“Yes, 14 my son smells
like the scent of an open field
which the Lord has blessed.
30:14 At the time 18 of the wheat harvest Reuben went out and found some mandrake plants 19 in a field and brought them to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, “Give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”
47:20 So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh. Each 24 of the Egyptians sold his field, for the famine was severe. 25 So the land became Pharaoh’s.
1 tn Here for the first time the Hebrew word אָדָם (’adam) appears without the article, suggesting that it might now be the name “Adam” rather than “[the] man.” Translations of the Bible differ as to where they make the change from “man” to “Adam” (e.g., NASB and NIV translate “Adam” here, while NEB and NRSV continue to use “the man”; the KJV uses “Adam” twice in v. 19).
2 tn Heb “there was not found a companion who corresponded to him.” The subject of the third masculine singular verb form is indefinite. Without a formally expressed subject the verb may be translated as passive: “one did not find = there was not found.”
3 tn Heb “give.” The perfect tense has here a present nuance; this is a formal, legally binding declaration. Abraham asked only for a burial site/cave within the field; Ephron agrees to sell him the entire field.
4 tn The Hebrew text adds “to you I give [i.e., sell] it.” This is redundant in English and has not been translated for stylistic reasons.
5 tn Heb “in the presence of the sons of my people.”
6 tn Heb “give.”
7 tn Heb “silver.”
8 tn After the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction expresses purpose or result.
9 tn Heb “and she said to.”
10 tn Heb “the servant.” The word “Abraham’s” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
11 tn Heb “and the servant said.” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
12 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
13 tn Heb “and he smelled the smell”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
14 tn Heb “see.”
15 tn Heb “and he saw, and look.” As in Gen 28:12-15, the narrator uses the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) here and in the next clause to draw the reader into the story.
16 tn Heb “and look, there.”
17 tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by the noun with the prefixed conjunction) provides supplemental information that is important to the story.
18 tn Heb “during the days.”
19 sn Mandrake plants were popularly believed to be an aphrodisiac in the culture of the time.
20 tn The words “he bought it” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text v. 19 is one long sentence.
21 tn The Hebrew word קְשִׂיטָה (qÿsitah) is generally understood to refer to a unit of money, but the value is unknown. (However, cf. REB, which renders the term as “sheep”).
22 tn All three clauses in this dream report begin with וְהִנֵּה (vÿhinneh, “and look”), which lends vividness to the report. This is represented in the translation by the expression “there we were.”
23 tn The verb means “to bow down to the ground.” It is used to describe worship and obeisance to masters.
24 tn The Hebrew text connects this clause with the preceding one with a causal particle (כִּי, ki). The translation divides the clauses into two sentences for stylistic reasons.
25 tn The Hebrew text adds “upon them.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.