Judah and Tamar
1 About that time Judah left his brothers and went to stay with a man named Hirah, who was from the town of Adullam. 2 There Judah met a young Canaanite woman whose father was named Shua. He married her, 3 and she bore him a son, whom he named Er. 4 She became pregnant again and bore another son and named him Onan. 5 Again she had a son and named him Shelah. Judah was at Achzib when the boy was born.
6 For his first son Er, Judah got a wife whose name was Tamar. 7 Er's conduct was evil, and it displeased the Lord, so the Lord killed him. 8 Then Judah said to Er's brother Onan, “Go and sleep with your brother's widow. Fulfill your obligation to her as her husband's brother, so that your brother may have descendants.” 9 But Onan knew that the children would not belong to him, so when he had intercourse with his brother's widow, he let the semen spill on the ground, so that there would be no children for his brother. 10 What he did displeased the Lord, and the Lord killed him also. 11 Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Return to your father's house and remain a widow until my son Shelah grows up.” He said this because he was afraid that Shelah would be killed, as his brothers had been. So Tamar went back home.
12 After some time Judah's wife died. When he had finished the time of mourning, he and his friend Hirah of Adullam went to Timnah, where his sheep were being sheared. 13 Someone told Tamar that her father-in-law was going to Timnah to shear his sheep. 14 So she changed from the widow's clothes she had been wearing, covered her face with a veil, and sat down at the entrance to Enaim, a town on the road to Timnah. As she well knew, Judah's youngest son Shelah was now grown up, and yet she had not been given to him in marriage.
15 When Judah saw her, he thought that she was a prostitute, because she had her face covered. 16 He went over to her at the side of the road and said, “All right, how much do you charge?” (He did not know that she was his daughter-in-law.)
She said, “What will you give me?”
17 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.”
18 “What shall I give you as a pledge?” he asked.
She answered, “Your seal with its cord and the walking stick you are carrying.” He gave them to her. Then they had intercourse, and she became pregnant. 19 Tamar went home, took off her veil, and put her widow's clothes back on.
20 Judah sent his friend Hirah to take the goat and get back from the woman the articles he had pledged, but Hirah could not find her. 21 He asked some men at Enaim, “Where is the prostitute who was here by the road?”
“There has never been a prostitute here,” they answered.
22 He returned to Judah and said, “I couldn't find her. The men of the place said that there had never been a prostitute there.”
23 Judah said, “Let her keep the things. We don't want people to laugh at us. I did try to pay her, but you couldn't find her.”
24 About three months later someone told Judah, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has been acting like a whore, and now she is pregnant.”
Judah ordered, “Take her out and burn her to death.”
25 As she was being taken out, she sent word to her father-in-law: “I am pregnant by the man who owns these things. Look at them and see whose they are—this seal with its cord and this walking stick.”
26 Judah recognized them and said, “She is in the right. I have failed in my obligation to her—I should have given her to my son Shelah in marriage.” And Judah never had intercourse with her again.
27 When the time came for her to give birth, it was discovered that she was going to have twins. 28 While she was in labor, one of them put out an arm; the midwife caught it, tied a red thread around it, and said, “This one was born first.” 29 But he pulled his arm back, and his brother was born first. Then the midwife said, “So this is how you break your way out!” So he was named Perez. 30 Then his brother was born with the red thread on his arm, and he was named Zerah.
Juda na Tamar
1 Nu moruveze ndo Juda wa isa omarumbi novangu ve na katura puna Hira, omurumendu ngwa zire kotjihuro tjena Adulam. 2 Ingo Juda oka kamuna omusuko womurumendu Omukanaan wena Sua. Eye arire tje mu kupu. Nu tja rara pu ye, 3 wa rira otjingundi, a panduka omuzandu, ne mu ruku Er. 4 Neye wa rira otjingundi rukwao, a panduka omuzandu, ne mu ruku Onan. 5 Norukwao wa panduka omuzandu, ne mu ruku Sela; nu Juda wa ri mOkesib, omuzandu ngwi tja pandukwa.
6 Juda arire tja pahere omuzandu we everi Er omukazendu; nena re ra ri Tamar. 7 Nungwari Muhona ka ri nohange nourunde wa Er, everi ra Juda. Muhona ope mu zepera. 8 Nu Juda arire tja tja ku Onan: “Karare pomuhepundu werumbi roye, yenenisa otjingura tjoye otja omuangu womurumendu we kutja erumbi roye a kare nozondekurona.” 9 Nungwari Onan wa tjiwa kutja ovanatje kamaave rire ove, opuya zu okutjita kutja otjikando atjihe tja karara pomuhepundu werumbi re, a nyonene orukwato pehi kutja ape ha kara ozondekurona zerumbi re. 10 Nu ihi tja tjita, Muhona we tji nyengwa, neye arire tje mu zepa rukwao. 11 Juda arire tja tja komukwe we omusuko Tamar: “Yaruka konganda yaiho otja omuhepundu nga omuzandu wandje Sela tje kuru.” Eye wa tjita nai, tjinga a tira kutja omuzandu we Sela ngaa ṱu rukwao tjimuna omarumbi we. Tamar arire tja yaruka konganda ya ihe.
