4:25 And Adam had marital relations 3 with his wife again, and she gave birth to a son. She named him Seth, saying, “God has given 4 me another child 5 in place of Abel because Cain killed him.”
“You are now 12 pregnant
and are about to give birth 13 to a son.
You are to name him Ishmael, 14
for the Lord has heard your painful groans. 15
“Yes, 31 my son smells
like the scent of an open field
which the Lord has blessed.
30:27 But Laban said to him, “If I have found favor in your sight, please stay here, 35 for I have learned by divination 36 that the Lord has blessed me on account of you.”
48:15 Then he blessed Joseph and said,
“May the God before whom my fathers
Abraham and Isaac walked –
the God who has been my shepherd 74
all my life long to this day,
48:16 the Angel 75 who has protected me 76
from all harm –
bless these boys.
May my name be named in them, 77
and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac.
May they grow into a multitude on the earth.”
1 tn The text uses הִנֵּה (hinneh), often archaically translated “behold.” It is often used to express the dramatic present, the immediacy of an event – “Look, this is what I am doing!”
2 sn G. J. Wenham (Genesis [WBC], 1:34) points out that there is nothing in the passage that prohibits the man and the woman from eating meat. He suggests that eating meat came after the fall. Gen 9:3 may then ratify the postfall practice of eating meat rather than inaugurate the practice, as is often understood.
3 tn Heb “knew,” a frequent euphemism for sexual relations.
4 sn The name Seth probably means something like “placed”; “appointed”; “set”; “granted,” assuming it is actually related to the verb that is used in the sentiment. At any rate, the name שֵׁת (shet) and the verb שָׁת (shat, “to place, to appoint, to set, to grant”) form a wordplay (paronomasia).
5 tn Heb “offspring.”
6 sn The name Noah appears to be related to the Hebrew word נוּחַ (nuakh, “to rest”). There are several wordplays on the name “Noah” in the story of the flood.
7 tn The Hebrew verb יְנַחֲמֵנוּ (yÿnakhamenu) is from the root נָחָם (nakham), which means “to comfort” in the Piel verbal stem. The letters נ (nun) and ח (heth) pick up the sounds in the name “Noah,” forming a paronomasia on the name. They are not from the same verbal root, and so the connection is only by sound. Lamech’s sentiment reflects the oppression of living under the curse on the ground, but also expresses the hope for relief in some way through the birth of Noah. His words proved to be ironic but prophetic. The relief would come with a new beginning after the flood. See E. G. Kraeling, “The Interpretations of the Name Noah in Genesis 5:29,” JBL 48 (1929): 138-43.
8 tn Heb “look.” The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) introduces the foundational clause for the imperative to follow.
9 tn Heb “enter to.” The expression is a euphemism for sexual relations (also in v. 4).
sn The Hebrew expression translated have sexual relations with does not convey the intimacy of other expressions, such as “so and so knew his wife.” Sarai simply sees this as the social custom of having a child through a surrogate. For further discussion see C. F. Fensham, “The Son of a Handmaid in Northwest Semitic,” VT 19 (1969): 312-21.
10 tn Heb “perhaps I will be built from her.” Sarai hopes to have a family established through this surrogate mother.
11 tn Heb “listened to the voice of,” which is an idiom meaning “obeyed.”
sn Abram did what Sarai told him. This expression was first used in Gen 3:17 of Adam’s obeying his wife. In both cases the text highlights weak faith and how it jeopardized the plan of God.
12 tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) focuses on her immediate situation: “Here you are pregnant.”
13 tn The active participle refers here to something that is about to happen.
14 sn The name Ishmael consists of the imperfect or jussive form of the Hebrew verb with the theophoric element added as the subject. It means “God hears” or “may God hear.”
15 tn Heb “affliction,” which must refer here to Hagar’s painful groans of anguish.
sn This clause gives the explanation of the name Ishmael, using a wordplay. Ishmael’s name will be a reminder that “God hears” Hagar’s painful cries.
16 tn The second person pronominal suffixes are singular in this verse (note “your eyes,” “you have made great,” and “you have acted”). Verse 18a seems to indicate that Lot is addressing the angels, but the use of the singular and the appearance of the divine title “Lord” (אֲדֹנָי, ’adonay) in v. 18b suggests he is speaking to God.
17 tn Heb “in your eyes.”
18 tn Heb “you made great your kindness.”
19 sn The Hebrew word חֶסֶד (khesed) can refer to “faithful love” or to “kindness,” depending on the context. The precise nuance here is uncertain.
20 tn The infinitive construct explains how God has shown Lot kindness.
21 tn Heb “lest.”
22 tn The Hebrew verb דָּבַק (davaq) normally means “to stick to, to cleave, to join.” Lot is afraid he cannot outrun the coming calamity.
23 tn The perfect verb form with vav consecutive carries the nuance of the imperfect verbal form before it.
24 tn The disjunctive clause is circumstantial, indicating a reason for the preceding request.
25 tn After the preceding imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.
26 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
27 tn Heb “and he called its name.”
