Bible Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Tamar, wife of Er and Onan

Tamar was the daughter-in-law of Judah and the mother of his two children Perez and Zerah. She also was the wife of Er and Onan. Judah gave her as a wife to Er first, but Er did wickedly in the eyes of the LORD and was soon killed. Judah had Onan go into his brother's wife to raise up seed for him, but realizing that the child he would father would not inherit anything from him, Onan spilled his seed on the ground and was also killed. Judah then had Tamar live in her father's house as a widow until Shelah was fully grown, fearing that he would also die. Judah's wife later died, and when Judah went up to Timnah with his friend Hirah the Adullamite to shear his sheep, Tamar disguised herself as a prostitute and waited for Judah at the entryway, for he had not given her to Shelah as a wife. Judah offered to sleep with Tamar, not knowing she was his daughter-in-law, for a young goat from his flock, but Tamar had him give her his signet, his bracelets, and his staff for a pledge. After he slept with her, Judah returned to Timnah with the young goat to give to the prostitute, but the people of the city said that there wasn't any prostitute. Later on, when he heard that his daughter-in-law had conceived a child through harlotry, Judah demanded for Tamar to be sent and burned. Tamar then produced the evidence that Judah was the father of her child from the pledge items he gave her, which made Judah confess that she was more righteous than he because he had not given her to Shelah to be his wife. And so Judah no longer had any intimate relations with her.

At the time Tamar gave birth, the nurse saw a hand stick out and, assuming that child was the firstborn, tied a red string around his hand. The hand went back inside, and the child's brother came out, who was then named Perez ("breach"). The child with the string tied to his hand followed afterward, and was named Zerah {"scarlet"}

Tamar, daughter of David

Tamar was the virgin daughter of David, the sister of Absalom. His half-brother Amnon was infatuated with her to the point where his friend Jonadab conceived a plot for him to be alone with her. Pretending to be sick, Amnon had his father the king summon Tamar to make cakes for him to eat out of her hand. She came and made the cakes, but Amnon wouldn't eat until everyone left. When it was just the two of them alone with each other, Amnon grabbed Tamar and forced her to lie with him. Tamar refused and tried to talk her way out of the situation, but Amnon wouldn't listen; he raped her and then forced her to leave, bolting the door shut behind her. Tearing her virginal tunic of many colors and casting dust upon her head, Tamar went to her brother Absalom weeping, who told her not to take the thing to heart because he is her brother. Tamar lived the rest of her life as a desolate woman in Absalom's house.

Tamar, daughter of Absalom

Advertisement