K-I-S-S-I-N-G. That’s what Yahudah and Tamar were doing in the tree. Or rather, while sitting outside the city gate. I wouldn’t be in the least surprised if a tree was involved though. And anyways, if you thought the genealogy of Hagar and Eliezer were close calls, then I suggest holding onto something within arm’s reach (even a roll of toilet paper will suffice,) because Warning: Yahudah’s indiscriminate actions with women may induce a panic attack. The Messianic line comes to us by way of Yahudah and we are still in serpent seed territory. Proceed at your own risk.

In review, Hagar was the mother of Ishmael, the proposed inheritor of Avraham’s seed. She was a daughter of Pharaoh, granddaughter of Nimrod. But even more-so, a Qayin. And as we’ve already seen, Eliezer was also at one time intended as Avraham’s heir. He too was a son of Nimrod, which makes him another Qayin. Technically, Nimrod was a son of Cham, but if you read my paper on the many wives of Noach and its direct follow-up, the curse of Cham finally explained, then you’ll understand where I’m pulling my research. The line of Qayin eventually managed in becoming the line of Cham. 

In further review, the goal of HaSatan has been to disrupt, handicap, and ultimately destroy the Messianic line at every possible turn, starting with Havah in the garden and then proceeding afterwards with the killing of Habel by his own son. HaSatan’s hacking away at the Messianic tree just goes on and on and on and on from there, bringing us right up to the twelve sons of Ya’aqov. Can you hear it? Listen. The sound of the ax remains. You see, the messianic line as something exclusively belonging to the tribe of Yahudah wasn’t always so. Originally, the birthright, together with the kingly and priestly offices, was offered to Ya’aqov’s firstborn son through Leah. Re’uven. Satan didn’t like that. Best to tempt him to his own destruction then.

¹³And it was after the death of Rachel, that Ya’aqov pitched his tent in the tent of her handmaid Bilhah. ¹⁴ And Re’uven was jealous for his mother Le’ah on account of this, and he was filled with anger, and he rose up in his anger and went and entered the tent of Bilhah and he thence removed his father’s bed. ¹⁵ At that time the portion of birthright, together with the kingly and priestly offices, was removed from the sons of Re’uven, for he had profaned his father’s bed, and the birthright was given unto Yoceph, the kingly office to Yahudah, and the priesthood unto Leviy, because Re’uven had defiled his father’s bed.

Yashar (Jasher) 36:13-15 [Cepher]

What we have here is the sin of Cham. Repeated. Do recall that removing his father’s bed (in order that he might usurp his authority by setting up his own bedroom throne) is precisely what Cham did. It’s why the three portions of his birthright were stripped from him. Actions have direct consequences. Just so that there’s no confusion, it says one sentence over that he profaned the bed of Ya’aqov. That’s essentially the same thing as saying he exposed his father’s nakedness. Before anyone argues that nothing naughty transpired, we see Re’uven’s own confession to the deed in the following account.

¹⁰ Pay no heed to the face of a woman, nor associate with another man’s wife, nor meddle with affairs of womankind. ¹¹ For had I not seen Bilhah bathing in a covered place, I had not fall into this great iniquity. ¹² For my mind taking in the thought of the woman’s nakedness, suffered me not to sleep until I had ¹³wrought the abominable thing. For while Ya’aqov our father had gone to Yitschaq his father, when were Eder, near to Ephrath in Bethlehem, Bilhah became drunk and was asleep uncovered in her ¹⁴ chamber. Having therefore gone in and beheld nakedness, I wrought the impiety without her ¹⁵ perceiving it, and leaving her sleeping I departed. And forthwith and angel of Elohim revealed to my father concerning my impiety, and he came and mourned over me, and touched her no more.

