Genesis 38:17

Easy-to-Read Version

Judah answered, "I will send you a young goat from my flock." She answered, "I agree to that. But first you must give me something to keep until you send me the goat."

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
He said, "I will send you a kid of the goats from the flock." She said, "Will you give me a pledge, until you send it?"

King James Version
And he said, I will send thee a kid from the flock. And she said, Wilt thou give me a pledge, till thou send it?

Lexham English Bible
And he said, "I will send a kid from the goats of the flock." And she said, "Only if you give a pledge until you send it."

New Century Version
Judah answered, "I will send you a young goat from my flock." She answered, "First give me something to keep as a deposit until you send the goat."

New English Translation
He replied, "I'll send you a young goat from the flock." She asked, "Will you give me a pledge until you send it?"

Amplified Bible
He answered, "I will send you a young goat from the flock." And she said, "Will you give me a pledge [as a deposit] until you send it?"

New American Standard Bible
He said, therefore, "I will send you a young goat from the flock." She then said, "Will you give a pledge until you send it?"

Geneva Bible (1587)
Then said he, I will sende thee a kid of the goates from the flocke. and she said, Well, if thou wilt giue me a pledge, till thou sende it.

Legacy Standard Bible
He said, therefore, "I will send you a young goat from the flock." She said, moreover, "Will you give a pledge until you send it?"

Contemporary English Version
"One of my young goats," he answered. "What will you give me to keep until you send the goat?" she asked.

Complete Jewish Bible
He said, "I will send you a kid from the flock of goats." She said, "Will you also give me something as a guarantee until you send it"

Darby Translation
And he said, I will send [thee] a kid of the goats from the flock. And she said, Wilt thou give [me] a pledge, until thou send it?

English Standard Version
He answered, "I will send you a young goat from the flock." And she said, "If you give me a pledge, until you send it—"

George Lamsa Translation
And he said, I will send you a kid from the flock. And she said, Will you give me a pledge until you send it?

Good News Translation
He answered, "I will send you a young goat from my flock." She said, "All right, if you will give me something to keep as a pledge until you send the goat."

Christian Standard Bible®
“I will send you a young goat from my flock,” he replied.

Literal Translation
And he said, I will send a kid of the goats from the flock. And she said, Will you give me a pledge until you send it ?

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
He sayde: I wil sende the a kydd from the flocke. She answered: Geue me a pledge then, tyll thou sende it me.

American Standard Version
And he said, I will send thee a kid of the goats from the flock. And she said, Wilt thou give me a pledge, till thou send it?

Bible in Basic English
And he said, I will give you a young goat from the flock. And she said, What will you give me as a sign till you send it?

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Then sayde he: I wyll sende thee a kyd from the flocke. She sayde: Then geue me a pledge tyll thou sende it.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And he said: 'I will send thee a kid of the goats from the flock.' And she said: 'Wilt thou give me a pledge, till thou send it?'

King James Version (1611)
And hee said, I will send thee a kid from the flocke: and shee saide, Wilt thou giue mee a pledge, till thou send it?

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And he said, I will send thee a kid of the goats from my flock; and she said, Well, if thou wilt give me an earnest, until thou send it.

English Revised Version
And he said, I will send thee a kid of the goats from the flock. And she said, Wilt thou give me a pledge, till thou send it?

Berean Standard Bible
"I will send you a young goat from my flock," Judah answered. But she replied, "Only if you leave me something as a pledge until you send it."

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
he seide, Y schal sende to thee a kide of the flockis. And eft whanne sche seide, Y schal suffre that that thou wolt, if thou schalt yyue to me a wed, til thou sendist that that thou bihetist.

Young's Literal Translation
and he saith, `I -- I send a kid of the goats from the flock.' And she saith, `Dost thou give a pledge till thou send [it]?'

Update Bible Version
And he said, I will send you a young goat from the flock. And she said, Will you give me a pledge, until you send it?

Webster's Bible Translation
And he said, I will send [thee] a kid from the flock: and she said, Wilt thou give [me] a pledge, till thou sendest [it]?

World English Bible
He said, "I will send you a kid of the goats from the flock." She said, "Will you give me a pledge, until you send it?"

New King James Version
And he said, "I will send a young goat from the flock." So she said, "Will you give me a pledge till you send it?|"

New Living Translation
"I'll send you a young goat from my flock," Judah promised. "But what will you give me to guarantee that you will send the goat?" she asked.

