Genesis 27:1

Jacob Cheats Esau out of the Blessing

27:1 When 1  Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he was almost blind, 2  he called his older 3  son Esau and said to him, “My son!” “Here I am!” Esau 4  replied.

Genesis 47:15

47:15 When the money from the lands of Egypt and Canaan was used up, all the Egyptians 5  came to Joseph and said, “Give us food! Why should we die 6  before your very eyes because our money has run out?”

Genesis 48:10

48:10 Now Israel’s eyes were failing 7  because of his age; he was not able to see well. So Joseph 8  brought his sons 9  near to him, and his father 10  kissed them and embraced them.

1 tn The clause begins with the temporal indicator (“and it happened”), making it subordinate to the main clause that follows later in the sentence.

2 tn Heb “and his eyes were weak from seeing.”

3 tn Heb “greater” (in terms of age).

4 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Esau) is specified in the translation for clarity.

5 tn Heb “all Egypt.” The expression is a metonymy and refers to all the people of Egypt.

6 tn The imperfect verbal form has a deliberative force here.

7 tn Heb “heavy.”

sn The disjunctive clause provides supplemental information that is important to the story. The weakness of Israel’s sight is one of several connections between this chapter and Gen 27. Here there are two sons, and it appears that the younger is being blessed over the older by a blind old man. While it was by Jacob’s deception in chap. 27, here it is with Jacob’s full knowledge.

8 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

9 tn Heb “them”; the referent (Joseph’s sons) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

10 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Joseph’s father) has been specified in the translation for clarity.