¹ tn The Hebrew verb is בָּנָה (banah, “to make, to build, to construct”). The text states that the Lord God built the rib into a woman. Again, the passage gives no indication of precisely how this was done.

² sn Where is Abel your brother? Again the Lord confronts a guilty sinner with a rhetorical question (see Gen 3:9-13), asking for an explanation of what has happened.

³ tn Heb “The one guarding my brother [am] I?”

sn Am I my brother’s guardian? Cain lies and then responds with a defiant rhetorical question of his own in which he repudiates any responsibility for his brother. But his question is ironic, for he is responsible for his brother’s fate, especially if he wanted to kill him. See P. A. Riemann, “Am I My Brother’s Keeper?” Int 24 (1970): 482-91.

⁴ sn Offered burnt offerings on the altar. F. D. Maurice includes a chapter on the sacrifice of Noah in The Doctrine of Sacrifice. The whole burnt offering, according to Leviticus 1, represented the worshiper’s complete surrender and dedication to the Lord. After the flood Noah could see that God was not only a God of wrath, but a God of redemption and restoration. The one who escaped the catastrophe could best express his gratitude and submission through sacrificial worship, acknowledging God as the sovereign of the universe.

⁵ tn Heb “a man to his neighbor.” The Hebrew idiom may be translated “to each other” or “one to another.”

⁶ tn The speech contains two cohortatives of exhortation followed by their respective cognate accusatives: “let us brick bricks” (נִלְבְּנָה לְבֵנִים, nilbbÿnah lÿvenim) and “burn for burning” (נִשְׂרְפָה לִשְׂרֵפָה, nisrÿfah lisrefah). This stresses the intensity of the undertaking; it also reflects the Akkadian text which uses similar constructions (see E. A. Speiser, Genesis [AB], 75-76).

⁷ tn Or “bitumen” (cf. NEB, NRSV).

⁸ tn The disjunctive clause gives information parenthetical to the narrative.

⁹ tn The three first person verbs in v. 2a should be classified as cohortatives. The first two have pronominal suffixes, so the form itself does not indicate a cohortative. The third verb form is clearly cohortative.

¹⁰ sn I will bless you. The blessing of creation is now carried forward to the patriarch. In the garden God blessed Adam and Eve; in that blessing he gave them (1) a fruitful place, (2) endowed them with fertility to multiply, and (3) made them rulers over creation. That was all ruined at the fall. Now God begins to build his covenant people; in Gen 12-22 he promises to give Abram (1) a land flowing with milk and honey, (2) a great nation without number, and (3) kingship.

¹¹ tn Or “I will make you famous.”

¹² tn Heb “and be a blessing.” The verb form הְיֵה (hÿyeh) is the Qal imperative of the verb הָיָה (hayah). The vav (ו) with the imperative after the cohortatives indicates purpose or consequence. What does it mean for Abram to “be a blessing”? Will he be a channel or source of blessing for others, or a prime example of divine blessing? A similar statement occurs in Zech 8:13, where God assures his people, “You will be a blessing,” in contrast to the past when they “were a curse.” Certainly “curse” here does not refer to Israel being a source of a curse, but rather to the fact that they became a curse-word or byword among the nations, who regarded them as the epitome of an accursed people (see 2 Kgs 22:19; Jer 42:18; 44:8, 12, 22). Therefore the statement “be a blessing” seems to refer to Israel being transformed into a prime example of a blessed people, whose name will be used in blessing formulae, rather than in curses. If the statement “be a blessing” is understood in the same way in Gen 12:2, then it means that God would so bless Abram that other nations would hear of his fame and hold him up as a paradigm of divine blessing in their blessing formulae.

¹³ tn The Piel of the verb חָיָה (khayah, “to live”) means “to keep alive, to preserve alive,” and in some places “to make alive.” See D. Marcus, “The Verb ‘to Live’ in Ugaritic,” JSS 17 (1972): 76-82.

¹⁴ tn The Hebrew text simply has “night” as an adverbial accusative.

¹⁵ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁶ tn Heb “he divided himself…he and his servants.”

¹⁷ tn Heb “left.” Directions in ancient Israel were given in relation to the east rather than the north.

¹⁸ tn Heb “And Abram said.”

¹⁹ tn The construction uses הֵן (hen) to introduce the foundational clause (“since…”), and וְהִנֵּה (vÿhinneh) to introduce the main clause (“then look…”).

²⁰ tn Heb “is inheriting me.”

