¹ tn The Hebrew term יֶלֶד (yeled) probably refers to a youthful warrior here, not a child.

² tn The verb וַהֲקִמֹתִי (vahaqimoti) is a perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive and should be translated with the English present tense, just as the participle at the beginning of the speech was (v. 9). Another option is to translate both forms with the English future tense (“I will confirm”).

³ tn Heb “all flesh.”

⁴ tn Heb “cut off.”

⁵ tn Heb “and all flesh will not be cut off again by the waters of the flood.”

⁶ tn Heb “which [is] between me and between you.”

⁷ tn Heb “all flesh.”

⁸ tn Heb “to destroy.”

⁹ tn Heb “all flesh.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “look.” The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) introduces the foundational clause for the imperative to follow.

¹¹ tn Heb “enter to.” The expression is a euphemism for sexual relations (also in v. 4).

sn The Hebrew expression translated have sexual relations with does not convey the intimacy of other expressions, such as “so and so knew his wife.” Sarai simply sees this as the social custom of having a child through a surrogate. For further discussion see C. F. Fensham, “The Son of a Handmaid in Northwest Semitic,” VT 19 (1969): 312-21.

¹² tn Heb “perhaps I will be built from her.” Sarai hopes to have a family established through this surrogate mother.

¹³ tn Heb “listened to the voice of,” which is an idiom meaning “obeyed.”

sn Abram did what Sarai told him. This expression was first used in Gen 3:17 of Adam’s obeying his wife. In both cases the text highlights weak faith and how it jeopardized the plan of God.

¹⁴ tn The verb קוּם (qum, “to arise, to stand up”) in the Hiphil verbal stem means “to confirm, to give effect to, to carry out” (i.e., a covenant or oath; see BDB 878-79 s.v. קוּם).

¹⁵ tn Or “as an eternal.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “to be to you for God and to your descendants after you.”

¹⁷ tn The emphatic construction employs the Niphal imperfect tense (collective singular) and the Niphal infinitive.

¹⁸ tn Heb “my covenant.” Here in v. 13 the Hebrew word בְּרִית (bÿrit) refers to the outward, visible sign, or reminder, of the covenant. For the range of meaning of the term, see the note on the word “requirement” in v. 9.

¹⁹ tn Or “an eternal.”

²⁰ tn The disjunctive clause calls attention to the “uncircumcised male” and what will happen to him.

²¹ tn Heb “that person will be cut off.” The words “that person” have not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

sn The meaning of “cut off” has been discussed at great length. An entire tractate in the Mishnah is devoted to this subject (tractate Keritot). Being ostracized from the community is involved at the least, but it is not certain whether this refers to the death penalty.

²² tn Heb “he has broken my covenant.” The noun בְּרִית (bÿrit) here refers to the obligation required by God in conjunction with the covenantal agreement. For the range of meaning of the term, see the note on the word “requirement” in v. 9.

²³ tn Heb “will call his name Isaac.” The name means “he laughs,” or perhaps “may he laugh” (see the note on the word “laughed” in v. 17).

²⁴ tn Or “as an eternal.”

²⁵ tn The second person pronominal suffixes are singular in this verse (note “your eyes,” “you have made great,” and “you have acted”). Verse 18a seems to indicate that Lot is addressing the angels, but the use of the singular and the appearance of the divine title “Lord” (אֲדֹנָי, ’adonay) in v. 18b suggests he is speaking to God.

²⁶ tn Heb “in your eyes.”

²⁷ tn Heb “you made great your kindness.”

²⁸ sn The Hebrew word חֶסֶד (khesed) can refer to “faithful love” or to “kindness,” depending on the context. The precise nuance here is uncertain.

²⁹ tn The infinitive construct explains how God has shown Lot kindness.

³⁰ tn Heb “lest.”

³¹ tn The Hebrew verb דָּבַק (davaq) normally means “to stick to, to cleave, to join.” Lot is afraid he cannot outrun the coming calamity.

³² tn The perfect verb form with vav consecutive carries the nuance of the imperfect verbal form before it.

³³ tn Heb “drive out.” The language may seem severe, but Sarah’s maternal instincts sensed a real danger in that Ishmael was not treating Isaac with the proper respect.

³⁴ tn Heb “give.”

³⁵ tn Heb “silver.”

³⁶ tn After the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction expresses purpose or result.

³⁷ tn Heb “ to go after you.”

³⁸ sn You will be free. If the prospective bride was not willing to accompany the servant back to Canaan, the servant would be released from his oath to Abraham.

³⁹ tn Heb “great.” In this context the statement refers primarily to Abraham’s material wealth, although reputation and influence are not excluded.

⁴⁰ tn Heb “and he.” The referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴¹ tn Heb “my oath” (twice in this verse). From the Hebrew perspective the oath belonged to the person to whom it was sworn (Abraham), although in contemporary English an oath is typically viewed as belonging to the person who swears it (the servant).

