Kejadian 11:6

11:6 And the Lord said, “If as one people all sharing a common language ¹  they have begun to do this, then ²  nothing they plan to do will be beyond them. ³ 

Kejadian 2:24

2:24 That is why ⁴  a man leaves ⁵  his father and mother and unites with ⁶  his wife, and they become a new family. ⁷ 

Kejadian 8:5

8:5 The waters kept on receding ⁸  until the tenth month. On the first day of the tenth month, the tops of the mountains became visible. ⁹ 

Kejadian 11:7

11:7 Come, let’s go down and confuse ¹⁰  their language so they won’t be able to understand each other.” ¹¹ 

Kejadian 8:13

8:13 In Noah’s six hundred and first year, ¹²  in the first day of the first month, the waters had dried up from the earth, and Noah removed the covering from the ark and saw that ¹³  the surface of the ground was dry.

Kejadian 4:19

4:19 Lamech took two wives for himself; the name of the first was Adah, and the name of the second was Zillah.

Kejadian 42:11

42:11 We are all the sons of one man; we are honest men! Your servants are not spies.”

Kejadian 47:21

47:21 Joseph ¹⁴  made all the people slaves ¹⁵  from one end of Egypt’s border to the other end of it.

Kejadian 32:8

32:8 “If Esau attacks one camp,” ¹⁶  he thought, ¹⁷  “then the other camp will be able to escape.” ¹⁸ 

Kejadian 1:9

1:9 God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place ¹⁹  and let dry ground appear.” ²⁰  It was so.

Kejadian 27:38

27:38 Esau said to his father, “Do you have only that one blessing, my father? Bless me too!” ²¹  Then Esau wept loudly. ²² 

Kejadian 41:5

41:5 Then he fell asleep again and had a second dream: There were seven heads of grain growing ²³  on one stalk, healthy ²⁴  and good.

Kejadian 41:22

41:22 I also saw in my dream ²⁵  seven heads of grain growing on one stalk, full and good.

Kejadian 41:25

41:25 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “Both dreams of Pharaoh have the same meaning. ²⁶  God has revealed ²⁷  to Pharaoh what he is about to do. ²⁸ 

Kejadian 34:22

34:22 Only on this one condition will these men consent to live with us and become one people: They demand ²⁹  that every male among us be circumcised just as they are circumcised.

Kejadian 40:5

40:5 Both of them, the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison, had a dream ³⁰  the same night. ³¹  Each man’s dream had its own meaning. ³² 

Kejadian 6:19

6:19 You must bring into the ark two of every kind of living creature from all flesh, ³³  male and female, to keep them alive ³⁴  with you.

Kejadian 25:23

25:23 and the Lord said to her,

“Two nations ³⁵  are in your womb,

and two peoples will be separated from within you.

One people will be stronger than the other,

and the older will serve the younger.”

Kejadian 2:21

2:21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep, ³⁶  and while he was asleep, ³⁷  he took part of the man’s side ³⁸  and closed up the place with flesh. ³⁹ 

Kejadian 41:26

41:26 The seven good cows represent seven years, and the seven good heads of grain represent seven years. Both dreams have the same meaning. ⁴⁰ 

Kejadian 42:13

42:13 They replied, “Your servants are from a family of twelve brothers. ⁴¹  We are the sons of one man in the land of Canaan. The youngest is with our father at this time, ⁴²  and one is no longer alive.” ⁴³ 

Kejadian 42:32

42:32 We are from a family of twelve brothers; we are the sons of one father. ⁴⁴  One is no longer alive, ⁴⁵  and the youngest is with our father at this time ⁴⁶  in the land of Canaan.’

Kejadian 34:16

34:16 Then we will give ⁴⁷  you our daughters to marry, ⁴⁸  and we will take your daughters as wives for ourselves, and we will live among you and become one people.

Kejadian 27:45

27:45 Stay there ⁴⁹  until your brother’s anger against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him. Then I’ll send someone to bring you back from there. ⁵⁰  Why should I lose both of you in one day?” ⁵¹ 

Kejadian 33:13

33:13 But Jacob ⁵²  said to him, “My lord knows that the children are young, ⁵³  and that I have to look after the sheep and cattle that are nursing their young. ⁵⁴  If they are driven too hard for even a single day, all the animals will die.

Kejadian 11:3

11:3 Then they said to one another, ⁵⁵  “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” ⁵⁶  (They had brick instead of stone and tar ⁵⁷  instead of mortar.) ⁵⁸ 

Kejadian 3:22

3:22 And the Lord God said, “Now ⁵⁹  that the man has become like one of us, ⁶⁰  knowing ⁶¹  good and evil, he must not be allowed ⁶²  to stretch out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.”

Kejadian 22:2

22:2 God ⁶³  said, “Take your son – your only son, whom you love, Isaac ⁶⁴  – and go to the land of Moriah! ⁶⁵  Offer him up there as a burnt offering ⁶⁶  on one of the mountains which I will indicate to ⁶⁷  you.”

Kejadian 42:21

42:21 They said to one other, ⁶⁸  “Surely we’re being punished ⁶⁹  because of our brother, because we saw how distressed he was ⁷⁰  when he cried to us for mercy, but we refused to listen. That is why this distress ⁷¹  has come on us!”

Kejadian 37:19

37:19 They said to one another, “Here comes this master of dreams! ⁷² 

Kejadian 2:25

2:25 The man and his wife were both naked, ⁷³  but they were not ashamed. ⁷⁴ 

Kejadian 10:25

10:25 Two sons were born to Eber: One was named Peleg because in his days the earth was divided, ⁷⁵  and his brother’s name was Joktan.

Kejadian 13:11

13:11 Lot chose for himself the whole region of the Jordan and traveled ⁷⁶  toward the east.

So the relatives separated from each other. ⁷⁷ 

Kejadian 26:31

26:31 Early in the morning the men made a treaty with each other. ⁷⁸  Isaac sent them off; they separated on good terms. ⁷⁹ 

Kejadian 11:1

The Dispersion of the Nations at Babel

11:1 The whole earth ⁸⁰  had a common language and a common vocabulary. ⁸¹ 

Kejadian 4:1

The Story of Cain and Abel

4:1 Now ⁸²  the man had marital relations with ⁸³  his wife Eve, and she became pregnant ⁸⁴  and gave birth to Cain. Then she said, “I have created ⁸⁵  a man just as the Lord did!” ⁸⁶ 

Kejadian 4:17

The Beginning of Civilization

4:17 Cain had marital relations ⁸⁷  with his wife, and she became pregnant ⁸⁸  and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was building a city, and he named the city after ⁸⁹  his son Enoch.

Kejadian 25:8

25:8 Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age, an old man who had lived a full life. ⁹⁰  He joined his ancestors. ⁹¹ 

Kejadian 25:17

25:17 Ishmael lived a total of ⁹²  137 years. He breathed his last and died; then he joined his ancestors. ⁹³ 

Kejadian 44:28

44:28 The first disappeared ⁹⁴  and I said, “He has surely been torn to pieces.” I have not seen him since.

Kejadian 48:22

48:22 As one who is above your ⁹⁵  brothers, I give to you the mountain slope, ⁹⁶  which I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow.”

Kejadian 49:29

49:29 Then he instructed them, ⁹⁷  “I am about to go ⁹⁸  to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite.

Kejadian 49:16

49:16 Dan ⁹⁹  will judge ¹⁰⁰  his people

as one of the tribes of Israel.

Kejadian 4:25

4:25 And Adam had marital relations ¹⁰¹  with his wife again, and she gave birth to a son. She named him Seth, saying, “God has given ¹⁰²  me another child ¹⁰³  in place of Abel because Cain killed him.”

