3:1 Now 1 the serpent 2 was more shrewd 3
than any of the wild animals 4 that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Is it really true that 5 God 6 said, ‘You must not eat from any tree of the orchard’?” 7 3:2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat 8 of the fruit from the trees of the orchard; 3:3 but concerning the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the orchard God said, ‘You must not eat from it, and you must not touch it, 9 or else you will die.’” 10 3:4 The serpent said to the woman, “Surely you will not die, 11 3:5 for God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will open 12 and you will be like divine beings who know 13 good and evil.” 14
3:6 When 15 the woman saw that the tree produced fruit that was good for food, 16 was attractive 17 to the eye, and was desirable for making one wise, 18 she took some of its fruit and ate it. 19 She also gave some of it to her husband who was with her, and he ate it. 20 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.
3:8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God moving about 21 in the orchard at the breezy time 22 of the day, and they hid 23 from the Lord God among the trees of the orchard. 3:9 But the Lord God called to 24 the man and said to him, “Where are you?” 25 3:10 The man replied, 26 “I heard you moving about 27 in the orchard, and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.” 3:11 And the Lord God 28 said, “Who told you that you were naked? 29 Did you eat from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?” 30 3:12 The man said, “The woman whom you gave me, she gave 31 me some fruit 32 from the tree and I ate it.” 3:13 So the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this 33 you have done?” And the woman replied, “The serpent 34 tricked 35 me, and I ate.”
3:14 The Lord God said to the serpent, 36
“Because you have done this,
cursed 37 are you above all the wild beasts
and all the living creatures of the field!
On your belly you will crawl 38
and dust you will eat 39 all the days of your life.
3:15 And I will put hostility 40 between you and the woman
and between your offspring and her offspring; 41
her offspring will attack 42 your head,
and 43 you 44 will attack her offspring’s heel.” 45
3:16 To the woman he said,
“I will greatly increase 46 your labor pains; 47
with pain you will give birth to children.
You will want to control your husband, 48
but he will dominate 49 you.”
3:17 But to Adam 50 he said,
“Because you obeyed 51 your wife
and ate from the tree about which I commanded you,
‘You must not eat from it,’
cursed is the ground 52 thanks to you; 53
in painful toil you will eat 54 of it all the days of your life.
3:18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
but you will eat the grain 55 of the field.
3:19 By the sweat of your brow 56 you will eat food
until you return to the ground, 57
for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust, and to dust you will return.” 58
3:20 The man 59 named his wife Eve, 60 because 61 she was the mother of all the living. 62 3:21 The Lord God made garments from skin 63 for Adam and his wife, and clothed them. 3:22 And the Lord God said, “Now 64 that the man has become like one of us, 65 knowing 66 good and evil, he must not be allowed 67 to stretch out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” 3:23 So the Lord God expelled him 68 from the orchard in Eden to cultivate the ground from which he had been taken. 3:24 When he drove 69 the man out, he placed on the eastern side 70 of the orchard in Eden angelic sentries 71 who used the flame of a whirling sword 72 to guard the way to the tree of life.
4:1 Now 73 the man had marital relations with 74 his wife Eve, and she became pregnant 75 and gave birth to Cain. Then she said, “I have created 76 a man just as the Lord did!” 77 4:2 Then she gave birth 78 to his brother Abel. 79 Abel took care of the flocks, while Cain cultivated the ground. 80
4:3 At the designated time 81 Cain brought some of the fruit of the ground for an offering 82 to the Lord. 4:4 But Abel brought 83 some of the firstborn of his flock – even the fattest 84 of them. And the Lord was pleased with 85 Abel and his offering, 4:5 but with Cain and his offering he was not pleased. 86 So Cain became very angry, 87 and his expression was downcast. 88
4:6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why is your expression downcast? 4:7 Is it not true 89 that if you do what is right, you will be fine? 90 But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching 91 at the door. It desires to dominate you, but you must subdue it.” 92
4:8 Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” 93 While they were in the field, Cain attacked 94 his brother 95 Abel and killed him.
4:9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” 96 And he replied, “I don’t know! Am I my brother’s guardian?” 97 4:10 But the Lord said, “What have you done? 98 The voice 99 of your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground! 4:11 So now, you are banished 100 from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 4:12 When you try to cultivate 101 the
ground it will no longer yield 102 its best 103 for you. You will be a homeless wanderer 104 on the earth.” 4:13 Then Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment 105 is too great to endure! 106 4:14 Look! You are driving me off the land 107 today, and I must hide from your presence. 108 I will be a homeless wanderer on the earth; whoever finds me will kill me.” 4:15 But the Lord said to him, “All right then, 109 if anyone kills Cain, Cain will be avenged seven times as much.” 110 Then the Lord put a special mark 111 on Cain so that no one who found him would strike him down. 112 4:16 So Cain went out from the presence of the Lord and lived in the land of Nod, 113 east of Eden.