⁴² tn Heb “As for me, before I finished speaking to my heart.” The adverb טֶרֶם (terem) indicates the verb is a preterite; the infinitive that follows is the direct object.

⁴³ tn Heb “Look, Rebekah was coming out.” As in 24:15, the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) is used here for dramatic effect.

⁴⁴ tn Heb “And they ate and drank, he and the men who [were] with him and they spent the night.”

⁴⁵ tn Heb “Send me away to my master.”

⁴⁶ tn Heb “and she said to.”

⁴⁷ tn Heb “the servant.” The word “Abraham’s” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

⁴⁸ tn Heb “and the servant said.” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁴⁹ tn Heb “Surely, look!” See N. H. Snaith, “The meaning of Hebrew ‘ak,” VT 14 (1964): 221-25.

⁵⁰ tn Heb “Because I said, ‘Lest I die on account of her.’” Since the verb “said” probably means “said to myself” (i.e., “thought”) here, the direct discourse in the Hebrew statement has been converted to indirect discourse in the translation. In addition the simple prepositional phrase “on account of her” has been clarified in the translation as “to get her” (cf. v. 7).

⁵¹ tn The clause begins with the temporal indicator (“and it happened”), making it subordinate to the main clause that follows later in the sentence.

⁵² tn Heb “and his eyes were weak from seeing.”

⁵³ tn Heb “greater” (in terms of age).

⁵⁴ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Esau) is specified in the translation for clarity.

⁵⁵ tn Heb “get up and sit.” This may mean simply “sit up,” or it may indicate that he was to get up from his couch and sit at a table.

⁵⁶ tn Heb “so that your soul may bless me.” These words, though not reported by Rebekah to Jacob (see v. 7) accurately reflect what Isaac actually said to Esau (see v. 4). Perhaps Jacob knew more than Rebekah realized, but it is more likely that this was an idiom for sincere blessing with which Jacob was familiar. At any rate, his use of the precise wording was a nice, convincing touch.

⁵⁷ tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁵⁸ tn Heb “Bring near to me and I will eat of the wild game, my son.” Following the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.

⁵⁹ tn Heb “so that my soul may bless you.” The presence of נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”) as subject emphasizes Isaac’s heartfelt desire to do this. The conjunction indicates that the ritual meal must be first eaten before the formal blessing may be given.

⁶⁰ tn Heb “and he brought”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁶¹ tn Heb “and he drank”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁶² tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁶³ tn Heb “and he smelled the smell”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁶⁴ tn Heb “see.”

⁶⁵ tn Heb “and he said to his father”; the referent of “he” (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity, while the words “his father” have been replaced by the pronoun “him” for stylistic reasons.

⁶⁶ tn Or “arise” (i.e., sit up).

⁶⁷ tn Heb “so that your soul may bless me.”

⁶⁸ tn Heb “will be joined to me.”

⁶⁹ sn The name Levi (לֵוִי, levi), the precise meaning of which is debated, was appropriate because it sounds like the verb לָוָה (lavah, “to join”), used in the statement recorded earlier in the verse.

⁷⁰ tn Or “for.”

⁷¹ tn Heb “before me.”

⁷² tn Heb “and it has broken out with respect to abundance.”

⁷³ tn Heb “at my foot.”

⁷⁴ tn Heb “How long [until] I do, also I, for my house?”

⁷⁵ tn Heb “pass through.”

⁷⁶ tn Or “every black lamb”; Heb “and every dark sheep among the lambs.”

⁷⁷ tn Heb “and the spotted and speckled among the goats.”

⁷⁸ tn Heb “and it will be my wage.” The referent collective singular pronoun (“it) has been specified as “these animals” in the translation for clarity.

⁷⁹ tn Heb “the loving deeds and faithfulness” (see 24:27, 49).

⁸⁰ tn Heb “you have done with.”

⁸¹ tn Heb “for with my staff.” The Hebrew word מַקֵל (maqel), traditionally translated “staff,” has been rendered as “walking stick” because a “staff” in contemporary English refers typically to the support personnel in an organization.

⁸² tn Heb “this Jordan.”

⁸³ tn The imperative has the force of a prayer here, not a command.

⁸⁴ tn The “hand” here is a metonymy for “power.”

⁸⁵ tn Heb “from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau.”

⁸⁶ tn Heb “for I am afraid of him, lest he come.”

⁸⁷ sn Heb “me, [the] mother upon [the] sons.” The first person pronoun “me” probably means here “me and mine,” as the following clause suggests.

⁸⁸ tn Heb “the first”; this has been specified as “the servant leading the first herd” in the translation for clarity.

⁸⁹ tn Heb “to whom are you?”

⁹⁰ tn Heb “and to whom are these before you?”

⁹¹ tn Heb “blessing.” It is as if Jacob is trying to repay what he stole from his brother twenty years earlier.

⁹² tn Or “gracious,” but in the specific sense of prosperity.

⁹³ tn Heb “all.”