²¹ tn The imperfect tense could be translated “you shall keep” as a binding command; but the obligatory nuance (“must”) captures the binding sense better.

²² tn Heb “my covenant.” The Hebrew word בְּרִית (bÿrit) can refer to (1) the agreement itself between two parties (see v. 7), (2) the promise made by one party to another (see vv. 2-3, 7), (3) an obligation placed by one party on another, or (4) a reminder of the agreement. In vv. 9-10 the word refers to a covenantal obligation which God gives to Abraham and his descendants.

²³ tn Heb “[As for] Sarai your wife, you must not call her name Sarai, for Sarah [will be] her name.”

²⁴ sn Sarah. The name change seems to be a dialectical variation, both spellings meaning “princess” or “queen.” Like the name Abram, the name Sarai symbolized the past. The new name Sarah, like the name Abraham, would be a reminder of what God intended to do for Sarah in the future.

²⁵ tn Heb “the young man.”

²⁶ tn The construction uses the Piel preterite, “he hurried,” followed by the infinitive construct; the two probably form a verbal hendiadys: “he quickly prepared.”

²⁷ tn The disjunctive clause signals the beginning of the next scene and highlights God’s action.

²⁸ tn Or “burning sulfur” (the traditional “fire and brimstone”).

²⁹ tn Heb “from the Lord from the heavens.” The words “It was sent down” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

sn The text explicitly states that the sulfur and fire that fell on Sodom and Gomorrah was sent down from the sky by the Lord. What exactly this was, and how it happened, can only be left to intelligent speculation, but see J. P. Harland, “The Destruction of the Cities of the Plain,” BA 6 (1943): 41-54.

³⁰ tn Heb “cut a covenant.”

³¹ tn Heb “arose and returned.”

³² sn The Philistines mentioned here may not be ethnically related to those who lived in Palestine in the time of the judges and the united monarchy. See D. M. Howard, “Philistines,” Peoples of the Old Testament World, 238.

³³ tn Heb “Sarah.” The proper name has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun (“she”) for stylistic reasons.

³⁴ sn Mourn…weep. The description here is of standard mourning rites (see K. A. Kitchen, NBD³ 149-50). They would have been carried out in the presence of the corpse, probably in Sarah’s tent. So Abraham came in to mourn; then he rose up to go and bury his dead (v. 3).

³⁵ tn Heb “the servant”; the noun has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

³⁶ tn Heb “her”; the referent (Rebekah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³⁷ tn Heb “And she arose, Rebekah and her female servants, and they rode upon camels and went after.”

³⁸ tn Heb “the servant”; the word “Abraham’s” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

³⁹ tn Heb “Isaac”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁴⁰ tn The meaning of this Hebrew term is uncertain (cf. NASB, NIV “to meditate”; NRSV “to walk”).

⁴¹ tn Heb “at the turning of the evening.”

⁴² tn Heb “And he lifted up his eyes.” This idiom emphasizes the careful look Isaac had at the approaching caravan.

⁴³ tn Heb “and look.” The clause introduced by the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) invites the audience to view the scene through Isaac’s eyes.

⁴⁴ tn Heb “old and full.”

⁴⁵ tn Heb “And he was gathered to his people.” In the ancient Israelite view he joined his deceased ancestors in Sheol, the land of the dead.

⁴⁶ tn Heb “called in the name of.” The expression refers to worshiping the Lord through prayer and sacrifice (see Gen 4:26; 12:8; 13:4; 21:33). See G. J. Wenham, Genesis (WBC), 1:116.

⁴⁷ tn Heb “and they dug there, the servants of Isaac, a well.”

⁴⁸ tn Heb “Perhaps my father will feel me and I will be in his eyes like a mocker.” The Hebrew expression “I will be in his eyes like” means “I would appear to him as.”

⁴⁹ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

⁵⁰ tn Heb “Are you this one, Esau, my son, or not?” On the use of the interrogative particle here, see BDB 210 s.v. הֲ.

⁵¹ tn Heb “Bless me, me also, my father.” The words “my father” have not been repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁵² tn Heb “and Esau lifted his voice and wept.”

⁵³ tn Heb “El Shaddai.” See the extended note on the phrase “sovereign God” in Gen 17:1.

⁵⁴ tn Heb “and make you fruitful and multiply you.” See Gen 17:6, 20 for similar terminology.

⁵⁵ tn The perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here indicates consequence. The collocation הָיָה + preposition לְ (hayah + lÿ) means “become.”

⁵⁶ tn Heb “an assembly of peoples.”

