In Genesis, chapter thirty-eight, verse six, Er, the husband of Tamar, died, and she became a childless widow. Tamar longed for a child by which to carry on her family name and produce descendants. According to Deuteronomy chapter twenty-five verse five, the duty of a brother-in-law was to father a male heir with Er’s widow to bear his name and ensure his inheritance. However, Onan, responsible for fulfilling the law, did not want to live in that position and aborted the situation by spilling his substance on the ground instead of giving seed to Tamar. This action displeased the Lord, and he died shortly after.
Tamar’s father-in-law, Judah, utters to her when Shelah, his son, is grown, that he will give him to be her husband. Therefore, Tamar went to her father’s house until the time arrived for her to marry Shelah. However, when Er’s youngest brother was of age, Judah did not keep his word, and his daughter-in-law still was Er’s wife, a widow. The situation did not seem promising for Tamar because her desire to give birth and have descendants was not coming to fruition as planned. The experience of Er’s wife, which was no fault of her own, waited patiently for the promise that did not occur only to be left out.
Tamar, the former wife of Er, now a widow, was married to him, but the Bible does not state how long they were together before he died. However, with her being him for a certain period, some things rub off within the family environment. How much did Er’s character affect the life of Tamar? The answer is unknown. However, Tamar’s actions to follow after being destitute entail what she has been through with this family.
Enough time has passed since Judah’s initial promise that the deception is evident. When Tamar learns Judah is on his way to Timnah, she hatches a plan to force her father-in-law to include her in his family and take care of her. She puts off her widow clothes and dresses differently with a veil to disguise herself for the encounter with Judah during his travel. He falls for the trap thinking that Tamar is a harlot and wants to go with her in exchange for a gift. However, she asks for something more symbolic such as Judah’s things: his signet, bracelets, and staff. After Judah sleeps with Tamar, she returns to her father’s house and puts back on her widow clothing, only to find out she is pregnant. Her father-in-law wants his things back in trade for the present he suggests earlier. Still, Judah did not find her along the way where they met. Later he finds out it Tamar disguised herself to conceive the seed. Tamar did receive what she desired but in an earthly way.