Kejadian 25:25

25:25 The first came out reddish ¹  all over, ²  like a hairy ³  garment, so they named him Esau. ⁴ 

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 ⁵  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.

Kejadian 30:2

30:2 Jacob became furious ⁶  with Rachel and exclaimed, “Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?” ⁷ 

Kejadian 35:18

35:18 With her dying breath, ⁸  she named him Ben-Oni. ⁹  But his father called him Benjamin instead. ¹⁰ 

Kejadian 25:23

25:23 and the Lord said to her,

“Two nations ¹¹  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 30:4

30:4 So Rachel ¹²  gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob had marital relations with ¹³  her.

Kejadian 40:19

40:19 In three more days Pharaoh will decapitate you ¹⁴  and impale you on a pole. Then the birds will eat your flesh from you.”

Kejadian 4:1

The Story of Cain and Abel

4:1 Now ¹⁵  the man had marital relations with ¹⁶  his wife Eve, and she became pregnant ¹⁷  and gave birth to Cain. Then she said, “I have created ¹⁸  a man just as the Lord did!” ¹⁹ 

Kejadian 17:13

17:13 They must indeed be circumcised, ²⁰  whether born in your house or bought with money. The sign of my covenant ²¹  will be visible in your flesh as a permanent ²²  reminder.

Kejadian 38:9

38:9 But Onan knew that the child ²³  would not be considered his. ²⁴  So whenever ²⁵  he had sexual relations with ²⁶  his brother’s wife, he withdrew prematurely ²⁷  so as not to give his brother a descendant.

Kejadian 29:23

29:23 In the evening he brought his daughter Leah ²⁸  to Jacob, ²⁹  and Jacob ³⁰  had marital relations with her. ³¹ 

Kejadian 30:3

30:3 She replied, “Here is my servant Bilhah! Have sexual relations with ³²  her so that she can bear ³³  children ³⁴  for me ³⁵  and I can have a family through her.” ³⁶ 

Kejadian 2:25

2:25 The man and his wife were both naked, ³⁷  but they were not ashamed. ³⁸ 

Kejadian 29:17

29:17 Leah’s eyes were tender, ³⁹  but Rachel had a lovely figure and beautiful appearance.) ⁴⁰ 

Kejadian 50:1

The Burials of Jacob and Joseph

50:1 Then Joseph hugged his father’s face. ⁴¹  He wept over him and kissed him.

Kejadian 2:21

2:21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep, ⁴²  and while he was asleep, ⁴³  he took part of the man’s side ⁴⁴  and closed up the place with flesh. ⁴⁵ 

Kejadian 4:17

The Beginning of Civilization

4:17 Cain had marital relations ⁴⁶  with his wife, and she became pregnant ⁴⁷  and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was building a city, and he named the city after ⁴⁸  his son Enoch.

Kejadian 4:25

4:25 And Adam had marital relations ⁴⁹  with his wife again, and she gave birth to a son. She named him Seth, saying, “God has given ⁵⁰  me another child ⁵¹  in place of Abel because Cain killed him.”

Kejadian 38:16

38:16 He turned aside to her along the road and said, “Come on! I want to have sex with you.” ⁵²  (He did not realize ⁵³  it was his daughter-in-law.) She asked, “What will you give me in exchange for having sex with you?” ⁵⁴ 

Kejadian 38:26

38:26 Judah recognized them and said, “She is more upright ⁵⁵  than I am, because I wouldn’t give her to Shelah my son.” He did not have sexual relations with her ⁵⁶  again.

Kejadian 24:16

24:16 Now the young woman was very beautiful. She was a virgin; no man had ever had sexual relations with her. ⁵⁷  She went down to the spring, filled her jug, and came back up.

Kejadian 40:18

40:18 Joseph replied, “This is its meaning: The three baskets represent ⁵⁸  three days.

