Judah and Tamar

38 At that time, Judah^(A) left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam^(B) named Hirah.^{(C) 2} There Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite man named Shua.^(D) He married her and made love to her; ³ she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, who was named Er.^{(E) 4} She conceived again and gave birth to a son and named him Onan.^{(F) 5} She gave birth to still another son and named him Shelah.^(G) It was at Kezib that she gave birth to him.

⁶ Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar.^{(H) 7} But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the Lord’s sight;^(I) so the Lord put him to death.^(J)

⁸ Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to raise up offspring for your brother.”^{(K) 9} But Onan knew that the child would not be his; so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from providing offspring for his brother. ¹⁰ What he did was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death also.^(L)

¹¹ Judah then said to his daughter-in-law^(M) Tamar,^(N) “Live as a widow in your father’s household^(O) until my son Shelah^(P) grows up.”^(Q) For he thought, “He may die too, just like his brothers.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s household.

¹² After a long time Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua,^(R) died. When Judah had recovered from his grief, he went up to Timnah,^(S) to the men who were shearing his sheep,^(T) and his friend Hirah the Adullamite^(U) went with him.

¹³ When Tamar^(V) was told, “Your father-in-law is on his way to Timnah to shear his sheep,”^{(W) 14} she took off her widow’s clothes,^(X) covered herself with a veil^(Y) to disguise herself, and then sat down^(Z) at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah.^(AA) For she saw that, though Shelah^(AB) had now grown up, she had not been given to him as his wife.

¹⁵ When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute,^(AC) for she had covered her face. ¹⁶ Not realizing^(AD) that she was his daughter-in-law,^(AE) he went over to her by the roadside and said, “Come now, let me sleep with you.”^(AF)

“And what will you give me to sleep with you?”^(AG) she asked.

¹⁷ “I’ll send you a young goat^(AH) from my flock,” he said.

“Will you give me something as a pledge^(AI) until you send it?” she asked.

¹⁸ He said, “What pledge should I give you?”

“Your seal^(AJ) and its cord, and the staff^(AK) in your hand,” she answered. So he gave them to her and slept with her, and she became pregnant by him.^{(AL) 19} After she left, she took off her veil and put on her widow’s clothes^(AM) again.

²⁰ Meanwhile Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite^(AN) in order to get his pledge^(AO) back from the woman, but he did not find her. ²¹ He asked the men who lived there, “Where is the shrine prostitute^(AP) who was beside the road at Enaim?”

“There hasn’t been any shrine prostitute here,” they said.

²² So he went back to Judah and said, “I didn’t find her. Besides, the men who lived there said, ‘There hasn’t been any shrine prostitute here.’”

²³ Then Judah said, “Let her keep what she has,^(AQ) or we will become a laughingstock.^(AR) After all, I did send her this young goat, but you didn’t find her.”

²⁴ About three months later Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar is guilty of prostitution, and as a result she is now pregnant.”

Judah said, “Bring her out and have her burned to death!”^(AS)

²⁵ As she was being brought out, she sent a message to her father-in-law. “I am pregnant by the man who owns these,” she said. And she added, “See if you recognize whose seal and cord and staff these are.”^(AT)

²⁶ Judah recognized them and said, “She is more righteous than I,^(AU) since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.^(AV)” And he did not sleep with her again.

²⁷ When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb.^{(AW) 28} As she was giving birth, one of them put out his hand; so the midwife^(AX) took a scarlet thread and tied it on his wrist^(AY) and said, “This one came out first.” ²⁹ But when he drew back his hand, his brother came out,^(AZ) and she said, “So this is how you have broken out!” And he was named Perez.^{[a](BA) 30} Then his brother, who had the scarlet thread on his wrist,^(BB) came out. And he was named Zerah.^[b](BC)

Paul Accepted by the Apostles

2 Then after fourteen years, I went up again to Jerusalem,^(A) this time with Barnabas.^(B) I took Titus^(C) along also. ² I went in response to a revelation^(D) and, meeting privately with those esteemed as leaders, I presented to them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles.^(E) I wanted to be sure I was not running and had not been running my race^(F) in vain. ³ Yet not even Titus,^(G) who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek.^{(H) 4} This matter arose because some false believers^(I) had infiltrated our ranks to spy on^(J) the freedom^(K) we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. ⁵ We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel^(L) might be preserved for you.

⁶ As for those who were held in high esteem^(M)—whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not show favoritism^(N)—they added nothing to my message.^{(O) 7} On the contrary, they recognized that I had been entrusted with the task^(P) of preaching the gospel to the uncircumcised,^[a](Q) just as Peter^(R) had been to the circumcised.^{[b] 8} For God, who was at work in Peter as an apostle^(S) to the circumcised, was also at work in me as an apostle^(T) to the Gentiles. ⁹ James,^(U) Cephas^[c](V) and John, those esteemed as pillars,^(W) gave me and Barnabas^(X) the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me.^(Y) They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles,^(Z) and they to the circumcised. ¹⁰ All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor,^(AA) the very thing I had been eager to do all along.

Paul Opposes Cephas

¹¹ When Cephas^(AB) came to Antioch,^(AC) I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. ¹² For before certain men came from James,^(AD) he used to eat with the Gentiles.^(AE) But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group.^{(AF) 13} The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas^(AG) was led astray.

¹⁴ When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel,^(AH) I said to Cephas^(AI) in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew.^(AJ) How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?^(AK)

¹⁵ “We who are Jews by birth^(AL) and not sinful Gentiles^{(AM) 16} know that a person is not justified by the works of the law,^(AN) but by faith in Jesus Christ.^(AO) So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in^[d] Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.^(AP)

¹⁷ “But if, in seeking to be justified in Christ, we Jews find ourselves also among the sinners,^(AQ) doesn’t that mean that Christ promotes sin? Absolutely not!^{(AR) 18} If I rebuild what I destroyed, then I really would be a lawbreaker.

¹⁹ “For through the law I died to the law^(AS) so that I might live for God.^{(AT) 20} I have been crucified with Christ^(AU) and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.^(AV) The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God,^(AW) who loved me^(AX) and gave himself for me.^{(AY) 21} I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law,^(AZ) Christ died for nothing!”^[e]

Psalm 84^[a]

For the director of music. According to gittith.^[b] Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.