It happened at that time that Judah went down from his brothers and turned aside to a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah.
Genesis 38 opens with one move that changes everything for Judah: he leaves his brothers and turns aside to a man of Adullam. The chapter also breaks off the story of Joseph mid-flow, which raises two questions — where does this departure lead, and why is it recorded here?
The words "went down"
The wording of the verse is itself a warning. One writer reads the direction of travel as a signal of what the chapter will contain.
Edwin N. CrossJudah leaves his brothers to join the world of the Canaanite (the Merchant) with all its ruin. The words of Scripture, "went down from," show the path of departure he set out on. They warn the reader that what follows will be marked by sin. Judah's deliberate departure will have serious results. He must learn that he cannot please himself without reaping a harvest of sorrow. He must learn that "whatever one sows, that will he also reap" (Gal. 6:7).
Heart before feet
Leaving does not happen all at once. One writer traces the same slow drift in Samson's life, and names what the enemy is after.
W. T. P. WolstonIt is pretty easy to get away a very long distance without knowing it. The heart does not fall away all at once. It happened little by little in Samson's story (see Judges 13–16). He was a Nazirite — a man set apart for God. There was no feat of strength he could not perform with ease. What was the secret of it? God sustained him. As long as he stayed separate, God kept him. But after a while his affections drifted away from Jehovah... What the devil wants above all is to get you cosy with the world.
Why the story of Joseph stops here
Joseph has just been carried into Egypt, and the narrative breaks off. One writer sees the placing as deliberate: Judah's record sets off the record of his brother.
F. B. HoleGenesis 38 breaks off the story of Joseph completely. Genesis 39 picks it up again, and at once tells of the great temptation he faced. It seems that the shameful story of Judah is told here to sharpen in our minds the way Joseph stood firm under a temptation of the same kind. Judah seems to have been among the better behaved of Jacob's sons. Yet the practices that marked him and his family were evil, and they clearly accepted them as nothing unusual.
The man who sold his brother
It matters which brother this is. Judah had proposed the sale of Joseph, and the chapter shows what such a man's own household becomes.
William KellyThe chapter needs few words to press home its proof of how low Judah had sunk morally, just as the next needs few to show Joseph blessed and a blessing... And notice that it was not Reuben or any other of the heads of the tribes, but Judah who proposed the sale of Joseph. Now he showed in his own house the evil that drew down curse upon curse. In the end the head of that house had to admit the sad shame of Tamar — more righteous than himself, the man who had condemned her to die by fire.
A picture of the nation
Beyond the personal failure, one writer reads Judah here as a picture of his whole people. The names in the chapter carry the point.
Frederick W. GrantRight at the start Judah separates himself from his brothers and ties himself to the Canaanite — the "merchant" — marrying the daughter of Shuah (which means "riches"). These names say plainly what has marked the nation in the centuries since the cross! Yet his line still continues on the earth, even though God's wrath rests on the first two sons. Their names speak too: Er of "enmity," and Onan of "iniquity." The third son, Shelah (perhaps "sprout"), speaks of divine power in resurrection, bringing life out of death. So a remnant is kept.
Where the chapter finally leads
The chapter that begins with a man walking away ends by feeding into the family line of Christ. One writer sees God's own hand in that.
Frederick W. GrantThe story of Tamar shows us God's own marvellous way of bringing Christ into connection with Judah. So her name appears in the Lord's family line in Matthew's Gospel, the first of those four women's names. Their presence there shows the grace that has stooped down to take up men... Tamar's sin is the point pressed home, just as Rahab's faith is. For Ruth to come in, the sentence of the law has to be set aside. And Bathsheba shows us grace winning even over a believer's sin.
Summary
- Down — the phrase "went down from" sets the tone. Judah chose to leave, and sin marks all that follows.
- Drift — the heart cools first, and the feet follow. Samson lost his separation the same slow way, and that is just what the devil wants.
- Contrast — the story of Joseph breaks off on purpose. Judah falls under temptation; Joseph, facing the same kind, stands firm.
- Harvest — the man who proposed selling Joseph reaps evil in his own house. He condemns Tamar, yet she is more righteous than he is.
- Grace — this walk away still leads into the family line of Christ. Tamar's sin, Rahab's faith, the law set aside for Ruth and Bathsheba's failure each show grace stooping to take up sinners.