Kejadian 40:22

40:22 but the chief baker he impaled, just as Joseph had predicted. ⁵⁹ 

Kejadian 3:7

3:7 Then the eyes of both of them opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

Kejadian 7:15

7:15 Pairs ⁶⁰  of all creatures ⁶¹  that have the breath of life came into the ark to Noah.

Kejadian 16:4

16:4 He had sexual relations with ⁶²  Hagar, and she became pregnant. ⁶³  Once Hagar realized she was pregnant, she despised Sarai. ⁶⁴ 

Kejadian 20:4

20:4 Now Abimelech had not gone near her. He said, “Lord, ⁶⁵  would you really slaughter an innocent nation? ⁶⁶ 

Kejadian 34:2

34:2 When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, who ruled that area, saw her, he grabbed her, forced himself on her, ⁶⁷  and sexually assaulted her. ⁶⁸ 

Kejadian 38:2

38:2 There Judah saw the daughter of a Canaanite man ⁶⁹  named Shua. ⁷⁰  Judah acquired her as a wife ⁷¹  and had marital relations with her. ⁷² 

Kejadian 39:10

39:10 Even though she continued to speak ⁷³  to Joseph day after day, he did not respond ⁷⁴  to her invitation to have sex with her. ⁷⁵ 

Kejadian 41:4

41:4 The bad-looking, thin cows ate the seven fine-looking, fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up.

Kejadian 27:33

27:33 Isaac began to shake violently ⁷⁶  and asked, “Then who else hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it just before you arrived, and I blessed him. ⁷⁷  He will indeed be blessed!”

Kejadian 38:18

38:18 He said, “What pledge should I give you?” She replied, “Your seal, your cord, and the staff that’s in your hand.” So he gave them to her and had sex with her. ⁷⁸  She became pregnant by him.

Kejadian 2:7

2:7 The Lord God formed ⁷⁹  the man from the soil of the ground ⁸⁰  and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, ⁸¹  and the man became a living being. ⁸² 

Kejadian 29:30

29:30 Jacob ⁸³  had marital relations ⁸⁴  with Rachel as well. He loved Rachel more than Leah, so he worked for Laban ⁸⁵  for seven more years. ⁸⁶ 

Kejadian 41:3

41:3 Then seven bad-looking, thin cows were coming up after them from the Nile, ⁸⁷  and they stood beside the other cows at the edge of the river. ⁸⁸ 

Kejadian 6:4

6:4 The Nephilim ⁸⁹  were on the earth in those days (and also after this) ⁹⁰  when the sons of God were having sexual relations with ⁹¹  the daughters of humankind, who gave birth to their children. ⁹²  They were the mighty heroes ⁹³  of old, the famous men. ⁹⁴ 

Kejadian 9:23

9:23 Shem and Japheth took the garment ⁹⁵  and placed it on their shoulders. Then they walked in backwards and covered up their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned ⁹⁶  the other way so they did not see their father’s nakedness.

Kejadian 16:2

16:2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Since ⁹⁷  the Lord has prevented me from having children, have sexual relations with ⁹⁸  my servant. Perhaps I can have a family by her.” ⁹⁹  Abram did what ¹⁰⁰  Sarai told him.

Kejadian 30:16

30:16 When Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must sleep ¹⁰¹  with me because I have paid for your services ¹⁰²  with my son’s mandrakes.” So he had marital relations ¹⁰³  with her that night.

[25:25]  ¹ sn Reddish. The Hebrew word translated “reddish” is אַדְמוֹנִי (’admoni), which forms a wordplay on the Edomites, Esau’s descendants. The writer sees in Esau’s appearance at birth a sign of what was to come. After all, the reader has already been made aware of the “nations” that were being born.

[25:25]  ² tn Heb “all of him.”

[25:25]  ³ sn Hairy. Here is another wordplay involving the descendants of Esau. The Hebrew word translated “hairy” is שֵׂעָר (se’ar); the Edomites will later live in Mount Seir, perhaps named for its wooded nature.

[25:25]  ⁴ tn Heb “And they called his name Esau.” The name “Esau” (עֵשָׂו, ’esav) is not etymologically related to שֵׂעָר (se’ar), but it draws on some of the sounds.

