Genesis 38
Expanded Bible
Judah and Tamar
38 About that time, Judah ·left [L went down from] his brothers and went to stay with a man named Hirah in the town of Adullam [C a Canaanite city nine miles northwest of Hebron]. 2 There Judah met a Canaanite girl, the daughter of a man named Shua, and married her. Judah ·had sexual relations with [L went to] her, 3 and she ·became pregnant [conceived] and gave birth to a son, whom Judah named Er. 4 Later she gave birth to another son and named him Onan. 5 Still later she had another son and named him Shelah. She was at Kezib [C “deceiving”; a town near Adullam; probably the same as Aczib; Josh. 15:44] when this third son was born.
6 Judah ·chose [L took] a girl named Tamar to be the wife of his ·first son [firstborn] Er. 7 But Er, Judah’s ·oldest son [firstborn], did ·what the Lord said was evil [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord] so the Lord killed him. 8 Then Judah said to Er’s brother Onan, “Go and have sexual relations with your dead brother’s wife. It is your duty to ·provide children for your brother in this way [L raise up a seed for your brother; Deut. 25:5–10].”
9 But Onan knew that the ·children [L seed] would not belong to him, so when he ·was supposed to have sexual relations with [L he went to] Tamar he ·did not complete the sex act [L spilled his seed on the ground], ·making it impossible for Tamar to become pregnant and for Er to have descendants [L so that he did not give a descendant/seed to his brother]. 10 ·The Lord was displeased by this wicked thing Onan had done [L What he did was evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord], so he killed Onan also. 11 Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “·Go back to live in your father’s house, and don’t marry [L Remain a widow in your father’s house] until my young son Shelah grows up.” Judah was afraid that Shelah also would die like his brothers. So Tamar returned to her father’s home.
12 After a long time Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua, died. After Judah ·had gotten over his sorrow [L was comforted], he went to Timnah [C a town south of Hebron] to his ·men who were cutting the wool from his sheep [L sheepshearers]. His friend Hirah from Adullam went with him. 13 Tamar learned that Judah, her father-in-law, was going to Timnah to cut the wool from his sheep. 14 So she took off the clothes that showed she was a widow and covered her face with a veil ·to hide who she was [L and wrapped herself up; C perhaps indicating a woman was a prostitute; see v. 15]. Then she sat down by the gate of Enaim on the road to Timnah. She did this because Judah’s younger son Shelah had grown up, but Judah had not ·made plans for her to marry him [given her to him as a wife].
15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, because she had covered her face with a veil. 16 So Judah went to her [L on the road side/way] and said, “Let me ·have sexual relations with [L come to] you.” He did not know that she was Tamar, his daughter-in-law.
She asked, “What will you ·give [pay] me if I let you ·have sexual relations with [L come to] me?”
17 Judah answered, “I will send you a young goat from my flock.”
She answered, “First give me ·something to keep as a deposit [a pledge] until you send the goat.”
18 Judah asked, “What do you want me to give you as a ·deposit [pledge]?”
Tamar answered, “Give me your ·seal [signet] and its cord, and give me your ·walking stick [staff; C all items that could identify a person].” So Judah gave these things to her. Then ·Judah and Tamar had sexual relations, and Tamar became pregnant [L he went to her and she conceived]. 19 When ·Tamar went home [L she got up and went], she took off the veil that covered her face and put on the clothes that showed she was a widow.
20 Judah sent his friend ·Hirah [L the Adullamite; 38:1] with the young goat to find the woman and get back his ·seal [signet] and the ·walking stick [staff] he had given her, but Hirah could not find her. 21 He asked some of the people at the town of Enaim, “Where is the prostitute [C perhaps indicating a temple prostitute connected to a fertility religion] who was here by the road?”
They answered, “There has never been a prostitute here.”
22 So he went back to Judah and said, “I could not find the woman, and the people who lived there said, ‘There has never been a prostitute here.’ ”
23 Judah said, “Let her keep the things. I don’t want people to laugh at us. I sent her the goat as I promised, but you could not find her.”
24 About three months later someone told Judah, “Tamar, your daughter-in-law, is guilty of acting like a prostitute, and now she ·is pregnant [has conceived].”
Then Judah said, “Bring her out and let her be burned to death.”
25 When ·the people went to bring Tamar out [L she was brought out], she sent a message to her father-in-law that said, “The man who owns these things has made me pregnant. Look at this ·seal [signet] and its cord and this ·walking stick [staff], and tell me whose they are.”
