38About this time, Judah left home and moved to Adullam, where he stayed with a man named Hirah.H6256H3063H3381H251H5186H376H5726H8034H2437 2There he saw a Canaanite woman, the daughter of Shua, and he married her. When he slept with her,H3063H7200H1323H376H3669H8034H7770H3947H935 3she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and he named the boy Er.H2029H3205H1121H7121H8034H6147 4Then she became pregnant again and gave birth to another son, and she named him Onan.H2029H3205H1121H7121H8034H209 5And when she gave birth to a third son, she named him Shelah. At the time of Shelah's birth, they were living at Kezib.H3254H3205H1121H7121H8034H7956H3580H3205 6In the course of time, Judah arranged for his firstborn son, Er, to marry a young woman named Tamar.H3063H3947H802H6147H1060H8034H8559 7But Er was a wicked man in the LORD's sight, so the LORD took his life.H6147H3063H1060H7451H5869H3068H3068H4191 8Then 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."H3063H559H209H935H251H802H2992H6965H2233H251 9But 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.H209H3045H2233H518H935H251H802H7843H776H1115H5414H2233H251 10But the LORD considered it evil for Onan to deny a child to his dead brother. So the LORD took Onan's life, too.H834H6213H3415H5869H3068H4191 11Then 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.H559H3063H8559H3618H3427H490H1H1004H7956H1121H1431H559H4191H251H8559H3212H3427H1H1004 12Some 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.H7235H3117H1323H7770H3063H802H4191H3063H5162H5927H1494H6629H8553H7453H2437H5726 13Someone told Tamar, "Look, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep."H5046H8559H559H2524H5927H8553H1494H6629 14Tamar 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.H5493H491H899H5493H3680H6809H5968H3427H5869H6607H1870H8553H7200H7956H1431H5414H802 15Judah noticed her and thought she was a prostitute, since she had covered her face.H3063H7200H2803H2181H3680H6440 16So 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.H5186H1870H559H3051H935H3045H3618H559H5414H935 17"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.H559H7971H5795H1423H6629H559H5414H6162H7971 18"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.H559H834H6162H5414H559H2368H6616H4294H3027H5414H935H2029 19Afterward she went back home, took off her veil, and put on her widow's clothing as usual.H6965H3212H5493H6809H3847H899H491 20Later 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.H3063H7971H1423H5795H3027H7453H5726H3947H6162H802H3027H4672 21So 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.H7592H582H4725H559H6948H5869H1870H559H6948H2088 22So 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."H7725H3063H559H3808H4672H582H4725H559H6948 23"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."H3063H559H3947H937H7971H1423H4672 24About 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.H7969H2320H5046H3063H559H8559H3618H2181H2030H2183H3063H559H3318H8313 25But 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?"H3318H7971H2524H559H376H2030H559H5234H2858H6616H4294 26Judah 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.H3063H5234H559H6663H5414H7956H1121H3045H3254 27When the time came for Tamar to give birth, it was discovered that she was carrying twins.H6256H3205H8380H990 28While 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."H3205H5414H3027H3205H3947H7194H3027H8144H559H3318H7223 29But 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.H7725H3027H251H3318H559H6555H6556H8034H7121H6557 30Then the baby with the scarlet string on his wrist was born, and he was named Zerah.H310H3318H251H8144H3027H8034H7121H2226
39When Joseph was taken to Egypt by the Ishmaelite traders, he was purchased by Potiphar, an Egyptian officer. Potiphar was captain of the guard for Pharaoh, the king of Egypt.H3130H3381H4714H6318H5631H6547H8269H2876H376H4713H7069H3027H3459H3381 2The LORD was with Joseph, so he succeeded in everything he did as he served in the home of his Egyptian master.H3068H3130H6743H376H1004H113H4713 3Potiphar noticed this and realized that the LORD was with Joseph, giving him success in everything he did.H113H7200H3068H3068H6213H6743H3027 4This pleased Potiphar, so he soon made Joseph his personal attendant. He put him in charge of his entire household and everything he owned.H3130H4672H2580H5869H8334H6485H1004H3426H5414H3027 5From the day Joseph was put in charge of his master's household and property, the LORD began to bless Potiphar's household for Joseph's sake. All his household affairs ran smoothly, and his crops and livestock flourished.H227H6485H1004H3426H3068H1288H4713H1004H3130H1558H1293H3068H3426H1004H7704 6So Potiphar gave Joseph complete administrative responsibility over everything he owned. With Joseph there, he didn't worry about a thing—except what kind of food to eat! Joseph was a very handsome and well-built young man,H5800H3130H3027H3045H3972H518H3899H398H3130H8389H3303H4758 7and Potiphar's wife soon began to look at him lustfully. "Come and sleep with me," she demanded.H310H1697H113H802H5375H5869H3130H559H7901 8But Joseph refused. "Look," he told her, "my master trusts me with everything in his entire household.H3985H559H113H802H113H3045H1004H5414H3426H3027 9No one here has more authority than I do. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God."H1419H1004H3808H2820H3972H834H859H802H6213H1419H7451H2398H430 10She kept putting pressure on Joseph day after day, but he refused to sleep with her, and he kept out of her way as much as possible.H1696H3130H3117H3117H8085H7901H681 11One day, however, no one else was around when he went in to do his work.H3117H935H1004H6213H4399H376H582H1004 12She came and grabbed him by his cloak, demanding, "Come on, sleep with me!" Joseph tore himself away, but he left his cloak in her hand as he ran from the house.H8610H899H559H7901H5800H899H3027H5127H3318H2351 13When she saw that she was holding his cloak and he had fled,H7200H5800H899H3027H5127H2351 14she called out to her servants. Soon all the men came running. "Look!" she said. "My husband has brought this Hebrew slave here to make fools of us! He came into my room to rape me, but I screamed.H7121H582H1004H559H559H7200H935H376H5680H6711H935H7901H7121H1419H6963 15When he heard me scream, he ran outside and got away, but he left his cloak behind with me."H8085H7311H6963H7121H5800H899H681H5127H3318H2351 16She kept the cloak with her until her husband came home.H3240H899H681H113H935H1004 17Then she told him her story. "That Hebrew slave you've brought into our house tried to come in and fool around with me," she said.H1696H1697H559H5680H5650H935H935H6711 18"But when I screamed, he ran outside, leaving his cloak with me!"H7311H6963H7121H5800H899H681H5127H2351 19Potiphar was furious when he heard his wife's story about how Joseph had treated her.H113H8085H1697H802H1696H559H1697H6213H5650H639H2734 20So he took Joseph and threw him into the prison where the king's prisoners were held, and there he remained.H3130H113H3947H5414H1004H5470H4725H4428H615H631H1004H5470 21But the LORD was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love. And the LORD made Joseph a favorite with the prison warden.H3068H3130H5186H2617H5414H2580H5869H8269H1004H5470 22Before long, the warden put Joseph in charge of all the other prisoners and over everything that happened in the prison.H8269H1004H5470H5414H3130H3027H615H1004H5470H6213H6213 23The warden had no more worries, because Joseph took care of everything. The LORD was with him and caused everything he did to succeed.H8269H1004H5470H7200H3972H3027H3068H6213H3068H6743
40Some time later, Pharaoh's chief cup-bearer and chief baker offended their royal master.H310H1697H8248H4428H4714H644H2398H113H4428H4714 2Pharaoh became angry with these two officials,H6547H7107H5921H8147H5631H8269H8248H8269H644 3and he put them in the prison where Joseph was, in the palace of the captain of the guard.H5414H4929H1004H8269H2876H1004H5470H4725H3130H631 4They remained in prison for quite some time, and the captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, who looked after them.H8269H2876H6485H3130H8334H3117H4929 5While they were in prison, Pharaoh's cup-bearer and baker each had a dream one night, and each dream had its own meaning.H2492H2472H8147H376H2472H259H3915H376H6623H2472H8248H644H4428H4714H631H1004H5470 6When Joseph saw them the next morning, he noticed that they both looked upset.H3130H935H1242H7200H2196 7"Why do you look so worried today?" he asked them.H7592H6547H5631H4929H113H1004H559H6440H7451H3117 8And they replied, "We both had dreams last night, but no one can tell us what they mean." "Interpreting dreams is God's business," Joseph replied. "Go ahead and tell me your dreams."H559H2492H2472H6622H3130H559H6623H430H5608 9So the chief cup-bearer told Joseph his dream first. "In my dream," he said, "I saw a grapevine in front of me.H8269H8248H5608H2472H3130H559H2472H1612H6440 10The vine had three branches that began to bud and blossom, and soon it produced clusters of ripe grapes.H1612H7969H8299H6524H5322H5927H811H1310H6025 11I was holding Pharaoh's wine cup in my hand, so I took a cluster of grapes and squeezed the juice into the cup. Then I placed the cup in Pharaoh's hand."H6547H3563H3027H3947H6025H7818H6547H3563H5414H3563H6547H3709 12"This is what the dream means," Joseph said. "The three branches represent three days.H3130H559H6623H7969H8299H7969H3117 13Within three days Pharaoh will lift you up and restore you to your position as his chief cup-bearer.H5750H7969H3117H6547H5375H7218H7725H3653H5414H6547H3563H3027H7223H4941H8248 14And please remember me and do me a favor when things go well for you. Mention me to Pharaoh, so he might let me out of this place.H2142H3190H6213H2617H2142H6547H3318H1004 15For I was kidnapped from my homeland, the land of the Hebrews, and now I'm here in prison, but I did nothing to deserve it."H1589H776H5680H6213H3972H7760H953 16When the chief baker saw that Joseph had given the first dream such a positive interpretation, he said to Joseph, "I had a dream, too. In my dream there were three baskets of white pastries stacked on my head.H8269H644H7200H6622H2896H559H3130H637H2472H7969H2751H5536H7218 17The top basket contained all kinds of pastries for Pharaoh, but the birds came and ate them from the basket on my head."H5945H5536H3978H4639H644H6547H5775H398H5536H5921H7218 18"This is what the dream means," Joseph told him. "The three baskets also represent three days.H3130H6030H559H6623H7969H5536H7969H3117 19Three days from now Pharaoh will lift you up and impale your body on a pole. Then birds will come and peck away at your flesh."H7969H3117H6547H5375H7218H8518H6086H5775H398H1320 20Pharaoh's birthday came three days later, and he prepared a banquet for all his officials and staff. He summoned his chief cup-bearer and chief baker to join the other officials.H7992H3117H6547H3117H3205H6213H4960H5650H5375H7218H8269H8248H8269H644H8432H5650 21He then restored the chief cup-bearer to his former position, so he could again hand Pharaoh his cup.H7725H8269H8248H4945H7725H5414H3563H6547H3709 22But Pharaoh impaled the chief baker, just as Joseph had predicted when he interpreted his dream.H8518H8269H644H3130H6622 23Pharaoh's chief cup-bearer, however, forgot all about Joseph, never giving him another thought.H8269H8248H2142H3130H7911
Dublin, OH
.H7725
