Tamar is the daughter of Absalom. She is most beautiful. That’s all we know about her. She’s likely named after her aunt Tamar, her father’s sister who was raped by her uncle Amnon and taken in by her dad, where she lived the rest of her life in desolation.
By sharing her aunt’s name, Absalom’s daughter Tamar is linked forever to the tragedy that befell her aunt. Like Tamar, our name may be in memory of someone else, which may or may not have positive implications.
However, our name, what it means, or who it’s connected to, need not dictate our future. We can shed any implications and pursue our own path.
How can we live our own life, regardless of the labels people give us?
[Discover more about Tamar in 2 Samuel 14:27, along with 2 Samuel 13:1–20.]
Learn about other biblical women in Women of the Bible, available in audiobook, e-book, paperback, and hardcover.
A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.