26 Judah recognized them and said, “She is more ·in the right [righteous] than I. She did this because I did not give her to my son Shelah as I promised.” And Judah did not ·have sexual relations with [L know; 4:1] her again.
27 When the time came for Tamar to give birth, there were twins in her ·body [L womb]. 28 While she was ·giving birth [in labor], one baby put his hand out. The ·nurse [midwife] tied a ·red [crimson] string on his hand and said, “This baby came out first.” 29 But he pulled his hand back in, so the other baby was born first. The nurse said, “·So you are able to break out first [or What a breach you have made],” and they named him Perez [C sounds like “break out” in Hebrew]. 30 After this, the baby with the red string on his hand was born, and they named him Zerah [C shining/brightness, perhaps referring to the red string].
Genesi 38
La Nuova Diodati
38 Or in quel tempo avvenne che Giuda lasciò i suoi fratelli per andare a stare con un uomo di Adullam, di nome Hirah.
2 Qui Giuda vide la figlia di un uomo Cananeo, chiamato Shua; la prese in moglie e si unì a lei.
3 Ed ella concepì e partorì un figlio, che egli chiamò Er.
4 Poi ella concepì nuovamente e partorì un figlio, che egli chiamò Onan.
5 Ella concepì ancora e partorì un figlio, che chiamò Scelah. Or Giuda era a Kezib, quando ella lo partorì.
6 Poi Giuda prese per Er, suo primogenito, una moglie di nome Tamar.
7 Ma Er, primogenito di Giuda, era malvagio agli occhi dell'Eterno, e l'Eterno lo fece morire.
8 Allora Giuda disse a Onan: «Va' dalla moglie di tuo fratello, sposala e suscita una discendenza a tuo fratello».
9 Ma Onan, sapendo che quella discendenza non sarebbe stata sua, quando si univa alla moglie di suo fratello, disperdeva il suo seme per terra, per non dare discendenza al fratello.
10 Ciò che egli faceva dispiacque agli occhi dell'Eterno, che fece morire anche lui.
11 Allora Giuda disse a Tamar sua nuora: «Rimani come vedova in casa di tuo padre, finché mio figlio Scelah sia cresciuto». Perché pensava: «Temo che muoia anch'egli come i suoi fratelli». Cosi Tamar se ne andò e dimorò in casa di suo padre.
12 Dopo parecchio tempo, la moglie di Giuda, la figlia di Shua, morì; quando ebbe terminato il cordoglio, Giuda salì da quelli che tosavano le sue pecore a Timnah, egli col suo amico Hirah, l'Adullamita.
13 Di questo fu informata Tamar, e le fu detto: «ecco, tuo suocero sale a Timnah a tosare le sue pecore».
14 Allora ella si tolse le vesti da vedova, si coperse con un velo e si avvolse tutta; poi si pose a sedere alla porta di Enaim, che è sulla strada verso Timnah; aveva infatti visto che Scelah era ormai cresciuto. ma lei non gli era stata data in moglie.
15 Come Giuda la vide. pensò che ella fosse una prostituta, perché aveva il viso coperto.
16 Quindi egli si accostò a lei sulla strada e le disse: «Lasciami entrare da te». Non sapeva infatti che ella fosse sua nuora. Lei rispose: «Che mi darai per entrare da me?».
17 Allora egli disse: «Ti manderò un capretto del mio gregge». Ella chiese: «Mi dai un pegno finché me lo manderai?».
18 Egli disse: «Che pegno ti devo dare?». Quella rispose: «Il tuo sigillo, il tuo cordone e il bastone che hai in mano». Egli glieli diede, entrò da lei, ed ella concepì da lui.
19 Poi ella si levò e se ne andò; si tolse il velo e si rimise le sue vesti da vedova.
20 Or Giuda mandò il capretto per mezzo del suo amico, l'Adullamita, per poter ritirare il pegno dalle mani di quella donna; ma egli non la trovò.
21 Allora domandò agli uomini del luogo dicendo: «Dov'è quella prostituta che stava a Enaim, sulla strada?». Essi risposero: «Non c'era alcuna prostituta qui».
22 Così egli ritornò da Giuda e gli disse: «Non l'ho trovata; inoltre gli uomini del luogo mi hanno detto: "Non c'era alcuna prostituta qui».
23 Allora Giuda disse: «Si tenga pure il pegno, che non abbiamo a incorrere nel disprezzo. Ecco, io ho mandato questo capretto e tu non l'hai trovata».