Kejadian 18:32

18:32 Finally Abraham ¹⁰⁴  said, “May the Lord not be angry so that I may speak just once more. What if ten are found there?” He replied, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten.”

Kejadian 42:33

42:33 “Then the man, the lord of the land, said to us, ‘This is how I will find out if you are honest men. Leave one of your brothers with me, and take grain ¹⁰⁵  for your hungry households and go.

Kejadian 41:11

41:11 We each had a dream one night; each of us had a dream with its own meaning. ¹⁰⁶ 

Kejadian 9:20

9:20 Noah, a man of the soil, ¹⁰⁷  began to plant a vineyard. ¹⁰⁸ 

Kejadian 12:9

12:9 Abram continually journeyed by stages ¹⁰⁹  down to the Negev. ¹¹⁰ 

Kejadian 7:2

7:2 You must take with you seven ¹¹¹  of every kind of clean animal, ¹¹²  the male and its mate, ¹¹³  two of every kind of unclean animal, the male and its mate,

Kejadian 17:13

17:13 They must indeed be circumcised, ¹¹⁴  whether born in your house or bought with money. The sign of my covenant ¹¹⁵  will be visible in your flesh as a permanent ¹¹⁶  reminder.

Kejadian 32:16

32:16 He entrusted them to ¹¹⁷  his servants, who divided them into herds. ¹¹⁸  He told his servants, “Pass over before me, and keep some distance between one herd and the next.”

Kejadian 35:11

35:11 Then God said to him, “I am the sovereign God. ¹¹⁹  Be fruitful and multiply! A nation – even a company of nations – will descend from you; kings will be among your descendants! ¹²⁰ 

Kejadian 37:20

37:20 Come now, let’s kill him, throw him into one of the cisterns, and then say that a wild ¹²¹  animal ate him. Then we’ll see how his dreams turn out!” ¹²² 

Kejadian 1:5

1:5 God called ¹²³  the light “day” and the darkness ¹²⁴  “night.” There was evening, and there was morning, marking the first day. ¹²⁵ 

Kejadian 9:4

9:4 But ¹²⁶  you must not eat meat ¹²⁷  with its life (that is, ¹²⁸  its blood) in it. ¹²⁹ 

Kejadian 20:12

20:12 What’s more, ¹³⁰  she is indeed my sister, my father’s daughter, but not my mother’s daughter. She became my wife.

Kejadian 21:13

21:13 But I will also make the son of the slave wife into a great nation, for he is your descendant too.”

Kejadian 29:14

29:14 Then Laban said to him, “You are indeed my own flesh and blood.” ¹³¹  So Jacob ¹³²  stayed with him for a month. ¹³³ 

Kejadian 30:31

30:31 So Laban asked, ¹³⁴  “What should I give you?” “You don’t need to give me a thing,” ¹³⁵  Jacob replied, ¹³⁶  “but if you agree to this one condition, ¹³⁷  I will continue to care for ¹³⁸  your flocks and protect them:

Kejadian 6:20

6:20 Of the birds after their kinds, and of the cattle after their kinds, and of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every kind will come to you so you can keep them alive. ¹³⁹ 

Kejadian 12:2

12:2 Then I will make you ¹⁴⁰  into a great nation, and I will bless you, ¹⁴¹ 

and I will make your name great, ¹⁴² 

so that you will exemplify divine blessing. ¹⁴³ 

Kejadian 14:20

14:20 Worthy of praise is ¹⁴⁴  the Most High God,

who delivered ¹⁴⁵  your enemies into your hand.”

Abram gave Melchizedek ¹⁴⁶  a tenth of everything.

Kejadian 17:2

17:2 Then I will confirm my covenant ¹⁴⁷  between me and you, and I will give you a multitude of descendants.” ¹⁴⁸ 

Kejadian 28:3

28:3 May the sovereign God ¹⁴⁹  bless you! May he make you fruitful and give you a multitude of descendants! ¹⁵⁰  Then you will become ¹⁵¹  a large nation. ¹⁵² 

Kejadian 31:49

31:49 It was also called Mizpah ¹⁵³  because he said, “May the Lord watch ¹⁵⁴  between us ¹⁵⁵  when we are out of sight of one another. ¹⁵⁶ 

Kejadian 34:15

34:15 We will give you our consent on this one condition: You must become ¹⁵⁷  like us by circumcising ¹⁵⁸  all your males.

Kejadian 45:22

45:22 He gave sets of clothes to each one of them, ¹⁵⁹  but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver and five sets of clothes. ¹⁶⁰ 

Kejadian 49:3

49:3 Reuben, you are my firstborn,

my might and the beginning of my strength,

outstanding in dignity, outstanding in power.

Kejadian 39:9

39:9 There is no one greater in this household than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you because you are his wife. So how could I do ¹⁶¹  such a great evil and sin against God?”

Kejadian 2:20

2:20 So the man named all the animals, the birds of the air, and the living creatures of the field, but for Adam ¹⁶²  no companion who corresponded to him was found. ¹⁶³ 

Kejadian 4:12

4:12 When you try to cultivate ¹⁶⁴  the

ground it will no longer yield ¹⁶⁵  its best ¹⁶⁶  for you. You will be a homeless wanderer ¹⁶⁷  on the earth.”

Kejadian 6:9

The Judgment of the Flood

6:9 This is the account of Noah. ¹⁶⁸ 

Noah was a godly man; he was blameless ¹⁶⁹ 

among his contemporaries. ¹⁷⁰  He ¹⁷¹  walked with ¹⁷²  God.

Kejadian 7:1

7:1 The Lord said to Noah, “Come into the ark, you and all your household, for I consider you godly among this generation. ¹⁷³ 

Kejadian 13:3

13:3 And he journeyed from place to place ¹⁷⁴  from the Negev as far as Bethel. ¹⁷⁵  He returned ¹⁷⁶  to the place where he had pitched his tent ¹⁷⁷  at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai.

Kejadian 15:10

15:10 So Abram ¹⁷⁸  took all these for him and then cut them in two ¹⁷⁹  and placed each half opposite the other, ¹⁸⁰  but he did not cut the birds in half.

Kejadian 19:22

19:22 Run there quickly, ¹⁸¹  for I cannot do anything until you arrive there.” (This incident explains why the town was called Zoar.) ¹⁸² 

Kejadian 19:30

19:30 Lot went up from Zoar with his two daughters and settled in the mountains because he was afraid to live in Zoar. So he lived in a cave with his two daughters.

Kejadian 25:18

25:18 His descendants ¹⁸³  settled from Havilah to Shur, which runs next ¹⁸⁴  to Egypt all the way ¹⁸⁵  to Asshur. ¹⁸⁶  They settled ¹⁸⁷  away from all their relatives. ¹⁸⁸ 

Kejadian 28:22

28:22 Then this stone ¹⁸⁹  that I have set up as a sacred stone will be the house of God, and I will surely ¹⁹⁰  give you back a tenth of everything you give me.” ¹⁹¹ 

Kejadian 38:28-29

38:28 While she was giving birth, one child ¹⁹²  put out his hand, and the midwife took a scarlet thread and tied it on his hand, saying, “This one came out first.” 38:29 But then he drew back his hand, and his brother came out before him. ¹⁹³  She said, “How you have broken out of the womb!” ¹⁹⁴  So he was named Perez. ¹⁹⁵ 

Kejadian 42:18

42:18 On the third day Joseph said to them, “Do as I say ¹⁹⁶  and you will live, ¹⁹⁷  for I fear God. ¹⁹⁸ 

Kejadian 45:7

45:7 God sent me ¹⁹⁹  ahead of you to preserve you ²⁰⁰  on the earth and to save your lives ²⁰¹  by a great deliverance.

