Genesis 38:1–5
The Bible4Jesus.com Podcast
About this episode
The book of Genesis is a masterfully constructed narrative, and the storyteller, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is not afraid of what appears to us to be a jarring interruption. We have just left Joseph, sold into slavery by his brothers, on his way down to Egypt. And right at that moment, the camera cuts away. The spotlight swivels from Joseph, the wronged brother, and fixes on Judah, one of the principal architects of that great crime. The Holy Spirit is teaching us something crucial about the nature of God's covenant purposes. While the story of Joseph is about God's providential preservation of His people through a righteous man, the story of Judah is about God's providential preservation of the Messianic line through a very unrighteous one. We must remember that the scepter was promised to Judah, not Joseph (Gen.