Discovery BoxGenesis 12:13 
Context12:13 So tell them 1 you are my sister 2 so that it may go well 3 for me because of you and my life will be spared 4 on account of you.”
Genesis 29:20
Context29:20 So Jacob worked for seven years to acquire Rachel. 5 But they seemed like only a few days to him 6 because his love for her was so great. 7
Genesis 40:7
Context40:7 So he asked Pharaoh’s officials, who were with him in custody in his master’s house, “Why do you look so sad today?” 8
Genesis 47:31
Context47:31 Jacob 9 said, “Swear to me that you will do so.” 10 So Joseph 11 gave him his word. 12 Then Israel bowed down 13 at the head of his bed. 14
Genesis 48:20
Context48:20 So he blessed them that day, saying,
“By you 15 will Israel bless, 16 saying,
‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’”
So he put Ephraim before Manasseh. 17
1 tn Heb “say.”
2 sn Tell them you are my sister. Abram’s motives may not be as selfish as they appear. He is aware of the danger to the family. His method of dealing with it is deception with a half truth, for Sarai really was his sister – but the Egyptians would not know that. Abram presumably thought that there would be negotiations for a marriage by anyone interested (as Laban does later for his sister Rebekah), giving him time to react. But the plan backfires because Pharaoh does not take the time to negotiate. There is a good deal of literature on the wife-sister issue. See (among others) E. A. Speiser, “The Wife-Sister Motif in the Patriarchal Narratives,” Oriental and Biblical Studies, 62-81; C. J. Mullo-Weir, “The Alleged Hurrian Wife-Sister Motif in Genesis,” GOT 22 (1967-1970): 14-25.
3 tn The Hebrew verb translated “go well” can encompass a whole range of favorable treatment, but the following clause indicates it means here that Abram’s life will be spared.
4 tn Heb “and my life will live.”
5 tn Heb “in exchange for Rachel.”
6 sn But they seemed like only a few days to him. This need not mean that the time passed quickly. More likely it means that the price seemed insignificant when compared to what he was getting in the bargain.
7 tn Heb “because of his love for her.” The words “was so great” are supplied for stylistic reasons.
8 tn Heb “why are your faces sad today?”
9 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
10 tn Heb “swear on oath to me.” The words “that you will do so” have been supplied in the translation for clarity.
11 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
12 tn Heb “swore on oath to him.”
13 sn The Hebrew verb normally means “bow down,” especially in worship or prayer. Here it might simply mean “bend low,” perhaps from weakness or approaching death. The narrative is ambiguous at this point and remains open to all these interpretations.
14 tc The MT reads מִטָּה (mittah, “bed, couch”). The LXX reads the word as מַטֶּה (matteh, “staff, rod”) and interprets this to mean that Jacob bowed down in worship while leaning on the top of his staff. The LXX reading was used in turn by the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews (Heb 11:21).
15 tn The pronoun is singular in the Hebrew text, apparently elevating Ephraim as the more prominent of the two. Note, however, that both are named in the blessing formula that follows.
16 tn Or “pronounce a blessing.”
17 sn On the elevation of Ephraim over Manasseh see E. C. Kingsbury, “He Set Ephraim Before Manasseh,” HUCA 38 (1967): 129-36; H. Mowvley, “The Concept and Content of ‘Blessing’ in the Old Testament,” BT 16 (1965): 74-80; and I. Mendelsohn, “On the Preferential Status of the Eldest Son,” BASOR 156 (1959): 38-40.
