I will send you a kid from the flock: kid refers to a young goat. For the term used for kid, see 27.9.

Give me a pledge: a pledge is an object of personal property given until a debt is paid. In this case Tamar asks for something belonging to Judah that she can keep until he sends her the kid. When she receives the kid, it is assumed that she will return the objects given as pledge, or as a promise to pay.

If a descriptive expression must be used to translate pledge, we may say, for example, “What will you give me to keep until you send me the kid?” Some translations say “… give me something as a mark of your promise.” In some languages this request is better expressed as a strong statement: “All right. But you must give me something….”

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 .