Genesis 38 in plain modern English. New Ground English Translation.
Time Period
~1900 BC, during the years Joseph was a slave in Egypt, in the age of the founding fathers of Israel
Location
The low hill country of Canaan west of the Dead Sea, around the towns of Adullam, Chezib and Timnah, roughly 20 miles southwest of Jerusalem
Audience
The Israelites who came out of Egypt with Moses, learning the origins of their own tribes
Situation
Judah leaves his brothers, settles among Canaanite neighbours, and marries a Canaanite woman. After two of his sons die and he withholds the third from his widowed daughter-in-law Tamar, she disguises herself as a roadside prostitute and conceives twins by Judah himself.
Key Background
Ancient Near Eastern custom required a dead man's brother to marry the widow and father a son counted as the dead man's heir, so that a family line and its land did not vanish. A childless widow had no income and no standing, which is why Tamar's trap is presented as her taking what was legally owed her rather than as simple seduction. The personal seal on its cord and the walking staff were a man's identity papers, as good as a signature, which is why holding them let Tamar prove who the father was.
Around that time, left his brothers and went to stay with a man from named Hirah.
While there, Judah saw the daughter of a man named Shua. He married her and slept with her.
She got pregnant and had a son. He named him
She got pregnant again and had another son, and she named him
She had yet another son and named him Judah was at when she gave birth to him.
Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn. Her name was
But Er, Judah's firstborn, was in Yahweh's eyes, so Yahweh put him to death.
Then Judah said to Onan, "Sleep with your brother's wife. Do your as and give your brother an heir."
But Onan knew the child wouldn't be considered So whenever he slept with brother's wife, he would pull out and on the to avoid giving brother an heir.
What he did was in Yahweh's eyes, so Yahweh put him to death too.
Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, "Go live as a in your father's house until my son Shelah grows up." He said this because he was afraid Shelah would die too, just like his brothers. So Tamar went and lived in her father's house.
A long time passed, and Judah's wife — the daughter of Shua — died. After Judah had finished mourning, he went up to with his friend Hirah the Adullamite to be with his
When Tamar was told, "Your father-in-law is on his way up to Timnah to shear his sheep,"
she took off her covered herself with a to disguise herself, and sat down at the entrance to which is on the road to Timnah. She could see that Shelah had grown up, but she had not been given to him as a wife.
When Judah saw her, he thought she was a because she had covered her face.
He went over to her by the road and said, "Come, let me sleep with you" — not realizing she was his daughter-in-law. She said, "What will you give me to sleep with you?"
He said, "I'll send you a young goat from my flock." She said, "Only if you give me something as a until you send it."
He said, "What kind of guarantee should I give you?" She said, "Your your and the in your hand." So he gave them to her, slept with her, and she got pregnant.
She got up and left, took off her veil, and put her widow's clothes back on.
Judah sent the young goat with his friend Hirah the Adullamite to get his guarantee back from the woman, but Hirah couldn't find her.
He asked the men of that area, "Where is the who was sitting by the road at Enaim?" They said, "There hasn't been any here."
He went back to Judah and said, "I couldn't find her. And the local men said there hasn't been any cult prostitute there."
Judah said, "Let her keep the things, or we'll be Look, I sent this goat, but you couldn't find her."
About three months later, Judah was told, "Your daughter-in-law Tamar has been a and now she's pregnant from it." Judah said, "Drag out and
As she was being brought out, she a to her father-in-law: "I'm pregnant by the man who owns these things. — whose seal, cord, and staff are these?"
Judah recognized them and said, "She is more in the than I am, because I didn't give her to my son Shelah." And he did not sleep with her again.
When it was time for her to give birth, there were in her womb.
While she was in labor, one of them put out a hand. The midwife grabbed it and tied a on it, saying, "This one came out first."
But then he pulled his hand back, and his brother came out first. She said, "What a you've made for yourself!" So he was named
Then his brother came out with the scarlet thread on his hand. He was named