Judah and Tamar, Genesis 38: Biblical Ethics in African Perspective

The story of Judah and Tamar, Genesis 38, revolves around levirate marriage. Levirate marriage law, echoed in Ruth 4, is laid out in Deut 25:5–10. Both Lev 18:16 and 20:21 clearly refer to it, but seem to proscribe it, raising the issue of the hermeneutics of Torah. Parts of Africa observe the custom of levirate marriage, in some places referred to as wife inheritance. The texts of the Hebrew Bible and the relevant culture in Africa are analyzed for the issues and values under negotiation. It is shown how Judaism wrestles with them and how African traditional culture evolves in the face of currents of change induced by colonialism, modern social conditions, and Christianity.