What pledge shall I give you?: that is, “What shall I give you as a pledge?” or “What shall I give you to keep until I send the kid?” Tamar wisely requires things that will clearly identify their owner.

Your signet and your cord: signet refers to a cylinder seal that hung on a cord around the owner’s neck, or to a seal on a ring. The seal could be pressed into soft clay to show the owner’s mark. It was the equivalent of placing the owner’s signature on a document. In languages where the use of seals is unknown, it may be necessary to say, for example, “Your ring with your name that hangs on a cord” or “Your name marker that hangs around your neck.” In one translation this is “That necklace with your name on it.”

Your staff: this refers to Judah’s walking stick. According to ancient historians a man’s walking stick carried his personal carvings and would, like his seal, be easily identified as Judah’s property.

The remainder of verse 18 states in summary fashion that they agreed on the financial arrangement, had intercourse, and that Tamar became pregnant, which was her sole purpose. This last statement, that she conceived by him, is a problem in some languages, since Tamar would not know this until some time after she had returned home. So in some translations verses 18 and 19 are combined, and the final statement is “Then after a while she discovered that she was pregnant.”

It should be noted that at no point in this story is Tamar criticized for playing the part of a prostitute; nor is Judah judged for having sex with a harlot. The narrator’s point is that Tamar is seeking justice, even if we consider her methods as less than admirable.

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 .