⁵⁷ tn The perfect verbal forms with the vav (ו) consecutive carry on the sequence begun by the initial imperfect form.

⁵⁸ tn Heb “indeed, my bone and my flesh are you.” The expression sounds warm enough, but the presence of “indeed” may suggest that Laban had to be convinced of Jacob’s identity before permitting him to stay. To be one’s “bone and flesh” is to be someone’s blood relative. For example, the phrase describes the relationship between Abimelech and the Shechemites (Judg 9:2; his mother was a Shechemite); David and the Israelites (2 Sam 5:1); David and the elders of Judah (2 Sam 19:12,); and David and his nephew Amasa (2 Sam 19:13, see 2 Sam 17:2; 1 Chr 2:16-17).

⁵⁹ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁶⁰ tn Heb “a month of days.”

⁶¹ tn The verb is the perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; the nuance in the question is deliberative.

⁶² tn Heb “my brother.” The term “brother” is used in a loose sense; actually Jacob was Laban’s nephew.

⁶³ tn Heb “fulfill the period of seven of this one.” The referent of “this one” has been specified in the translation as “my older daughter” for clarity.

sn Bridal week. An ancient Hebrew marriage ceremony included an entire week of festivities (cf. Judg 14:12).

⁶⁴ tn Heb “this other one.”

⁶⁵ tn Heb “and we will give to you also this one in exchange for labor which you will work with me, still seven other years.”

sn In exchange for seven more years of work. See C. H. Gordon, “The Story of Jacob and Laban in the Light of the Nuzi Tablets,” BASOR 66 (1937): 25-27; and J. Van Seters, “Jacob’s Marriages and Ancient Near Eastern Customs: A Reassessment,” HTR 62 (1969): 377-95.

⁶⁶ tn Heb “and also he has heard my voice.” The expression means that God responded positively to Rachel’s cry and granted her request.

⁶⁷ tn Or “therefore.”

⁶⁸ sn The name Dan means “he vindicated” or “he judged.” The name plays on the verb used in the statement which appears earlier in the verse. The verb translated “vindicated” is from דִּין (din, “to judge, to vindicate”), the same verbal root from which the name is derived. Rachel sensed that God was righting the wrong.

⁶⁹ tn Heb “[with] a mighty struggle I have struggled with my sister, also I have prevailed.” The phrase “mighty struggle” reads literally “struggles of God.” The plural participle “struggles” reflects the ongoing nature of the struggle, while the divine name is used here idiomatically to emphasize the intensity of the struggle. See J. Skinner, Genesis (ICC), 387.

⁷⁰ sn The name Naphtali (נַפְתָּלִי, naftali) must mean something like “my struggle” in view of the statement Rachel made in the preceding clause. The name plays on this earlier statement, “[with] a mighty struggle I have struggled with my sister.”

⁷¹ tn Heb “God has given my reward.”

⁷² tn The words “as a wife” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for clarity (cf. v. 9).

sn Leah seems to regard the act of giving her servant Zilpah to her husband as a sacrifice, for which (she believes) God is now rewarding her with the birth of a son.

⁷³ sn The name Issachar (יְשָּׁשכָר, yishakhar) appears to mean “man of reward” or possibly “there is reward.” The name plays on the word used in the statement made earlier in the verse. The Hebrew noun translated “reward” is derived from the same root as the name Issachar. The irony is that Rachel thought the mandrakes would work for her, and she was willing to trade one night for them. But in that one night Leah became pregnant.

⁷⁴ sn The name Zebulun (זְבֻלוּן, zevulun) apparently means “honor.” The name plays on the verb used in the statement made earlier in the verse. The Hebrew verb translated “will honor” and the name Zebulun derive from the same root.

⁷⁵ tn Heb “and he put a journey of three days between himself and Jacob.”

sn Three days’ traveling distance from Jacob. E. A. Speiser observes, “Laban is delighted with the terms, and promptly proceeds to violate the spirit of the bargain by removing to a safe distance all the grown animals that would be likely to produce the specified spots” (Genesis [AB], 238). Laban apparently thought that by separating out the spotted, striped, and dark colored animals he could minimize the production of spotted, striped, or dark offspring that would then belong to Jacob.

⁷⁶ tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by the vav with subject) is circumstantial/temporal; Laban removed the animals while Jacob was taking care of the rest.

⁷⁷ tn The two nouns may form a hendiadys, meaning “a share in the inheritance” or “a portion to inherit.”

