As she was being brought out, she sent a message to her father-in-law. “I am pregnant by the man who owns these,” she said. And she added, “See if you recognize whose seal and cord and staff these are.”

Genesis 38:25

For Meditation

What was Judah thinking about – I mean, how could he put up those personal items of identification and authority in exchange for a moment of sensual pleasure? But that is what happens when one walks away from their real identity in the covenant family of God.

After suggesting that Joseph, his brother, be sold to a passing caravan of merchants (Gen. 37:26-27), Judah moved away from his family to  live in Adullam, where he married a Canaanite woman (Gen. 38:1). That was his first misstep. Instead of examining his actions in humility and repenting, Judah chose to walk away from his grieving father (37:33-34) for a private life among the heathen, further distancing himself from the God of his fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

I see this trend every day in God’s people today. We tend to dig into positions and rationalize everything we know is wrong and sinful. Before long, the environment becomes too stifling for us. We need relief from our conscience, so we step away and out into a more conducive environment. Things look different and mesmerizing. We congratulate ourselves and settle down. We make friends very quickly and blend into the community. So, Judah befriended Hirah, a man from Adullam – misstep number two.

Canaan was a sinful hotspot. God had judged it and was waiting for its sins to reach its full measure (Gen. 15:13-16). Abraham was, therefore, careful to demand that Isaac did not marry from the Canaanites (24:1-8). Likewise, Isaac was displeased with Esau’s marriage to Canaanite women and sent Jacob to marry from Rebekah’s family (28:1-9). So, why did Judah break from this tradition to marry a Canaanite woman when his father, Jacob, was still alive?

This practice was so sinful that God codified in the Mosaic law (Exod. 34:16). Their disobedience and its effect have been recorded for our example (1 Cor. 10:11-12).  But who is listening?

We walk away from Christ and tread on the path of Judah when we marry or partner with unbelievers in anything that profits the flesh (2 Cor. 6:14). We walk away from our Savior when we stay away from the assembling of the church because somebody has hurt us (Heb. 10:25). We distance ourselves from the Lord every time we delight our hearts with the desires of the flesh (Gal. 5:16-17; 1 Jn. 2:15-16). 

Judah had taken a second step away from God, and we will see the result on Monday.