Parasha: va yeshev – and he dwelt
Torah: Bereishit 37:1 – 40:23
Just Retribution
** “Just Retribution” is a direct or indirect consequence of our words or actions. Kifa (Peter) teaches, “For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God.” (1Pe 2:20 NKJV)
This week’s Torah portion contains a classic example of just retribution.
Here are the words and actions that brought just retribution to Yehudah.
26 And Yehudah said to his brothers, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood? 27 Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be on him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brothers were content. 28 Then there passed by Midianites merchants; and they drew and lifted up Yosef out of the pit, and sold Yosef to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Yosef into Egypt.
** Reuvein, the oldest brother wanted to return Yosef to their father, Ya’akov. However, Yehudah came up with a “cleaner” plan that would benefit everyone who was involved in the plot.
31 And they took Yosef’s coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood; 32 And they sent the coat of many colors, and they brought it to their father; and said, This have we found: know now whether it be your son’s coat or no.
** Pretending to be innocent and dumb, they covered up their actions by deceiving their father into believing that his son was dead.
33 And he knew it, and said, It is my son’s coat; an evil beast has devoured him; Yosef is without doubt rent in pieces. 34 And Ya’akov rent his clothes, and put sackcloth on his loins, and mourned for his son many days. 35 And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down into the grave to my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him.
** “…all his sons..” Yehudah also pretended to be sorry that Ya’akov lost his son. Ya’akov would mourn for Yosef for about 20 years before learning the truth.
38:1 And it came to pass at that time, that Yehudah went down from his brothers, and turned in to a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah. 2 And Yehudah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite, whose name was Shuah; and he took her, and went in to her. 3 And she conceived, and bore a son; and he called his name Er. 4 And she conceived again, and bore a son; and she called his name Onan. 5 And she yet again conceived, and bore a son; and called his name Shelah: and he was at Chezib, when she bore him.
** Yehudah has put the deceitful behavior and the consequences to his father behind him and appears to be living “the good life” with his new family.
6 And Yehudah took a wife for Er his firstborn, whose name was Tamar. 7 And Er, Yehudah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of Avinu; and Avinu slew him. 8 And Yehudah said to Onan, Go in to your brother’s wife, and marry her, and raise up seed to your brother. 9 And Onan knew that the seed should not be his; and it came to pass, when he went in to his brother’s wife, that he spilled it on the ground, lest that he should give seed to his brother. 10 And the thing which he did displeased Avinu: and he slew him also.
** It sounds like Yehudah’s sons from the Canaanite woman weren’t appreciating his “Jewish” traditions concerning Levrite Marriage and quickly, Yehudah has lost two of his three sons. I wonder if he thought about his father, Ya’akov?
11 Then said Yehudah to Tamar his daughter in law, Remain a widow at your father’s house, till Shelah my son be grown: for he said, Lest peradventure he die also, as his brothers did. And Tamar went and dwelled in her father’s house.
** Once again, Yehudah thinks that he can lie his way out of a tough situation. Tamar is compliant and patiently awaits the maturization of Shelah.
12 And in process of time the daughter of Shuah Yehudah’s wife died; and Yehudah was comforted
** Yehudah deceived his father into believing that his son was dead. Now, Yehudah has suffered the deaths of his wife and two sons. He is feeling the “pain” that he caused earlier in his life.
13 And it was told Tamar, saying, Behold your father in law goes up to Timnath to shear his sheep. 14 And she put her widow’s garments off from her, and covered her with a veil, and wrapped herself, and sat in an open place, which is by the way to Timnath; for she saw that Shelah was grown, and she was not given to him to wife. 15 When Yehudah saw her, he thought her to be an harlot; because she had covered her face. 16 And he turned to her by the way, and said, Go to, I pray you, let me come in to you; (for he knew not that she was his daughter in law.) And she said, What will you give me, that you may come in to me? 17 And he said, I will send you a kid from the flock. And she said, Will you give me a pledge, till you send it? 18 And he said, What pledge shall I give you? And she said, Your signet, and your bracelets, and your staff that is in your hand. And he gave it her, and came in to her, and she conceived by him. 19 And she arose, and went away, and laid by her veil from her, and put on the garments of her widowhood.
** There is nothing “biblically correct” about this incident. The “trickster” just got “tricked” and the price for lieing to Tamar was brought home.
24 And it came to pass about three months after, that it was told Yehudah, saying, Tamar your daughter in law has played the harlot; and also, behold, she is with child by prostitution. And Yehudah said, Bring her forth, and let her be burnt. 25 When she was brought forth, she sent to her father in law, saying, By the man, whose these are, am I with child: and she said, Discern, I pray you, whose are these, the signet, and bracelets, and staff. 26 And Yehudah acknowledged them, and said, She has been more righteous than I; because that I gave her not to Shelah my son. And he knew her again no more.
** The two sons that were born by Tamar were bitter to Yehudah. He was exposed to the entire community as being a liar. His third son, Shelah, disappears from the narrative and Pherez, his first born from Tamar carries on the family line.
“2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Yehudah and his brothers, 3 and Yehudah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram,” (Mt 1:2-3 )
There is speculation that Tamar was a Shemite, unlike Shua’s daughter, who was a Canaanite.
“‘And after all this, if you do not obey Me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins.” (Le 26:18)
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