The Testament of Reuben 3:10-15

Ah, sex. A favorite temptation technique. Worked in Paradise. Still works. All it takes is a pair of sopped-up breasts in the bath to fry a man’s circuit board. Within the matter of a mere moment, he will empty his pockets of everything permittable, including his own eternal inheritance, just to have a go at her affections. Tragic but true. Unfortunately for Bilhah, she was raped. Ya’aqov’s woman was a complete innocent in this affair. Re’uven even states she was bathing in a covered place, meaning, Bilhah did everything she could to cover her man’s nakedness, as she had every right to bathe or sleep undressed in her own covered space without some peeping Tom nosing in. Regardless, the consequence of Re’uven’s defilement meant that Ya’aqov could touch her no more. Cham’s sin repeated.

You will tell me you thought this was supposed to be about Yahudah and Tamar and not Re’uven’s bedtime behavior. It is. We just haven’t gotten that far yet. This stuff takes time. The ultimate topic before us is the Qayin’s always at war with the Shethite bloodline. In times past, those battles mostly took place below the sheets. Re’uven lost to the battle of the bed miserably, but apparently, so did some of his brothers. Even after losing his inheritance, Re’uven still preferred the company of the Kena’anite woman. It says so right here.

45 AND it was at that time in that year, which is the year of Yoceph’s going down to Mitsrayim after his brothers had sold him, that Re’uven the son of Ya’aqov went to Timna and took unto him for a woman Eliyuram, the daughter of Aviy the Kena’aniy, and he came to her. ² And Eliyuram the woman of Re’uven conceived and bore him Chanok, Pallu, Chetsron and Karmiy, four sons.

Yashar (Jasher) 45:1-2 [Cepher]

There you have it. Re’uven married a Kena’anite woman. Cham’s forbidden bloodline. Kind of difficult producing Mashiach through a cursed race, don’t you think? Hopefully, none of Re’uven’s other brothers did the same. Let’s find out. 

⁵ And Leviy and Yisshakar went to the land of the east, and they took unto themselves for women the daughters of Yovav the son of Yoqtan, the sons of Eber.

Yashar (Jasher) 45:5

Eber was a great-grandson of Noach’s son Shem and the father of Peleg. The very phrase sons of Eber insights a picture depicting the earliest Hebrews. From this we can conclude that Leviy and Yisshakar were keeping it all in the family. The line of priests were Hebrews. Next brother.

And Dan went to the land of Mo’av and took for a woman Aphlaleth, the daughter of Chamudan the Mo’aviy, and he brought her to the land of Kena’an.

Yashar (Jasher) 45:7

Moab was the incestuous son of Lot with one of his two daughters. Why Dan was interested in something like that is anybody’s best guess. But which daughter? Lot had three wives by my count. Jennifer, Deborah, and Asterah. Jennifer was the daughter of Eliezer and therefore a Nimrod. Asterah was a daughter of Pharaoh and also Hagar’s sister. Nimrod again. Deborah however was a daughter of someone named Kumen who had come out of the city of Ur with Avram, and may very well have been a Hebrew. Impossible to tell though. So, either Aphlaleth, the daughter of Chamudan the Moabite, was a Cham or she wasn’t. The verdict is still out on that one. Considering all that happened to the tribe of Dan though, I’m inclined to think they were little Nimrods. Next brothers. 

⁹ And Gad and Naphtaliy went to Haran and took from thence the daughters of Amuram the son of Uts, the son of Nachor, for women.

Yashar (Jashar) 45:9 [Cepher]

Nachor was Avraham’s brother. Once again, keeping it in the family. Moving on.

¹²And Asher went forth and took Adon the daughter of Aphlal, the son of Hadad, the son of Yishma’el, for a woman, and he bought her to the land of Kena’an. ¹³ And Adon the woman of Asher died in those days: she had no offspring; and it was after the death of Adon that Asher went to the other side of the river and took for a woman Hadurah the daughter of Aviyma’el, the son of Eber, the son of Shem.

Yashar (Jasher) 45: 12-13

Asher took a daughter of Ishmael for a woman, lining her up with Nimrod and the Cham’s. Then again, it says Adon died childless. Asher then took another wife. Hadurah was the granddaughter of Shem. Wise decision. HaSatan is waging a seed war, but the sons of Ya’aqov are holding their ground—mostly.