[47:18]  ⁵ tn Heb “my.” The expression “my lord” occurs twice more in this verse.

[30:2]  ⁶ tn Heb “and the anger of Jacob was hot.”

[30:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb.”

[35:18]  ⁸ tn Heb “in the going out of her life, for she was dying.” Rachel named the child with her dying breath.

[35:18]  ⁹ sn The name Ben-Oni means “son of my suffering.” It is ironic that Rachel’s words to Jacob in Gen 30:1, “Give me children or I’ll die,” take a different turn here, for it was having the child that brought about her death.

[35:18]  ¹⁰ tn The disjunctive clause is contrastive.

[35:18]  sn His father called him Benjamin. There was a preference for giving children good or positive names in the ancient world, and “son of my suffering” would not do (see the incident in 1 Chr 4:9-10), because it would be a reminder of the death of Rachel (in this connection, see also D. Daube, “The Night of Death,” HTR 61 [1968]: 629-32). So Jacob named him Benjamin, which means “son of the [or “my”] right hand.” The name Benjamin appears in the Mari texts. There have been attempts to connect this name to the resident tribe listed at Mari, “sons of the south” (since the term “right hand” can also mean “south” in Hebrew), but this assumes a different reading of the story. See J. Muilenburg, “The Birth of Benjamin,” JBL 75 (1956): 194-201.

[25:23]  ¹¹ 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.

[30:4]  ¹² tn Heb “and she”; the referent (Rachel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[30:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “went in to.” The expression “went in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse.

[40:19]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Pharaoh will lift up your head from upon you.” Joseph repeats the same expression from the first interpretation (see v. 13), but with the added words “from upon you,” which allow the statement to have a more literal and ominous meaning – the baker will be decapitated.

[4:1]  ¹⁵ tn The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) introduces a new episode in the ongoing narrative.

[4:1]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “the man knew,” a frequent euphemism for sexual relations.

[4:1]  ¹⁷ tn Or “she conceived.”

[4:1]  ¹⁸ 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]  ¹⁹ 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.

[17:13]  ²⁰ tn The emphatic construction employs the Niphal imperfect tense (collective singular) and the Niphal infinitive.

[17:13]  ²¹ 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]  ²² tn Or “an eternal.”

[38:9]  ²³ tn Heb “offspring.”

[38:9]  ²⁴ tn Heb “would not be his,” that is, legally speaking. Under the levirate system the child would be legally considered the child of his deceased brother.

[38:9]  ²⁵ tn The construction shows that this was a repeated practice and not merely one action.

[38:9]  sn The text makes it clear that the purpose of the custom was to produce an heir for the deceased brother. Onan had no intention of doing that. But he would have sex with the girl as much as he wished. He was willing to use the law to gratify his desires, but was not willing to do the responsible thing.

[38:9]  ²⁶ tn Heb “he went to.” This expression is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[38:9]  ²⁷ tn Heb “he spoiled [his semen] to the ground.” Onan withdrew prematurely and ejaculated on the ground to prevent his brother’s widow from becoming pregnant.

[29:23]  ²⁸ tn Heb “and it happened in the evening that he took Leah his daughter and brought her.”

[29:23]  sn His daughter Leah. Laban’s deception of Jacob by giving him the older daughter instead of the younger was God’s way of disciplining the deceiver who tricked his older brother. D. Kidner says this account is “the very embodiment of anti-climax, and this moment a miniature of man’s disillusion, experienced from Eden onwards” (Genesis [TOTC], 160). G. von Rad notes, “That Laban secretly gave the unloved Leah to the man in love was, to be sure, a monstrous blow, a masterpiece of shameless treachery…It was certainly a move by which he won for himself far and wide the coarsest laughter” (Genesis [OTL], 291).

[29:23]  ²⁹ tn Heb “to him”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:23]  ³⁰ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:23]  ³¹ tn Heb “went in to her.” The expression “went in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse, i.e., the consummation of the marriage.

