1 Now at that time Judah went down from his brothers and pitched his tent near a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah.
2 And Judah saw there the daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua. And he took her and went in to her.
3 And she conceived and bore a son, and he called his name Er.
4 And she conceived again and bore a son, and she called his name Onan.
5 And yet again she bore a son and called his name Shelah, and she was in Chezib when she bore him.
6 And Judah took a wife for Er his firstborn, and her name was Tamar.
7 And Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of Jehovah. And Jehovah put him to death.
8 And Judah said to Onan, Go in to your brother’s wife, and perform the duty of a brother-in-law to her, and raise up seed to your brother.
9 But since Onan knew that the seed would not be his, whenever he went in to his brother’s wife, he spilled it on the ground, so that he would not give seed to his brother.
10 But what he did was evil in the sight of Jehovah, so He put him to death also.
11 Then Judah said to Tamar his daughter-in-law, Remain a widow in your father’s house until Shelah my son grows up. For he thought, He also may die, like his brothers. So Tamar went and dwelt in her father’s house.
12 And in process of time Shua’s daughter, the wife of Judah, died; and Judah was comforted and went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite.
13 And it was told to Tamar, saying, Your father-in-law is now going up to Timnah to shear his sheep.
14 And she removed from herself her widow’s garments and covered herself with a veil and wrapped herself and sat in the gate of Enaim, which is on the way to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah had grown up, and she had not been given to him as his wife.
15 And when Judah saw her, he thought she was a harlot, for she had covered her face.
16 And he turned aside to her by the way and said, Come now, let me come in to you; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. And she said, What will you give me, that you may come in to me?
17 And he said, I will send you a kid from the flock. And she said, Only if you give me a pledge until you send it.
18 And he said, What pledge shall I give you? And she said, Your seal and your cord and your staff that is in your hand. And he gave them to her and went in to her, and she conceived by him.
19 And she arose and went away, and removed her veil from herself and put on her widow’s garments.
20 And Judah sent the kid by the hand of his friend the Adullamite, to receive the pledge from the woman’s hand; but he did not find her.
21 Then he asked the men of her place, saying, Where is the prostitute who was by the road at Enaim? And they said, There has been no prostitute here.
22 And he returned to Judah and said, I did not find her; and also the men of the place said, There has been no prostitute here.
23 And Judah said, Let her keep the things for herself, lest we become a laughing stock; you see, I sent her this kid, but you did not find her.
24 And about three months later it was told Judah, saying, Tamar your daughter-in-law has played the harlot; moreover, now she is pregnant by harlotry. And Judah said, Bring her out, and let her be burned.
25 As she was being brought out, she sent word to her father-in-law, saying, I am pregnant by the man to whom these belong. And she said, Please note whose these are, the seal and the cords and the staff.