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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0; maximum-scale=1.0; user-scalable=0;"/><title>Genesis 38 New American Bible</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/genesis/38.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="/bmcc/genesis/38-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com/catholic">Bible</a> > <a href="../">NABRE</a> > Genesis 38</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../genesis/37.htm" title="Genesis 37">◄</a> Genesis 38 <a href="../genesis/39.htm" title="Genesis 39">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top">New American Bible Revised Edition</td><td width="1%" valign="top"></td></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><section id="ch01038" class="chapter"> <h1 id="cn01038" class="cn"></h1> <p class="pf"><span class="hemb">Judah and Tamar.<a id="rfn01038001-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn01038001-1">*</a></span> <span id="v01038001" class="ver">1</span>About that time Judah went down, away from his brothers, and pitched his tent near a certain Adullamite named Hirah. <span id="v01038002" class="ver">2</span>There Judah saw the daughter of a Canaanite named Shua; he married her, and had intercourse with her.<a id="ren01038002-a" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en01038002-a">a</a> <span id="v01038003" class="ver">3</span>She conceived and bore a son, whom she named Er. <span id="v01038004" class="ver">4</span>Again she conceived and bore a son, whom she named Onan. <span id="v01038005" class="ver">5</span>Then she bore still another son, whom she named Shelah. She was in Chezib<a id="rfn01038005-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn01038005-1">*</a> when she bore him.<a id="ren01038005-b" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en01038005-b">b</a></p> <p><span id="v01038006" class="ver">6</span>Judah got a wife named Tamar for his firstborn, Er. <span id="v01038007" class="ver">7</span>But Er, Judah’s firstborn, greatly offended the <span class="tetr">Lord</span>; so the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> took his life.<a id="ren01038007-c" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en01038007-c">c</a> <span id="v01038008" class="ver">8</span><a id="ren01038008-d" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en01038008-d">d</a> Then Judah said to Onan, “Have intercourse with your brother’s wife, in fulfillment of your duty as brother-in-law, and thus preserve your brother’s line.”<a id="rfn01038008-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn01038008-1">*</a> <span id="v01038009" class="ver">9</span>Onan, however, knew that the offspring would not be his; so whenever he had intercourse with his brother’s wife, he wasted his seed on the ground, to avoid giving offspring to his brother. <span id="v01038010" class="ver">10</span>What he did greatly offended the <span class="tetr">Lord</span>, and the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> took his life too. <span id="v01038011" class="ver">11</span>Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Remain a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up”—for he feared that Shelah also might die like his brothers. So Tamar went to live in her father’s house.</p> <p><span id="v01038012" class="ver">12</span>Time passed, and the daughter of Shua, Judah’s wife, died. After Judah completed the period of mourning, he went up to Timnah, to those who were shearing his sheep, in company with his friend Hirah the Adullamite. <span id="v01038013" class="ver">13</span>Then Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is on his way up to Timnah to shear his sheep.” <span id="v01038014" class="ver">14</span>So she took off her widow’s garments, covered herself with a shawl, and having wrapped herself sat down at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the way to Timnah; for she was aware that, although Shelah was now grown up, she had not been given to him in marriage.<a id="ren01038014-e" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en01038014-e">e</a> <span id="v01038015" class="ver">15</span>When Judah saw her, he thought she was a harlot, since she had covered her face. <span id="v01038016" class="ver">16</span>So he went over to her at the roadside and said, “Come, let me have intercourse with you,” for he did not realize that she was his daughter-in-law. She replied, “What will you pay me for letting you have intercourse with me?” <span id="v01038017" class="ver">17</span>He answered, “I will send you a young goat from the flock.” “Very well,” she said, “provided you leave me a pledge until you send it.” <span id="v01038018" class="ver">18</span>Judah asked, “What pledge should I leave you?” She answered, “Your seal and cord,<a id="rfn01038018-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn01038018-1">*</a> and the staff in your hand.” So he gave them to her and had intercourse with her, and she conceived by him. <span id="v01038019" class="ver">19</span>After she got up and went away, she took off her shawl and put on her widow’s garments again.</p> <p><span id="v01038020" class="ver">20</span>Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite to recover the pledge from the woman; but he did not find her. <span id="v01038021" class="ver">21</span>So he asked the men of that place, “Where is the prostitute,<a id="rfn01038021-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn01038021-1">*</a> the one by the roadside in Enaim?” But they answered, “No prostitute has been here.” <span id="v01038022" class="ver">22</span>He went back to Judah and told him, “I did not find her; and besides, the men of the place said, ‘No prostitute has been here.’ ” <span id="v01038023" class="ver">23</span>“Let her keep the things,” Judah replied; “otherwise we will become a laughingstock. After all, I did send her this young goat, but you did not find her.”</p> <p><span id="v01038024" class="ver">24</span>About three months later, Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has acted like a harlot and now she is pregnant from her harlotry.” Judah said, “Bring her out; let her be burned.” <span id="v01038025" class="ver">25</span>But as she was being brought out, she sent word to her father-in-law, “It is by the man to whom these things belong that I am pregnant.” Then she said, “See whose seal and cord and staff these are.” <span id="v01038026" class="ver">26</span>Judah recognized them and said, “She is in the right rather than I, since I did not give her to my son Shelah.” He had no further sexual relations with her.</p> <p><span id="v01038027" class="ver">27</span>When the time of her delivery came, there were twins in her womb.<a id="ren01038027-f" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en01038027-f">f</a> <span id="v01038028" class="ver">28</span>While she was giving birth, one put out his hand; and the midwife took and tied a crimson thread on his hand, noting, “This one came out first.” <span id="v01038029" class="ver">29</span><a id="ren01038029-g" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en01038029-g">g</a> But as he withdrew his hand, his brother came out; and she said, “What a breach you have made for yourself!” So he was called Perez.<a id="rfn01038029-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn01038029-1">*</a> <span id="v01038030" class="ver">30</span>Afterward his brother, who had the crimson thread on his hand, came out; he was called Zerah.<a id="rfn01038030-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn01038030-1">*</a> <a id="ren01038030-h" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en01038030-h">h</a></p> </section> <br /><h1 class="cn"><a class="xref" href="intro.htm"><span class="ac">Book Introduction</span></a></h1><h1 class="cn"><a class="xref" href="footnotes.htm"><span class="ac">Footnotes</span></a></h1></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the <i>New American Bible, revised edition</i> © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. 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