Genesis 38
38
1 About the same time, Judah, descending from his brothers, turned toward an Adullamite man, named Hirah.
2 And he saw there the daughter of a man called Shua, of Canaan. And taking her as a wife, he entered to her.
3 And she conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Er.
4 And conceiving offspring again, having given birth to a son, she called him Onan.
5 Likewise, she bore a third, whom she called Shelah, after whose birth, she ceased to bear any more.
6 Then Judah gave a wife to his first born Er, whose name was Tamar.
7 And it also happened that Er, the first born of Judah, was wicked in the sight of the Lord and was killed by him.
8 Therefore, Judah said to his son Onan: "Enter to the wife of your brother, and associate with her, so that you may raise offspring to your brother."
9 He, knowing that the sons to be born would not be his, when he entered to the wife of his brother, he spilled his seed on the ground, lest children should be born in his brother's name.
10 And for this reason, the Lord struck him down, because he did a detestable thing.
11 Because of this matter, Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, "Be a widow in your father's house, until my son Shelah grows up." For he was afraid, lest he also might die, just as his brothers did. She went away, and she lived in her father's house.
12 Then, after many days had passed, the daughter of Shua, the wife of Judah, died. And when he accepted consolation after his mourning, he went up to the shearers of his sheep at Timnah, he and Hirah, the herdsman of the Adullamite flock.
13 And it was reported to Tamar that her father-in-law had gone up to Timnah to shear the sheep.
14 And storing away the garments of her widowhood, she took up a veil. And changing her clothing, she sat at the crossroad that leads to Timnah, because Shelah had grown up, and she had not received him as a husband.
15 And when Judah saw her, he thought her to be a harlot. For she had covered her face, lest she be recognized.
16 And entering to her, he said, "Permit me to join with you." For he did not know her to be his daughter-in-law. And she responded, "What will you give to me, to enjoy me as a concubine?"
17 He said, "I will send you a young goat from the flock." And again, she said, "I will allow what you want, if you give me a pledge, until you may send what you promise."
18 Judah said, "What do you want to be given for a pledge?" She responded, "Your ring and bracelet, and the staff that you hold in your hand." Thereupon, the woman, from one sexual encounter, conceived.
19 And she arose and went away. And storing away the garments that she had taken up, she was clothed in the garments of her widowhood.
20 Then Judah sent a young goat by his shepherd, the Adullamite, so that he might receive the pledge that he had given to the woman. But, when he had not found her,
21 he questioned the men of that place: "Where is the woman who sat at the crossroad?" And they all responded, "There has been no harlot in this place."
22 He returned to Judah, and he said to him: "I did not find her. Moreover, the men of that place told me that a prostitute had never sat there."
23 Judah said: "Let her hold herself to blame. Certainly, she is not able to accuse us of a lie. I sent the young goat that I had promised, and you did not find her."
24 And behold, after three months, they reported to Judah, saying, "Tamar, your daughter-in-law, has committed fornication and her abdomen appears to be enlarged." And Judah said, "Produce her, so that she may be burned."
25 But when she was led out to the punishment, she sent to her father-in-law, saying: "I conceived by the man to whom these things belong. Recognize whose ring, and bracelet, and staff this is."
26 But he, acknowledging the gifts, said: "She is more just than I am. For I did not deliver her to my son Shelah." However, he knew her no more.
27 Then, at the moment of birth, there appeared twins in the womb. And so, in the very delivery of the infants, one put forth a hand, on which the midwife tied a scarlet thread, saying,
28 "This one will go out first."
29 But in truth, drawing back his hand, the other came out. And the woman said, "Why is the partition divided for you?" And for this reason, she called his name Perez.
30 After this, his brother came out, on whose hand was the scarlet thread. And she called him Zerah.
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Genesis 38
38
Judah and Tamar
1About that time Judah went down from his brothers and he camped near an Adullamite man, whose name was Hirah.
2There Judah saw the daughter of a Canaanite man whose name was Shua, and he took her as wife and slept with her.
3Then she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and he named him Er.
4She became pregnant again and gave birth to a son, and she named him Onan.
5She gave birth to yet another son and she called him Shelah. He was in Chezib when she gave birth to him.
6Then Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar.
7But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was evil in Adonai’s eyes, so Adonai put him to death.
8Then Judah said to Onan, go to your brother’s wife to perform the duty of a brother-in-law to her, and raise up a seed for your brother.
9But Onan knew that the seed would not be his. So every time he went to his brother’s wife he would destroy it on the ground so as not to provide a seed for his brother.
10What he did was evil in Adonai’s eyes, so He put him to death also.
11Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Stay as a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up,” because he thought, “Otherwise he too might die, like his brothers.” So Tamar went and stayed in her father’s house.
12Now the days became many, and Shua’s daughter, Judah’s wife, died. After Judah consoled himself, he went up to Timnah to his sheepshearers, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite.
13Then Tamar was told, “Look! Your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his flocks.”
14And she removed her widow’s clothes from herself, covered herself with a veil, wrapped herself, and sat by the entrance to the springs on the way to Timnah (for she saw that Shelah had grown up and she had not been given to him as a wife).
15When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute because she had covered her face.
16So he turned aside to her along the way and said, “Please let me sleep with you” (for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law). “What,” she asked, “will you give me to sleep with me?”
17“I will send you a young goat from the flock,” he said, “Provided you give a pledge until you send it,” she said.
18“What kind of pledge shall I give you?” he asked. “Your seal, and your cord, and your staff in your hand,” she said. So he gave them to her and he slept with her, and she got pregnant by him.
19After she got up and left, she removed her veil from herself and put on her widow’s clothes.
20When Judah sent the young goat by the hand of his friend the Adullamite to take back the pledge from the woman’s hand, he could not find her.
21He asked the men of her area saying, “Where is the cult prostitute? She was at the springs along the way.” But they said, “There hasn’t been a cult prostitute here.”
22So he returned to Judah and said, “I couldn’t find her, and the people of that place also said, ‘There hasn’t been a cult prostitute here.’”
23Then Judah said, “Let her take them for herself, or we’ll be held in contempt. Behold, I did send this young goat, but you couldn’t find her.”
24About three months later, Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has been a prostitute—look, she’s even pregnant by prostitution.” “Bring her out!” Judah said, “and let her be burned.”
25As she was being brought out, she sent word to her father-in-law saying, “I’m pregnant by the man to whom these things belong.” Then she said, “Do you recognize whose these are—the seal, the cords and the staff?”
26Then Judah recognized them and said, “She is more righteous than I, since I didn’t give her to my son Shelah.” He was not intimate with her again.
27Now when it was time for her to give birth, behold there were twins in her womb.
28While she was giving birth, one stuck out his hand, and the midwife took a scarlet thread and tied it to his hand saying, “This one came out first.”
29But as he was pulling his hand back in, behold, his brother came out. So she said, “How you have broken through! The breach is because of you.” And he named him Perez.
30Afterward his brother, on whose hand was the scarlet thread, came out. And he named him Zerah.
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