Old Testament
Onan
The second son of Judah who refused to fulfill his levirate duty to his brother Er's widow, Tamar.
Onan was the son of Judah and the Canaanite daughter of Shua. When his brother Er died, Onan was tasked with fathering an heir for his brother through Tamar, but he deliberately avoided this responsibility to prevent the offspring from being legally attributed to Er. The Lord put him to death for this wickedness, highlighting the importance of the levirate obligation and the divine judgment against his disobedience.
In the text
- Verses
- 6
- Books
- 3
- First appears
- Genesis 38:4
- Last appears
- 1 Chronicles 2:3
Where Onan appears
6 verses · 4 chaptersIn the same books
- Bela12 versesBela is a name shared by an Edomite king and two distinct figures within the genealogies of Benjamin.
- Beriah10 versesA son of Asher and patriarch of the Beriite clan, listed among the descendants who entered Egypt with Jacob.
- Shelah16 versesShelah was the son of Arpakhshad and an ancestor of Abraham in the genealogy of the post-flood patriarchs.
- Heber10 versesA name shared by several biblical figures, including a descendant of Asher and a Kenite husband of Jael.
- Seth10 versesThe third son of Adam and Eve, appointed by God to continue the godly line leading to Noah and Jesus Christ.
- Bilhah11 versesRachel's handmaid who became a concubine to Jacob and the mother of his sons Dan and Naphtali.
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