New Life Bible
He answered, "I will send you a young goat from the flock." She asked, "Will you give something as a promise until you send it?"

New Revised Standard
He answered, "I will send you a kid from the flock." And she said, "Only if you give me a pledge, until you send it."

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And he said, I, will send a kid of the goats from the flock. And she said, Wilt thou give a pledge until thou send it?

Douay-Rheims Bible
He said: I will send thee a kid out of the flock. And when she said again: I will suffer what thou wilt, if thou give me a pledge, till thou send what thou promisest.

Revised Standard Version
He answered, "I will send you a kid from the flock." And she said, "Will you give me a pledge, till you send it?"

THE MESSAGE
"I'll send you," he said, "a kid goat from the flock." She said, "Not unless you give me a pledge until you send it."

New American Standard Bible (1995)
He said, therefore, "I will send you a young goat from the flock." She said, moreover, "Will you give a pledge until you send it?"

Contextual Overview

¹² Later, Judah's wife, the daughter of Shua, died. After Judah's time of sadness, he went to Timnah with his friend Hirah from Adullam. Judah went to Timnah to have the wool cut from his sheep. ¹³ Tamar learned that Judah, her father-in-law, was going to Timnah to cut the wool from his sheep. ¹⁴ Tamar always wore clothes that showed that she was a widow. So she put on some different clothes and covered her face with a veil. Then she sat down near the road going to Enaim, a town near Timnah. Tamar knew that Judah's younger son Shelah was now grown up, but Judah would not make plans for her to marry him. ¹⁵ Judah traveled on that road and saw her, but he thought that she was a prostitute. (Her face was covered with a veil like a prostitute.) ¹⁶ So he went to her and said, "Let me have sex with you." (Judah did not know that she was Tamar, his daughter-in-law.) She said, "How much will you give me?" ¹⁷ Judah answered, "I will send you a young goat from my flock." She answered, "I agree to that. But first you must give me something to keep until you send me the goat." ¹⁸ Judah asked, "What do you want me to give you as proof that I will send you the goat?" Tamar answered, "Give me your seal and its string and your walking stick." Judah gave these things to her. Then Judah and Tamar had sexual relations, and she became pregnant. ¹⁹ Then Tamar went home, took off her veil that covered her face, and again put on the special clothes that showed she was a widow. ²⁰ Later, Judah sent his friend Hirah to Enaim to give the prostitute the goat he promised. Judah also told Hirah to get the special seal and the walking stick from her, but Hirah could not find her. ²¹ He asked some of the men at the town of Enaim, "Where is the prostitute who was here by the road?" The men answered, "There has never been a prostitute here."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

I will: Ezekiel 16:33

a kid: Heb. a kid of the goats

Wilt thou: Genesis 38:20, Genesis 38:24, Genesis 38:25, Proverbs 20:16, Luke 16:8

Reciprocal: Judges 15:1 - a kid

Cross-References

Genesis 38:20
Later, Judah sent his friend Hirah to Enaim to give the prostitute the goat he promised. Judah also told Hirah to get the special seal and the walking stick from her, but Hirah could not find her.

Genesis 38:24
About three months later, someone told Judah, "Your daughter-in-law Tamar sinned like a prostitute, and now she is pregnant." Then Judah said, "Take her out and burn her."

Genesis 38:25
The men went to Tamar to kill her, but she sent a message to her father-in-law that said, "The man who made me pregnant is the man who owns these things. Look at them. Whose are they? Whose special seal and string is this? Whose walking stick is this?"

Proverbs 20:16
If someone promises to pay the debt of a stranger, get a coat or something from him to keep until the debt is paid.

Ezekiel 16:33
Most prostitutes force men to pay them for sex, but you gave money to your many lovers. You paid all the men around to come in to have sex with you.

Luke 16:8
"Later, the master told the dishonest manager that he had done a smart thing. Yes, worldly people are smarter in their business with each other than spiritual people are.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And he said, I will send [thee] a kid from the flock,.... Either from Timnath, where his flock was shearing, or rather from Adullam, where he lived; since it is probable he was now returning from Timnath, where he had been feasting and making merry with his shearers, and so in a disposition to commit such an action:

and she said, wilt thou give [me] a pledge, till thou send [it]? she made no objection to the hire or present, only required a pawn, or security for it till she had it; and this was her view indeed in asking an hire that she might have something to produce, should she prove with child by him, to convince him by whom it was.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

- The Family of Judah

1. עדלם ‛ǎdûllâm, ‘Adullam, “righteousness.” חירה chı̂yrâh Chirah, “nobility?”