12 Kombunda yoruveze rworive omukazendu wa Juda, ingwi omusuko wa Sua, wa koka. Nu Juda tja mana oruveze rwomutambo, eye nepanga re Hira wa Adulam va ya kOtimna, kovahore vozonḓu ze. 13 Novandu arire tji va raere ku Tamar nave tja: “Tara, iho omukwe woye ma kapita kOtimna okukahora ozonḓu ze.” 14 Neye arire tja hukura ozombanda ze zouhepundu ne rikutjire newiwiri, na kahaama pomuvero wa Enaim, otjihuro tji tja ri mondjira yokuyenda kOtimna. Eye wa tjiwa kutja Sela nai we kura; nungwari eye ngunda keya yandjewa ku ye morukupo.
15 Nu Juda tja muna Tamar, arire tje ripura kutja ngahino omukazendu omukorondu, eye tjinga e rikutjire omurungu we. 16 Neye arire tja kondo ku ye meṋe yondjira na tja: “Arikana, indjo mbi rare pove.” Orondu tjinga e ha tjivirwe kutja ingwi eye omusuko omukwe we.
Nomukazendu wa tja ku ye: “Mo ndji pe tjike tji wa rara pu ami?”
17 Nu Juda a tja: “Ami me kekuhindira ongombona morupanda rwandje.”
Nomukazendu arire tja tja: “Osemba, nu ngunda amo ndji pe otjiṋa tjomoruveze, nga tji we kendjihindira indji ongombona.”
18 Neye a pura nai: “Hi ku pe tjike tjomoruveze?”
Neye wa zira a tja: “Ndji pa okaṋa kena roye ku keri mosengo yoye, nokati okahoneno ku u na ko meke.” Neye we mu pa, ave rara pamwe, na rire otjingundi. 19 Nu Tamar wa sekama na i, neye wa isa ko ewiwiri na zara ozombanda ze zouhepundu rukwao.
20 Juda arire tja hindi ongombona puna epanga re, ingwi Omuadulam, kutja a kakotore ihi otjiyandjewa tji tja yandjwa moruveze komukazendu. Nungwari eye ke kemumunine. 21 Neye wa pura kovandu votjirongo ho na tja: “Ingwi omukorondu ngwa ri pomuvero wa Enaim, u ri pi?”
Nowo ve mu zira ave tja: “Kape naa pa ri omukorondu mba.”
22 Neye wa yaruka ku Juda na tja: “Ami hi kemumwine. Nu wina ovandu votjirongo ho mave tja: ‘Kape naa pa ri omukorondu mbo.’ ”
23 Juda arire tja tja: “Eye nga ṱokukara na vyo, tjapo ovandu mave tu yoro. Tara, ami mba hindi ongombona ndji, nangarire tji u he kemumwine.”
24 Kombunda yomieze vitatu Juda wa tjivisiwa nai: “Tamar, omukwe woye, wa katuka, neye otjingundi.”
Juda arire tja rakiza na tja: “Mu pitiseye nu mu kemunyose.”
25 Nu Tamar tja pitisiwa pendje wa hinda embo komukwe we Juda na tja: “Ami mba yakanisiwa i omurumendu omuini woviṋa mbi. Tara nawa kutja okaṋa komosengo nena nongoze yako, nokati nga okahoneno ovyauṋe.”
26 Juda arire tje vi zemburuka na tja: “Eye u ri osemba, ami owami ngu mba tataiza. Ami andakuzu mbe mu yandja komuzandu wandje Sela.” Nu Juda ka rarere pu ye rukwao.
27 Nu Tamar tja ri pokupanduka, pa munika kutja u nepaha. 28 Nu ngunda ama panduka, kemwe kaimbwi ounatje arire tji ka pitisa eke. Nomukazendu omupandukise arire tje ri kambura nakutuko orusepa oruserandu na tja: “Ingwi ongwa tenge po okupandukwa.” 29 Nungwari oko ka yarura mo eke rako. Nu inga okangu kako arire tji ka tenge po okupandukwa. Nomukazendu omupandukise arire tja tja: “Nai ove we ripambururire ondjira yoye nomasa!” Noko opu ka rukirwa Peres, okutja “Mupambo”. 30 Nu kombunda yanao okarumbi kako arire tji ka pandukwa norusepa oruserandu keke, noko ka rukwa Serak okutja “Kamuserandu”.