4:17 Cain had marital relations 114 with his wife, and she became pregnant 115 and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was building a city, and he named the city after 116 his son Enoch. 4:18 To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father 117 of Mehujael. Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.
4:19 Lamech took two wives for himself; the name of the first was Adah, and the name of the second was Zillah. 4:20 Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the first 118 of those who live in tents and keep 119 livestock. 4:21 The name of his brother was Jubal; he was the first of all who play the harp and the flute. 4:22 Now Zillah also gave birth to Tubal-Cain, who heated metal and shaped 120 all kinds of tools made of bronze and iron. The sister of Tubal-Cain was Naamah.
4:23 Lamech said to his wives,
“Adah and Zillah! Listen to me!
You wives of Lamech, hear my words!
I have killed a man for wounding me,
a young man 121 for hurting me.
4:24 If Cain is to be avenged seven times as much,
then Lamech seventy-seven times!” 122
4:25 And Adam had marital relations 123 with his wife again, and she gave birth to a son. She named him Seth, saying, “God has given 124 me another child 125 in place of Abel because Cain killed him.” 4:26 And a son was also born to Seth, whom he named Enosh. At that time people 126 began to worship 127 the Lord.
5:1 This is the record 128 of the family line 129 of Adam.
When God created humankind, 130 he made them 131 in the likeness of God. 5:2 He created them male and female; when they were created, he blessed them and named them “humankind.” 132
5:3 When 133 Adam had lived 130 years he fathered a son in his own likeness, according to his image, and he named him Seth. 5:4 The length of time Adam lived 134 after he became the father of Seth was 800 years; during this time he had 135 other 136 sons and daughters. 5:5 The entire lifetime 137 of Adam was 930 years, and then he died. 138
5:6 When Seth had lived 105 years, he became the father 139 of Enosh. 5:7 Seth lived 807 years after he became the father of Enosh, and he had 140 other 141 sons and daughters. 5:8 The entire lifetime of Seth was 912 years, and then he died.
5:9 When Enosh had lived 90 years, he became the father of Kenan. 5:10 Enosh lived 815 years after he became the father of Kenan, and he had other sons and daughters. 5:11 The entire lifetime of Enosh was 905 years, and then he died.
5:12 When Kenan had lived 70 years, he became the father of Mahalalel. 5:13 Kenan lived 840 years after he became the father of Mahalalel, and he had other sons and daughters. 5:14 The entire lifetime of Kenan was 910 years, and then he died.
5:15 When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he became the father of Jared. 5:16 Mahalalel lived 830 years after he became the father of Jared, and he had other sons and daughters. 5:17 The entire lifetime of Mahalalel was 895 years, and then he died.
5:18 When Jared had lived 162 years, he became the father of Enoch. 5:19 Jared lived 800 years after he became the father of Enoch, and he had other sons and daughters. 5:20 The entire lifetime of Jared was 962 years, and then he died.
5:21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. 5:22 After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 142 for 300 years, 143 and he had other 144 sons and daughters. 5:23 The entire lifetime of Enoch was 365 years. 5:24 Enoch walked with God, and then he disappeared 145 because God took 146 him away.
5:25 When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he became the father of Lamech. 5:26 Methuselah lived 782 years after he became the father of Lamech, and he had other 147 sons and daughters. 5:27 The entire lifetime of Methuselah was 969 years, and then he died.
5:28 When Lamech had lived 182 years, he had a son. 5:29 He named him Noah, 148 saying, “This one will bring us comfort 149 from our labor and from the painful toil of our hands because of the ground that the Lord has cursed.” 5:30 Lamech lived 595 years after he became the father of Noah, and he had other 150 sons and daughters. 5:31 The entire lifetime of Lamech was 777 years, and then he died.
5:32 After Noah was 500 years old, he 151 became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
20:1 Abraham journeyed from there to the Negev 152 region and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While he lived as a temporary resident 153 in Gerar, 20:2 Abraham said about his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” So Abimelech, king of Gerar, sent for Sarah and took her.