⁷⁸ tn Heb “Jacob”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁷⁹ sn The Hebrew word for “pile” is גַּל (gal), which sounds like the name “Galeed” (גַּלְעֵד, gal’ed). See v. 48.

⁸⁰ tn The construction is a cognate accusative with the verb, expressing a specific sacrifice.

⁸¹ tn Heb “bread, food.” Presumably this was a type of peace offering, where the person bringing the offering ate the animal being sacrificed.

⁸² sn Beginning with 31:55, the verse numbers in the English Bible through 32:32 differ by one from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 31:55 ET = 32:1 HT, 32:1 ET = 32:2 HT, etc., through 32:32 ET = 32:33 HT. From 33:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.

⁸³ tn Heb “and Laban got up early in the morning and he kissed.”

⁸⁴ tn Heb “his sons.”

⁸⁵ tn Heb “to his place.”

⁸⁶ tn The form is the perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive; it has the nuance of an imperfect of instruction.

⁸⁷ tn The words “they belong” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁸⁸ tn Heb “to your servant, to Jacob.”

⁸⁹ tn Heb “to my lord, to Esau.”

⁹⁰ tn Heb “and look, also he [is] behind us.” The referent of the pronoun “he” (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁹¹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁹² tn Heb “dawn has arisen.”

⁹³ tn Heb “and he said, ‘I will not let you go.’” The referent of the pronoun “he” (Jacob) has been specified for clarity, and the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁹⁴ sn Jacob wrestled with a man thinking him to be a mere man, and on that basis was equal to the task. But when it had gone on long enough, the night visitor touched Jacob and crippled him. Jacob’s request for a blessing can only mean that he now knew that his opponent was supernatural. Contrary to many allegorical interpretations of the passage that make fighting equivalent to prayer, this passage shows that Jacob stopped fighting, and then asked for a blessing.

⁹⁵ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁹⁶ tn Heb “Who to you?”

⁹⁷ tn Heb “all this camp which I met.”

⁹⁸ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁹⁹ tn Heb “his soul stuck to [or “joined with”],” meaning Shechem became very attached to Dinah emotionally.

¹⁰⁰ tn Heb “and he spoke to the heart of the young woman,” which apparently refers in this context to tender, romantic speech (Hos 2:14). Another option is to translate the expression “he reassured the young woman” (see Judg 19:3, 2 Sam 19:7; cf. NEB “comforted her”).

¹⁰¹ tn Heb “her”; the referent (Dinah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁰² tn Heb “whatever you say.”

¹⁰³ tn Or “pay.”

¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “and Isaac expired and died and he was gathered to his people.” In the ancient Israelite view he joined his deceased ancestors in Sheol, the land of the dead.

¹⁰⁵ tn Heb “old and full of years.”

¹⁰⁶ tn The disjunctive clause gives supplemental information that helps the reader or hearer to picture what happened.

¹⁰⁷ tn Heb “and they sent the special tunic and they brought [it] to their father.” The text as it stands is problematic. It sounds as if they sent the tunic on ahead and then came and brought it to their father. Some emend the second verb to a Qal form and read “and they came.” In this case, they sent the tunic on ahead.

¹⁰⁸ tn Heb “Pharaoh will lift up your head from upon you.” Joseph repeats the same expression from the first interpretation (see v. 13), but with the added words “from upon you,” which allow the statement to have a more literal and ominous meaning – the baker will be decapitated.

¹⁰⁹ tn Heb “And look, seven other cows were coming up after them from the Nile, bad of appearance and thin of flesh.”

¹¹⁰ tn Heb “the Nile.” This has been replaced by “the river” in the translation for stylistic reasons.

¹¹¹ tn Heb “coming up.”

¹¹² tn Heb “fat.”

¹¹³ tn Heb “And look, a dream.”

sn Pharaoh’s two dreams, as explained in the following verses, pertained to the economy of Egypt. Because of the Nile River, the land of Egypt weathered all kinds of famines – there was usually grain in Egypt, and if there was grain and water the livestock would flourish. These two dreams, however, indicated that poverty would overtake plenty and that the blessing of the herd and the field would cease.

¹¹⁴ tn Heb “and Pharaoh sent and called,” indicating a summons to the royal court.

¹¹⁵ tn Heb “and look, from the Nile seven cows were coming up, fat of flesh and attractive of appearance, and they grazed in the reeds.”

¹¹⁶ tn Heb “the dream of Pharaoh is one.”

¹¹⁷ tn Heb “declared.”

¹¹⁸ tn The active participle here indicates what is imminent.