¹⁹ And Zevulun went to Midyan, and took for a woman Meriyshah the daughter of Molad, the son of Aviyda, the son of Midyan, and brought her to the land of Kena’an.

Yashar (Jasher) 45:19 [Cepher]

Oh dear. With Midyan, Lot’s incestuous relationship with his daughters enters the picture again. Just as before, I am unclear as to which of Lot’s three wives Midyan ultimately derives from. But one thing is certain, the children of Cham lurk around every corner. Finally, we turn to the youngest of Ya’aqov’s sons.

²¹ And Ya’aqov sent to Aram, the son of Tsovah, the son of Terach, and he took for his son Binyamin Mechalia the daughter of Aram, and she came to the land of Kena’an to the house of Ya’aqov; and Binyamiyn was ten years old when he took Mechalia the daughter of Aram for a woman.

²² And Binyamiyn went afterward and took for a woman Aribath, the daughter of Shimron, the son of Avraham, in addition to his first woman, and he was eighteen years old.

Yashar (Jasher) 45:21 [Cepher]

Terach was Avraham’s father, making Mechalia a Hebrew. And Shimron, as one can clearly see, was the son of Avraham. Therefore, both women of Binyamin, Mechalia and Aribath, were Hebrews. If only all twelve of Ya’aqov’s sons had allowed him to select their women from among the family of Avraham, as Binyamiyn did. Then we wouldn’t be having this conversation. My best guess is though that Lot’s daughters were indeed the offspring of Deborah. No, I can’t be certain. I certainly wouldn’t bet on it. But Ya’aqov’s sons were occupied with producing lineages. When it came to a prospective wife, they knew a cursed bloodline simply by tracing their daddies.

Surely, Yahudah wouldn’t make the same mistake as Re’uven. As the inheritor of the Messianic line and the kingship, Yahudah would keep it in the family—right? No, he wouldn’t. He couldn’t. Let’s find out what is and isn’t possible in the serpent seed war against Mashiach.

38 AND it came to pass at that time, that Yahudah went down from his brethren, and turned in to a certain Adullamiy, whose name was Chiyrah. ² And Yahudah saw there a daughter of a certain Kena’aniy, whose name was Shuach; and he took her, and went in unto 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 Shelach: and he was at Keziyv, when she bore him.

Bere’shiyth (Genesis) 38:1-5 [Cepher]

Um. Yeah. That’s not good. Yahudah married a woman named Shuach—a Kena’anite. That can only mean one thing. If Mashiach descended from any of their three sons—Er, Onan, or Shelach—then Yahusha by default would also be a Kena’anite. Serpent Seed. Oh. Again, not good. Are you breaking out into a cold sweat yet? I got all knotted up inside, first time I understood the reality of Cham’s cursed race and then reread this passage. The book of Yashar gives us the same incriminating information.

⁴ And Yahudah went at that time to Adullam, and he came to a man of Adullam, and his name was Chiryah, and Yahudah saw there the daughter of a man from Kena’an, and her name was Aliyath, the daughter of Shua, and he took her, and came to her, and Aliyath bore unto Yahudah, Er, Onan, and Shiyloh; three sons.

Yashar (Jasher) 45:4 [Cepher]

Shuach is here called Aliyath. Same woman. Why two names—who knows? It simply strengthens my ongoing claims though that many of these seemingly contradictory individuals are in actually the same people. Still a problem though. Even if Shuach and Aliyath were two different women producing three sons of nearly identical names, they’re both listed as Kena’aniy. Can’t have that. Yet another account lists her as Bathshua. Just another form of Shuach, I’m sure. Here’s what it says.