20:3 But God appeared 154 to Abimelech in a dream at night and said to him, “You are as good as dead 155 because of the woman you have taken, for she is someone else’s wife.” 156
20:4 Now Abimelech had not gone near her. He said, “Lord, 157 would you really slaughter an innocent nation? 158 20:5 Did Abraham 159 not say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, 160 ‘He is my brother.’ I have done this with a clear conscience 161 and with innocent hands!”
20:6 Then in the dream God replied to him, “Yes, I know that you have done this with a clear conscience. 162 That is why I have kept you 163 from sinning against me and why 164 I did not allow you to touch her. 20:7 But now give back the man’s wife. Indeed 165 he is a prophet 166 and he will pray for you; thus you will live. 167 But if you don’t give her back, 168 know that you will surely die 169 along with all who belong to you.”
20:8 Early in the morning 170 Abimelech summoned 171 all his servants. When he told them about all these things, 172 they 173 were terrified. 20:9 Abimelech summoned Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? What sin did I commit against you that would cause you to bring such great guilt on me and my kingdom? 174 You have done things to me that should not be done!” 175 20:10 Then Abimelech asked 176 Abraham, “What prompted you to do this thing?” 177
20:11 Abraham replied, “Because I thought, 178 ‘Surely no one fears God in this place. They will kill me because of 179 my wife.’ 20:12 What’s more, 180 she is indeed my sister, my father’s daughter, but not my mother’s daughter. She became my wife. 20:13 When God made me wander 181 from my father’s house, I told her, ‘This is what you can do to show your loyalty to me: 182 Every place we go, say about me, “He is my brother.”’”
20:14 So Abimelech gave 183 sheep, cattle, and male and female servants to Abraham. He also gave his wife Sarah back to him. 20:15 Then Abimelech said, “Look, my land is before you; live wherever you please.” 184
20:16 To Sarah he said, “Look, I have given a thousand pieces of silver 185 to your ‘brother.’ 186 This is compensation for you so that you will stand vindicated before all who are with you.” 187
20:17 Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, as well as his wife and female slaves so that they were able to have children. 20:18 For the Lord 188 had caused infertility to strike every woman 189 in the household of Abimelech because he took 190 Sarah, Abraham’s wife.
21:1 The Lord visited 191 Sarah just as he had said he would and did 192 for Sarah what he had promised. 193 21:2 So Sarah became pregnant 194 and bore Abraham a son in his old age at the appointed time that God had told him. 21:3 Abraham named his son – whom Sarah bore to him – Isaac. 195 21:4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, 196 Abraham circumcised him just as God had commanded him to do. 197 21:5 (Now Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.) 198
21:6 Sarah said, “God has made me laugh. 199 Everyone who hears about this 200 will laugh 201 with me.” 21:7 She went on to say, 202 “Who would 203 have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have given birth to a son for him in his old age!”
21:8 The child grew and was weaned. Abraham prepared 204 a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. 205 21:9 But Sarah noticed 206 the son of Hagar the Egyptian – the son whom Hagar had borne to Abraham – mocking. 207 21:10 So she said to Abraham, “Banish 208 that slave woman and her son, for the son of that slave woman will not be an heir along with my son Isaac!”
21:11 Sarah’s demand displeased Abraham greatly because Ishmael was his son. 209 21:12 But God said to Abraham, “Do not be upset 210 about the boy or your slave wife. Do 211 all that Sarah is telling 212 you because through Isaac your descendants will be counted. 213 21:13 But I will also make the son of the slave wife into a great nation, for he is your descendant too.”
21:14 Early in the morning Abraham took 214 some food 215 and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He put them on her shoulders, gave her the child, 216 and sent her away. So she went wandering 217 aimlessly through the wilderness 218 of Beer Sheba. 21:15 When the water in the skin was gone, she shoved 219 the child under one of the shrubs. 21:16 Then she went and sat down by herself across from him at quite a distance, about a bowshot 220 away; for she thought, 221 “I refuse to watch the child die.” 222 So she sat across from him and wept uncontrollably. 223
21:17 But God heard the boy’s voice. 224 The angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and asked her, “What is the matter, 225 Hagar? Don’t be afraid, for God has heard 226 the boy’s voice right where he is crying. 21:18 Get up! Help the boy up and hold him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” 21:19 Then God enabled Hagar to see a well of water. 227 She went over and filled the skin with water, and then gave the boy a drink.