Kejadian 47:22

47:22 But he did not purchase the land of the priests because the priests had an allotment from Pharaoh and they ate from their allotment that Pharaoh gave them. That is why they did not sell their land.

Kejadian 47:26

47:26 So Joseph made it a statute, ²⁰²  which is in effect ²⁰³  to this day throughout the land of Egypt: One-fifth belongs to Pharaoh. Only the land of the priests did not become Pharaoh’s.

Kejadian 49:6

49:6 O my soul, do not come into their council,

do not be united to their assembly, my heart, ²⁰⁴ 

for in their anger they have killed men,

and for pleasure they have hamstrung oxen.

Kejadian 3:1

The Temptation and the Fall

3:1 Now ²⁰⁵  the serpent ²⁰⁶  was more shrewd ²⁰⁷ 

than any of the wild animals ²⁰⁸  that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Is it really true that ²⁰⁹  God ²¹⁰  said, ‘You must not eat from any tree of the orchard’?” ²¹¹ 

Kejadian 17:19-20

17:19 God said, “No, Sarah your wife is going to bear you a son, and you will name him Isaac. ²¹²  I will confirm my covenant with him as a perpetual ²¹³  covenant for his descendants after him. 17:20 As for Ishmael, I have heard you. ²¹⁴  I will indeed bless him, make him fruitful, and give him a multitude of descendants. ²¹⁵  He will become the father of twelve princes; ²¹⁶  I will make him into a great nation.

Kejadian 26:29

26:29 so that ²¹⁷  you will not do us any harm, just as we have not harmed ²¹⁸  you, but have always treated you well ²¹⁹  before sending you away ²²⁰  in peace. Now you are blessed by the Lord.” ²²¹ 

Kejadian 47:18

47:18 When that year was over, they came to him the next year and said to him, “We cannot hide from our ²²²  lord that the money is used up and the livestock and the animals belong to our lord. Nothing remains before our lord except our bodies and our land.

[11:6]  ¹ tn Heb “and one lip to all of them.”

[11:6]  ² tn Heb “and now.” The foundational clause beginning with הֵן (hen) expresses the condition, and the second clause the result. It could be rendered “If this…then now.”

[11:6]  ³ tn Heb “all that they purpose to do will not be withheld from them.”

[2:24]  ⁴ tn This statement, introduced by the Hebrew phrase עַל־כֵּן (’al-ken, “therefore” or “that is why”), is an editorial comment, not an extension of the quotation. The statement is describing what typically happens, not what will or should happen. It is saying, “This is why we do things the way we do.” It links a contemporary (with the narrator) practice with the historical event being narrated. The historical event narrated in v. 23 provides the basis for the contemporary practice described in v. 24. That is why the imperfect verb forms are translated with the present tense rather than future.

[2:24]  ⁵ tn The imperfect verb form has a habitual or characteristic nuance. For other examples of עַל־כֵּן (’al-ken, “therefore, that is why”) with the imperfect in a narrative framework, see Gen 10:9; 32:32 (the phrase “to this day” indicates characteristic behavior is in view); Num 21:14, 27; 1 Sam 5:5 (note “to this day”); 19:24 (perhaps the imperfect is customary here, “were saying”); 2 Sam 5:8. The verb translated “leave” (עָזָב, ’azab) normally means “to abandon, to forsake, to leave behind, to discard,” when used with human subject and object (see Josh 22:3; 1 Sam 30:13; Ps 27:10; Prov 2:17; Isa 54:6; 60:15; 62:4; Jer 49:11). Within the context of the ancient Israelite extended family structure, this cannot refer to emotional or geographical separation. The narrator is using hyperbole to emphasize the change in perspective that typically overtakes a young man when his thoughts turn to love and marriage.

[2:24]  ⁶ tn The perfect with vav (ו) consecutive carries the same habitual or characteristic nuance as the preceding imperfect. The verb is traditionally translated “cleaves [to]”; it has the basic idea of “stick with/to” (e.g., it is used of Ruth resolutely staying with her mother-in-law in Ruth 1:14). In this passage it describes the inseparable relationship between the man and the woman in marriage as God intended it.

[2:24]  ⁷ tn Heb “and they become one flesh.” The perfect with vav consecutive carries the same habitual or characteristic nuance as the preceding verbs in the verse. The retention of the word “flesh” (בָּשָׂר, basar) in the translation often leads to improper or incomplete interpretations. The Hebrew word refers to more than just a sexual union. When they unite in marriage, the man and woman bring into being a new family unit (הָיָה + לְ, hayah + lamed preposition means “become”). The phrase “one flesh” occurs only here and must be interpreted in light of v. 23. There the man declares that the woman is bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh. To be one’s “bone and flesh” is to be related by blood to someone. For example, the phrase describes the relationship between Laban and Jacob (Gen 29:14); 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). The expression “one flesh” seems to indicate that they become, as it were, “kin,” at least legally (a new family unit is created) or metaphorically. In this first marriage in human history, the woman was literally formed from the man’s bone and flesh. Even though later marriages do not involve such a divine surgical operation, the first marriage sets the pattern for how later marriages are understood and explains why marriage supersedes the parent-child relationship.

[8:5]  ⁸ tn Heb “the waters were going and lessening.” The perfect verb form הָיָה (hayah) is used as an auxiliary verb with the infinitive absolute חָסוֹר (khasor, “lessening”), while the infinitive absolute הָלוֹךְ (halokh) indicates continuous action.

[8:5]  ⁹ tn Or “could be seen.”

[11:7]  ¹⁰ tn The cohortatives mirror the cohortatives of the people. They build to ascend the heavens; God comes down to destroy their language. God speaks here to his angelic assembly. See the notes on the word “make” in 1:26 and “know” in 3:5, as well as Jub. 10:22-23, where an angel recounts this incident and says “And the Lord our God said to us…. And the Lord went down and we went down with him. And we saw the city and the tower which the sons of men built.” On the chiastic structure of the story, see G. J. Wenham, Genesis (WBC), 1:235.

[11:7]  ¹¹ tn Heb “they will not hear, a man the lip of his neighbor.”

[8:13]  ¹² tn Heb In the six hundred and first year.” Since this refers to the six hundred and first year of Noah’s life, the word “Noah’s” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[8:13]  ¹³ tn Heb “and saw and look.” As in v. 11, the deictic particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) invites readers to enter into the story, as it were, and look at the dry ground with their own eyes.

[47:21]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[47:21]  ¹⁵ tc The MT reads “and the people he removed to the cities,” which does not make a lot of sense in this context. The Samaritan Pentateuch and the LXX read “he enslaved them as slaves.”

[32:8]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “If Esau comes to one camp and attacks it.”

[32:8]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and he said, ‘If Esau comes to one camp and attacks it.” The Hebrew verb אָמַר (’amar) here represents Jacob’s thought or reasoning, and is therefore translated “he thought.” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[32:8]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the surviving camp will be for escape.” The word “escape” is a feminine noun. The term most often refers to refugees from war.

[1:9]  ¹⁹ sn Let the water…be gathered to one place. In the beginning the water covered the whole earth; now the water was to be restricted to an area to form the ocean. The picture is one of the dry land as an island with the sea surrounding it. Again the sovereignty of God is revealed. Whereas the pagans saw the sea as a force to be reckoned with, God controls the boundaries of the sea. And in the judgment at the flood he will blur the boundaries so that chaos returns.

[1:9]  ²⁰ tn When the waters are collected to one place, dry land emerges above the surface of the receding water.

[27:38]  ²¹ tn Heb “Bless me, me also, my father.” The words “my father” have not been repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:38]  ²² tn Heb “and Esau lifted his voice and wept.”

[41:5]  ²³ tn Heb “coming up.”

[41:5]  ²⁴ tn Heb “fat.”

[41:22]  ²⁵ tn Heb “and I saw in my dream and look.”

[41:25]  ²⁶ tn Heb “the dream of Pharaoh is one.”

[41:25]  ²⁷ tn Heb “declared.”

[41:25]  ²⁸ tn The active participle here indicates what is imminent.

[34:22]  ²⁹ tn Heb “when every one of our males is circumcised.”

[40:5]  ³⁰ tn Heb “dreamed a dream.”

[40:5]  ³¹ tn Heb “a man his dream in one night.”

[40:5]  ³² tn Heb “a man according to the interpretation of his dream.”

[6:19]  ³³ tn Heb “from all life, from all flesh, two from all you must bring.” The disjunctive clause at the beginning of the verse (note the conjunction with prepositional phrase, followed by two more prepositional phrases in apposition and then the imperfect verb form) signals a change in mood from announcement (vv. 17-18) to instruction.

[6:19]  ³⁴ tn The Piel infinitive construct לְהַחֲיוֹת (lÿhakhayot, here translated as “to keep them alive”) shows the purpose of bringing the animals into the ark – saving life. The Piel of this verb means here “to preserve alive.”

[25:23]  ³⁵ sn By metonymy the two children in her womb are described as two nations of which the two children, Jacob and Esau, would become the fathers. The language suggests there would be a struggle between these nations, with one being stronger than the other. The oracle reveals that all of Jacob’s scheming was unnecessary in the final analysis. He would have become the dominant nation without using deception to steal his brother’s blessing.

[2:21]  ³⁶ tn Heb “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on the man.”

[2:21]  ³⁷ tn Heb “and he slept.” In the sequence the verb may be subordinated to the following verb to indicate a temporal clause (“while…”).

[2:21]  ³⁸ tn Traditionally translated “rib,” the Hebrew word actually means “side.” The Hebrew text reads, “and he took one from his sides,” which could be rendered “part of his sides.” That idea may fit better the explanation by the man that the woman is his flesh and bone.

[2:21]  ³⁹ tn Heb “closed up the flesh under it.”

[41:26]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “one dream it is.”

[42:13]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “twelve [were] your servants, brothers [are] we.”

[42:13]  ⁴² tn Heb “today.”

[42:13]  ⁴³ tn Heb “and the one is not.”

[42:32]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “twelve [were] we, brothers, sons of our father [are] we.”

[42:32]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “the one is not.”

[42:32]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “today.”

[34:16]  ⁴⁷ tn The perfect verbal form with the vav (ו) consecutive introduces the apodosis of the conditional sentence.

[34:16]  ⁴⁸ tn The words “to marry” (and the words “as wives” in the following clause) are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[27:45]  ⁴⁹ tn The words “stay there” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:45]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “and I will send and I will take you from there.” The verb “send” has no object in the Hebrew text; one must be supplied in the translation. Either “someone” or “a message” could be supplied, but since in those times a message would require a messenger, “someone” has been used.

[27:45]  ⁵¹ tn If Jacob stayed, he would be killed and Esau would be forced to run away.

[33:13]  ⁵² tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:13]  ⁵³ tn Heb “weak.”

[33:13]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “and the sheep and the cattle nursing [are] upon me.”

[11:3]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “a man to his neighbor.” The Hebrew idiom may be translated “to each other” or “one to another.”

[11:3]  ⁵⁶ 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).

[11:3]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “bitumen” (cf. NEB, NRSV).

[11:3]  ⁵⁸ tn The disjunctive clause gives information parenthetical to the narrative.

[3:22]  ⁵⁹ tn The particle הֵן (hen) introduces a foundational clause, usually beginning with “since, because, now.”

[3:22]  ⁶⁰ sn The man has become like one of us. See the notes on Gen 1:26 and 3:5.

[3:22]  ⁶¹ tn The infinitive explains in what way the man had become like God: “knowing good and evil.”

[3:22]  ⁶² tn Heb “and now, lest he stretch forth.” Following the foundational clause, this clause forms the main point. It is introduced with the particle פֶּן (pen) which normally introduces a negative purpose, “lest….” The construction is elliptical; something must be done lest the man stretch forth his hand. The translation interprets the point intended.

[22:2]  ⁶³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:2]  ⁶⁴ sn Take your son…Isaac. The instructions are very clear, but the details are deliberate. With every additional description the commandment becomes more challenging.

[22:2]  ⁶⁵ sn There has been much debate over the location of Moriah; 2 Chr 3:1 suggests it may be the site where the temple was later built in Jerusalem.

[22:2]  ⁶⁶ sn A whole burnt offering signified the complete surrender of the worshiper and complete acceptance by God. The demand for a human sacrifice was certainly radical and may have seemed to Abraham out of character for God. Abraham would have to obey without fully understanding what God was about.

[22:2]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “which I will say to.”

[42:21]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “a man to his neighbor.”

[42:21]  ⁶⁹ tn Or “we are guilty”; the Hebrew word can also refer to the effect of being guilty, i.e., “we are being punished for guilt.”

[42:21]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “the distress of his soul.”

[42:21]  ⁷¹ sn The repetition of the Hebrew noun translated distress draws attention to the fact that they regard their present distress as appropriate punishment for their refusal to ignore their brother when he was in distress.

[37:19]  ⁷² tn Heb “Look, this master of dreams is coming.” The brothers’ words have a sarcastic note and indicate that they resent his dreams.

[2:25]  ⁷³ tn Heb “And the two of them were naked, the man and his wife.”

[2:25]  sn Naked. The motif of nakedness is introduced here and plays an important role in the next chapter. In the Bible nakedness conveys different things. In this context it signifies either innocence or integrity, depending on how those terms are defined. There is no fear of exploitation, no sense of vulnerability. But after the entrance of sin into the race, nakedness takes on a negative sense. It is then usually connected with the sense of vulnerability, shame, exploitation, and exposure (such as the idea of “uncovering nakedness” either in sexual exploitation or in captivity in war).

[2:25]  ⁷⁴ tn The imperfect verb form here has a customary nuance, indicating a continuing condition in past time. The meaning of the Hebrew term בּוֹשׁ (bosh) is “to be ashamed, to put to shame,” but its meaning is stronger than “to be embarrassed.” The word conveys the fear of exploitation or evil – enemies are put to shame through military victory. It indicates the feeling of shame that approximates a fear of evil.

[10:25]  ⁷⁵ tn The expression “the earth was divided” may refer to dividing the land with canals, but more likely it anticipates the division of languages at Babel (Gen 11). The verb פָּלָג (palag, “separate, divide”) is used in Ps 55:9 for a division of languages.

[13:11]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “Lot traveled.” The proper name has not been repeated in the translation at this point for stylistic reasons.

[13:11]  ⁷⁷ tn Heb “a man from upon his brother.”

[13:11]  sn Separated from each other. For a discussion of the significance of this event, see L. R. Helyer, “The Separation of Abram and Lot: Its Significance in the Patriarchal Narratives,” JSOT 26 (1983): 77-88.

[26:31]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “and they got up early and they swore an oath, a man to his brother.”

[26:31]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “and they went from him in peace.”

[11:1]  ⁸⁰ sn The whole earth. Here “earth” is a metonymy of subject, referring to the people who lived in the earth. Genesis 11 begins with everyone speaking a common language, but chap. 10 has the nations arranged by languages. It is part of the narrative art of Genesis to give the explanation of the event after the narration of the event. On this passage see A. P. Ross, “The Dispersion of the Nations in Genesis 11:1-9,” BSac 138 (1981): 119-38.

[11:1]  ⁸¹ tn Heb “one lip and one [set of] words.” The term “lip” is a metonymy of cause, putting the instrument for the intended effect. They had one language. The term “words” refers to the content of their speech. They had the same vocabulary.

[4:1]  ⁸² tn The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) introduces a new episode in the ongoing narrative.

[4:1]  ⁸³ tn Heb “the man knew,” a frequent euphemism for sexual relations.

[4:1]  ⁸⁴ tn Or “she conceived.”

[4:1]  ⁸⁵ tn Here is another sound play (paronomasia) on a name. The sound of the verb קָנִיתִי (qaniti, “I have created”) reflects the sound of the name Cain in Hebrew (קַיִן, qayin) and gives meaning to it. The saying uses the Qal perfect of קָנָה (qanah). There are two homonymic verbs with this spelling, one meaning “obtain, acquire” and the other meaning “create” (see Gen 14:19, 22; Deut 32:6; Ps 139:13; Prov 8:22). The latter fits this context very well. Eve has created a man.

[4:1]  ⁸⁶ tn Heb “with the Lord.” The particle אֶת־ (’et) is not the accusative/object sign, but the preposition “with” as the ancient versions attest. Some take the preposition in the sense of “with the help of” (see BDB 85 s.v. אֵת; cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV), while others prefer “along with” in the sense of “like, equally with, in common with” (see Lev 26:39; Isa 45:9; Jer 23:28). Either works well in this context; the latter is reflected in the present translation. Some understand אֶת־ as the accusative/object sign and translate, “I have acquired a man – the Lord.” They suggest that the woman thought (mistakenly) that she had given birth to the incarnate Lord, the Messiah who would bruise the Serpent’s head. This fanciful suggestion is based on a questionable allegorical interpretation of Gen 3:15 (see the note there on the word “heel”).

[4:1]  sn Since Exod 6:3 seems to indicate that the name Yahweh (יְהוָה, yÿhvah, translated Lord) was first revealed to Moses (see also Exod 3:14), it is odd to see it used in quotations in Genesis by people who lived long before Moses. This problem has been resolved in various ways: (1) Source critics propose that Exod 6:3 is part of the “P” (or priestly) tradition, which is at odds with the “J” (or Yahwistic) tradition. (2) Many propose that “name” in Exod 6:3 does not refer to the divine name per se, but to the character suggested by the name. God appeared to the patriarchs primarily in the role of El Shaddai, the giver of fertility, not as Yahweh, the one who fulfills his promises. In this case the patriarchs knew the name Yahweh, but had not experienced the full significance of the name. In this regard it is possible that Exod 6:3b should not be translated as a statement of denial, but as an affirmation followed by a rhetorical question implying that the patriarchs did indeed know God by the name of Yahweh, just as they knew him as El Shaddai. D. A. Garrett, following the lead of F. Andersen, sees Exod 6:2-3 as displaying a paneled A/B parallelism and translates them as follows: (A) “I am Yahweh.” (B) “And I made myself known to Abraham…as El Shaddai.” (A') “And my name is Yahweh”; (B') “Did I not make myself known to them?” (D. A. Garrett, Rethinking Genesis, 21). However, even if one translates the text this way, the Lord’s words do not necessarily mean that he made the name Yahweh known to the fathers. God is simply affirming that he now wants to be called Yahweh (see Exod 3:14-16) and that he revealed himself in prior times as El Shaddai. If we stress the parallelism with B, the implied answer to the concluding question might be: “Yes, you did make yourself known to them – as El Shaddai!” The main point of the verse would be that El Shaddai, the God of the fathers, and the God who has just revealed himself to Moses as Yahweh are one and the same. (3) G. J. Wenham suggests that pre-Mosaic references to Yahweh are the product of the author/editor of Genesis, who wanted to be sure that Yahweh was identified with the God of the fathers. In this regard, note how Yahweh is joined with another divine name or title in Gen 9:26-27; 14:22; 15:2, 8; 24:3, 7, 12, 27, 42, 48; 27:20; 32:9. The angel uses the name Yahweh when instructing Hagar concerning her child’s name, but the actual name (Ishma-el, “El hears”) suggests that El, not Yahweh, originally appeared in the angel’s statement (16:11). In her response to the angel Hagar calls God El, not Yahweh (16:13). In 22:14 Abraham names the place of sacrifice “Yahweh Will Provide” (cf. v. 16), but in v. 8 he declares, “God will provide.” God uses the name Yahweh when speaking to Jacob at Bethel (28:13) and Jacob also uses the name when he awakens from the dream (28:16). Nevertheless he names the place Beth-el (“house of El”). In 31:49 Laban prays, “May Yahweh keep watch,” but in v. 50 he declares, “God is a witness between you and me.” Yahweh’s use of the name in 15:7 and 18:14 may reflect theological idiom, while the use in 18:19 is within a soliloquy. (Other uses of Yahweh in quotations occur in 16:2, 5; 24:31, 35, 40, 42, 44, 48, 50, 51, 56; 26:22, 28-29; 27:7, 27; 29:32-35; 30:24, 30; 49:18. In these cases there is no contextual indication that a different name was originally used.) For a fuller discussion of this proposal, see G. J. Wenham, “The Religion of the Patriarchs,” Essays on the Patriarchal Narratives, 189-93.

[4:17]  ⁸⁷ tn Heb “knew,” a frequent euphemism for sexual relations.

[4:17]  ⁸⁸ tn Or “she conceived.”

[4:17]  ⁸⁹ tn Heb “according to the name of.”

[25:8]  ⁹⁰ tn Heb “old and full.”

[25:8]  ⁹¹ 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.

[25:17]  ⁹² tn Heb “And these are the days of the years of Ishmael.”

[25:17]  ⁹³ 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.

[44:28]  ⁹⁴ tn Heb “went forth from me.”

[48:22]  ⁹⁵ tn The pronouns translated “your” and “you” in this verse are singular in the Hebrew text.

[48:22]  ⁹⁶ tn The Hebrew word שְׁכֶם (shÿkhem) could be translated either as “mountain slope” or “shoulder, portion,” or even taken as the proper name “Shechem.” Jacob was giving Joseph either (1) one portion above his brothers, or (2) the mountain ridge he took from the Amorites, or (3) Shechem. The ambiguity actually allows for all three to be the referent. He could be referring to the land in Shechem he bought in Gen 33:18-19, but he mentions here that it was acquired by warfare, suggesting that the events of 34:25-29 are in view (even though at the time he denounced it, 34:30). Joseph was later buried in Shechem (Josh 24:32).

[49:29]  ⁹⁷ tn The Hebrew text adds “and he said to them,” which is not included in the translation because it is redundant in English.

[49:29]  ⁹⁸ tn Heb “I am about to be gathered” The participle is used here to describe what is imminent.

[49:16]  ⁹⁹ sn The name Dan (דָּן, dan) means “judge” and forms a wordplay with the following verb.

[49:16]  ¹⁰⁰ tn Or “govern.”

[4:25]  ¹⁰¹ tn Heb “knew,” a frequent euphemism for sexual relations.

[4:25]  ¹⁰² sn The name Seth probably means something like “placed”; “appointed”; “set”; “granted,” assuming it is actually related to the verb that is used in the sentiment. At any rate, the name שֵׁת (shet) and the verb שָׁת (shat, “to place, to appoint, to set, to grant”) form a wordplay (paronomasia).

[4:25]  ¹⁰³ tn Heb “offspring.”

[18:32]  ¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[42:33]  ¹⁰⁵ tn The word “grain” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[41:11]  ¹⁰⁶ tn Heb “and we dreamed a dream in one night, I and he, each according to the interpretation of his dream we dreamed.”

[9:20]  ¹⁰⁷ sn The epithet a man of the soil indicates that Noah was a farmer.

[9:20]  ¹⁰⁸ tn Or “Noah, a man of the soil, was the first to plant a vineyard”; Heb “and Noah, a man of the ground, began and he planted a vineyard.”

[12:9]  ¹⁰⁹ tn The Hebrew verb נָסַע (nasa’) means “to journey”; more specifically it means to pull up the tent and move to another place. The construction here uses the preterite of this verb with its infinitive absolute to stress the activity of traveling. But it also adds the infinitive absolute of הָלַךְ (halakh) to stress that the traveling was continually going on. Thus “Abram journeyed, going and journeying” becomes “Abram continually journeyed by stages.”

[12:9]  ¹¹⁰ tn Or “the South [country].”

[12:9]  sn Negev is the name for the southern desert region in the land of Canaan.

[7:2]  ¹¹¹ tn Or “seven pairs” (cf. NRSV).

[7:2]  ¹¹² sn For a study of the Levitical terminology of “clean” and “unclean,” see L. E. Toombs, IDB 1:643.

[7:2]  ¹¹³ tn Heb “a male and his female” (also a second time at the end of this verse). The terms used here for male and female animals (אִישׁ, ’ish) and אִשָּׁה, ’ishah) normally refer to humans.

[17:13]  ¹¹⁴ tn The emphatic construction employs the Niphal imperfect tense (collective singular) and the Niphal infinitive.

[17:13]  ¹¹⁵ 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.

[17:13]  ¹¹⁶ tn Or “an eternal.”

[32:16]  ¹¹⁷ tn Heb “and he put them in the hand of.”

[32:16]  ¹¹⁸ tn Heb “a herd, a herd, by itself,” or “each herd by itself.” The distributive sense is expressed by repetition.

[35:11]  ¹¹⁹ tn The name אֵל שַׁדַּי (’el shadday, “El Shaddai”) has often been translated “God Almighty,” primarily because Jerome translated it omnipotens (“all powerful”) in the Latin Vulgate. There has been much debate over the meaning of the name. For discussion see W. F. Albright, “The Names Shaddai and Abram,” JBL 54 (1935): 173-210; R. Gordis, “The Biblical Root sdy-sd,” JTS 41 (1940): 34-43; and especially T. N. D. Mettinger, In Search of God, 69-72. Shaddai/El Shaddai is the sovereign king of the world who grants, blesses, and judges. In the Book of Genesis he blesses the patriarchs with fertility and promises numerous descendants. Outside Genesis he both blesses/protects and takes away life/happiness. The patriarchs knew God primarily as El Shaddai (Exod 6:3). While the origin and meaning of this name are uncertain its significance is clear. The name is used in contexts where God appears as the source of fertility and life. For a fuller discussion see the note on “sovereign God” in Gen 17:1.

[35:11]  ¹²⁰ tn Heb “A nation and a company of nations will be from you and kings from your loins will come out.”

[35:11]  sn A nation…will descend from you. The promise is rooted in the Abrahamic promise (see Gen 17). God confirms what Isaac told Jacob (see Gen 28:3-4). Here, though, for the first time Jacob is promised kings as descendants.

[37:20]  ¹²¹ tn The Hebrew word can sometimes carry the nuance “evil,” but when used of an animal it refers to a dangerous wild animal.

[37:20]  ¹²² tn Heb “what his dreams will be.”

[1:5]  ¹²³ tn Heb “he called to,” meaning “he named.”

[1:5]  sn God called. Seven times in this chapter naming or blessing follows some act of creation. There is clearly a point being made beyond the obvious idea of naming. In the Babylonian creation story Enuma Elish, naming is equal to creating. In the Bible the act of naming, like creating, can be an indication of sovereignty (see 2 Kgs 23:34). In this verse God is sovereign even over the darkness.

[1:5]  ¹²⁴ tn Heb “and the darkness he called night.” The words “he called” have not been repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[1:5]  ¹²⁵ tn Another option is to translate, “Evening came, and then morning came.” This formula closes the six days of creation. It seems to follow the Jewish order of reckoning time: from evening to morning. Day one started with the dark, continued through the creation of light, and ended with nightfall. Another alternative would be to translate, “There was night and then there was day, one day.”

[1:5]  sn The first day. The exegetical evidence suggests the word “day” in this chapter refers to a literal twenty-four hour day. It is true that the word can refer to a longer period of time (see Isa 61:2, or the idiom in 2:4, “in the day,” that is, “when”). But this chapter uses “day,” “night,” “morning,” “evening,” “years,” and “seasons.” Consistency would require sorting out how all these terms could be used to express ages. Also, when the Hebrew word יוֹם (yom) is used with a numerical adjective, it refers to a literal day. Furthermore, the commandment to keep the sabbath clearly favors this interpretation. One is to work for six days and then rest on the seventh, just as God did when he worked at creation.

[9:4]  ¹²⁶ tn Heb “only.”

[9:4]  ¹²⁷ tn Or “flesh.”

[9:4]  ¹²⁸ tn Heb “its life, its blood.” The second word is in apposition to the first, explaining what is meant by “its life.” Since the blood is equated with life, meat that had the blood in it was not to be eaten.

[9:4]  ¹²⁹ tn The words “in it” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[9:4]  sn You must not eat meat with its life…in it. Because of the carnage produced by the flood, people might conclude that life is cheap and therefore treat it lightly. But God will not permit them to kill or even to eat anything with the lifeblood still in it, serving as a reminder of the sanctity of life.

[20:12]  ¹³⁰ tn Heb “but also.”

[29:14]  ¹³¹ 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).

[29:14]  ¹³² tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:14]  ¹³³ tn Heb “a month of days.”

[30:31]  ¹³⁴ tn Heb “and he said.” The referent (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[30:31]  ¹³⁵ tn The negated imperfect verbal form has an obligatory nuance.

[30:31]  ¹³⁶ tn The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[30:31]  ¹³⁷ tn Heb “If you do for me this thing.”

[30:31]  ¹³⁸ tn Heb “I will return, I will tend,” an idiom meaning “I will continue tending.”

[6:20]  ¹³⁹ tn Heb “to keep alive.”

[12:2]  ¹⁴⁰ 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.

[12:2]  ¹⁴¹ 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.

[12:2]  ¹⁴² tn Or “I will make you famous.”

[12:2]  ¹⁴³ 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.

[14:20]  ¹⁴⁴ tn Heb “blessed be.” For God to be “blessed” means that is praised. His reputation is enriched in the world as his name is praised.

[14:20]  ¹⁴⁵ sn Who delivered. The Hebrew verb מִגֵּן (miggen, “delivered”) foreshadows the statement by God to Abram in Gen 15:1, “I am your shield” (מָגֵן, magen). Melchizedek provided a theological interpretation of Abram’s military victory.

[14:20]  ¹⁴⁶ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Melchizedek) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:2]  ¹⁴⁷ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative indicates consequence. If Abram is blameless, then the Lord will ratify the covenant. Earlier the Lord ratified part of his promise to Abram (see Gen 15:18-21), guaranteeing him that his descendants would live in the land. But the expanded form of the promise, which includes numerous descendants and eternal possession of the land, remains to be ratified. This expanded form of the promise is in view here (see vv. 2b, 4-8). See the note at Gen 15:18 and R. B. Chisholm, “Evidence from Genesis,” A Case for Premillennialism, 35-54.

[17:2]  ¹⁴⁸ tn Heb “I will multiply you exceedingly, exceedingly.” The repetition is emphatic.

[28:3]  ¹⁴⁹ tn Heb “El Shaddai.” See the extended note on the phrase “sovereign God” in Gen 17:1.

[28:3]  ¹⁵⁰ tn Heb “and make you fruitful and multiply you.” See Gen 17:6, 20 for similar terminology.

[28:3]  ¹⁵¹ tn The perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here indicates consequence. The collocation הָיָה + preposition לְ (hayah + lÿ) means “become.”

[28:3]  ¹⁵² tn Heb “an assembly of peoples.”

[31:49]  ¹⁵³ tn Heb “and Mizpah.”

[31:49]  ¹⁵⁴ sn The name Mizpah (מִצְפָּה, mitspah), which means “watchpost,” sounds like the verb translated “may he watch” (יִצֶף, yitsef). Neither Laban nor Jacob felt safe with each other, and so they agreed to go their separate ways, trusting the Lord to keep watch at the border. Jacob did not need this treaty, but Laban, perhaps because he had lost his household gods, felt he did.

[31:49]  ¹⁵⁵ tn Heb “between me and you.”

[31:49]  ¹⁵⁶ tn Heb “for we will be hidden, each man from his neighbor.”

[34:15]  ¹⁵⁷ tn Heb “if you are like us.”

[34:15]  ¹⁵⁸ tn The infinitive here explains how they would become like them.

[45:22]  ¹⁵⁹ tn Heb “to all of them he gave, to each one, changes of outer garments.”

[45:22]  ¹⁶⁰ tn Heb “changes of outer garments.”

[39:9]  ¹⁶¹ tn The nuance of potential imperfect fits this context.

[2:20]  ¹⁶² tn Here for the first time the Hebrew word אָדָם (’adam) appears without the article, suggesting that it might now be the name “Adam” rather than “[the] man.” Translations of the Bible differ as to where they make the change from “man” to “Adam” (e.g., NASB and NIV translate “Adam” here, while NEB and NRSV continue to use “the man”; the KJV uses “Adam” twice in v. 19).

[2:20]  ¹⁶³ tn Heb “there was not found a companion who corresponded to him.” The subject of the third masculine singular verb form is indefinite. Without a formally expressed subject the verb may be translated as passive: “one did not find = there was not found.”

[4:12]  ¹⁶⁴ tn Heb “work.”

[4:12]  ¹⁶⁵ tn Heb “it will not again (תֹסֵף, tosef) give (תֵּת, tet),” meaning the ground will no longer yield. In translation the infinitive becomes the main verb, and the imperfect verb form becomes adverbial.

[4:12]  ¹⁶⁶ tn Heb “its strength.”

[4:12]  ¹⁶⁷ tn Two similar sounding synonyms are used here: נָע וָנָד (na’ vanad, “a wanderer and a fugitive”). This juxtaposition of synonyms emphasizes the single idea. In translation one can serve as the main description, the other as a modifier. Other translation options include “a wandering fugitive” and a “ceaseless wanderer” (cf. NIV).

[6:9]  ¹⁶⁸ sn There is a vast body of scholarly literature about the flood story. The following studies are particularly helpful: A. Heidel, The Gilgamesh Epic and the Old Testament Parallels; M. Kessler, “Rhetorical Criticism of Genesis 7,” Rhetorical Criticism: Essays in Honor of James Muilenburg (PTMS), 1-17; I. M. Kikawada and A. Quinn, Before Abraham Was; A. R. Millard, “A New Babylonian ‘Genesis Story’,” TynBul 18 (1967): 3-18; G. J. Wenham, “The Coherence of the Flood Narrative,” VT 28 (1978): 336-48.

[6:9]  ¹⁶⁹ tn The Hebrew term תָּמִים (tamim, “blameless”) is used of men in Gen 17:1 (associated with the idiom “walk before,” which means “maintain a proper relationship with,” see 24:40); Deut 18:13 (where it means “blameless” in the sense of not guilty of the idolatrous practices listed before this; see Josh 24:14); Pss 18:23, 26 (“blameless” in the sense of not having violated God’s commands); 37:18 (in contrast to the wicked); 101:2, 6 (in contrast to proud, deceitful slanderers; see 15:2); Prov 2:21; 11:5 (in contrast to the wicked); 28:10; Job 12:4.

[6:9]  ¹⁷⁰ tn Heb “Noah was a godly man, blameless in his generations.” The singular “generation” can refer to one’s contemporaries, i.e., those living at a particular point in time. The plural “generations” can refer to successive generations in the past or the future. Here, where it is qualified by “his” (i.e., Noah’s), it refers to Noah’s contemporaries, comprised of the preceding generation (his father’s generation), those of Noah’s generation, and the next generation (those the same age as his children). In other words, “his generations” means the generations contemporary with him. See BDB 190 s.v. דוֹר.

[6:9]  ¹⁷¹ tn Heb “Noah.” The proper name has been replaced with the pronoun in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[6:9]  ¹⁷² tn The construction translated “walked with” is used in Gen 5:22, 24 (see the note on this phrase in 5:22) and in 1 Sam 25:15, where it refers to David’s and Nabal’s men “rubbing shoulders” in the fields. Based on the use in 1 Sam 25:15, the expression seems to mean “live in close proximity to,” which may, by metonymy, mean “maintain cordial relations with.”

[7:1]  ¹⁷³ tn Heb “for you I see [as] godly before me in this generation.” The direct object (“you”) is placed first in the clause to give it prominence. The verb “to see” here signifies God’s evaluative discernment.

[13:3]  ¹⁷⁴ tn Heb “on his journeys”; the verb and noun combination means to pick up the tents and move from camp to camp.

[13:3]  ¹⁷⁵ map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.

[13:3]  ¹⁷⁶ tn The words “he returned” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[13:3]  ¹⁷⁷ tn Heb “where his tent had been.”

[15:10]  ¹⁷⁸ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:10]  ¹⁷⁹ tn Heb “in the middle.”

[15:10]  ¹⁸⁰ tn Heb “to meet its neighbor.”

[15:10]  sn For discussion of this ritual see G. F. Hasel, “The Meaning of the Animal Rite in Genesis 15,” JSOT 19 (1981): 61-78.

[19:22]  ¹⁸¹ tn Heb “Be quick! Escape to there!” The two imperatives form a verbal hendiadys, the first becoming adverbial.

[19:22]  ¹⁸² tn Heb “Therefore the name of the city is called Zoar.” The name of the place, צוֹעַר (tso’ar) apparently means “Little Place,” in light of the wordplay with the term “little” (מִצְעָר, mits’ar) used twice by Lot to describe the town (v. 20).

[25:18]  ¹⁸³ tn Heb “they”; the referent (Ishmael’s descendants) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:18]  ¹⁸⁴ tn Heb “which is by the face of,” or near the border. The territory ran along the border of Egypt.

[25:18]  ¹⁸⁵ tn Heb “as you go.”

[25:18]  ¹⁸⁶ sn The name Asshur refers here to a tribal area in the Sinai.

[25:18]  ¹⁸⁷ tn Heb “he fell.”

