Text -- Genesis 38:30 (NET)

38:30 Afterward his brother came out– the one who had the scarlet thread on his hand– and he was named Zerah.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Gen 38:30

¹ sn Perhaps the child was named Zerah because of the scarlet thread. Though the Hebrew word used for “scarlet thread” in v. 28 is not related to the name Zerah, there is a related root in Babylonian and western Aramaic that means “scarlet” or “scarlet thread.” In Hebrew the name appears to be derived from a root meaning “to shine.” The name could have originally meant something like “shining one” or “God has shined.” Zerah became the head of a tribe (Num 26:20) from whom Achan descended (Josh 7:1).