24 Ora circa tre mesi dopo vennero a dire a Giuda: «Tamar tua nuora si è prostituita; e, a motivo della sua prostituzione, ella è pure incinta». Allora Giuda disse: «Conducetela fuori e sia arsa!».
25 Come la conducevano fuori, ella mandò a dire al suocero: «E' l'uomo a cui appartengono queste cose che mi ha resa incinta». E disse: «Vedi se puoi riconoscere di chi siano queste cose: il Sigillo, il cordone e il bastone».
26 Giuda li riconobbe e disse: «Ella é piú giusta di me, perché io non l'ho data a Scelah mio figlio». Ed egli non ebbe piú rapporti con lei.
27 Quando venne il tempo in cui doveva partorire, ecco che le aveva in grembo due gemelli.
28 Mentre partoriva, uno di essi mise fuori una mano, e la levatrice la prese e vi legò un filo scarlatto, dicendo: «Questo è uscito per primo».
29 Ma egli ritirò la sua mano, ed uscì fuori suo fratello. Allora la levatrice disse: «Come ti sei aperto una breccia Per questo motivo Fu chiamato Perets.
30 Poi uscì suo fratello, che aveva attorno alla mano il filo scarlatto; e fu chiamato Zerah.
Genesis 38
Christian Standard Bible
Judah and Tamar
38 At that time Judah left his brothers and settled near an Adullamite(A) named Hirah. 2 There Judah saw the daughter of a Canaanite named Shua; he took her as a wife and slept with her. 3 She conceived and gave birth to a son, and he named him Er.(B) 4 She conceived again, gave birth to a son, and named him Onan. 5 She gave birth to another son and named him Shelah. It was at Chezib that[a][b] she gave birth to him.
6 Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. 7 Now Er, Judah’s firstborn, was evil in the Lord’s sight, and the Lord put him to death.(C) 8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife. Perform your duty as her brother-in-law(D) and produce offspring for your brother.”(E) 9 But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his, so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he released his semen on the ground so that he would not produce offspring for his brother. 10 What he did was evil in the Lord’s sight, so he put him to death also.
11 Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Remain a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up.”(F) For he thought, “He might die too, like his brothers.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s house.
12 After a long time[c] Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua, died. When Judah had finished mourning, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite went up to Timnah(G) to his sheepshearers. 13 Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep.” 14 So she took off her widow’s clothes, veiled her face,(H) covered herself, and sat at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the way to Timnah. For she saw that, though Shelah had grown up, she had not been given to him as a wife. 15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face.
16 He went over to her and said, “Come, let me sleep with you,” for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law.(I)
She said, “What will you give me for sleeping with me?”
17 “I will send you a young goat from my flock,” he replied.
But she said, “Only if you leave something with me until you send it.”
18 “What should I give you?” he asked.
She answered, “Your signet ring, your cord, and the staff in your hand.” So he gave them to her and slept with her, and she became pregnant by him. 19 She got up and left, then removed her veil and put her widow’s clothes back on.
20 When Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite in order to get back the items he had left with the woman, he could not find her. 21 He asked the men of the place, “Where is the cult prostitute who was beside the road at Enaim?”
“There has been no cult prostitute here,” they answered.
22 So the Adullamite returned to Judah, saying, “I couldn’t find her, and besides, the men of the place said, ‘There has been no cult prostitute here.’”
23 Judah replied, “Let her keep the items for herself; otherwise we will become a laughingstock. After all, I did send this young goat, but you couldn’t find her.”
24 About three months later Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law, Tamar, has been acting like a prostitute, and now she is pregnant.”
“Bring her out,” Judah said, “and let her be burned to death!” (J)
25 As she was being brought out, she sent her father-in-law this message: “I am pregnant by the man to whom these items belong.” And she added, “Examine them. Whose signet ring, cord, and staff are these?”
26 Judah recognized them and said, “She is more in the right[d] than I,(K) since I did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not know her intimately again.
27 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twins in her womb. 28 As she was giving birth, one of them put out his hand, and the midwife took it and tied a scarlet thread around it, announcing, “This one came out first.” 29 But then he pulled his hand back, out came his brother, and she said, “What a breakout you have made for yourself!” So he was named Perez.[e](L) 30 Then his brother, who had the scarlet thread tied to his hand, came out, and was named Zerah.[f]
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Copyright © 1991 by La Buona Novella s.c.r.l.
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.