in Egypt, which is indicated in that Joseph is seventeen when he enters Egypt (See Genesis 37:2) and thirteen years later he becomes prime minister of Egypt with seven years of prosperity (41:46-47).
Furthermore, after the famine becomes severe, Judah again encounters Joseph (42:1-7) and after two years of famine the entire family arrives in Egypt (45:6).
Judah’s story begins at the time he sells Joseph in to Egypt, which was to prevent the murder of Joseph by his other brothers and in particular Simeon and Levi who murdered all the men of the city of Shechem (See Genesis 34).
This evening we will study Genesis 38:1, which records Judah leaving his brothers in Dothan and heading back home to Hebron to see his father Jacob but instead turns aside and comes into contact with a man named Hirah who lived in the city of Adullam.
Genesis 38:1, “And it came about at that time, that Judah departed from his brothers and visited a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah.”
Genesis 38:2, “Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua; and he took her and went in to her.”
Genesis 38:3, “So she conceived and bore a son and he named him Er.”
Genesis 38:4, “Then she conceived again and bore a son and named him Onan.”
Genesis 38:5, “She bore still another son and named him Shelah; and it was at Chezib that she bore him.”
Genesis 38:6, “Now Judah took a wife for Er his firstborn, and her name was Tamar.”
Genesis 38:7, “But Er, Judah's firstborn, was evil in the sight of the LORD, so the LORD took his life.”
Genesis 38:8, “Then Judah said to Onan, ‘Go in to your brother's wife, and perform your duty as a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother.’”
Genesis 38:9, “Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so when he went in to his brother's wife, he wasted his seed on the ground in order not to give offspring to his brother.”
Genesis 38:10, “But what he did was displeasing in the sight of the LORD; so He took his life also.”
Genesis 38:11, “Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, ‘Remain a widow in your father's house until my son Shelah grows up’; for he thought, ‘I am afraid that he too may die like his brothers.’ So Tamar went and lived in her father's house.”
In Genesis 38:1, the phrase “and it came about at that time” chronologically connects the sale of Joseph to Judah’s intermarriage with the Canaanites.
The fact that Judah proposes to his brothers the sale of Joseph to the Midianites rather than killing him along with the phrase “Judah departed from his brothers” is a clear indication that Judah did “not” agree with his brother’s desire to kill Joseph and so he separates from them.
If you recall, Reuben intervened and prevented his brothers from killing Joseph and proposed as an alternative to killing him with their bare hands to throw him into an empty cistern and letting him die of natural causes.
This alternative was proposed by Reuben with the intention of saving Joseph when his brothers were not around.
After this Reuben left his brothers while they ate a meal and during the meal the talk was certainly revolving around Joseph and the idea of killing him.
Genesis 37:25-28 records Judah proposing to his brothers the sale of Joseph to the Midianites in order to prevent the murder of Joseph by his brothers.
Judah, like Reuben, disguised his desire to prevent the murder of Joseph because he feared for his own life since Simeon and Levi had recently killed all the men of the city of Shechem in retaliation for the rape of their sister Dinah.
Even though selling Joseph into slavery was evil, Judah felt that Joseph was better off alive as a slave than being dead.
Genesis 37:25, “Then they sat down to eat a meal. And as they raised their eyes and looked, behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing aromatic gum and balm and myrrh, on their way to bring them down to Egypt.”
Genesis 37:26, “Judah said to his brothers, ‘What profit is it for us to kill our brother and cover up his blood?’”
Genesis 37:27, “Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh. And his brothers listened to him.”
Judah’s proposed sale of Joseph into slavery was designed to prevent his murder and this is implied in his statement in Genesis 37:26, “What profit is it for us to kill our brother and cover up his blood?”
The phrase “cover up his blood” is a biblical idiom in that since the time of Cain, the blood of a murder victim was said to “cry out” for justice, thus uncovered blood served as a constant reminder of a crime and as an incitement to revenge.
Therefore, this phrase reveals Judah’s acknowledgement and respect for the laws of God, which prohibit murder.
In Genesis 37:26, Judah’s question, “What profit is it for us to kill our brother?” is design to conceal his true intention to prevent Joseph’s murder by appealing to his brothers’ love of money.
Also, Judah’s statement in Genesis 37:27, “Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh” reveals that he has a conscience in that he acknowledges and reminds his brothers that Joseph is their brother.
Genesis 38:1, “And it came about at that time, that Judah departed from his brothers and visited a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah.”
Judah departs from his brothers and then turned aside to a man whose name was Hirah, who was an Adullamite.
“Departed” is the verb yaradh (dr^y*) (yaw-rad), which refers to a geographical descent from a higher elevation to a lower elevation.
Judah and his brothers were residing in Dothan at this time and not with their father who according to Genesis 37:14 was residing in Hebron.
