42:21 They said to one other, 11 “Surely we’re being punished 12 because of our brother, because we saw how distressed he was 13 when he cried to us for mercy, but we refused to listen. That is why this distress 14 has come on us!”
1 tn Or “for,” if the particle is understood as causal (as many English translations do) rather than asseverative.
2 sn For a discussion of the term prophet see N. Walker, “What is a Nabhi?” ZAW 73 (1961): 99-100.
3 tn After the preceding jussive (or imperfect), the imperative with vav conjunctive here indicates result.
sn He will pray for you that you may live. Abraham was known as a man of God whose prayer would be effectual. Ironically and sadly, he was also known as a liar.
4 tn Heb “if there is not you returning.” The suffix on the particle becomes the subject of the negated clause.
5 tn The imperfect is preceded by the infinitive absolute to make the warning emphatic.
6 tn Heb “send from you one and let him take.” After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with prefixed vav (ו) indicates purpose.
7 tn The disjunctive clause is here circumstantial-temporal.
8 tn Heb “bound.”
9 tn The words “to see” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
10 tn Heb “the truth [is] with you.”
11 tn Heb “a man to his neighbor.”
12 tn Or “we are guilty”; the Hebrew word can also refer to the effect of being guilty, i.e., “we are being punished for guilt.”
13 tn Heb “the distress of his soul.”
14 sn The repetition of the Hebrew noun translated distress draws attention to the fact that they regard their present distress as appropriate punishment for their refusal to ignore their brother when he was in distress.