Genesis 29:4

29:4 Jacob asked them, “My brothers, where are you from?” They replied, “We’re from Haran.”

Genesis 43:20

43:20 They said, “My lord, we did indeed come down ¹  the first time ²  to buy food.

Genesis 44:26

44:26 But we replied, ‘We cannot go down there. ³  If our youngest brother is with us, then we will go, ⁴  for we won’t be permitted to see the man’s face if our youngest brother is not with us.’

Genesis 47:19

47:19 Why should we die before your very eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land in exchange for food, and we, with our land, will become ⁵  Pharaoh’s slaves. ⁶  Give us seed that we may live ⁷  and not die. Then the land will not become desolate.” ⁸ 

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¹ tn The infinitive absolute is used for emphasis before the finite verbal form.

² tn Heb “in the beginning” (see the note on the phrase “last time” in v. 18).

³ tn The direct object is not specified in the Hebrew text, but is implied; “there” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁴ tn Heb “go down.”

⁵ tn After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with vav here indicates consequence.

⁶ sn Pharaoh’s slaves. The idea of slavery is not attractive to the modern mind, but in the ancient world it was the primary way of dealing with the poor and destitute. If the people became slaves of Pharaoh, it was Pharaoh’s responsibility to feed them and care for them. It was the best way for them to survive the famine.

⁷ tn After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with vav here indicates purpose or result.

⁸ tn The disjunctive clause structure (vav [ו] + subject + negated verb) highlights the statement and brings their argument to a conclusion.