Genesis 38:1 - Printer Friendly

ESV: It happened at that time that Judah went down from his brothers and turned aside to a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah.

NIV: At that time, Judah left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam named Hirah.

NASB: And it came about at that time, that Judah departed from his brothers and visited a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah.

CSB: At that time Judah left his brothers and settled near an Adullamite named Hirah.

NLT: About this time, Judah left home and moved to Adullam, where he stayed with a man named Hirah.

KJV: And it came to pass at that time, that Judah went down from his brethren, and turned in to a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah.

NKJV: It came to pass at that time that Judah departed from his brothers, and visited a certain Adullamite whose name was Hirah.

This begins a short explanation of Judah's scandalous family history, starting immediately after Joseph is sold to slave traders (Genesis 37:26–28). The events of Genesis 38 take place before Jacob and his sons later travel to Egypt and discover that Joseph is still alive (Genesis 45:1).

For unexplained reasons, Judah (Genesis 29:35) moves away from the family at Hebron and goes down to a town called Adullam. This is located at a lower elevation, in the foothills northwest of Hebron. He meets or reconnects with an Adullamite friend named Hirah. Judah's history in this time is marked by sin, deception, and scandal.

Genesis 38:1–5 explains the birth of Judah's three sons to a Canaanite woman, known only as the daughter of Shua. Two of these sons, Er and Onan, will die at the hands of God, due to their immoral actions. Tamar, a woman married in sequence to Er, then to Onan, will be abandoned by Judah. Left without support and unable to marry, she will scheme to take matters into her own hands.

Jacob's son Judah marries a Canaanite woman and has three sons. His first son marries a woman called Tamar but is put to death by God for an unnamed sin. Judah follows tradition and marries Er's widow to the next oldest brother. Onan takes advantage of the situation for sex, but deliberately refuses to give her children. God puts him to death as well. When Judah abandons Tamar, she disguises herself as a prostitute and has sex with him. Found to be pregnant, she proves Judah is the father, and he admits his guilt. She then gives birth to twin boys.

Genesis 38 departs from the story of Joseph (Genesis 37:26–28) to describe what happens when Judah moves away from his family at Hebron and marries a Canaanite woman. Two of his three sons are put to death by God, each while married to the same woman. When Judah abandons her, she works a scheme to trick him into having sex with her. Confronted with proof that he is the father in her scandalous pregnancy, she is allowed to live and gives birth to Judah's twin boys. The following chapter returns to a focus on Joseph and his rise within Egyptian society (Genesis 39:1).

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.

Accessed 4/28/2024 9:16:38 PM