Genesis 20:6

20:6 Then in the dream God replied to him, “Yes, I know that you have done this with a clear conscience. 1  That is why I have kept you 2  from sinning against me and why 3  I did not allow you to touch her.

Genesis 20:9

20:9 Abimelech summoned Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? What sin did I commit against you that would cause you to bring such great guilt on me and my kingdom? 4  You have done things to me that should not be done!” 5 

Genesis 27:45

27:45 Stay there 6  until your brother’s anger against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him. Then I’ll send someone to bring you back from there. 7  Why should I lose both of you in one day?” 8 

Genesis 34:30

34:30 Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought ruin 9  on me by making me a foul odor 10  among the inhabitants of the land – among the Canaanites and the Perizzites. I 11  am few in number; they will join forces against me and attack me, and both I and my family will be destroyed!”

1 tn Heb “with the integrity of your heart.”

2 tn Heb “and I, even I, kept you.”

3 tn Heb “therefore.”

4 tn Heb “How did I sin against you that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin?” The expression “great sin” refers to adultery. For discussion of the cultural background of the passage, see J. J. Rabinowitz, “The Great Sin in Ancient Egyptian Marriage Contracts,” JNES 18 (1959): 73, and W. L. Moran, “The Scandal of the ‘Great Sin’ at Ugarit,” JNES 18 (1959): 280-81.

5 tn Heb “Deeds which should not be done you have done to me.” The imperfect has an obligatory nuance here.

6 tn The words “stay there” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

7 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.

8 tn If Jacob stayed, he would be killed and Esau would be forced to run away.

9 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.

10 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.

11 tn Jacob speaks in the first person as the head and representative of the entire family.