21:20 God was with the boy as he grew. He lived in the wilderness and became an archer. 21:21 He lived in the wilderness of Paran. 228 His mother found a wife for him from the land of Egypt. 229
21:22 At that time Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, said to Abraham, “God is with you 230 in all that you do. 21:23 Now swear to me right here in God’s name 231 that you will not deceive me, my children, or my descendants. 232 Show me, and the land 233 where you are staying, 234 the same loyalty 235 that I have shown you.” 236
21:24 Abraham said, “I swear to do this.” 237 21:25 But Abraham lodged a complaint 238 against Abimelech concerning a well 239 that Abimelech’s servants had seized. 240 21:26 “I do not know who has done this thing,” Abimelech replied. “Moreover, 241 you did not tell me. I did not hear about it until today.”
21:27 Abraham took some sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech. The two of them made a treaty. 242 21:28 Then Abraham set seven ewe lambs apart from the flock by themselves. 21:29 Abimelech asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these 243 seven ewe lambs that you have set apart?” 21:30 He replied, “You must take these seven ewe lambs from my hand as legal proof 244 that I dug this well.” 245 21:31 That is why he named that place 246 Beer Sheba, 247 because the two of them swore 248 an oath there.
21:32 So they made a treaty 249 at Beer Sheba. Then Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, returned 250 to the land of the Philistines. 251 21:33 Abraham 252 planted a tamarisk tree 253 in Beer Sheba. There he worshiped the Lord, 254 the eternal God. 21:34 So Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for quite some time. 255
31:1 Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were complaining, 256 “Jacob has taken everything that belonged to our father! He has gotten rich 257 at our father’s expense!” 258 31:2 When Jacob saw the look on Laban’s face, he could tell his attitude toward him had changed. 259
31:3 The Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers 260 and to your relatives. I will be with you.” 261 31:4 So Jacob sent a message for Rachel and Leah 262 to come to the field 263 where his flocks were. 264 31:5 There he said to them, “I can tell that your father’s attitude toward me has changed, 265 but the God of my father has been with me. 31:6 You know that I’ve worked for your father as hard as I could, 266 31:7 but your father has humiliated 267 me and changed my wages ten times. But God has not permitted him to do me any harm. 31:8 If he said, 268 ‘The speckled animals 269 will be your wage,’ then the entire flock gave birth to speckled offspring. But if he said, ‘The streaked animals will be your wage,’ then the entire flock gave birth to streaked offspring. 31:9 In this way God has snatched away your father’s livestock and given them to me.
31:10 “Once 270 during breeding season I saw 271 in a dream that the male goats mating with 272 the flock were streaked, speckled, and spotted. 31:11 In the dream the angel of God said to me, ‘Jacob!’ ‘Here I am!’ I replied. 31:12 Then he said, ‘Observe 273 that all the male goats mating with 274 the flock are streaked, speckled, or spotted, for I have observed all that Laban has done to you. 31:13 I am the God of Bethel, 275 where you anointed 276 the sacred stone and made a vow to me. 277 Now leave this land immediately 278 and return to your native land.’”
31:14 Then Rachel and Leah replied to him, “Do we still have any portion or inheritance 279 in our father’s house? 31:15 Hasn’t he treated us like foreigners? He not only sold us, but completely wasted 280 the money paid for us! 281 31:16 Surely all the wealth that God snatched away from our father belongs to us and to our children. So now do everything God has told you.”
31:17 So Jacob immediately put his children and his wives on the camels. 282 31:18 He took 283 away all the livestock he had acquired in Paddan Aram and all his moveable property that he had accumulated. Then he set out toward the land of Canaan to return to his father Isaac. 284
31:19 While Laban had gone to shear his sheep, 285 Rachel stole the household idols 286 that belonged to her father. 31:20 Jacob also deceived 287 Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was leaving. 288 31:21 He left 289 with all he owned. He quickly crossed 290 the Euphrates River 291 and headed for 292 the hill country of Gilead.