13 And now I command you, my children, hearken to Yahudah your father, and keep my sayings to ²perform all the ordinances of Yahuah, and to obey the commands of Elohim. And walk not after your lusts, nor in the imaginations of your thoughts in haughtiness of heart; and glory not in the deeds ³and strength of your youth, for this also is evil in the eyes of Yahuah. Since I also gloried that in wars no comely woman’s face ever enticed me, and also reproved Reuben my brother concerning Bilhah, the wife of my father, the ruachs of jealousy and fornication arrayed themselves against me, until I lay with Bathshua the Canaanite, and Tamar, who was espoused to my sons. For I said to my father-in-law: I will take counsel with my father, and so will I take thy daughter. And he was unwilling, but he showed me a boundless store of gold in his daughter’s behalf; for he was ⁵a king. And he adorned her with gold and pearls, and caused her to pour out wine for us at the ⁶feast with the beauty of women. And the wine turned aside my eyes, and pleasure blinded my ⁷heart. And I became enamored of and I lay with her, and transgressed the commandment of Yahuah ⁸ and the commandment of my fathers, and I took her to wife. And Yahuah rewarded me according to the imagination of my heart, inasmuch as I had no joy in her children.

The Testament of Yahudah 13:1-8

In lying with Bathshua, Yahudah transgressed the commandment of Yahuah. He fornicated with a foreign woman. Also, her father was a king. Undoubtedly a son of Nimrod. Notice how it is he, the Kena’anite king, who enticed Yahudah to lie with his daughter before taking her as a woman. Seems rather backwards. No agenda there, I’m sure. No, it wasn’t sopped up breasts this time. Gold and pearls adorning her cleavage, maybe even a little side boob or a see-through gown, and several refills of wine would do the trick. That’s HaSatan’s playground, if ever I’ve seen one.

Ya’aqov understood the implications full well. His response is recorded for us in the Cave of Treasures.

And Yahudah, the son of Ya’aqov, took unto himself to wife Shû` (Shuah), the Canaanitess, and his father was grieved because he had taken to wife a woman of the seed of Canaan. And Ya’aqov said unto Yahudah, “May Yahuah Elohim of our fathers Avraham and Yitschaq not permit the seed of Canaan to be mingled with our families.”

Cave of Treasures

If Ya’aqov is to be believed, the line of Mashiach had been ruined. That is, unless an intercession were quickly offered. The intercession was Tamar.

⁶ And Yahudah took a woman for Er his firstborn, whose name was Tamar. ⁷And Er, Yahudah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of Yahuah; and Yahuah slew him. ⁸ And Yahudah said unto Onan, “Go in onto your brother’s woman, 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 unto his brother’s woman, that he spilled it on the ground, lest that he should give seed to his brother. ¹⁰ And the thing which he did displeased Yahuah: wherefore he slew him also. ¹¹ Then said Yahudah to Tamar his daughter in law, “Remain a widow at your father’s house, till Shelach my son be grown”: for he said, “Lest perchance he die also, as his brethren did.” And Tamar went and dwelt in her father’s house.

Bere’shiyth (Genesis) 38:6-11 [Cepher]

Yahudah undoubtedly realized what he’d done, as he thought to course correct his actions with the Kena’aniy woman and offer future generations a child of Shem. What, don’t believe me? Tamar was a granddaughter of Shem. It says so right here.

²³ And in those days Yahudah went to the house of Shem and took Tamar the daughter of Eylam, the son of Shem, for a woman for his firstborn Er.

Yashar (Jasher) 45:23 [Cepher]

Need a second witness? Boom.

And Yahudah took a wife for Er his firstborn, a daughter of Shem the great, whose name was Tamar.

Genesis 38:6 [Targum]

Tamar was a daughter of Shem. Technically, his granddaughter. But she derived from his house all the same. Still, the damage had been done. Yahudah’s sons were little Chams. Therefore, any children whom Tamar produced through Er or Onan would still be little Chams by default. The line of Mashiach would have been one big Cham fest. Or would it? We have already read in the Cave of Treasures how Ya’aqov prayed an intercessory prayer, that Yahuah Elohim would not permit the seed of Kena’an to be mingled with their families. Follow the course of events.

Moshe informs us in Bere’shiyth that Er was wicked without being told why. Yashar fills in that important detail. Yahuah slew him for refusing to deliver Tamar his seed.

