Genesis 38

Great(i) 1 It fortuned at that tyme, that Iudas went downe from his brethren, and gatt hym to a man called Hira of Odollam, 2 and there he sawe the daughter of a man called Sua a Canaanyte: And he toke her and went in to her. 3 And she conceaued & bare a sonne and called hys name Er. 4 And she conceaued agayne, and bare a sonne and called him Onan. 5 And she conceaued agayne, & bare yet a sonne, whom she called Sela: and he was at Chesyb when she bare him. 6 And Iudas gaue Er hys Eldest sonne a wyfe, whose name was Thamar. 7 And Er Iudas eldest sonne was wycked in the syghte of the Lorde, & the Lorde slewe hym. 8 And Iudas sayde vnto Onan: goo into thy brothers wyfe and marye her, that thou mayest styrre vp seed vnto thy brother. 9 And when Onan perceaued that the seed shulde not be his, therfore when he went into his brothers wyfe, he spylled it on the grounde, and gaue not seed vnto hys brother. 10 And the thynge whych he dyd, displeased the Lorde, wherfore he slewe him also. 11 Than sayde Iudas to Thamar hys daughter in lawe: remayne a wydowe at thy fathers house, tyll Sela my sonne be growne: for he sayde: Lest peraduenture he dye also, as hys brethren dyd. And Thamar wente and dwelt in her fathers house. 12 And in processe of tyme, the daughter of Sua Iudas wyfe dyed. Then Iudas when he had left mournynge, went vnto his shepe sherers to Thymnath he and his frende Hira of Odollam. 13 And one tolde Thamar sayinge: beholde, thy father in lawe goeth vp to Thymnath, to shere hys shepe. 14 And she put hyr wydows garmentes of from her & couered her wyth a clooke, and disgysed her selfe: And satt her downe in a comon place which is by the hye wayes syde to Thimnath, for because she sawe that Sela was growne, and she was not geuen vnto him to wyfe. 15 When Iuda sawe her, he thought it had bene an whoore, because she had couered hyr face. 16 And he turned to her vnto the waye, & sayde, come I praye the, let me lye with the, for he knewe not that it was hys daughter in lawe. And she answered: what wilt thou gyue me, for to lye with me? 17 Than sayde he, I wyll sende the a kydd from the flocke. She sayde, Than geue me a pledge tyll thou sende it. 18 He sayde, what pledge shall I geue the? She answered: thy sygnett, thy bracelet, and thy staffe that is in thy hande. And he gaue it her and lay by her and she was with chylde by hym. 19 And she gatt here vp and went and put her mantell from her, and put on hyr wydowes rayment. 20 And Iudas sent the kydd by hys frende of Odollam, for to receaue hys pledge agayne from the wyfes hande. But he founde her not, 21 Than asked he the men of the same place sayinge, where is the whoore that satt openly by the waye syde? They answered, There was no whoore here. 22 He came therfore to Iuda agayne & sayde vnto him: I can not finde her, and also the men of the place sayde, that there was no whoore there. 23 And Iuda sayde, let her take it to her, lest we be shamed. Beholde I sente the kydd and thou hast not founde her. 24 And it came to passe that after .iij. monethes, one tolde Iuda sayinge: Thamar thy daughter in lawe hath played the whoore, and wyth playinge the whoore is become great with chylde. And Iuda sayde, brynge her forth, that she maye be brente. 25 And when they brought her forth; she sent to her father in lawe sayinge: by the man vnto whome these thynges pertayne, am I with chylde. And sayde also, loke whose are thys seale, bracelet, and thys staffe. 26 And Iuda knewe them and sayde, she hath bene more ryghtwes than I, because I gaue her not to Sela my sonne. And he laye with her nomore. 27 It fortuned when tyme was come that she shulde be delyuered, beholde there was .ij. twynnes in hyr wombe. 28 And it fortuned, that whan she traueled, the one put out hys hande and the mydwyfe toke and bownde a reed threde aboute it sayinge, thys is come out fyrst. 29 And it chaunced, that he plucked hys hande backe agayne, and beholde hys brother came out. And she sayde, wherfore hast thou rent a rent vpon the? & called his name, Pharez. 30 Afterwarde came out his brother that had the redd threde about hys hande, and his name was called Zarah.