Genesis 48:10-11

48:10 Now Israel’s eyes were failing ¹  because of his age; he was not able to see well. So Joseph ²  brought his sons ³  near to him, and his father ⁴  kissed them and embraced them. 48:11 Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected ⁵  to see you ⁶  again, but now God has allowed me to see your children ⁷  too.”

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¹ 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.

² tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³ tn Heb “them”; the referent (Joseph’s sons) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Joseph’s father) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁵ tn On the meaning of the Hebrew verb פָּלַל (palal) here, see E. A. Speiser, “The Stem pll in Hebrew,” JBL 82 (1963): 301-6. Speiser argues that this verb means “to estimate” as in Exod 21:22.

⁶ tn Heb “your face.”

⁷ tn Heb “offspring.”