Darby Bible
Genesis 38:28
28And it came to pass when she brought forth, that one stretched out [his] hand, and the midwife took it and bound round his hand a scarlet thread, saying, This came out first.
Genesis 38:28 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And it came to pass, when she travailed, that the one put out his hand: and the midwife took and bound upon his hand a scarlet thread, saying, This came out first.
- New International Version (NIV)As she was giving birth, one of them put out his hand; so the midwife took a scarlet thread and tied it on his wrist and said, “This one came out first.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And when she was in labor, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, "This one came out first."
- New King James Version (NKJV)And so it was, when she was giving birth, that the one put out his hand; and the midwife took a scarlet thread and bound it on his hand, saying, “This one came out first.”
Context of Genesis 38:28
26And Judah acknowledged [them], and said, She is more righteous than I, because I have not given her to Shelah my son. And he knew her again no more. 27And it came to pass at the time of her delivery, that behold, twins were in her womb. And it came to pass when she brought forth, that one stretched out [his] hand, and the midwife took it and bound round his hand a scarlet thread, saying, This came out first. 29And it came to pass as he drew back his hand, that behold, his brother came out; and she said, How hast thou broken forth! on thee be the breach! And they called his name Pherez. 30And afterwards came out his brother, round whose hand was the scarlet thread; and they called his name Zerah.
Read all of Genesis 38Genesis 38:28 word by word
וַיְהִ֥י בְלִדְתָּ֖הּ וַיִּתֶּן־יָ֑ד וַתִּקַּ֣ח הַמְיַלֶּ֗דֶת וַתִּקְשֹׁ֨ר עַל־יָד֤וֹ שָׁנִי֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר זֶ֖ה יָצָ֥א רִאשֹׁנָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Cross-references for Genesis 38:28
- Genesis 38:1And it came to pass at that time, that Judah went down from his brethren, and turned in to a man of Adullam whose name was Hirah.
- Genesis 35:16And they journeyed from Bethel. And there was yet a certain distance to come to Ephrath, when Rachel travailed in childbirth; and it went hard with her in her childbearing.
- Genesis 35:17And it came to pass when it went hard with her in her childbearing, that the midwife said to her, Fear not; for this also is a son for thee.
- Joshua 2:18Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind in the window this line of scarlet thread by which thou hast let us down; and thou shalt gather to thee in the house thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household;
Commentaries on Genesis 38:28
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 28The midwife - bound upon his hand a scarlet thread - The binding of the scarlet thread about the wrist of the child whose arm appeared first in the birth, serves to show us how solicitously the privileges of the birthright were preserved. Had not this caution been taken by the midwife, Pharez would have had the right of primogeniture to the prejudice of his elder brother Zarah. And yet Pharez is usually reckoned in the genealogical tables before Zarah…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-30Verses 1-30 - 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 kezı̂yb 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…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 27-30Judah’s family line continued through Tamar. The twins replaced Judah’s two sons who had died (38:7, 10). Their birth was similar to the birth of Jacob and Esau (25:21–26). As with Jacob and Esau, the expected order of birth was reversed. In both cases, the twin connected with the color red (scarlet) did not remain in the first place. In a similar way, Jacob gained the right to rule over his older brother (27:29). This pattern seems to appear again in…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-301. at that time--a formula frequently used by the sacred writers, not to describe any precise period, but an interval near about it.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 38:28
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 38
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
Darby Bible — 1889 — Public Domain
Commentaries