2. שׁוּע shûa‛, Shua‘, “luck, riches, cry.”

3. ער ‛êr, ‘Er, “watching.”

4. אונן 'ônân, Onan, “strong.”

5. שׁלה shēlâh, Shelah, “request? rest.” כזיב k^ezı̂yb Kezib, “falsehood.”

6. תמר tāmār, Tamar, “palm.”

12. תמנה tı̂mnâh, Timnah, “counted or assigned.”

14. עינים 'êynayı̂m, ‘Enaim, “two fountains.”

29. פרץ perets, Perets, “breach.”

This strange narrative is an episode in the history of Joseph; but an integral part of the “generations” of Jacob. It is loosely dated with the phrase “at that time.” This does not indicate a sequel to the preceding record, the proper phrase for which is “after these things” (האלה חדברים אחר 'achar had^ebārı̂ym hâ'ēleh Genesis 22:1). It implies rather a train of events that commenced at least in the past, some time before the closing incident of the previous narrative Genesis 21:22. But the sale of Joseph, which alone is recorded in the last chapter, only occupied some few weeks or months of a year. Hence, the circumstances contained in this memoir of Judah’s family must have taken their rise before that event. The date “at that time,” is rendered indefinite also by being attached to the phrase, “And it came to pass,” which covers at least all the events in the first eleven verses of the chapter.

All this is in accordance with the customary mode of arranging parallel lines of events in Hebrew narrative. We shall see reason afterward for placing the birth of Er at as early a date as possible in the life of Judah Genesis 46:12. Now Judah, we conceive, was born when his father was eighty-seven, and Joseph when he was ninety-one, and hence, there is a difference about four years in their ages. We suppose Er to have been born in Judah’s fourteenth year, when Joseph and Dinah were in their tenth, and therefore, about three years before the rape of Dinah, and shortly after Jacob arrived at the town of Shekem. The dishonor of Dinah, and the cruel treatment of Joseph, being of essential moment in the process of things, had to be recorded in the main line of events. The commencement of Judah’s family, having no particular influence on the current of the history, is fitly reserved until the whole of the circumstances could be brought together into a connected narrative. And the private history of Judah’s line is given, while that of the others is omitted, simply because from him the promised seed is descended. As soon as Jacob is settled in the promised land, the contact with Hebron and its neighborhood seems to have commenced. A clear proof of this is the presence of Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, in Jacob’s family Genesis 35:8. The great thoroughfare from Damascus to Egypt runs through Shekem and Hebron, and we know that when Jacob was residing at Hebron, his sons fed their flocks at Shekem and Dothan, and the youthful Joseph was sent to inquire after their welfare.

Genesis 38:1-11

Judah marries and has three sons. “Went down from brethren.” This seems to have been an act of willful indiscretion in Judah. His separation from his brethren, however, extends only to the matter of his new connection. In regard to property and employment there seems to have been no long or entire separation until they went down into Egypt. He went down from the high grounds about Shekem to the lowlands in which Adullam was situated Joshua 15:33-35. “A certain Adullamite.” He may have become acquainted with this Hirah, when visiting his grandfather, or in some of the caravans which were constantly passing Shekem, or even in the ordinary wanderings of the pastoral life. Adullam was in the Shephelah or lowland of Judah bordering on Philistia proper. “A certain Kenaanite.” This connection with Shua’s daughter was contrary to the will of God and the example of his fathers. Onan was born, we conceive, in Judah’s fifteenth year, and Shelah in his sixteenth.

At Kezib. - This appears the same as Akzib, which is associated with Keilah and Mareshah Joshua 15:44, and therefore, lay in the south of the lowland of Judah. This note of place indicates a change of residence since her other children were born. In the year after this birth the dishonor of Dinah takes place. “Took a wife for Er.” Judah chose a wife for himself at an early age, and now he chooses for his first-born at the same age. “Was evil in the eyes of the Lord.” The God of covenant is obliged to cut off Er for his wickedness in the prime of life. We are not made acquainted with his crime; but it could scarcely be more vile and unnatural than that for which his brother Onan is also visited with death. “And be a husband to her.” The original word means to act as a husband to the widow of a deceased brother who has left no issue. Onan seems to have been prompted to commit his crime by the low motive of turning the whole inheritance to his own house. At the time of Er’s death Judah must have been in his twenty-seventh year; Joseph was consequently in his twenty-third, and Jacob had for ten years past had his headquarters at Hebron. Hence, the contact with Timnah, Adullam, and Enaim was easy.

