Genesis 38

Judah and Tamar

38About this time, Judah left home and moved to Adullam, where he stayed with a man named Hirah.H6256H3063H3381H251H5186H376H5726H8034H24372There he saw a Canaanite woman, the daughter of Shua, and he married her. When he slept with her,H3063H7200H1323H376H3669H8034H7770H3947H9353she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and he named the boy Er.H2029H3205H1121H7121H8034H61474Then she became pregnant again and gave birth to another son, and she named him Onan.H2029H3205H1121H7121H8034H2095And when she gave birth to a third son, she named him Shelah. At the time of Shelah's birth, they were living at Kezib.H3254H3205H1121H7121H8034H7956H3580H32056In the course of time, Judah arranged for his firstborn son, Er, to marry a young woman named Tamar.H3063H3947H802H6147H1060H8034H85597But Er was a wicked man in the LORD's sight, so the LORD took his life.H6147H3063H1060H7451H5869H3068H3068H41918Then Judah said to Er's brother Onan, "Go and marry Tamar, as our law requires of the brother of a man who has died. You must produce an heir for your brother."H3063H559H209H935H251H802H2992H6965H2233H2519But Onan was not willing to have a child who would not be his own heir. So whenever he had intercourse with his brother's wife, he spilled the semen on the ground. This prevented her from having a child who would belong to his brother.H209H3045H2233H518H935H251H802H7843H776H1115H5414H2233H25110But the LORD considered it evil for Onan to deny a child to his dead brother. So the LORD took Onan's life, too.H834H6213H3415H5869H3068H419111Then Judah said to Tamar, his daughter-in-law, "Go back to your parents' home and remain a widow until my son Shelah is old enough to marry you." (But Judah didn't really intend to do this because he was afraid Shelah would also die, like his two brothers.) So Tamar went back to live in her father's home.H559H3063H8559H3618H3427H490H1H1004H7956H1121H1431H559H4191H251H8559H3212H3427H1H100412Some years later Judah's wife died. After the time of mourning was over, Judah and his friend Hirah the Adullamite went up to Timnah to supervise the shearing of his sheep.H7235H3117H1323H7770H3063H802H4191H3063H5162H5927H1494H6629H8553H7453H2437H572613Someone told Tamar, "Look, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep."H5046H8559H559H2524H5927H8553H1494H662914Tamar was aware that Shelah had grown up, but no arrangements had been made for her to come and marry him. So she changed out of her widow's clothing and covered herself with a veil to disguise herself. Then she sat beside the road at the entrance to the village of Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah.H5493H491H899H5493H3680H6809H5968H3427H5869H6607H1870H8553H7200H7956H1431H5414H80215Judah noticed her and thought she was a prostitute, since she had covered her face.H3063H7200H2803H2181H3680H644016So he stopped and propositioned her. "Let me have sex with you," he said, not realizing that she was his own daughter-in-law. "How much will you pay to have sex with me?" Tamar asked.H5186H1870H559H3051H935H3045H3618H559H5414H93517"I'll send you a young goat from my flock," Judah promised. "But what will you give me to guarantee that you will send the goat?" she asked.H559H7971H5795H1423H6629H559H5414H6162H797118"What kind of guarantee do you want?" he replied. She answered, "Leave me your identification seal and its cord and the walking stick you are carrying." So Judah gave them to her. Then he had intercourse with her, and she became pregnant.H559H834H6162H5414H559H2368H6616H4294H3027H5414H935H202919Afterward she went back home, took off her veil, and put on her widow's clothing as usual.H6965H3212H5493H6809H3847H899H49120Later Judah asked his friend Hirah the Adullamite to take the young goat to the woman and to pick up the things he had given her as his guarantee. But Hirah couldn't find her.H3063H7971H1423H5795H3027H7453H5726H3947H6162H802H3027H467221So he asked the men who lived there, "Where can I find the shrine prostitute who was sitting beside the road at the entrance to Enaim?" "We've never had a shrine prostitute here," they replied.H7592H582H4725H559H6948H5869H1870H559H6948H208822So Hirah returned to Judah and told him, "I couldn't find her anywhere, and the men of the village claim they've never had a shrine prostitute there."H7725H3063H559H3808H4672H582H4725H559H694823"Then let her keep the things I gave her," Judah said. "I sent the young goat as we agreed, but you couldn't find her. We'd be the laughingstock of the village if we went back again to look for her."H3063H559H3947H937H7971H1423H467224About three months later, Judah was told, "Tamar, your daughter-in-law, has acted like a prostitute. And now, because of this, she's pregnant." "Bring her out, and let her be burned!" Judah demanded.H7969H2320H5046H3063H559H8559H3618H2181H2030H2183H3063H559H3318H831325But as they were taking her out to kill her, she sent this message to her father-in-law: "The man who owns these things made me pregnant. Look closely. Whose seal and cord and walking stick are these?"H3318H7971H2524H559H376H2030H559H5234H2858H6616H429426Judah recognized them immediately and said, "She is more righteous than I am, because I didn't arrange for her to marry my son Shelah." And Judah never slept with Tamar again.H3063H5234H559H6663H5414H7956H1121H3045H325427When the time came for Tamar to give birth, it was discovered that she was carrying twins.H6256H3205H8380H99028While she was in labor, one of the babies reached out his hand. The midwife grabbed it and tied a scarlet string around the child's wrist, announcing, "This one came out first."H3205H5414H3027H3205H3947H7194H3027H8144H559H3318H722329But then he pulled back his hand, and out came his brother! "What!" the midwife exclaimed. "How did you break out first?" So he was named Perez

.H7725H3027H251H3318H559H6555H6556H8034H7121H655730Then the baby with the scarlet string on his wrist was born, and he was named Zerah

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