Most nearly all commentators contend that Judah and his brothers went back to Hebron and comforted their father and use Genesis 37:35 to support their contention.
Genesis 37:35, “Then all his sons and all his daughters arose to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. And he said, ‘Surely I will go down to Sheol in mourning for my son.’ So his father wept for him.”
However, the term “sons” is the noun ben (/B@) (bane) does “not” always refer to a boy that a man fathers himself but rather it can also refer to a grandson as well.
The context will determine, whether a son or a grandson is in view.
In our particular context, the term ben in Genesis 37:35 refers to Jacob’s grandsons.
As we noted earlier, when Joseph’s brothers sold him to the Midianites they were located in Dothan, which was approximately 15 miles north of Shechem.
According to Genesis 37:14, Jacob was located in Hebron when he sent Joseph to check on the safety of his sons who Jacob thought were in Shechem.
As we noted Sunday in Genesis 37:32, Joseph’s brothers did “not” personally deliver Joseph’s bloody coat to their father in Hebron but rather sent the coat via a messenger.
Genesis 37:31-32, “So they took Joseph's tunic, and slaughtered a male goat and dipped the tunic in the blood; and they sent the varicolored tunic and brought it to their father and said, ‘We found this; please examine it to see whether it is your son's tunic or not.’”
The fact that Joseph’s brothers sent messengers with Joseph’s coat rather than delivering it themselves is clearly indicated by the verb shalach (jl^v*) (shaw-lakh), “they sent,” which refers to “persons who are sent by other persons such as the action of sending messengers.”
Therefore, in Genesis 37:35, the term “sons” refers to Jacob’s grandsons and his youngest son Benjamin and does “not” refer to the sons Jacob fathered himself with his four wives since they were in Dothan avoiding their father.
So Benjamin was Jacob’s only son that comforted him since he was too young to be out in the fields with his other brothers.
Genesis 46:8-26 lists the grandchildren of Jacob and many of these children comforted Jacob when he received the bloodied coat from his sons.
Therefore, Judah “descended” from Dothan to Adullam, which was in the foothills 16 miles southwest of Jerusalem and north of Hebron.
Dothan is approximately fifteen miles north of Shechem and is located on a hill surrounded by a flat, fertile valley and is known for its rich pastureland and Shechem is approximately 1,880 feet above sea level.
Therefore, in Genesis 38:1, the verb yaradh refers to Judah’s descent from Dothan, which is 1,880 feet above seal level to Adullam, which is in the foothills about 16 miles southwest of Jerusalem.
Not only does the verb yaradh refer to Judah’s descent in a geographical sense but it also refers to his “spiritual” descent in the sense that he intermarries with the Canaanites, which was in disobedience to God.
Therefore, the use of the verb yaradh by the Holy Spirit is a double entendre symbolizing Judah’s spiritual descent from God through his intermarriage with the Canaanites.
Genesis 38:1, “And it came about at that time, that Judah departed from his brothers and visited a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah.”
“Visited” is the verb natah (hfn) (naw-taw), which means, “to turn aside,” referring to an alteration in a present course of action.
Therefore, the verb natah indicates that Judah was not initially headed towards Adullam but that he was on a journey and came to Hirah’s house and decided to turn aside from his present course.
It appears that Judah was heading back to Hebron to see his father!
The phrase “a certain Adullamite” is composed of the preposition `adh (du^), “coming in contact with” followed by the masculine singular noun `ish (vya!) (eesh), “man” and then the proper noun `adhullami (ym!L*d|u&) (ad-ool-law-mee), “Adullamite.”
The preposition `adh is used with the verbs yaradh, “to descend” and natah, “to turn aside” and in context indicates “coming into contact with” a person.
The term “Adullamite” is the proper noun `adhullami (ym!L*d|u&) (ad-ool-law-mee), which refers to a citizen of the city of Adullam, which was approximately 3 miles southwest of Bethlehem and 8 miles northwest of Hebron and was a royal Canaanite city at the time of Joshua (See Joshua 12:15) and may have already been so at the time of Judah.
“Hirah” is the proper noun chirah (hr*yj!) (khee-raw), which means, “nobility” and according to Genesis 38:12 and 20, “Hirah” was a friend of Judah.
Therefore, the original Hebrew text of Genesis 38:1 says that Judah descended from his brothers’ location and then turned aside coming in contact with an Adullamite man, and his name was Hirah.
It appears that Judah was already friendly with Hirah and was familiar with the city of Adullam.
So instead of returning to Hebron to see his father he visits an old friend who was a Canaanite.
Undoubtedly, Judah did not want to face his father who was overcome with grief because he felt guilty since he proposed the sale of Joseph to the Midianites and he was a co-conspirator with his brothers in deceiving their father into thinking that Joseph was killed by a wild animal.