Genesis 38:8

Genesis 38:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And Judah said unto Onan, Go in unto thy brother’s wife, and marry her, and raise up seed to thy brother.
• New International Version (NIV)Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to raise up offspring for your brother.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then Judah said to Onan, "Go in to your brother's wife and perform the duty of a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother."
• New King James Version (NKJV)And Judah said to Onan, “Go in to your brother’s wife and marry her, and raise up an heir to your brother.”

Context of Genesis 38:8

6Judah found a wife for his oldest son, Er. Her name was Tamar. 7But the Lord saw that Er, Judah's firstborn son, was very bad. So the Lord caused him to die. Then Judah said to Onan, ‘You should marry your dead brother's wife and have sex with her. You are her dead husband's brother. You must have a son who will become your dead brother's descendant.’ 9But Onan did not want Tamar to give birth to his child. He knew that the child would not belong to him. So when he had sex with his brother's wife Tamar, he made his semen go onto the ground. Onan did this so that Tamar would not give birth to a child for his dead brother. 10What Onan did was bad, and the Lord was not pleased with him. So the Lord caused Onan to die too.

Genesis 38:8 word by word

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהוּדָה֙ לְאוֹנָ֔ן בֹּ֛א אֶל־אֵ֥שֶׁת אָחִ֖יךָ וְיַבֵּ֣ם אֹתָ֑הּ וְהָקֵ֥ם זֶ֖רַע לְאָחִֽיךָ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And Judahיְהוּדָהyehûdâh · JudahH3063
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto Onanאוֹנָן'ônân · OnanH209
• Go inבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• unto thy brother’sאָח'âch · brother: male-siblingH251
• wifeאִשָּׁה'ishshâh nâshîym · woman: wifeH802
• and marryיָבַםyâbam · be brother-in-lawH2992
• her, and raise upקוּםqûm · to arise: establishH6965
• seedזֶ֫רַעzera‛ · seed: childrenH2233

Cross-references for Genesis 38:8

• Leviticus 18:16Do not have sex with your brother's wife. That would make your brother ashamed.
• Numbers 36:8Any young woman who receives land when her father dies must marry a man from her father's tribe. All the Israelite tribes must obey that rule. Then every Israelite person will keep the land that belonged to his ancestors.
• Deuteronomy 25:5Perhaps two brothers live together in the same place. One of the brothers may die before he has any son. If that happens, his widow must not marry anyone who does not belong to the family. Instead, the other brother must marry her. That is the right thing for him to do for his dead brother.
• Ruth 1:11But Naomi said, ‘My daughters, you should return to your own country. You should not choose to come back to Judah with me. I will not give birth to any more sons for you to marry them.
• Ruth 4:5Then Boaz said, ‘You should also know this: When you buy the land from Naomi, you also have to marry the Moabite woman, Ruth. She is the widow of Elimelech's son. She will give birth to your children and Elimelech's land will continue to belong to his family.’
• Matthew 22:23On that day, some Sadducees also came to Jesus. Sadducees do not believe that anyone becomes alive again after they die. They wanted to ask Jesus a question.

Commentaries on Genesis 38:8

• 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. 8Perform your duty ... raise up offspring for your brother: This reflects the custom of levirate marriage (a practice where a man marries his dead brother’s wife). In this custom, if a man died without children, his brother or nearest relative would marry the widow. The goal was to have a child who would carry on the dead man’s name and inherit his property. This practice was later included in God’s law for Israel (Deuteronomy 25:5–10). A close relative…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. Judah said unto Onan ... marry her, and raise up seed to thy brother--The first instance of a custom, which was afterwards incorporated among the laws of Moses, that when a husband died leaving a widow, his brother next of age was to marry her, and the issue, if any, was to be served heir to the deceased (compare De 25:5).Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 38:8

• Adultery
• Inheritance
• Marriage
• Onan
• Tamar

In the dictionaries

• Judah
• Judah, kingdom of Judah
• Judea, Judah
• Brother's Wife
• Lay
• Levirate Law
• Onan
• Remain
• Archaeology; Archaeology and Criticism
• Ben-Ammi

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