²⁴ And Er came to his woman Tamar, and she became his woman, and when he came to her he outwardly destroyed his seed, and his work was evil in the sight of Yahuah, and Yahuah slew him.

Yashar (Jasher) 45:24 [Cepher]

Of course, Onan committed the same deed. We know why Onan did it. Masturbated over her—that is. Moshe tells us. Because he had no love for Torah. Specifically, the command that it is a sibling’s duty to take his dead brothers’ wife as his own—should she remain without child—in order that an inheritance may continue. You can read about it here.

⁵ If brethren dwell together, and one of them die, and have no child, the wife of the dead shall not marry without unto a stranger: her man’s brother shall go in unto her, and take her to him to be his woman, and perform the duty of an man’s brother unto her. ⁶ And it shall be, that the firstborn which she bears shall succeed in the name of his brother which is dead, that his name be not put out of Yashar’el. ⁷ And if the man like not to take his brother’s woman, then let his brother’s woman go up to the gate unto the elders, and say, My man’s brother refuses to raise up unto his brother a name in Yashar’el, he will not perform the duty of my man’s brother. ⁸ Then the elders of his city shall call him, and speak unto him: and if he stand to it, and say, I like not to take her; ⁹ Then shall his brother’s woman come unto him in the presence of the elders, and loose his shoe from off his foot, and spit in his face, and shall answer and say, So shall it be done unto that man that will not build up his brother’s house. ¹⁰ And his name shall be called in Yashar’el, The house of him that hath his shoe loosed.

Devariym (Deuteronomy) 25:5-10 [Cepher]

The question though is why Er outwardly destroyed his seed and refused to impregnate her. Yahudah tells us. It had everything to do with their mother.

10 And after these things my son Er took to wife Tamar, from Mesopotamia, a daughter of Aram. ¹¹ Now Er was wicked, and he was in need concerning Tamar, because she was not of the land of Canaan. ¹² And on the third night an angel of Yahuah smote him. ¹³ And he had not known her according to the evil craftiness of his mother, for he did not wish to have children by her. ¹⁴ In the days of the wedding feast I gave Onan to her in marriage; and he also in wickedness knew her not, though he spent with her a year. ¹⁵ And when I threatened him he went in unto her, but he spilled the seed on the ground, according to the command of his mother, and he also died through wickedness. ¹⁶ And I wished to give Shelah also to her, but his mother did not permit it; for she wrought evil against Tamar, because she was not the daughters of Canaan, as she also herself was.

The Testament of Yahudah 10:1-16

Shuach or Aliyath or Bathshua or whatever was a plant of HaSatan. Doing her daddy’s business. Her Kena’anite father undoubtedly hated the Hebrews. And if he couldn’t run them out of town, he’d breed them out.

¹⁷ And I knew that the race of the Canaanites was wicked, but the impulse of youth blinded my mind. ¹⁸ And when I saw her pouring out wine, owing to the intoxication of wine I was deceived, and took her although my father had not counselled it. ¹⁹ And while I was away she went and took for Shelah a wife from Canaan. ²⁰ And when I knew what she had done, I cursed her in the anguish of my soul. ²¹ And she also died through her wickedness together with her sons.

The Kena’aniy woman’s fate is not given to us except that she also died through her wickedness. You almost get the idea that it was something else sexual, as the same wickedness was tied in with her sons. Also, Yahudah says sons. Plural. Er and Onan we know about. But did Shelah- Shiyloh the youngest die too? We are not told. Most likely I would say yes, in short time, as the Patriarchs took on a plurality of wives, and Tamar knew Shelah-Shiyloh would never be hers. Must be dead then. 

Josephus gives us the same account.

Now Yahudah conceived the plan of marrying Tamar to his youngest son Shelah, but his wife would not permit it. She hated Tamar because she was not of the daughters of Canaan like herself, and while Yahudah was away from home, Bath-shua chose a wife for her son Shelah from the daughters of Canaan. Yahudah was very angry at Bath-shua for what she had done, and also Elohim poured out His wrath upon her, for on account of her wickedness she had to die, and her death happened a year after that of her two sons.

