18. He said, "What should I give you?" "Give me your seal and its string," she answered. "And give me your walking stick." So he gave them to her. Then he had sex with her. And she became pregnant by him.
19. After she left, she took off her veil. She put on her widow's clothes again.
20. Judah sent his friend Hirah with the young goat he had promised. He wanted to get back what he had given to the woman. But his friend Hirah couldn't find her.
21. He asked the men who lived at Enaim, "Where's the temple prostitute? She used to sit beside the road here." "There hasn't been any temple prostitute here," they said.
22. So Hirah went back to Judah. He said, "I couldn't find her. Besides, the men who lived there didn't know anything about her. They said, 'There hasn't been any temple prostitute here.' "
23. Then Judah said, "Let her keep what she has. I don't want people making fun of us. After all, I did send her this young goat. We can't help it if you couldn't find her."
24. About three months later people brought word to Judah. They said, "Your daughter-in-law Tamar is guilty of being a prostitute. Now she's pregnant." Judah said, "Bring her out! Have her burned to death!"
25. As Tamar was being brought out, she sent a message to her father-in-law. She said, "I am pregnant by the man who owns these." She continued, "Do you recognize this seal and string and walking stick? Do you know who they belong to?"
26. Judah recognized them. He said, "She's a better person than I am. I should have given her to my son Shelah, but I didn't." Judah never had sex with Tamar again.
27. The time came for Tamar to have her baby. There were twin boys inside her.
28. As the babies were being born, one of them stuck out his hand. So the woman who was helping Tamar took a bright red thread. The woman tied it on the baby's wrist. She said, "This one came out first."
29. But he pulled his hand back, and his brother came out first instead. She said, "Just look at how you have broken out!" So he was called Perez.