Genesis 38:12-23

Judah now comes into criminal, and, though unknown to him, incestuous sexual intercourse with Tamar. “And many were the days,” a year or somewhat more. “To Timnah.” This town is about twenty miles northwest of Hebron. There is another, however, in the hills about seven miles south of Hebron. “Put on a veil;” to conceal her face from Judah, or any other beholder. “The qate of Enaim.” This is supposed to be the same as Enam Joshua 15:34. “And thy lace.” This is the cord by which the signet was suspended round his neck. “Courtesan.” The original word קדשׁה q^edêshâh means one consecrated to the worship of Ashtoreth, in which chastity is sacrificed.

Genesis 38:24-30

Tamar bears Perez and Zerah to Judah. After three months her pregnancy was manifest. “Let her be burnt.” It is manifest Judah had the power to execute this punishment. The life of the widow of his son was in his hands. Stoning was the mode of punishment by the law of Moses Deuteronomy 22:20-24; burning, only in aggravated cases Leviticus 20:14; Leviticus 21:9. He is a severe judge in a case where he is equally criminal. “She hath been more righteous than I. Tamar was less culpable in this matter than Judah. For he was moved by lust to commit fornication, and was the indirect occasion of Tamar’s conduct by withholding Selah. But Tamar, though wronged, was not free from blame in her mode of righting herself. The youthful indiscretion of Judah in forming an intermarriage with a Canaanitish family, without the concurrence of his brothers or his father, has been fruitful of crime. If this immorality goes on, the chosen family will be speedily absorbed in the surrounding paganism. Hence, we begin to see the necessity of an immediate removal to another land, where they may be kept more distinct from the native superstition. By the disclosure of Tamar Judah is brought to acknowledgment of his fault, and, we may infer, to repentance. His abstaining from all further sexual intercourse with her may be accepted as a proof of this. “A scarlet thread.” The right of primogeniture here manifests its importance. “Perez” - a breach. Slight incidents become the foundation of names, and are often the hinges on which great events turn. The minutest circumstances connected with the progenitors of the promised seed have a lasting interest.

Judah was at the close of his twenty-ninth year when Perez and Zerah were born. The dates in his family history may be arranged as underneath, on the supposition that the first child was born when the father was in his fourteenth year. This hypothesis is fairly allowable when we take into consideration not only other cases, but the early willfulness of Judah, and the example he gave to his children. The command also to be fruitful and multiply Genesis 35:11, which was given especially to Jacob, may have had a tendency to encourage early marriages. It is certain that the Jewish rabbis considered a man to have transgressed a divine precept who passed the age of twenty without being married. They also fixed the marriageable age for males at thirteen years and a day. King Ahaz was the father of Hezekiah when he was not more than twelve 2 Kings 16:2; 2 Kings 18:2; and King Josiah the father of Jehoiakim, when fourteen years of age 2 Kings 22:1; 2 Kings 23:36.

Judah 13 years 6 months when Er was born.

Judah 14 years 4 12 months when Onan was born.

Judah 15 years 3 months when Shelah was born.

Judah 28 years 9 months when Perez was born.

Judah 42 years 3 months when Hezron was born to Perez.

Judah 43 years 2 months when Hamul was born.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Genesis 38:17. Wilt thou give me a pledge till thou send it? — The word ערבון erabon signifies an earnest of something promised, a part of the price agreed for between a buyer and seller, by giving and receiving of which the bargain was ratified; or a deposit, which was to be restored when the thing promised should be given. St. Paul uses the same word in Greek letters, αππαβων, 2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:14. From the use of the term in this history we may at once see what the apostle means by the Holy Spirit being the EARNEST, αππαβων, of the promised inheritance; viz., a security given in hand for the fulfilment of all God's promises relative to grace and eternal life. We may learn from this that eternal life will be given in the great day to all who can produce this erabon or pledge. He who has the earnest of the Spirit then in his heart shall not only be saved from death, but have that eternal life of which it is the pledge and the evidence. What the pledge given by Judah was, Genesis 38:25; Genesis 38:25.