Josephus, Legend of the Yahudim 2:1:64

Rather ironic, come to think of it. The Kena’anite brothers destroyed their seed so as to ensure the Hebrews would not continue on, and in doing so they were destroyed. Poetic justice. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: Nothing happens to the children of Yashar’el unless it first transpired among the Patriarchs. Also, it was an angel of Yahuah which destroyed them. Not necessarily thee angel of Yahuah, but it was an angel all the same. As we shall come to find though, Yahusha, the Word of Yahuah, is very much involved in this narrative.

And anyways, with the Kena’aniy clan firmly scrubbed from the Yahudah family tree, Tamar knew full well that her father-in-law had an Achilles heel. In case you were wondering, that weak spot was his penis.

²² And after these things, while Tamar was a widow, she heard after two years that I was going up, to shear my sheep, and adorned herself in bridal array, and sat in the city Enaim by the gate. ²³ For it was a law of the Amorites, that she who was about to marry should sit in fornication seven days by the gate. ²⁴ Therefore being drunk with wine, I did not recognize her; and her beauty deceived me, through the fashion of her adorning. ²⁵ And I turned aside to her, and said: Let me go in unto thee. ²⁶ And she said: What wilt thou give me? And I gave her my staff, and my girdle, and the diadem of my kingdom in pledge.

The Testament of Yahudah 10:22-26

²⁹ And at the revolution of the year, Aliyath the woman of Yahudah died; and Yahudah was comforted for his woman, and after the death of Aliyath, Yahudah went up with his friend Chiyrah to Timna to shear their sheep. ³⁰ And Tamar heard that Yahudah had gone up to Timna to shear the sheep, and that Shyloh was grown up, and Yahudah did not delight in her. ³¹ And Tamar rose up and put off the garments of her widowhood, and she put a veil upon her, and she entirely covered herself, and she went and sat in the public thoroughfare, which is upon the road to Timna. ³² And Yahudah passed and saw her and took her and he came to her, and she conceived by him, and at the time of being delivered, behold, there were twins in her womb, and he called the name of the first Perets, and the name of the second Zerach.

Yashar (Jasher) 45:23-32

What has just happened here? A moments pleasure, for one. The Achilles Heel which Tamar knew full well. By devising a scheme in which Yahudah would offer her his staff, his mantle, and his seal for sex, the Patriarch cashed in his eternal inheritance—just as brother Re’uven had already done. And Esau. And Cham. And Qayin before everyone.

Another observation worth noting is that Tamar traded in one veil for another. From widow to bride. Yahudah claims the law of the Amorites dictated that all expected brides should sin in fornication seven days by the gate. It means every man had a right to pay for her. Get a shot at impregnating her with their seed before the man of the hour. Let him deal with the offspring. Undoubtedly, another serpent seed tactic. If you can’t force them out of the land, breed them out.

The staff itself was the rod of Messiah, but that’s another discussion entirely. The point is that, though the Kena’aniy woman was a plant of HaSatan, Tamar was too. Only she was counterbalancing act and an agent of Shem, working according to the laws of both people groups (Cham and Avram) to secure the bloodline for Yahusha. Yashar says she heard that Yahudah would be passing by the gate of Timna at such and such time, without being told who. In Bere’shiyth, Moshe doesn’t tell us either. She was simply told. That person however was the Ruach HaQodesh. That’s who she was working in accordance with. Tamar was a prophet.

Thus, Elohim did not permit the seed of Canaan to mingle with the seed of Ya’aqov, even as Ya’aqov prayed Elohim that the seed of Canaan, the firstborn of the lascivious Cham, might not be mingled among the generations of the Fathers. And Elohim made Tâmâr go out to the roadside, and Yahudah lay with her in the passion of fornication, and she conceived and brought forth Peres (Pharez) and Zarah.

