Genesis 20:16

20:16 To Sarah he said, “Look, I have given a thousand pieces of silver 1  to your ‘brother.’ 2  This is compensation for you so that you will stand vindicated before all who are with you.” 3 

Genesis 31:32

31:32 Whoever has taken your gods will be put to death! 4  In the presence of our relatives 5  identify whatever is yours and take it.” 6  (Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.) 7 

Genesis 40:13

40:13 In three more days Pharaoh will reinstate you 8  and restore you to your office. You will put Pharaoh’s cup in his hand, just as you did before 9  when you were cupbearer.

1 sn A thousand pieces [Heb “shekels”] of silver. The standards for weighing money varied considerably in the ancient Near East, but the generally accepted weight for the shekel is 11.5 grams (0.4 ounce). This makes the weight of silver here 11.5 kilograms, or 400 ounces (about 25 pounds).

2 sn To your ‘brother.’ Note the way that the king refers to Abraham. Was he being sarcastic? It was surely a rebuke to Sarah. What is amazing is how patient this king was. It is proof that the fear of God was in that place, contrary to what Abraham believed (see v. 11).

3 tn Heb “Look, it is for you a covering of the eyes, for all who are with you, and with all, and you are set right.” The exact meaning of the statement is unclear. Apparently it means that the gift of money somehow exonerates her in other people’s eyes. They will not look on her as compromised (see G. J. Wenham, Genesis [WBC], 2:74).

4 tn Heb “With whomever you find your gods, he will not live.”

5 tn Heb “brothers.”

6 tn Heb “recognize for yourself what is with me and take for yourself.”

7 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.

8 tn Heb “Pharaoh will lift up your head.” This Hebrew idiom usually refers to restoring dignity, office, or power. It is comparable to the modern saying “someone can hold his head up high.”

9 tn Heb “according to the former custom.”