Genesis 38:12-26

New American Standard Bible

¹² Now ^[a]after a considerable time Shua’s daughter, the wife of Judah, died; and when ^[b]the time of mourning was ended, Judah went up to his sheepshearers at ^(A)Timnah, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. ¹³ And Tamar was told, “Behold, your father-in-law is going up to ^(B)Timnah to shear his sheep.” ¹⁴ So she ^[c]removed her widow’s garments and ^(C)covered herself with a ^[d]veil, and wrapped herself, and sat in the gateway of ^[e]Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah had grown up, and ^(D)she had not been given to him as a wife. ¹⁵ When Judah saw her, he assumed she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. ¹⁶ So he turned aside to her by the road, and said, “^[f]Here now, let me have relations with you”; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. And she said, “What will you give me, that you may have relations with me?” ¹⁷ He said, therefore, “I will send you a ^[g]young goat from the flock.” She then said, “Will you give a pledge until you send it?” ¹⁸ He said, “What pledge shall I give you?” And she said, “^(E)Your seal and your cord, and your staff that is in your hand.” So he gave them to her and had relations with her, and she conceived by him. ¹⁹ Then she got up and departed, and ^[h]removed her ^[i]veil and put on her widow’s garments.

²⁰ When Judah sent the ^[j]young goat by his friend the Adullamite, to receive the pledge from the woman’s hand, he did not find her. ²¹ He asked the people of her place, saying, “Where is the temple prostitute who was by the road at Enaim?” But they said, “There has been no temple prostitute here.” ²² So he returned to Judah, and said, “I did not find her; and furthermore, the people of the place said, ‘There has been no temple prostitute here.’” ²³ Then Judah said, “Let her ^[k]keep them, otherwise we will become a laughingstock. ^[l]After all, I sent this young goat, but you did not find her.”

²⁴ Now it was about three months later that Judah was ^[m]informed, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has prostituted herself, and behold, she is also pregnant by prostitution.” Then Judah said, “Bring her out and ^(F)have her burned!” ²⁵ It was while she was being brought out that she sent word to her father-in-law, saying, “I am pregnant by the man to whom these things belong.” She also said, “^(G)Please examine and see, whose signet ring and cords and staff are these?” ²⁶ And Judah recognized them, and said, “^(H)She is more righteous than I, since ^(I)I did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not ^[n]have relations with her again.