The Cave of Treasures

You see, it was Elohim who sent Tamar to the roadside. A divine intervention in the person of Shem’s granddaughter was necessary in order to ensure that the seed of Ya’aqov was not tampered with. In her faithfulness, and from the very beginning, the agent of Yah left it up to the Most-High to turn the wickedness of the Kena’aniy in upon themselves, using one law against the other. Their own plot and weapon self-combusted in their hand, so that Tamar remained a virgin.

Elsewhere, Josephus agrees.

Endowed with the gift of prophecy, Tamar knew that she was appointed to be the ancestress of David and of the Messiah, and she determined to venture upon an extreme measure in order to make sure of fulfilling her destiny. Accordingly, when the Ruach HaQodesh revealed to her that Yahudah was going up to Timnah, she put off from her the garments of her widowhood, and sat in the gate of Avraham’s tent, and there she encountered Yahudah.

Josephus, Legend of the Jews 2:1:63-65

Nobody recognized that fact at the time, so it seems. That Tamar was a prophetess, endowed with the Ruach HaQodesh. But that’s how these things usually go. A prophet or prophetess is without honor in his or her own hometown. Even Yahudah despised her.

And Yahudah saw her, but she seemed in his face as a harlot, because she had provoked him to anger in his house, and Yahudah did not lover her [For she had enwrapped her face].

Genesis 38:15 [Targum]

It’s not that Yahudah had never seen her face before. Rather, he did not know that she had set aside her widow’s veil, and certainly never imagined she’d wear the veil of a bride, as he had already set his mind on never letting Tamar marry his third son—lest he die. Did he recognize her, once that veil was removed? Most likely not, as he was incapable of tracking her down afterwards. Hard to tell though. One thing seems certain however. Yahudah’s sexual passion was fueled by his anger towards her.

The remaining story of Tamar’s faithfulness goes as follows.

²⁴ And it was at the time of three months, that she was known to be with child: and it was told to Yahudah, saying Tamar thy daughter-in-law hath committed fornication and, behold, she is with child by fornication. And Yahudah said, Is she not the daughter of a priest. Let her be brought forth and burned.

²⁵ Tamar was brought forth to be burned, and she searched for the three pledges, but found them not. Uplifiting her eyes to the heavens above, she thus said, Mercy I implore from Thee, O Yahuah: answer Thou me in this hour of need, and enlighten mine eyes to find the three witnesses; and I will dedicate unto Thee from my loins three saints who shall sanctify Thy name, and descend to the furnace of fire in the plain of Dura. In that hour the Holy One, blessed be He, signed to Michael, who enlightened her eyes, that she found (the witnesses) and took and cast them before the feet of the judges, and said, The man to whom these pledges belong is he by whom I am with child. Yet though I may be burned I do not make him manifest: nevertheless, Yahuah of the world will cause him in his heart to acknowledged them, and will deliver me from this great judgment. Now when Yahudah saw them, he recognized them, and said in his heart, It is better for me to be ashamed in this world that passeth away, than be ashamed in the faces of my righteous fathers in the world to come. It is better that I burn in this world by a fire that is extinguished, than burn in the world to come with fire devouring fire. For measure is set against measure. This is according to that which I said to Ya’aqov my father, Know now the robe of thy son; so am I now constrained to hear at the place of judgment, Whose are this seal and mantle and staff?

²⁶ And Yahudah acknowledged and said, Tamar is innocent; she is with child by me. And the Bath kol fell from heaven, and said, “From before Me was this thing done, and let both be delivered from judgment.” And Yahudah said, Because I gave her not to Shela my son, hath this happened to me. But he added not to know her again.

Genesis 38:24-26 [Targum]

The Bath Kol is known as the “heavenly voice,” but just as importantly, the “daughter of voice.” It is used to separate the speech otherwise deriving from the Word of Yahuah. We are being treated to a voice from heaven and it’s feminine. She—or rather, the Bath Kol—is often symbolized by a dove. Sound familiar? The entire episode was a divine intervention by the Ruach HaQodesh in order to ensure that the line of Yahudah remain pure for the impending arrival of her Only Begotten Son.

Noel Joshua