1 This story is about something that Jacob’s son Judah did.

Judah left his brothers, and he went to stay with a man from the town called Adullam. That man’s name was Hirah. 2 While Judah was staying in that place, he saw a young woman. That woman’s father was called Shua, and he was from the Canaan tribe. Judah married that young woman, and he slept with her. 3 Then that woman had a baby boy, and Judah named him Er. 4 Later, that woman had another baby boy, and she named him Onan. 5 And later, she had another baby boy too. She named that baby Shelah. At that time, Judah was staying in the town called Kezib.

6 Judah’s oldest son Er, he grew up and became a man. And Judah found a woman for Er to marry. That woman’s name was Tamar. 7 But Judah’s oldest son Er, he did really bad things, and God was angry with him. So God finished up Er, and he died.

8 Then Judah talked to his 2nd son Onan. Judah said, “Your brother Er is dead, and he didn’t have any kids. So now, you have to marry Er’s wife and sleep with her, so that she will have kids. That’s the rule in our culture. And after those kids grow up, they will get everything that belonged to Er. It will be like they are his kids.”

9 So Onan married Er’s wife. But Onan didn’t want to have kids with her, because he knew that those kids will not belong to him. So Onan did a bad thing. Every time they slept together, like married people do, he didn’t sleep with her properly. He always stopped early, so she didn’t get any babies growing inside her. 10 But God was angry with Onan for doing that bad thing, so God finished up Onan too.

11 Then Judah thought, “My sons Er and Onan, they are both dead, and they didn’t have any kids with that woman. So now, my other son Shelah has to marry that woman and have kids with her. That’s the rule in our culture. But if Shelah marries that woman, he might die too, just like Er and Onan.” So Judah got worried, and he didn’t want his son Shelah to marry that woman Tamar.

So Judah talked to Tamar, and he tried to trick her. He said to her, “My son Shelah is too young to marry you now. So go back to your father’s house, and live there. Don’t get married to anyone else. Later on, Shelah will grow up, and then you can marry him.” So Tamar went back to her father’s house, and she lived there.

Judah’s son Shelah grew up and became a man. But Judah didn’t keep that promise he made to Tamar. He didn’t let her marry his son Shelah.

12 Some time later, Judah’s wife died. Her father’s name was Shua. Judah missed his wife, so he felt very sad for a while. But later on, he felt all right again.

Judah’s work-men were in the place called Timnah. They were cutting the wool off Judah’s sheep. Judah wanted to visit his work-men, so he started to go towards Timnah, and his friend Hirah went with him. That man Hirah, he was from the town called Adullam.

13 Then somebody told that woman Tamar, “Your dead husband’s father is going to Timnah to visit his work-men. They are cutting the wool off his sheep there.”

14 Tamar thought about Judah’s son Shelah. She knew that he was grown up now, but Judah still didn’t let her marry him. So Tamar thought, “I will trick Judah and get him to sleep with me, like a man sleeps with his wife, so that I can have kids. Then those kids will belong to my dead husband Er.”

At that time, Tamar was wearing the sort of clothes that widows wear. But then, Tamar changed those clothes, and she put on some pretty clothes, and she put a scarf over her head, to cover her face. Then she went and sat outside the town called Enayim. That town is on the road that goes to Timnah.

15-16 Later, Judah walked along that road, and he saw Tamar sitting there. She had that scarf over her head, and Judah couldn’t see her face. So Judah didn’t know that she was Tamar, his dead son’s wife. He thought she was a woman that sleeps with men for pay. So Judah went to her, and he said, “I want to sleep with you, like a man sleeps with his wife.”

Tamar said, “If I sleep with you, then you have to give me something to pay me. What will you give me?”

17 Judah said, “After you sleep with me, I will send you one of my young goats.”

Tamar said, “All right. But first, you have to give me something that belongs to you, to show that you promised to send me a young goat.”

18 Judah said, “All right, I will give you something to show that I made that promise. What do you want me to give you?”

Tamar said, “Give me that necklace with your special stamp on it, and your walking stick.” (Judah used that special stamp like a signature.)

So Judah gave those things to Tamar. Then he slept with Tamar, like a man sleeps with his wife, and a baby started to grow inside her. 19 Then Tamar left that place, and she went home. She took off the scarf that was over her head, and she took off those pretty clothes, and she put on her widow’s clothes again.

20 Judah talked to his friend Hirah, and he said, “Take one of my young goats, and give it to that woman that I slept with. Then tell her to give back my necklace with my special stamp on it, and my walking stick.”

So Hirah took that young goat, and he went to look for that woman, but he didn’t find her. 21 So he talked to the men that lived in that place, and he said, “Where is that woman that sleeps with men for pay? She was sitting next to the road, near the place called Enayim.”

But those men said, “There isn’t any woman here that sleeps with men for pay.”

22 So Hirah went back to Judah, and he said, “I didn’t find that woman. And the men that live in that place, they said to me, ‘There isn’t any woman here that sleeps with men for pay.’ ”

23 Then Judah said to Hirah, “All right, that woman can keep the necklace with my stamp on it, and my walking stick. I tried to keep my promise to that woman. Yes, I gave you a young goat to take to her. But you didn’t find her. If you go and look for her again, everybody will laugh at us. So she can just keep my things.”

24 3 months later, somebody said to Judah, “Your dead son’s wife Tamar, she did a bad thing. She slept with a man that isn’t her husband. And now there is a baby growing inside her.”

Judah wanted to punish Tamar for doing that. So he said, “Go and get her. Put her on a fire, and burn her until she dies.”

25 So some people went to Tamar’s house, and they started to take her to the place to burn her. But she said to them, “Take this necklace with a special stamp on it, and this walking stick, and show them to Judah, my dead husband’s father. Say to him, ‘The man that owns these things, he is the one that slept with me and made this baby grow inside me. So please look at this necklace with the special stamp on it, and this walking stick, and say who they belong to.’ ”

26 So they took those things to Judah, and they told him what Tamar said. And Judah looked at those things, and he knew that they belonged to him. Then Judah knew that Tamar tricked him, and he felt shame. He said, “You know, I did the wrong thing. I didn’t let Tamar marry my son Shelah. But Tamar is better than me. She wanted to have kids that will belong to her dead husband, just like our culture says. That’s the reason why she got me to sleep with her.”

So Judah didn’t punish Tamar, and he never slept with her again.

27 Later on, the time came for Tamar to have her baby. At that time, Tamar found out that she had 2 babies inside her. 28 There was a working woman there with Tamar, and that woman helped Tamar while she had her babies.

The 1st baby started to be born. His arm came out. And that working woman, she tied a bit of red string around that baby’s arm, and she said, “This baby is first.” 29 But then, that baby pulled his arm back in, and the 2nd baby came out. Then that working woman was shocked, because that 2nd baby came out before his brother. She talked to that 2nd baby, and she said, “You pushed really hard, and you came out first. It’s like you broke out through a wall.” So they named that baby Perez. That name means break out.

30 Then the other baby came out, with that bit of red string tied around his arm. And they named that baby Zerah.