[30:3]  ³² tn Heb “go in to.” The expression “go in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse.

[30:3]  ³³ tn After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with the conjunction indicates the immediate purpose of the proposed activity.

[30:3]  ³⁴ tn The word “children” is not in the Hebrew text but has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[30:3]  ³⁵ tn Heb “upon my knees.” This is an idiomatic way of saying that Bilhah will be simply a surrogate mother. Rachel will adopt the child as her own.

[30:3]  ³⁶ tn Heb “and I will be built up, even I, from her.” The prefixed verbal form with the conjunction is subordinated to the preceding prefixed verbal form and gives the ultimate purpose for the proposed action. The idiom of “built up” here refers to having a family (see Gen 16:2, as well as Ruth 4:11 and BDB 125 s.v. בָנָה).

[2:25]  ³⁷ 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]  ³⁸ 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.

[29:17]  ³⁹ tn Heb “and the eyes of Leah were tender.” The disjunctive clause (introduced here by a conjunction and a noun) continues the parenthesis begun in v. 16. It is not clear what is meant by “tender” (or “delicate”) eyes. The expression may mean she had appealing eyes (cf. NAB, NRSV, NLT), though some suggest that they were plain, not having the brightness normally expected. Either way, she did not measure up to her gorgeous sister.

[29:17]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “and Rachel was beautiful of form and beautiful of appearance.”

[50:1]  ⁴¹ 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.

[2:21]  ⁴² tn Heb “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on the man.”

[2:21]  ⁴³ 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]  ⁴⁴ 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]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “closed up the flesh under it.”

[4:17]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “knew,” a frequent euphemism for sexual relations.

[4:17]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “she conceived.”

[4:17]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “according to the name of.”

[4:25]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “knew,” a frequent euphemism for sexual relations.

[4:25]  ⁵⁰ 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]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “offspring.”

[38:16]  ⁵² tn Heb “I will go to you.” The imperfect verbal form probably indicates his desire here. The expression “go to” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[38:16]  ⁵³ tn Heb “for he did not know that.”

[38:16]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “when you come to me.” This expression is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[38:26]  ⁵⁵ tn Traditionally “more righteous”; cf. NCV, NRSV, NLT “more in the right.”

[38:26]  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.

[38:26]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “and he did not add again to know her.” Here “know” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[24:16]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “And the young woman was very good of appearance, a virgin, and a man she had not known.” Some argue that the Hebrew noun translated “virgin” (בְּתוּלָה, bÿtulah) is better understood in a general sense, “young woman” (see Joel 1:8, where the word appears to refer to one who is married). In this case the circumstantial clause (“and a man she had not known”) would be restrictive, rather than descriptive. If the term actually means “virgin,” one wonders why the circumstantial clause is necessary (see Judg 21:12 as well). Perhaps the repetition emphasizes her sexual purity as a prerequisite for her role as the mother of the covenant community.

[40:18]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “the three baskets [are].”

[40:22]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “had interpreted for them.”

[40:22]  sn The dreams were fulfilled exactly as Joseph had predicted, down to the very detail. Here was confirmation that Joseph could interpret dreams and that his own dreams were still valid. It would have been a tremendous encouragement to his faith, but it would also have been a great disappointment to spend two more years in jail.

[7:15]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “two two” meaning “in twos.”

[7:15]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “flesh.”

[16:4]  ⁶² tn Heb “entered to.” See the note on the same expression in v. 2.

[16:4]  ⁶³ tn Or “she conceived” (also in v. 5)

[16:4]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “and she saw that she was pregnant and her mistress was despised in her eyes.” The Hebrew verb קָלַל (qalal) means “to despise, to treat lightly, to treat with contempt.” In Hagar’s opinion Sarai had been demoted.

[20:4]  ⁶⁵ tn The Hebrew term translated “Lord” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).

[20:4]  ⁶⁶ tn Apparently Abimelech assumes that God’s judgment will fall on his entire nation. Some, finding the reference to a nation problematic, prefer to emend the text and read, “Would you really kill someone who is innocent?” See E. A. Speiser, Genesis (AB), 149.

