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Genesis 38:20-22
New English Translation
Genesis 38:20-22
New English Translation
20 Then Judah had his friend Hirah[a] the Adullamite take a young goat to get back from the woman the items he had given in pledge,[b] but Hirah[c] could not find her. 21 He asked the men who were there,[d] “Where is the cult prostitute[e] who was at Enaim by the road?” But they replied, “There has been no cult prostitute here.” 22 So he returned to Judah and said, “I couldn’t find her. Moreover, the men of the place said, ‘There has been no cult prostitute here.’”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Genesis 38:20 tn Heb “sent by the hand of his friend.” Here the name of the friend (“Hirah”) has been included in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 38:20 tn Heb “to receive the pledge from the woman’s hand.”
- Genesis 38:20 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Judah’s friend Hirah the Adullamite) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 38:21 tn Heb “the men of her place,” that is, who lived at the place where she had been.
- Genesis 38:21 sn The Hebrew noun translated “cult prostitute” is derived from a verb meaning “to be set apart; to be distinct.” Thus the term refers to a woman who did not marry, but was dedicated to temple service as a cult prostitute. The masculine form of this noun is used for male cult prostitutes. Judah thought he had gone to an ordinary prostitute (v. 15), but Hirah went looking for a cult prostitute, perhaps because it had been a sheep-shearing festival. For further discussion see E. M. Yamauchi, “Cultic Prostitution,” Orient and Occident (AOAT), 213-23.
New English Translation (NET)
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