Genesis 38:10
in Genesis 38What he did was wicked in the sight of the LORD, so He put Onan to death as well.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the thing which he did was evil in the sight of Jehovah: and he slew him also.
KJV
And the thing which he did displeased the Lord: wherefore he slew him also.
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This verse in Genesis 38
Commentary
4 notes on this verseWherefore he slew him also - The sin of Onan has generally been supposed to be self-pollution; but this is certainly a mistake; his crime was his refusal to raise up seed to his brother, and rather than do it, by the act mentioned above, he rendered himself incapable of it.
This site's exposition
raise up offspring for your brother
on Genesis 38:8-10
Judah tells Onan to raise up offspring for his dead brother, the duty of a brother-in-law. That duty is levirate marriage, where a man fathers a son for his brother's widow and the first child counts as the dead brother's. Onan spills his seed, and the LORD puts him to death.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Those sins that dishonour the body are very displeasing to God, and the evidence of vile actions. Observe, the thing which he did displeased the Lord - And it is to be feared, thousands, especially of single persons, by this very thing, still displeased the Lord, and destroy their own souls.
And the thing which he did displeased the Lord,....
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
גם אותו. According to our sages Er also died for this same type of sin, as he deliberately wasted his semen by ejaculating prematurely to prevent his wife from becoming pregnant. He wanted to preserve her physical beauty.
2 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
What he did was evil in the eyes of [ before ] Adonoy, and He also put him to death.
ABIDE A WIDOW AT THY FATHER’s HOUSE. The meaning thereof is that “you should conduct yourself there as a widow until Shelah be grown up.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 1 further source is cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
8 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֵּ֛רַע | vaiyera' | and it was evil | H7489 → | 107 times |
| בְּעֵינֵ֥י | beeinei | in [the] eyes of | H5869 → | 887 times |
| יְהוָ֖ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֣ר | ʾasher | [that] which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| עָשָׂ֑ה | ʾasah | he had done | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| וַיָּ֖מֶת | vaiyamet | and he put to death | H4191 → | 839 times |
| גַּם־ | gam- | also | H1571 → | 769 times |
| אֹתֽוֹ׃ | ʾoto | <obj.> him | H853 → | 10935 times |
וַיֵּ֛רַעand it was evil
vaiyera'H7489 →107 times
בְּעֵינֵ֥יin [the] eyes of
beeineiH5869 →887 times
יְהוָ֖הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֲשֶׁ֣ר[that] which
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
עָשָׂ֑הhe had done
ʾasahH6213 →2628 times
וַיָּ֖מֶתand he put to death
vaiyametH4191 →839 times
גַּם־also
gam-H1571 →769 times
אֹתֽוֹ׃<obj.> him
ʾotoH853 →10935 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Proverbs 14:32The wicked man is thrown down by his own sin, but the righteous man has a refuge even in death.
it leads to
- 2 Timothy 4:18
And the Lord will rescue me from every evil action and bring me safely into His heavenly kingdom. To Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
- Psalms 23:4
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
- 2 Corinthians 5:8
We are confident, then, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
- 2 Timothy 4:18
Through
Numbers 11:1Soon the people began to complain about their hardship in the hearing of the LORD, and when He heard them, His anger was kindled, and fire from the LORD blazed among them and consumed…
it leads to
- Numbers 21:5
and spoke against God and against Moses: “Why have you led us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread or water, and we detest this wretched food!”
- 2 Kings 1:12
Again Elijah replied, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed…
- Numbers 16:35
And fire came forth from the LORD and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense.
- Exodus 16:9
Then Moses said to Aaron, “Tell the whole congregation of Israel, ‘Come before the LORD, for He has heard your grumbling.’”
- 1 Corinthians 10:10
And do not complain, as some of them did, and were killed by the destroying angel.
- Numbers 21:5
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Genesis
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament.