Genesis 3:3

3:3 but concerning the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the orchard God said, ‘You must not eat from it, and you must not touch it, ¹  or else you will die.’” ² 

Genesis 11:4

11:4 Then they said, “Come, let’s build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens ³  so that ⁴  we may make a name for ourselves. Otherwise ⁵  we will be scattered ⁶  across the face of the entire earth.”

Genesis 31:24

31:24 But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and warned him, ⁷  “Be careful ⁸  that you neither bless nor curse Jacob.” ⁹ 

Genesis 31:31

31:31 “I left secretly because I was afraid!” ¹⁰  Jacob replied to Laban. “I thought ¹¹  you might take your daughters away from me by force. ¹² 

Genesis 32:11

32:11 Rescue me, ¹³  I pray, from the hand ¹⁴  of my brother Esau, ¹⁵  for I am afraid he will come ¹⁶  and attack me, as well as the mothers with their children. ¹⁷ 

Genesis 38:23

38:23 Judah said, “Let her keep the things ¹⁸  for herself. Otherwise we will appear to be dishonest. ¹⁹  I did indeed send this young goat, but you couldn’t find her.”

Genesis 42:4

42:4 But Jacob did not send Joseph’s brother Benjamin with his brothers, ²⁰  for he said, ²¹  “What if some accident ²²  happens ²³  to him?”

Genesis 44:34

44:34 For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I couldn’t bear to see ²⁴  my father’s pain.” ²⁵ 

Genesis 45:11

45:11 I will provide you with food ²⁶  there because there will be five more years of famine. Otherwise you would become poor – you, your household, and everyone who belongs to you.”’

¹ sn And you must not touch it. The woman adds to God’s prohibition, making it say more than God expressed. G. von Rad observes that it is as though she wanted to set a law for herself by means of this exaggeration (Genesis [OTL], 86).

² tn The Hebrew construction is פֶּן (pen) with the imperfect tense, which conveys a negative purpose: “lest you die” = “in order that you not die.” By stating the warning in this way, the woman omits the emphatic infinitive used by God (“you shall surely die,” see 2:17).

³ tn A translation of “heavens” for שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) fits this context because the Babylonian ziggurats had temples at the top, suggesting they reached to the heavens, the dwelling place of the gods.

⁴ tn The form וְנַעֲשֶׂה (vÿna’aseh, from the verb עשׂה, “do, make”) could be either the imperfect or the cohortative with a vav (ו) conjunction (“and let us make…”). Coming after the previous cohortative, this form expresses purpose.

⁵ tn The Hebrew particle פֶּן (pen) expresses a negative purpose; it means “that we be not scattered.”

⁶ sn The Hebrew verb פָּוָץ (pavats, translated “scatter”) is a key term in this passage. The focal point of the account is the dispersion (“scattering”) of the nations rather than the Tower of Babel. But the passage also forms a polemic against Babylon, the pride of the east and a cosmopolitan center with a huge ziggurat. To the Hebrews it was a monument to the judgment of God on pride.

⁵ tn Heb “said to him.”

⁶ tn Heb “watch yourself,” which is a warning to be on guard against doing something that is inappropriate.

⁷ tn Heb “lest you speak with Jacob from good to evil.” The precise meaning of the expression, which occurs only here and in v. 29, is uncertain. Since Laban proceeded to speak to Jacob at length, it cannot mean to maintain silence. Nor does it seem to be a prohibition against criticism (see vv. 26-30). Most likely it refers to a formal pronouncement, whether it be a blessing or a curse. Laban was to avoid saying anything to Jacob that would be intended to enhance him or to harm him.

⁷ tn Heb “and Jacob answered and said to Laban, ‘Because I was afraid.’” This statement is a not a response to the question about Laban’s household gods that immediately precedes, but to the earlier question about Jacob’s motivation for leaving so quickly and secretly (see v. 27). For this reason the words “I left secretly” are supplied in the translation to indicate the connection to Laban’s earlier question in v. 27. Additionally the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse have been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁸ tn Heb “for I said.”

⁹ tn Heb “lest you steal your daughters from with me.”

⁹ tn The imperative has the force of a prayer here, not a command.

¹⁰ tn The “hand” here is a metonymy for “power.”

¹¹ tn Heb “from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau.”

¹² tn Heb “for I am afraid of him, lest he come.”

¹³ sn Heb “me, [the] mother upon [the] sons.” The first person pronoun “me” probably means here “me and mine,” as the following clause suggests.

¹¹ tn The words “the things” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

¹² tn Heb “we will become contemptible.” The Hebrew word בּוּז (buz) describes the contempt that a respectable person would have for someone who is worthless, foolish, or disreputable.

¹³ tn Heb “But Benjamin, the brother of Joseph, Jacob did not send with his brothers.” The disjunctive clause highlights the contrast between Benjamin and the other ten.

¹⁴ tn The Hebrew verb אָמַר (’amar, “to say”) could also be translated “thought” (i.e., “he said to himself”) here, giving Jacob’s reasoning rather than spoken words.

¹⁵ tn The Hebrew noun אָסוֹן (’ason) is a rare word meaning “accident, harm.” Apart from its use in these passages it occurs in Exodus 21:22-23 of an accident to a pregnant woman. The term is a rather general one, but Jacob was no doubt thinking of his loss of Joseph.

¹⁶ tn Heb “encounters.”

¹⁵ tn The Hebrew text has “lest I see,” which expresses a negative purpose – “I cannot go up lest I see.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “the calamity which would find my father.”

¹⁷ tn The verb כּוּל (kul) in the Pilpel stem means “to nourish, to support, to sustain.” As in 1 Kgs 20:27, it here means “to supply with food.”