Discovery BoxGenesis 22:3 
Context22:3 Early in the morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. 1 He took two of his young servants with him, along with his son Isaac. When he had cut the wood for the burnt offering, he started out 2 for the place God had spoken to him about.
Genesis 34:7
Context34:7 Now Jacob’s sons had come in from the field when they heard the news. 3 They 4 were offended 5 and very angry because Shechem 6 had disgraced Israel 7 by sexually assaulting 8 Jacob’s daughter, a crime that should not be committed. 9
Genesis 38:14
Context38:14 So she removed her widow’s clothes and covered herself with a veil. She wrapped herself and sat at the entrance to Enaim which is on the way to Timnah. (She did this because 10 she saw that she had not been given to Shelah as a wife, even though he had now grown up.) 11
1 tn Heb “Abraham rose up early in the morning and saddled his donkey.”
2 tn Heb “he arose and he went.”
3 tn Heb “when they heard.” The words “the news” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
4 tn Heb “the men.” This sounds as if a new group has been introduced into the narrative, so it has been translated as “they” to indicate that it refers to Jacob’s sons, mentioned in the first part of the verse.
5 tn The Hebrew verb עָצַב (’atsav) can carry one of three semantic nuances depending on the context: (1) “to be injured” (Ps 56:5; Eccl 10:9; 1 Chr 4:10); (2) “to experience emotional pain; to be depressed emotionally; to be worried” (2 Sam 19:2; Isa 54:6; Neh 8:10-11); (3) “to be embarrassed; to be insulted; to be offended” (to the point of anger at another or oneself; Gen 6:6; 45:5; 1 Sam 20:3, 34; 1 Kgs 1:6; Isa 63:10; Ps 78:40). This third category develops from the second by metonymy. In certain contexts emotional pain leads to embarrassment and/or anger. In this last use the subject sometimes directs his anger against the source of grief (see especially Gen 6:6). The third category fits best in Gen 34:7 because Jacob’s sons were not merely wounded emotionally. On the contrary, Shechem’s action prompted them to strike out in judgment against the source of their distress.
6 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Shechem) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
7 tn Heb “a disgraceful thing he did against Israel.”
8 tn Heb “by lying with the daughter of Jacob.” The infinitive here explains the preceding verb, indicating exactly how he had disgraced Jacob. The expression “to lie with” is a euphemism for sexual relations, or in this case, sexual assault.
9 tn Heb “and so it should not be done.” The negated imperfect has an obligatory nuance here, but there is also a generalizing tone. The narrator emphasizes that this particular type of crime (sexual assault) is especially reprehensible.
10 tn The Hebrew text simply has “because,” connecting this sentence to what precedes. For stylistic reasons the words “she did this” are supplied in the translation and a new sentence begun.
11 tn Heb “she saw that Shelah had grown up, but she was not given to him as a wife.”
