Judah
Judah, the fourth son of Jacob and Leah, emerges as a central figure in this chapter. His name, derived from the Hebrew "יְהוּדָה" (Yehudah), means "praise." Judah's actions in this chapter are pivotal, as they set the stage for the lineage of David and ultimately, Jesus Christ. This highlights the theme of redemption and God's ability to work through flawed individuals to fulfill His divine purposes.

left his brothers
The act of leaving his brothers signifies a physical and relational separation. The Hebrew verb "יָרַד" (yarad) implies a descent or departure, which can symbolize a spiritual or moral decline. Judah's separation from his family may reflect internal conflicts or dissatisfaction, prompting him to seek a new path. This departure foreshadows the eventual reconciliation and unity that will come through God's redemptive plan.

settled near
The Hebrew verb "נָטָה" (natah) means to pitch or stretch out, often used in the context of setting up a tent. This suggests a temporary dwelling, indicating that Judah's move was not intended to be permanent. Spiritually, this can symbolize the transient nature of human decisions and the need for divine guidance in establishing a lasting foundation.

a man named Hirah
Hirah, an Adullamite, becomes a significant figure in Judah's life. The name "חִירָה" (Chirah) may mean "noble" or "splendor," suggesting a person of influence or status. Hirah's presence in the narrative introduces the theme of friendship and influence, reminding readers of the importance of choosing companions wisely, as they can impact one's spiritual journey.

an Adullamite
Adullam was a Canaanite city, and its mention here provides geographical and cultural context. The Hebrew "עֲדֻלָּם" (Adullam) is associated with a place of refuge, later known for David's stronghold. This connection to Adullam foreshadows themes of refuge and redemption, as Judah's account unfolds in a land that will later serve as a sanctuary for David, a key figure in the Messianic lineage.

Adullamite.--The town of Adullam, near which was David's famous cave, has been clearly identified by Lieut. Conder (Tent-work, ii. 158). It lay in the great valley of Elah, which formed the highway from Hebron to the country of the Philistines, some two or three miles south of Shochoh, and fifteen or sixteen miles west by north from Hebron. Judah "went down" thither, not as Abenezra and others have supposed, because it was to the south, but because it was towards the sea, and the road is an actual descent from the hill country of Judah into the Shephelah, or lowland, in which Adullam was situated. The sons of Jacob often, probably, with a few retainers, made expeditions in search of pastures for their cattle; and Hirah, apparently, had shown Judah hospitality on some such journey, and finally a friendship had grown up between them. "Turned in to," however, literally means pitched (his tent) close by; and the friendship between Judah and Hirah, thus accidentally formed, seems to have ended in Hirah taking the charge of Judah's cattle.

(1) If the date of Judah's marriage, as is most probable, was shortly after the sale of Joseph (Keil, Kurtz, Lange, Alford, Wordsworth, Quarry), since at the time of that atrocity Judah was still living with his brethren, the only difficulty calling for solution is to account for the birth of Judah's grandchildren, Hezron and Hamul (the sons of Pharez, the twin child of Judah by Tamar), in the short interval of twenty-two years which preceded Jacob's descent into Egypt without making Er and Onan marry in comparative boyhood. The case becomes a little less perplexing if Hezron and Hamul, though said to have come into Egypt (Genesis 46:27; Exodus 1:1; Deuteronomy 10:22), may be regarded as having been born there (Hengstenberg), since twenty-two years afford sufficient space for the birth of Judah's three sons, Er, Onan, and Shelah, which may have taken place during the first three years after their father's marriage, and for the birth of Pharez and Zarah, even if Er married as late as eighteen. Of course if the narrative requires the birth of Hezron and Hamul to have taken place in Canaan (Kalisch), it is simply impossible to hold that all this occurred within little more than a score of years. Hence

(2) the date of Judah's marriage has been placed before the sale of Joseph (Augustine, Aben Ezra, Rosenmüller, Drechsler, Baumgarten, Gerlach, Ainsworth, Candlish, Murphy, Inglis); but even on this assumption the task is arduous to make the birth of Hezron and Hamul occur before the emigration of their great-grandfather to Egypt. For as Judah was not more than four years older than Joseph (cf. Genesis 29:35 with Genesis 30:25), his age at the time of Joseph's sale could not have been more than twenty-one. But placing Judah's marriage at the earliest possible date, viz., in his fifteenth year, only substitutes an interval of twenty-eight years instead of one of twenty-two, in which Judah's son Er must be born, grow up to manhood, (say at fifteen) marry, die, and leave his widow Tamar, who, after marrying with Onan and waiting for Shelah (which would consume at least another year), must become the mother of twin sons by her father-in-law (for which another year would be required), and must see the elder of the two married at ten years of age, if his sons are to be born upon the soft of Canaan. On either hypothesis, therefore, it seems indispensable to hold that Judah's grandsons were born in Egypt; and in this case there is little gained by putting Judah's marriage earlier than Joseph s sale, i.e. in Judah's twenty-first year. That Judah went down - from Hebron (Genesis 37:14), or the mountains (Keil), towards the south (Aben Ezra, Rosenmüller) from his brethren, - setting up a separate and independent establishment apart from them; "not only immediately after Joseph was sold, but also on account of it," "in a fit of impenitent anger" (Kurtz), in a spirit of remorse (Lange) - and turned in to a certain Adullamite, - literally, and pitched (sc. his tent, Genesis 26:15) up to, as far as, or close by, a man, an Adullamite, i.e. belonging to Adullam, a town in the Hebron valley (Joshua 15:85); in the time of the conquest the seat of a Canaanitish king (Joshua 12:15), afterwards celebrated for its connection with the history of David (1 Samuel 22:1, 2; 2 Samuel 23:13), subsequently mentioned in Scripture (2 Chronicles 11:7; Nehemiah 11:30; Micah 1:15), but never successfully identified (vide ' Land and the Book,' pp. 606, 607; Robinson, 2:175) - whose name was Hirah - "Nobility" (Gesenius).

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