Chapter 38 delves into the life of Yehuda since he is one of the two contenders for leadership among Yaakov's children. The last third of Bereshis paints a portrait of each of Yehuda and Yosef, giving the reader insight into the lives and character of each future leader.
SOURCES: Ramban
"וַיֵּרֶד יְהוּדָּה מֵּאֵּת אֶחָּיו" – Radak suggests that this is a mundane statement of fact, with no implicit critique of Yehuda. The verse simply shares that Yehuda moved geographically from highland to lowland.
Marriage to "בַת אִּישׁ כְנַעֲנִּי" – Many commentators maintain that Yehuda did not marry a Canaanite woman. They assert that the term "כְנַעֲנִי" refers not to the ethnicity of Yehuda's father-in-law, but rather to his profession as a merchant. However, in Divrei HaYamim I 2:3, Bat Shua herself is referred to as "הַכְנַעֲנִית" which makes this read somewhat difficult. Ramban attempts to respond that she was so called after her famous father.
Tamar's ethnicity – According to this approach, Tamar, too, was a non-Canaanite. R. Shemuel b. Nachmani in Bavli Sotah asserts that she was a convert, while Ramban suggests that perhaps she was the daughter of one of the sojourners in the land.
Er and Onan's deaths – Ramban suggests that the deaths of Yehuda's sons provide no evidence of Yehuda's wrongdoing, but, only, as the text implies, of Er and Onan's own crimes.
"שְׁבִּי אַ לְמָּנָּה בֵּית אָּבִּיךְ עַד יִּגְדַל שֵּׁלָּה בְנִּי" – Commentators defend Yehuda's action in two ways:
- According to Ramban, Yehuda's words to Tamar were sincere; he really did intend for Shelah to wed Tamar. However, recognizing that his elder sons must have died due to sinful behavior, and assuming that this was a product of their young age, Yehuda wanted to wait until Shelah matured before marrying.
- Ralbag, instead, suggests that Yehuda was justified in fearing that his third son might die if he married Tamar (as she had proven herself a "killer") and thus he acted properly in protecting his child. One might, nonetheless, question why then he simply did not release Tamar from the levirate marriage.
Prohibition of relations with daughter-in-law – This approach might condone Tamar and Yehuda's union through a number of ways:
- Rid suggests that Tamar did not really have daughter-in-law (or even married) status at all since both Er and Onan had never consummated the marriage.
- Ramban suggests that perhaps before the giving of the Torah at Sinai it was permitted for a man to have relations with his daughter-in-law if his son was deceased. He also suggests that, before Sinai, levirate marriage may have been fulfilled through either a father or brother. As such, Yehuda was not only not transgressing a prohibition but was even performing a meritorious action.
- One might go even further and suggest that the prohibition of sleeping with one's daughter was not in effect at all before Sinai.
"וְלֹא יָּסַף עוֹד לְדַעְתָּהּ" – Those who legitimize Yehuda and Tamar's union by suggesting that the pre-Sinai law was different, might suggest that after the initial act, Yehuda ceased to consort with Tamar. Despite the lack of prohibition, Yehuda may have recognized the problematic nature of such a relationship, and under normal circumstances would not have engaged in such an act; he did so here only unintentionally. According to the Rid, in contrast, it is possible that Yehuda continued the relationship since Tamar never had married status.
"צָּדְקָּה מִּמֶנִּי" – Even though this approach assumes that Yehuda had proper reasons for delaying Tamar's marriage to Shelah, he nonetheless takes the blame on himself ("כִי עַל כֵן לֹא נְתַתִיהָ לְשֵלָה בְנִי"), recognizing that Tamar's actions were positively motivated.
Purpose and placement of the story – This position might suggest that, despite initial appearances, the last third of Sefer Bereshis is not really about Yosef alone, but rather about the two leadership contenders among Yaakov's children – Yosef and Yehuda. As such, it shares the life stories of each, giving insight into the character of each future leader.