31:22 Three days later Laban discovered Jacob had left. 293 31:23 So he took his relatives 294 with him and pursued Jacob 295 for seven days. 296 He caught up with 297 him in the hill country of Gilead. 31:24 But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and warned him, 298 “Be careful 299 that you neither bless nor curse Jacob.” 300
31:25 Laban overtook Jacob, and when Jacob pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead, Laban and his relatives set up camp there too. 301 31:26 “What have you done?” Laban demanded of Jacob. “You’ve deceived me 302 and carried away my daughters as if they were captives of war! 303 31:27 Why did you run away secretly 304 and deceive me? 305 Why didn’t you tell me so I could send you off with a celebration complete with singing, tambourines, and harps? 306 31:28 You didn’t even allow me to kiss my daughters and my grandchildren 307 good-bye. You have acted foolishly! 31:29 I have 308 the power to do you harm, but the God of your father told me last night, ‘Be careful 309 that you neither bless nor curse Jacob.’ 310 31:30 Now I understand that 311 you have gone away 312 because you longed desperately 313 for your father’s house. Yet why did you steal my gods?” 314
31:31 “I left secretly because I was afraid!” 315 Jacob replied to Laban. “I thought 316 you might take your daughters away from me by force. 317 31:32 Whoever has taken your gods will be put to death! 318 In the presence of our relatives 319 identify whatever is yours and take it.” 320 (Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.) 321
31:33 So Laban entered Jacob’s tent, and Leah’s tent, and the tent of the two female servants, but he did not find the idols. 322 Then he left Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s. 323 31:34 (Now Rachel had taken the idols and put them inside her camel’s saddle 324 and sat on them.) 325 Laban searched the whole tent, but did not find them. 326 31:35 Rachel 327 said to her father, “Don’t be angry, 328 my lord. I cannot stand up 329 in your presence because I am having my period.” 330 So he searched thoroughly, 331 but did not find the idols.
31:36 Jacob became angry 332 and argued with Laban. “What did I do wrong?” he demanded of Laban. 333 “What sin of mine prompted you to chase after me in hot pursuit? 334 31:37 When you searched through all my goods, did you find anything that belonged to you? 335 Set it here before my relatives and yours, 336 and let them settle the dispute between the two of us! 337
31:38 “I have been with you for the past twenty years. Your ewes and female goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. 31:39 Animals torn by wild beasts I never brought to you; I always absorbed the loss myself. 338 You always made me pay for every missing animal, 339 whether it was taken by day or at night. 31:40 I was consumed by scorching heat 340 during the day and by piercing cold 341 at night, and I went without sleep. 342 31:41 This was my lot 343 for twenty years in your house: I worked like a slave 344 for you – fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, but you changed my wages ten times! 31:42 If the God of my father – the God of Abraham, the one whom Isaac fears 345 – had not been with me, you would certainly have sent me away empty-handed! But God saw how I was oppressed and how hard I worked, 346 and he rebuked you last night.”
31:43 Laban replied 347 to Jacob, “These women 348 are my daughters, these children are my grandchildren, 349 and these flocks are my flocks. All that you see belongs to me. But how can I harm these daughters of mine today 350 or the children to whom they have given birth? 31:44 So now, come, let’s make a formal agreement, 351 you and I, and it will be 352 proof that we have made peace.” 353
31:45 So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a memorial pillar. 31:46 Then he 354 said to his relatives, “Gather stones.” So they brought stones and put them in a pile. 355 They ate there by the pile of stones. 31:47 Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, 356 but Jacob called it Galeed. 357
31:48 Laban said, “This pile of stones is a witness of our agreement 358 today.” That is why it was called Galeed. 31:49 It was also called Mizpah 359 because he said, “May the Lord watch 360 between us 361 when we are out of sight of one another. 362 31:50 If you mistreat my daughters or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one else is with us, realize 363 that God is witness to your actions.” 364
31:51 “Here is this pile of stones and this pillar I have set up between me and you,” Laban said to Jacob. 365 31:52 “This pile of stones and the pillar are reminders that I will not pass beyond this pile to come to harm you and that you will not pass beyond this pile and this pillar to come to harm me. 366 31:53 May the God of Abraham and the god of Nahor, 367 the gods of their father, judge between us.” Jacob took an oath by the God whom his father Isaac feared. 368 31:54 Then Jacob offered a sacrifice 369 on the mountain and invited his relatives to eat the meal. 370 They ate the meal and spent the night on the mountain.
31:55 (32:1) 371 Early in the morning Laban kissed 372 his grandchildren 373 and his daughters goodbye and blessed them. Then Laban left and returned home. 374
1:1 From Jude, 375 a slave 376 of Jesus Christ and brother of James, 377 to those who are called, wrapped in the love of 378 God the Father and kept for 379 Jesus Christ.
1 tn The chapter begins with a disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + predicate) that introduces a new character and a new scene in the story.
2 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 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.
4 tn Heb “animals of the field.”
5 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.”
6 sn God. The serpent does not use the expression “Yahweh God” [
7 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.