[25:18]  ¹⁸⁸ tn Heb “upon the face of all his brothers.” This last expression, obviously alluding to the earlier oracle about Ishmael (Gen 16:12), could mean that the descendants of Ishmael lived in hostility to others or that they lived in a territory that was opposite the lands of their relatives. While there is some ambiguity about the meaning, the line probably does give a hint of the Ishmaelite-Israelite conflicts to come.

[28:22]  ¹⁸⁹ tn The disjunctive clause structure (conjunction + noun/subject) is used to highlight the statement.

[28:22]  ¹⁹⁰ tn The infinitive absolute is used before the finite verb for emphasis.

[28:22]  ¹⁹¹ tn Heb “and all which you give to me I will surely give a tenth of it to you.” The disjunctive clause structure (conjunction + noun/object) highlights this statement as well.

[38:28]  ¹⁹² tn The word “child” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[38:29]  ¹⁹³ tn Heb “Look, his brother came out.” By the use of the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”), the narrator invites the reader to view the scene through the midwife’s eyes. The words “before him” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[38:29]  ¹⁹⁴ tn Heb “How you have made a breach for yourself!” The Hebrew verb translated “make a breach” frequently occurs, as here, with a cognate accusative. The event provided the meaningful name Perez, “he who breaks through.”

[38:29]  ¹⁹⁵ sn The name Perez means “he who breaks through,” referring to Perez reaching out his hand at birth before his brother was born. The naming signified the completion of Tamar’s struggle and also depicted the destiny of the tribe of Perez who later became dominant (Gen 46:12 and Num 26:20). Judah and his brothers had sold Joseph into slavery, thinking they could thwart God’s plan that the elder brothers should serve the younger. God demonstrated that principle through these births in Judah’s own family, affirming that the elder will serve the younger, and that Joseph’s leadership could not so easily be set aside. See J. Goldin, “The Youngest Son; or, Where Does Genesis 38 Belong?” JBL 96 (1977): 27-44.

[42:18]  ¹⁹⁶ tn Heb “Do this.”

[42:18]  ¹⁹⁷ tn After the preceding imperative, the imperative with vav (ו) can, as here, indicate logical sequence.

[42:18]  ¹⁹⁸ sn For I fear God. Joseph brings God into the picture to awaken his brothers’ consciences. The godly person cares about the welfare of people, whether they live or die. So he will send grain back, but keep one of them in Egypt. This action contrasts with their crime of selling their brother into slavery.

[45:7]  ¹⁹⁹ sn God sent me. The repetition of this theme that God sent Joseph is reminiscent of commission narratives in which the leader could announce that God sent him (e.g., Exod 3:15).

[45:7]  ²⁰⁰ tn Heb “to make you a remnant.” The verb, followed here by the preposition לְ (lÿ), means “to make.”

[45:7]  ²⁰¹ tn The infinitive gives a second purpose for God’s action.

[47:26]  ²⁰² tn On the term translated “statute” see P. Victor, “A Note on Hoq in the Old Testament,” VT 16 (1966): 358-61.

[47:26]  ²⁰³ tn The words “which is in effect” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[49:6]  ²⁰⁴ tn The Hebrew text reads “my glory,” but it is preferable to repoint the form and read “my liver.” The liver was sometimes viewed as the seat of the emotions and will (see HALOT 456 s.v. II כָּבֵד) for which the heart is the modern equivalent.

[3:1]  ²⁰⁵ tn The chapter begins with a disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + predicate) that introduces a new character and a new scene in the story.

[3:1]  ²⁰⁶ sn Many theologians identify or associate the serpent with Satan. In this view Satan comes in the disguise of a serpent or speaks through a serpent. This explains the serpent’s capacity to speak. While later passages in the Bible may indicate there was a satanic presence behind the serpent (see, for example, Rev 12:9), the immediate context pictures the serpent as simply one of the animals of the field created by God (see vv. 1, 14). An ancient Jewish interpretation explains the reference to the serpent in a literal manner, attributing the capacity to speak to all the animals in the orchard. This text (Jub. 3:28) states, “On that day [the day the man and woman were expelled from the orchard] the mouth of all the beasts and cattle and birds and whatever walked or moved was stopped from speaking because all of them used to speak to one another with one speech and one language [presumed to be Hebrew, see 12:26].” Josephus, Ant. 1.1.4 (1.41) attributes the serpent’s actions to jealousy. He writes that “the serpent, living in the company of Adam and his wife, grew jealous of the blessings which he supposed were destined for them if they obeyed God’s behests, and, believing that disobedience would bring trouble on them, he maliciously persuaded the woman to taste of the tree of wisdom.”

[3:1]  ²⁰⁷ tn The Hebrew word עָרוּם (’arum) basically means “clever.” This idea then polarizes into the nuances “cunning” (in a negative sense, see Job 5:12; 15:5), and “prudent” in a positive sense (Prov 12:16, 23; 13:16; 14:8, 15, 18; 22:3; 27:12). This same polarization of meaning can be detected in related words derived from the same root (see Exod 21:14; Josh 9:4; 1 Sam 23:22; Job 5:13; Ps 83:3). The negative nuance obviously applies in Gen 3, where the snake attempts to talk the woman into disobeying God by using half-truths and lies.

[3:1]  sn There is a wordplay in Hebrew between the words “naked” (עֲרוּמִּים, ’arummim) in 2:25 and “shrewd” (עָרוּם, ’arum) in 3:1. The point seems to be that the integrity of the man and the woman is the focus of the serpent’s craftiness. At the beginning they are naked and he is shrewd; afterward, they will be covered and he will be cursed.

[3:1]  ²⁰⁸ tn Heb “animals of the field.”

[3:1]  ²⁰⁹ tn Heb “Indeed that God said.” The beginning of the quotation is elliptical and therefore difficult to translate. One must supply a phrase like “is it true”: “Indeed, [is it true] that God said.”

[3:1]  ²¹⁰ sn God. The serpent does not use the expression “Yahweh God” [Lord God] because there is no covenant relationship involved between God and the serpent. He only speaks of “God.” In the process the serpent draws the woman into his manner of speech so that she too only speaks of “God.”

[3:1]  ²¹¹ tn Heb “you must not eat from all the tree[s] of the orchard.” After the negated prohibitive verb, מִכֹּל (mikkol, “from all”) has the meaning “from any.” Note the construction in Lev 18:26, where the statement “you must not do from all these abominable things” means “you must not do any of these abominable things.” See Lev 22:25 and Deut 28:14 as well.

[17:19]  ²¹² 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).

[17:19]  ²¹³ tn Or “as an eternal.”

[17:20]  ²¹⁴ sn The Hebrew verb translated “I have heard you” forms a wordplay with the name Ishmael, which means “God hears.” See the note on the name “Ishmael” in 16:11.

[17:20]  ²¹⁵ tn Heb “And I will multiply him exceedingly, exceedingly.” The repetition is emphatic.

[17:20]  ²¹⁶ tn For a discussion of the Hebrew word translated “princes,” see E. A. Speiser, “Background and Function of the Biblical Nasi’,” CBQ 25 (1963): 111-17.

[26:29]  ²¹⁷ tn The oath formula is used: “if you do us harm” means “so that you will not do.”

[26:29]  ²¹⁸ tn Heb “touched.”

[26:29]  ²¹⁹ tn Heb “and just as we have done only good with you.”

[26:29]  ²²⁰ tn Heb “and we sent you away.”

[26:29]  ²²¹ tn The Philistine leaders are making an observation, not pronouncing a blessing, so the translation reads “you are blessed” rather than “may you be blessed” (cf. NAB).

[47:18]  ²²² tn Heb “my.” The expression “my lord” occurs twice more in this verse.