28 sn The name Rehoboth (רְהֹבוֹת, rehovot) is derived from a verbal root meaning “to make room.” The name was a reminder that God had made room for them. The story shows Isaac’s patience with the opposition; it also shows how God’s blessing outdistanced the men of Gerar. They could not stop it or seize it any longer.
29 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
30 tn Heb “and he smelled the smell”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
31 tn Heb “see.”
32 tn Or “Leah conceived” (also in vv. 33, 34, 35).
33 sn The name Reuben (רְאוּבֵן, rÿ’uven) means “look, a son.”
34 tn Heb “looked on my affliction.”
sn Leah’s explanation of the name Reuben reflects a popular etymology, not an exact one. The name means literally “look, a son.” Playing on the Hebrew verb “look,” she observes that the
35 tn The words “please stay here” have been supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.
36 tn Or perhaps “I have grown rich and the
37 tn Or “for.”
38 tn Heb “before me.”
39 tn Heb “and it has broken out with respect to abundance.”
40 tn Heb “at my foot.”
41 tn Heb “How long [until] I do, also I, for my house?”
42 tn Heb “lift up (now) your eyes and see.”
43 tn Heb “going up on,” that is, mounting for intercourse.
44 tn Heb “With whomever you find your gods, he will not live.”
45 tn Heb “brothers.”
46 tn Heb “recognize for yourself what is with me and take for yourself.”
47 tn The disjunctive clause (introduced here by a vav [ו] conjunction) provides supplemental material that is important to the story. Since this material is parenthetical in nature, it has been placed in parentheses in the translation.
48 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
49 tn Heb “lifted up his eyes.”
50 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
51 tn The Hebrew verb means “to be gracious; to show favor”; here it carries the nuance “to give graciously.”
52 tn Heb “blessing.” It is as if Jacob is trying to repay what he stole from his brother twenty years earlier.
53 tn Or “gracious,” but in the specific sense of prosperity.
54 tn Heb “all.”
55 tn Heb “and he urged him and he took.” The referent of the first pronoun in the sequence (“he”) has been specified as “Jacob” in the translation for clarity.
56 tn Heb “let us arise and let us go up.” The first cohortative gives the statement a sense of urgency.
57 tn The cohortative with the prefixed conjunction here indicates purpose or consequence.
58 tn Heb “day of distress.” See Ps 20:1 which utilizes similar language.
59 tn Heb “in the way in which I went.” Jacob alludes here to God’s promise to be with him (see Gen 28:20).
60 tn Heb “the men of her place,” that is, who lived at the place where she had been.
61 sn The Hebrew noun translated “cult prostitute” is derived from a verb meaning “to be set apart; to be distinct.” Thus the term refers to a woman who did not marry, but was dedicated to temple service as a cult prostitute. The masculine form of this noun is used for male cult prostitutes. Judah thought he had gone to an ordinary prostitute (v. 15); but Hirah went looking for a cult prostitute, perhaps because it had been a sheep-shearing festival. For further discussion see E. M. Yamauchi, “Cultic Prostitution,” Orient and Occident (AOAT), 213-23.
62 tn Heb “and he said.”
63 tn Heb “know.”
64 tn The word “here” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
65 tn Heb “hand.” This is a metonymy for being under the control or care of Joseph.
66 tn The nuance of potential imperfect fits this context.
67 tn Heb “and their heart went out.” Since this expression is used only here, the exact meaning is unclear. The following statement suggests that it may refer to a sudden loss of emotional strength, so “They were dismayed” adequately conveys the meaning (cf. NRSV); NIV has “Their hearts sank.”
68 tn Heb “and they trembled, a man to his neighbor.”
69 tn Heb “What is this God has done to us?” The demonstrative pronoun (“this”) adds emphasis to the question.
70 tn Heb “a father.” The term is used here figuratively of one who gives advice, as a father would to his children.
71 tn Heb “hurry and go up.”
72 tn Heb “all Egypt.” The expression is a metonymy and refers to all the people of Egypt.
73 tn The imperfect verbal form has a deliberative force here.
74 tn Heb “shepherded me.” The verb has been translated as an English noun for stylistic reasons.
75 sn The Samaritan Pentateuch reads “king” here, but the traditional reading (“angel”) may be maintained. Jacob closely associates God with an angelic protective presence. This does not mean that Jacob viewed his God as a mere angel, but it does suggest that he was aware of an angelic presence sent by God to protect him. Here he so closely associates the two that they become virtually indistinguishable. In this culture messengers typically carried the authority of the one who sent them and could even be addressed as such. Perhaps Jacob thought that the divine blessing would be mediated through this angelic messenger.
76 tn The verb גָּאַל (ga’al) has the basic idea of “protect” as a near relative might do. It is used for buying someone out of bondage, marrying a deceased brother’s widow, paying off debts, avenging the family, and the like. The meanings of “deliver, protect, avenge” are most fitting when God is the subject (see A. R. Johnson, “The Primary Meaning of √גאל,” Congress Volume: Copenhagen, 1953 [VTSup], 67-77).
77 tn Or “be recalled through them.”