² tn Heb “to shepherd Jacob, his people, and Israel, his inheritance.”

¹ tn Heb “the anointed one of the God of Jacob.”

³ tn Or “visible to you” (B. Jacob, Exodus, 366).

¹ tn Heb “and look, your servant Jacob [is] behind us.”

¹ tn Heb “and Jacob said when he saw them.”

² tn Heb “and she bore for Jacob a son.”

¹ tn Heb “and the anger of Jacob was hot.”

¹ sn The tribes descended from Jacob’s maidservants are placed farthest from the sanctuary. See Gen 30.

³ sn This is a euphemism for having sexual intercourse with Jacob’s concubine Bilhah (see Gen 35:22).

² sn What is your name? The question is rhetorical, since the Lord obviously knew Jacob’s identity. But since the Lord is going to change Jacob’s name, this question is designed to focus Jacob’s attention on all that his name had come to signify.

¹ tn Heb “came upon the slain.” Because of this statement the preceding phrase “Jacob’s sons” is frequently taken to mean the other sons of Jacob besides Simeon and Levi, but the text does not clearly affirm this.

¹ sn Reflecting Jacob’s perspective at the beginning of the encounter, the narrator calls the opponent simply “a man.” Not until later in the struggle does Jacob realize his true identity.

² tn Heb “for he said.” The referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The Hebrew verb אָמַר (ʾamar), traditionally represents Jacob’s thought or reasoning, and is therefore translated “thought.”

² sn Sychar was somewhere in the vicinity of Shechem, possibly the village of Askar, 1.5 km northeast of Jacob’s well.

¹ tn Heb “fell on.” The expression describes Joseph’s unrestrained sorrow over Jacob’s death; he probably threw himself across the body and embraced his father.

¹ sn The question What is this dream that you had? expresses Jacob’s dismay at what he perceives to be Joseph’s audacity.

³ tn Heb “daughter.” Jacob’s sons call Dinah their daughter, even though she was their sister (see v. 8). This has been translated as “sister” for clarity.

¹ tn In the protasis (“if” section) of this conditional clause, the imperfect verbal form has a customary nuance—whatever he would say worked to Jacob’s benefit.

¹ tn The perfect verbal form is translated as a past perfect because Rachel’s giving birth to Joseph preceded Jacob’s conversation with Laban.

¹ tn Heb “and she bore a sixth son for Jacob,” i.e., this was the sixth son that Leah had given Jacob.