[34:2]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “and he took her and lay with her.” The suffixed form following the verb appears to be the sign of the accusative instead of the preposition, but see BDB 1012 s.v. שָׁכַב.

[34:2]  ⁶⁸ tn The verb עָנָה (’anah) in the Piel stem can have various shades of meaning, depending on the context: “to defile; to mistreat; to violate; to rape; to shame; to afflict.” Here it means that Shechem violated or humiliated Dinah by raping her.

[38:2]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “a man, a Canaanite.”

[38:2]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “and his name was Shua.”

[38:2]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “and he took her.”

[38:2]  ⁷² tn Heb “and he went to her.” This expression is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[39:10]  ⁷³ tn The verse begins with the temporal indicator, followed by the infinitive construct with the preposition כְּ (kÿ). This clause could therefore be taken as temporal.

[39:10]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “listen to.”

[39:10]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “to lie beside her to be with her.” Here the expression “to lie beside” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[27:33]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “and Isaac trembled with a great trembling to excess.” The verb “trembled” is joined with a cognate accusative, which is modified by an adjective “great,” and a prepositional phrase “to excess.” All of this is emphatic, showing the violence of Isaac’s reaction to the news.

[27:33]  ⁷⁷ tn Heb “Who then is he who hunted game and brought [it] to me so that I ate from all before you arrived and blessed him?”

[38:18]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “and he went to her.” This expression is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[2:7]  ⁷⁹ tn Or “fashioned.” The prefixed verb form with vav (ו) consecutive initiates narrative sequence. The Hebrew word יָצַר (yatsar) means “to form” or “to fashion,” usually by plan or design (see the related noun יֵצֶר [yetser] in Gen 6:5). It is the term for an artist’s work (the Hebrew term יוֹצֵר [yotser] refers to a potter; see Jer 18:2-4.)

[2:7]  sn Various traditions in the ancient Near East reflect this idea of creation. Egyptian drawings show a deity turning little people off of the potter’s wheel with another deity giving them life. In the Bible humans are related to the soil and return to it (see 3:19; see also Job 4:19, 20:9; and Isa 29:16).

[2:7]  ⁸⁰ tn The line literally reads “And Yahweh God formed the man, soil, from the ground.” “Soil” is an adverbial accusative, identifying the material from which the man was made.

[2:7]  ⁸¹ tn The Hebrew word נְשָׁמָה (nÿshamah, “breath”) is used for God and for the life imparted to humans, not animals (see T. C. Mitchell, “The Old Testament Usage of Nÿshama,” VT 11 [1961]: 177-87). Its usage in the Bible conveys more than a breathing living organism (נֶפֶשׁ חַיַּה, nefesh khayyah). Whatever is given this breath of life becomes animated with the life from God, has spiritual understanding (Job 32:8), and has a functioning conscience (Prov 20:27).

[2:7]  sn Human life is described here as consisting of a body (made from soil from the ground) and breath (given by God). Both animals and humans are called “a living being” (נֶפֶשׁ חַיַּה) but humankind became that in a different and more significant way.

[2:7]  ⁸² tn The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “being”) is often translated “soul,” but the word usually refers to the whole person. The phrase נֶפֶשׁ חַיַּה (nefesh khayyah, “living being”) is used of both animals and human beings (see 1:20, 24, 30; 2:19).

[29:30]  ⁸³ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:30]  ⁸⁴ tn Heb “went in also to Rachel.” The expression “went in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse, i.e., the consummation of the marriage.

[29:30]  ⁸⁵ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:30]  ⁸⁶ tn Heb “and he loved also Rachel, more than Leah, and he served with him still seven other years.”

[41:3]  ⁸⁷ tn Heb “And look, seven other cows were coming up after them from the Nile, bad of appearance and thin of flesh.”

