And Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite, whose name was Shuah; and he took her, and went in unto her.
And Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite. Like Esau, this son of Jacob, casting off the restraints of religion, married into a Canaanite family; and it is not surprising that the family which sprang from such an unsuitable connection should be infamous for bold and unblushing wickedness.
The date of Judah's marriage has been a subject of much discussion. Augustine, and many writers since, have maintained that it took place previous to Joseph's captivity. But that could not be; because since Joseph was six years of age at his father's return from Mesopotamia (see the note at Genesis 33:14), and seventeen when he was sold as a slave, Judah, who was only two, or at most three years older, could not have had such a family experience, and returned from Adullam, to re-join his brothers at Shechem, within the brief space of eleven years. But assuming his settlement in Adullam and subsequent marriage to have taken place shortly after Joseph's removal to Egypt, his eldest son might have been born a couple of years, his second the following year, so that, as the custom in the East is for young men to marry at an early age-namely, from 15 to 17 years of age-there would have been time for all the incidents recorded in this chapter to transpire before the emigration to Egypt, which was 23 years after Joseph's abduction.