⁹⁴ tn Heb “and he urged him and he took.” The referent of the first pronoun in the sequence (“he”) has been specified as “Jacob” in the translation for clarity.

⁹⁵ tn Heb “Make very great upon me the bride price and gift.” The imperatives are used in a rhetorical manner. Shechem’s point is that he will pay the price, no matter how expensive it might be.

⁹⁶ tn The cohortative expresses Shechem’s resolve to have Dinah as his wife.

⁹⁷ tn Heb “say.”

⁹⁸ tn Heb “let us arise and let us go up.” The first cohortative gives the statement a sense of urgency.

⁹⁹ tn The cohortative with the prefixed conjunction here indicates purpose or consequence.

¹⁰⁰ tn Heb “day of distress.” See Ps 20:1 which utilizes similar language.

¹⁰¹ tn Heb “in the way in which I went.” Jacob alludes here to God’s promise to be with him (see Gen 28:20).

¹⁰² tn Heb “arose, stood”; which here suggests that they stood by him in his time of grief.

¹⁰³ tn Heb “and he said, ‘Indeed I will go down to my son mourning to Sheol.’” Sheol was viewed as the place where departed spirits went after death.

¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “his”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁰⁵ tn Traditionally “more righteous”; cf. NCV, NRSV, NLT “more in the right.”

sn She is more upright than I. Judah had been irresponsible and unfaithful to his duty to see that the family line continued through the levirate marriage of his son Shelah. Tamar fought for her right to be the mother of Judah’s line. When she was not given Shelah and Judah’s wife died, she took action on her own to ensure that the line did not die out. Though deceptive, it was a desperate and courageous act. For Tamar it was within her rights; she did nothing that the law did not entitle her to do. But for Judah it was wrong because he thought he was going to a prostitute. See also Susan Niditch, “The Wronged Woman Righted: An Analysis of Genesis 38,” HTR 72 (1979): 143-48.

¹⁰⁶ tn Heb “and he did not add again to know her.” Here “know” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

¹⁰⁷ tn The verb has no expressed subject, and so it could be treated as a passive (“a Hebrew man was brought in”; cf. NIV). But it is clear from the context that her husband brought Joseph into the household, so Potiphar is the apparent referent here. Thus the translation supplies “my husband” as the referent of the unspecified pronominal subject of the verb (cf. NEB, NRSV).

¹⁰⁸ sn A Hebrew man. Potiphar’s wife raises the ethnic issue when talking to her servants about what their boss had done.

¹⁰⁹ tn Heb “to make fun of us.” The verb translated “to humiliate us” here means to hold something up for ridicule, or to toy with something harmfully. Attempted rape would be such an activity, for it would hold the victim in contempt.

¹¹⁰ tn Heb “he came to me to lie with me.” Here the expression “lie with” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

¹¹¹ tn Heb “and I cried out with a loud voice.”

¹¹² tn The pronoun before the first person verbal form draws attention to the subject and emphasizes Judah’s willingness to be personally responsible for the boy.

¹¹³ sn I will bear the blame before you all my life. It is not clear how this would work out if Benjamin did not come back. But Judah is offering his life for Benjamin’s if Benjamin does not return.

¹¹⁴ tn Heb “El Shaddai.” See the extended note on the phrase “sovereign God” in Gen 17:1.

¹¹⁵ tn Heb “release to you.” After the jussive this perfect verbal form with prefixed vav (ו) probably indicates logical consequence, as well as temporal sequence.

¹¹⁶ sn Several Jewish commentators suggest that the expression your other brother refers to Joseph. This would mean that Jacob prophesied unwittingly. However, it is much more likely that Simeon is the referent of the phrase “your other brother” (see Gen 42:24).

¹¹⁷ tn Heb “if I am bereaved I am bereaved.” With this fatalistic sounding statement Jacob resolves himself to the possibility of losing both Benjamin and Simeon.

¹¹⁸ tn Heb “and he lifted his eyes.” The referent of “he” (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹¹⁹ sn Joseph’s language here becomes warmer and more personal, culminating in calling Benjamin my son.

¹²⁰ tn The imperfect verbal form is used here to express Joseph’s instructions.

¹²¹ tn Heb “and he did according to the word of Joseph which he spoke.”

¹²² tn Heb “Please my lord, let your servant speak a word into the ears of my lord.”

¹²³ tn Heb “and let not your anger burn against your servant.”

¹²⁴ sn You are just like Pharaoh. Judah’s speech begins with the fear and trembling of one who stands condemned. Joseph has as much power as Pharaoh, either to condemn or to pardon. Judah will make his appeal, wording his speech in such a way as to appeal to Joseph’s compassion for the father, whom he mentions no less than fourteen times in the speech.

¹²⁵ tn Heb “his life is bound up in his life.”

¹²⁶ tn Heb “all the ones standing beside him.”

¹²⁷ tn Heb “stood.”

¹²⁸ tn Heb “hurry and go up.”