[41:3]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “the Nile.” This has been replaced by “the river” in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[6:4]  ⁸⁹ tn The Hebrew word נְפִילִים (nÿfilim) is simply transliterated here, because the meaning of the term is uncertain. According to the text, the Nephilim became mighty warriors and gained great fame in the antediluvian world. The text may imply they were the offspring of the sexual union of the “sons of God” and the “daughters of humankind” (v. 2), but it stops short of saying this in a direct manner. The Nephilim are mentioned in the OT only here and in Num 13:33, where it is stated that they were giants (thus KJV, TEV, NLT “giants” here). The narrator observes that the Anakites of Canaan were descendants of the Nephilim. Certainly these later Anakite Nephilim could not be descendants of the antediluvian Nephilim (see also the following note on the word “this”).

[6:4]  ⁹⁰ tn This observation is parenthetical, explaining that there were Nephilim even after the flood. If all humankind, with the exception of Noah and his family, died in the flood, it is difficult to understand how the postdiluvian Nephilim could be related to the antediluvian Nephilim or how the Anakites of Canaan could be their descendants (see Num 13:33). It is likely that the term Nephilim refers generally to “giants” (see HALOT 709 s.v. נְפִילִים) without implying any ethnic connection between the antediluvian and postdiluvian varieties.

[6:4]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “were entering to,” referring euphemistically to sexual intercourse here. The Hebrew imperfect verbal form draws attention to the ongoing nature of such sexual unions during the time before the flood.

[6:4]  ⁹² tn Heb “and they gave birth to them.” The masculine plural suffix “them” refers to the “sons of God,” to whom the “daughters of humankind” bore children. After the Qal form of the verb יָלָד (yalad, “to give birth”) the preposition לְ (lÿ, “to”) introduces the father of the child(ren). See Gen 16:1, 15; 17:19, 21; 21:2-3, 9; 22:23; 24:24, 47; 25:2, etc.

[6:4]  ⁹³ tn The parenthetical/explanatory clause uses the word הַגִּבֹּרִים (haggibborim) to describe these Nephilim. The word means “warriors; mighty men; heroes.” The appositional statement further explains that they were “men of renown.” The text refers to superhuman beings who held the world in their power and who lived on in ancient lore outside the Bible. See E. A. Speiser, Genesis (AB), 45-46; C. Westermann, Genesis, 1:379-80; and Anne D. Kilmer, “The Mesopotamian Counterparts of the Biblical Nephilim,” Perspectives on Language and Text, 39-43.

[6:4]  ⁹⁴ tn Heb “men of name” (i.e., famous men).

[9:23]  ⁹⁵ tn The word translated “garment” has the Hebrew definite article on it. The article may simply indicate that the garment is definite and vivid in the mind of the narrator, but it could refer instead to Noah’s garment. Did Ham bring it out when he told his brothers?

[9:23]  ⁹⁶ tn Heb “their faces [were turned] back.”

[16:2]  ⁹⁷ tn Heb “look.” The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) introduces the foundational clause for the imperative to follow.

[16:2]  ⁹⁸ tn Heb “enter to.” The expression is a euphemism for sexual relations (also in v. 4).

[16:2]  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.

[16:2]  ⁹⁹ tn Heb “perhaps I will be built from her.” Sarai hopes to have a family established through this surrogate mother.

[16:2]  ¹⁰⁰ tn Heb “listened to the voice of,” which is an idiom meaning “obeyed.”

[16:2]  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.

[30:16]  ¹⁰¹ tn Heb “must come in to me.” The imperfect verbal form has an obligatory nuance here. She has acquired him for the night and feels he is obligated to have sexual relations with her.

[30:16]  ¹⁰² tn Heb “I have surely hired.” The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verbal form for emphasis. The name Issachar (see v. 18) seems to be related to this expression.

[30:16]  ¹⁰³ tn This is the same Hebrew verb (שָׁכַב, shakhav) translated “sleep with” in v. 15. In direct discourse the more euphemistic “sleep with” was used, but here in the narrative “marital relations” reflects more clearly the emphasis on sexual intercourse.