Verses 6-11 introduce the main female character of the story, Tamar.

Because of the swift movement of the narrative, which jumps from birth to marriage, it may be necessary to introduce verse 6 by saying, for example, “When his sons were grown,” “Much later,” or “After some years had passed.”

Judah took a wife for Er his first-born: took a wife means “arranged a marriage” or “chose a woman for Er his oldest son to marry.” See the case of Shechem and his father in 34.4.

Tamar, which means “date palm,” is also the name of David’s daughter (2 Sam 13.1) and a daughter of Absalom (2 Sam 14.27).

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .