Judah Turn Comot
Judah comot from im brothers and lose two sons wey our Papa kill, then e leave im daughter-in-law wey be widow for hanging. Tamar cover her face, collect im pledge as payment, and she bring am out when e order make dem burn her. E confess say she dey more righteous pass am.
38 1For dat time, Judah komot from im brodas go meet one man from Adullam wey im name na Hirah. 2For dere, Judah see di pikin-woman of one Canaan man wey im name na Shua. Judah marry am, e come sleep wit am. 3She come get belle, she born one boy pikin, Judah come call im name Er. 4She get belle again, she born anoda boy pikin, she come call im name Onan. 5She born yet anoda boy pikin she come call im name Shelah; she dey for Chezib wen she born am. 6Judah come find wife for im firstborn pikin Er; her name na Tamar. 7But Er, Judah im firstborn, na bad person for front of our Papa, so our Papa come kill am. 8Judah come tell Onan, “Sleep wit your broda wife, do wetin you suppose do as her broda-in-law, come raise pikin for your broda.” a a v8 As custom for old-time be, if man broda die wey e no get pikin, di man go born pikin wit di widow make e carry di broda name go on — na dis duty Onan refuse. 9But Onan sabi say di pikin no go be im own, so anytime wey e sleep wit im broda wife, e go pour im seed for ground, so dat e no go born pikin for im broda. 10Wetin e do na bad tin for our Papa eye, so e come kill am too. 11Judah come tell im pikin-in-law Tamar, “Stay as widow for your papa house till my pikin Shelah go grow”—but for im mind e dey tink, “E fit die like im brodas.” So Tamar come dey live for her papa house.
12Wen long time don pass, Judah wife, Shua pikin-woman, come die. Wen Judah heart don settle, im and im padi Hirah di Adullamite come go up meet di people wey dey shave im sheep for Timnah. 13Dem come tell Tamar, “See o, your papa-in-law dey go up Timnah go shave im sheep.” 14So she komot her widow cloth, cover herself wit veil, wrap herself well-well, come sit down for di entrance of Enaim wey dey for di road wey dey go Timnah—because she see say Shelah don grow but dem never give her to am as wife. 15Wen Judah see am, e tink say na ashawo, because she don cover her face. 16E come turn go meet am for di road side come tell am, “Make I sleep wit you”—e no know say na im pikin-in-law be dis. She come say, “Wetin you go give me make I sleep wit you?”
17E come say, “I go send you small goat from di flock.” She come say, “You go gimme sometin hold as pledge till you send am?”
18E come say, “Wetin I go give you as pledge?” She come say, “Your seal, di cord wey dey am, and di staff wey dey your hand.” E give am dem, e sleep wit am, she come get belle for am.
19She come stand up komot, she remove her veil, she come put her widow cloth back. 20Judah come send di small goat wit im padi di Adullamite make e collect di pledge back from di woman, but e no fit find am. 21E come ask di men of dat place, “Wia di shrine ashawo wey dey by di road for Enaim?” Dem come say, “No shrine ashawo dey here at all.”
22So e come go back to Judah come say, “I no fit find am, and di men of di place say no shrine ashawo dey dere.” 23Judah come say, “Make she just hold dem, if not dem go laugh us. I send her dis small goat, but you no find am.”
24As e reach like tri monts afta, dem come tell Judah, “Your pikin-in-law Tamar don do ashawo, and now e don give her belle.” Judah come say, “Bring her komot, make dem burn her!”
25As dem dey bring her komot, she come send word to her papa-in-law: “Na di man wey dis tins be im own give me dis belle. Abeg, look well see who dis seal, cord, and staff be for.”
26Judah come recognize dem come say, “She dey more correct-and-holy pass me, because I no give her to my pikin Shelah.” E no sleep wit am again.
27Wen di time reach make she born, twins dey her belle. 28As she dey born, one komot im hand. Di woman wey dey help born come tie red thread for am: “Na dis one komot first.” 29As e pull im hand back, im broda come komot, she come say, “See how you don break troway comot for yourself!” So dem come call di broda wey komot Perez. b b v29 Perez—wey im name mean ‘a breaking-troway’—come be di grandpapa of King David and, through David, of Jesus (Matthew 1:3, Ruth 4:18-22). Our Papa dey weave di line of im Pikin through di chapter wey person no fit expect at all, dey honor Tamar faith and dey start di lineage wey end for di manger. 30Den im broda come komot wit di red thread for im hand, dem come call am Zerah. c c v30 Di name Zerah dey konnect to “brightness” or “day wey dey break.”