¹¹⁹ tn Heb “and buy for us from there.” The word “grain,” the direct object of “buy,” has been supplied for clarity, and the words “from there” have been omitted in the translation for stylistic reasons.

¹²⁰ tn Following the imperatives, the prefixed verbal form with prefixed vav expresses purpose of result.

¹²¹ tn The imperfect tense continues the nuance of the verb before it.

¹²² sn You are spies. Joseph wanted to see how his brothers would react if they were accused of spying.

¹²³ tn Heb “to see the nakedness of the land you have come.”

¹²⁴ tn The imperfect here has an injunctive force.

¹²⁵ tn After the injunctive imperfect, this imperfect with vav indicates purpose or result.

¹²⁶ tn The Niphal form of the verb has the sense of “to be faithful; to be sure; to be reliable.” Joseph will test his brothers to see if their words are true.

¹²⁷ tn Heb “and they did so.”

¹²⁸ tn Heb “they arose and went down to Egypt.” The first verb has an adverbial function and emphasizes that they departed right away.

¹²⁹ tn Heb “the man.”

¹³⁰ tn Heb “concerning peace.”

¹³¹ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the man who was in charge of Joseph’s household) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹³² tn The construction uses a perfect verbal form with the vav consecutive to introduce the conditional clause and then another perfect verbal form with a vav consecutive to complete the sentence: “if you take…then you will bring down.”

¹³³ sn The expression bring down my gray hair is figurative, using a part for the whole – they would put Jacob in the grave. But the gray head signifies a long life of worry and trouble. See Gen 42:38.

¹³⁴ tn Heb “evil/calamity.” The term is different than the one used in the otherwise identical statement recorded in v. 31 (see also 42:38).

¹³⁵ tn Heb “to Sheol,” the dwelling place of the dead.

¹³⁶ tn Heb “do not be stirred up in the way.” The verb means “stir up.” Some understand the Hebrew verb רָגָז (ragaz, “to stir up”) as a reference to quarreling (see Prov 29:9, where it has this connotation), but in Exod 15:14 and other passages it means “to fear.” This might refer to a fear of robbers, but more likely it is an assuring word that they need not be fearful about returning to Egypt. They might have thought that once Jacob was in Egypt, Joseph would take his revenge on them.

¹³⁷ tn The word “food” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

¹³⁸ tn On the use of the preposition here see BDB 90 s.v. בְּ.

¹³⁹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁴⁰ tn Heb “swear on oath to me.” The words “that you will do so” have been supplied in the translation for clarity.

¹⁴¹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁴² tn Heb “swore on oath to him.”

¹⁴³ 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.

¹⁴⁴ 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).

¹⁴⁵ tn The pronouns translated “you,” “you,” and “your” in this verse are plural in the Hebrew text.

¹⁴⁶ tn The Hebrew noun פַּחַז (pakhaz) only occurs here in the OT. A related verb occurs twice in the prophets (Jer 23:32; Zeph 3:4) for false prophets inventing their messages, and once in Judges for unscrupulous men bribed to murder (Judg 9:4). It would describe Reuben as being “frothy, boiling, turbulent” as water. The LXX has “run riot,” the Vulgate has “poured out,” and Tg. Onq. has “you followed your own direction.” It is a reference to Reuben’s misconduct in Gen 35, but the simile and the rare word invite some speculation. H. Pehlke suggests “destructive like water,” for Reuben acted with pride and presumption; see his “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Genesis 49:1-28” (Th.D. dissertation, Dallas Theological Seminary, 1985).

¹⁴⁷ tn Heb “Do not excel!” The Hiphil of the verb יָתַר (yatar) has this meaning only here. The negated jussive is rhetorical here. Rather than being a command, it anticipates what will transpire. The prophecy says that because of the character of the ancestor, the tribe of Reuben would not have the character to lead (see 1 Chr 5:1).

¹⁴⁸ sn This is a euphemism for having sexual intercourse with Jacob’s wives (see Gen 35:22).

¹⁴⁹ tn The last verb is third masculine singular, as if for the first time Jacob told the brothers, or let them know that he knew. For a discussion of this passage see S. Gevirtz, “The Reprimand of Reuben,” JNES 30 (1971): 87-98.

¹⁵⁰ tn The Hebrew text adds “and he said to them,” which is not included in the translation because it is redundant in English.

¹⁵¹ tn Heb “I am about to be gathered” The participle is used here to describe what is imminent.

¹⁵² tn Heb “spoke to their heart.”