34:30 Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought ruin 20 on me by making me a foul odor 21 among the inhabitants of the land – among the Canaanites and the Perizzites. I 22 am few in number; they will join forces against me and attack me, and both I and my family will be destroyed!”
48:19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He too will become a nation and he too will become great. In spite of this, his younger brother will be even greater and his descendants will become a multitude 25 of nations.”
1 tn The words “you go” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons both times in this verse.
2 tn The use of the infinitive absolute before the finite verbal form (either an imperfect or cohortative) emphasizes the certainty of the blessing.
3 tn Here too the infinitive absolute is used for emphasis before the following finite verb (either an imperfect or cohortative).
sn I will greatly multiply. The
4 tn The Hebrew term זֶרַע (zera’) occurring here and in v. 18 may mean “seed” (for planting), “offspring” (occasionally of animals, but usually of people), or “descendants” depending on the context.
5 tn Or “inherit.”
6 tn Heb “gate,” which here stands for a walled city. To break through the gate complex would be to conquer the city, for the gate complex was the main area of defense (hence the translation “stronghold”).
7 tn Following the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose.
8 tn Heb “because you must not take.”
9 tn Heb “your descendants.”
10 tn Traditionally the verb is taken as passive (“will be blessed”) here, as if Abraham’s descendants were going to be a channel or source of blessing to the nations. But the Hitpael is better understood here as reflexive/reciprocal, “will bless [i.e., pronounce blessings on] themselves/one another” (see also Gen 22:18). Elsewhere the Hitpael of the verb “to bless” is used with a reflexive/reciprocal sense in Deut 29:18; Ps 72:17; Isa 65:16; Jer 4:2. Gen 12:2 predicts that Abram will be held up as a paradigm of divine blessing and that people will use his name in their blessing formulae. For examples of blessing formulae utilizing an individual as an example of blessing see Gen 48:20 and Ruth 4:11. Earlier formulations of this promise (see Gen 12:2; 18:18) use the Niphal stem. (See also Gen 28:14.)
11 tn The words “stay there” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
12 tn Heb “and I will send and I will take you from there.” The verb “send” has no object in the Hebrew text; one must be supplied in the translation. Either “someone” or “a message” could be supplied, but since in those times a message would require a messenger, “someone” has been used.
13 tn If Jacob stayed, he would be killed and Esau would be forced to run away.
14 tn Heb “will answer on my behalf.”
15 tn Heb “on the following day,” or “tomorrow.”
16 tn Heb “when you come concerning my wage before you.”
sn Only the wage we agreed on. Jacob would have to be considered completely honest here, for he would have no control over the kind of animals born; and there could be no disagreement over which animals were his wages.
17 tn Heb “every one which is not speckled and spotted among the lambs and dark among the goats, stolen it is with me.”
18 tn Heb “the fear of Isaac,” that is, the one whom Isaac feared and respected. For further discussion of this title see M. Malul, “More on pahad yitschaq (Gen. 31:42,53) and the Oath by the Thigh,” VT 35 (1985): 192-200.
19 tn Heb “My oppression and the work of my hands God saw.”
20 tn The traditional translation is “troubled me” (KJV, ASV), but the verb refers to personal or national disaster and suggests complete ruin (see Josh 7:25, Judg 11:35, Prov 11:17). The remainder of the verse describes the “trouble” Simeon and Levi had caused.
21 tn In the causative stem the Hebrew verb בָּאַשׁ (ba’ash) means “to cause to stink, to have a foul smell.” In the contexts in which it is used it describes foul smells, stenches, or things that are odious. Jacob senses that the people in the land will find this act terribly repulsive. See P. R. Ackroyd, “The Hebrew Root באשׁ,” JTS 2 (1951): 31-36.
22 tn Jacob speaks in the first person as the head and representative of the entire family.
23 tn Heb “upon me, against me,” which might mean something like “to my sorrow.”
24 map For location see Map5-B1; Map7-E2; Map8-E2; Map10-B4.
25 tn Heb “fullness.”