50:15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph bears a grudge and wants to repay 33 us in full 34 for all the harm 35 we did to him?”
1 tn The Hebrew verb is plural. This may be a case of grammatical agreement with the name for God, which is plural in form. However, when this plural name refers to the one true God, accompanying predicates are usually singular in form. Perhaps Abraham is accommodating his speech to Abimelech’s polytheistic perspective. (See GKC 463 §145.i.) If so, one should translate, “when the gods made me wander.”
2 tn Heb “This is your loyal deed which you can do for me.”
3 tn Heb “And Abraham.” The proper name has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun (“he”) for stylistic reasons.
4 tn The Hebrew verb is masculine plural, referring to the two young servants who accompanied Abraham and Isaac on the journey.
5 tn The disjunctive clause (with the compound subject preceding the verb) may be circumstantial and temporal.
6 tn This Hebrew word literally means “to bow oneself close to the ground.” It often means “to worship.”
7 sn It is impossible to know what Abraham was thinking when he said, “we will…return to you.” When he went he knew (1) that he was to sacrifice Isaac, and (2) that God intended to fulfill his earlier promises through Isaac. How he reconciled those facts is not clear in the text. Heb 11:17-19 suggests that Abraham believed God could restore Isaac to him through resurrection.
8 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
9 tn Heb “and he called its name.”
10 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.
11 tn The oath formula is used: “if you do us harm” means “so that you will not do.”
12 tn Heb “touched.”
13 tn Heb “and just as we have done only good with you.”
14 tn Heb “and we sent you away.”
15 tn The Philistine leaders are making an observation, not pronouncing a blessing, so the translation reads “you are blessed” rather than “may you be blessed” (cf. NAB).
16 tn The words “If we do so” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.
17 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.”
18 tn The verb means “to bow down to the ground.” It is used to describe worship and obeisance to masters.
19 tn The Hebrew word can sometimes carry the nuance “evil,” but when used of an animal it refers to a dangerous wild animal.
20 tn Heb “what his dreams will be.”
21 tn The words “the things” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
22 tn Heb “we will become contemptible.” The Hebrew word בּוּז (buz) describes the contempt that a respectable person would have for someone who is worthless, foolish, or disreputable.
23 tn Or “slave.”
24 tn Heb “a servant to the captain of the guards.” On this construction see GKC 419-20 §129.c.
25 tn The words “our dreams” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
26 tn Heb “and he interpreted for us our dreams, each according to his dream he interpreted.”
27 tn Heb “twelve [were] your servants, brothers [are] we.”
28 tn Heb “today.”
29 tn Heb “and the one is not.”
30 tn Heb “and also his blood, look, it is required.” God requires compensation, as it were, from those who shed innocent blood (see Gen 9:6). In other words, God exacts punishment for the crime of murder.
31 tn Heb “all Egypt.” The expression is a metonymy and refers to all the people of Egypt.
32 tn The imperfect verbal form has a deliberative force here.
33 tn The imperfect tense could be a simple future; it could also have a desiderative nuance.
34 tn The infinitive absolute makes the statement emphatic, “repay in full.”
35 tn Or “evil.”