Overlooked Bible Characters: and the God Who Values People

Tamar's future was bleak, snuffed out in the cruelest manner at the prime of her young life. She had as yet experienced none of the exhilaration of young love. This unsuspecting princess went within the probable span of one-half hour from "Come in!" to "Get out!"-with the door barred behind her . . .

Two Old Testament Tamars-both disgraced in the most horrific manner (see also Genesis 38). One bringing the dishonor upon herself as a backhanded means to rectify years of neglect and broken promises, the other an unwilling participant, shamed by her half-brother's lust and then tossed aside like a dirty rag. The Old Testament minces no words when it comes to the kinds of stories that make us squirm. Ironically, our own society is hardly tight lipped; perhaps we can relate to these sordid stories in a way previous generations found difficult.

Donna L. Huisjen is a former editor in the Bible Department at HarperCollins Christian Publishing/Zondervan, She has for several years enjoyed writing and freelance editing. The single adoptive mother of three grown daughters, Donna makes her home near Grand Rapids, Michigan.