Mon.’s Devo - Tamar’s Story -1-18-21

Read: Genesis 37:1-38:30; Matthew 12:22-45; Psalm 16:1-11; Proverbs 3:27-32 Jacob dwelt in the promised land of Canaan where Abraham had only been allowed to walk and claim for his posterity. Isaac was the picture of Jesus that linked Abraham to Jacob. Because of Isaac, Jacob was able to multiply and dwell in the land. Joseph was now 17 and watched the flocks for his father’s flocks but worked under his half brothers. Joseph would tell his father the bad things they did which made them really upset with him. Jacob loved Joseph the most, probably because he reminded him of Rachel. He had a special robe made for Joseph. This made his brothers hate him even more. One night Joseph dreamed that he and his brothers were out in the field tying up their sheaves. Their sheaves bowed down to his. They interpreted the dream to say that they would one day bow down to him. This did not help their jealous relationship. Then he dreamed again that the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed to him. Joseph told this dream to his father and he knew it meant that he and his mother would bow to him. (Strange, since Racel was dead.) They believed in life after death. His brothers were jealous of his dreams but his father pondered them. Later, his father sent Joseph to Shechem to help his brothers with the sheep. When they saw him coming, they plotted his death. They would assure his dreams didn’t manifest. They didn’t realize you can’t stop what God has planned. He found them in Dothan. They surrounded him and threw him into a dried up well. Rueben planned to come and take him out, but while he was away, they sold Joseph for 20 pieces of silver to a caravan of Ishmaelites. They took Joseph to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Potiphar was captain of the place guard. Meanwhile, Joseph’s brothers took Joseph’s robe and dipped it in the blood of animals and took it to their father lying that they had found it. He assumed some wild animal had killed him. Jacob was grieved beyond comforting. Judah left home alone and moved to Adullam where he stayed with a man named Hirah. He married his daughter, Shua. They had three sons: Er, Onan, and Shelah. Judah picked a wife for Er named Tamar. Er was so wicked that God killed him. Judah made Onan marry Tamar to have a child that would be accounted as Er’s. Onan didn’t want to have a child for Er, so God killed him also. Judah promised Tamar that when Shelah was old enough, he would give him to her. He sent her home to wait. Judah’s wife, Shua died. Judah went with Tamar’s father to Timnah to supervise the shearing of his sheep. Tamar found out and plotted a plan. She realized that Shelah was old enough to marry her and he had not been given her as promised. She desperately wanted a baby to carry on a future for herself. She dressed like a harlot and set up a booth along the way that Judah would take. She seduced him to come in and lay with her. He had no money so she asked for his staff, his signant ring and his cord that held the ring. She would return them to him when he brought her a young. He agreed. Judah sent Tamar’s father to find her and give her the goat, but when no one could tell him anything about a prostitute, he went back empty-handed. She became pregnant and went home and lived as usual. Word got to Judah that she was pregnant and he wanted to have her stoned. She sent him the things he had given her and said that the owner of these things was also the owner the seed she was carrying. Judah realized that she had found a way to get what he had promised her but was withholding. He was realized she was more righteous than he was. Tamar was carrying twins. In child-birth, one baby reached out its hand and they put a scarlet thread around it. Then the other baby came out first. They named him Perez because he “broke out first.” The boy with the scarlet thread was named Zerah. In Matthew, Jesus heals a man that is deaf and blind and the people wonder if he could be the Messiah. The rabbis had taught that the Messiah would be able to do three specific things: heal a Jewish leper, heal a man deaf and dumb and heal a person born blind. This was the third requirement Jesus had fulfilled, so the people looked at the leaders to see what the leaders would say. There was no way they were going to claim that Jesus was the Messiah because of their jealousy, so they claimed that Jesus did his healing under the power of Satan. This was the defining mark and was their declaration of rejection of Jesus. Jesus’ ministry would change from this moment on. They had just blasphemed the Holy Spirit and it would not be forgiven. When the teachers of the law came and asked him for a sign that he was the Messiah, he rebuked them. Every day he gave them signs and they refused to see them so the only sign they would see was that he would be buried for three days and then rise from the dead. But instead of giving them eternal life, it would condemn them. Lord, may we not miss the everyday signs you give us every day that you are with us and are doing something wonderful in the earth.