8 tn There is a notable change between what the
9 sn And you must not touch it. The woman adds to God’s prohibition, making it say more than God expressed. G. von Rad observes that it is as though she wanted to set a law for herself by means of this exaggeration (Genesis [OTL], 86).
10 tn The Hebrew construction is פֶּן (pen) with the imperfect tense, which conveys a negative purpose: “lest you die” = “in order that you not die.” By stating the warning in this way, the woman omits the emphatic infinitive used by God (“you shall surely die,” see 2:17).
11 tn The response of the serpent includes the infinitive absolute with a blatant negation equal to saying: “Not – you will surely die” (לֹא מוֹת תִּמֻתען, lo’ mot tÿmutun). The construction makes this emphatic because normally the negative particle precedes the finite verb. The serpent is a liar, denying that there is a penalty for sin (see John 8:44).
12 tn Or “you will have understanding.” This obviously refers to the acquisition of the “knowledge of good and evil,” as the next statement makes clear.
13 tn Or perhaps “like God, knowing.” It is unclear how the plural participle translated “knowing” is functioning. On the one hand, יֹדְעֵי (yodÿ’e) could be taken as a substantival participle functioning as a predicative adjective in the sentence. In this case one might translate: “You will be, like God himself, knowers of good and evil.” On the other hand, it could be taken as an attributive adjective modifying אֱלֹהִים (’elohim). In this case אֱלֹהִים has to be taken as a numerical plural referring to “gods,” “divine beings,” for if the one true God were the intended referent, a singular form of the participle would almost certainly appear as a modifier. Following this line of interpretation, one could translate, “You will be like divine beings who know good and evil.” The following context may favor this translation, for in 3:22 God says to an unidentified group, “Look, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil.” It is probable that God is addressing his heavenly court (see the note on the word “make” in 1:26), the members of which can be called “gods” or “divine beings” from the ancient Israelite perspective. (We know some of these beings as messengers or “angels.”) An examination of parallel constructions shows that a predicative understanding (“you will be, like God himself, knowers of good and evil,” cf. NIV, NRSV) is possible, but rare (see Gen 27:23, where “hairy” is predicative, complementing the verb “to be”). The statistical evidence strongly suggests that the participle is attributive, modifying “divine beings” (see Ps 31:12; Isa 1:30; 13:14; 16:2; 29:5; 58:11; Jer 14:9; 20:9; 23:9; 31:12; 48:41; 49:22; Hos 7:11; Amos 4:11). In all of these texts, where a comparative clause and accompanying adjective/participle follow a copulative (“to be”) verb, the adjective/participle is attributive after the noun in the comparative clause.
14 sn You will be like divine beings who know good and evil. The serpent raises doubts about the integrity of God. He implies that the only reason for the prohibition was that God was protecting the divine domain. If the man and woman were to eat, they would enter into that domain. The temptation is to overstep divinely established boundaries. (See D. E. Gowan, When Man Becomes God [PTMS], 25.)
15 tn Heb “And the woman saw.” The clause can be rendered as a temporal clause subordinate to the following verb in the sequence.
16 tn Heb “that the tree was good for food.” The words “produced fruit that was” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied.
17 tn The Hebrew word תַּאֲוָה (ta’avah, translated “attractive” here) actually means “desirable.” This term and the later term נֶחְמָד (nekhmad, “desirable”) are synonyms.
18 tn Heb “that good was the tree for food, and that desirable it was to the eyes, and desirable was the tree to make one wise.” On the connection between moral wisdom and the “knowledge of good and evil,” see the note on the word “evil” in 2:9.
19 tn The pronoun “it” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied (here and also after “ate” at the end of this verse) for stylistic reasons.
20 sn This pericope (3:1-7) is a fine example of Hebrew narrative structure. After an introductory disjunctive clause that introduces a new character and sets the stage (3:1), the narrative tension develops through dialogue, culminating in the action of the story. Once the dialogue is over, the action is told in a rapid sequence of verbs – she took, she ate, she gave, and he ate.
21 tn The Hitpael participle of הָלָךְ (halakh, “to walk, to go”) here has an iterative sense, “moving” or “going about.” While a translation of “walking about” is possible, it assumes a theophany, the presence of the
22 tn The expression is traditionally rendered “cool of the day,” because the Hebrew word רוּחַ (ruakh) can mean “wind.” U. Cassuto (Genesis: From Adam to Noah, 152-54) concludes after lengthy discussion that the expression refers to afternoon when it became hot and the sun was beginning to decline. J. J. Niehaus (God at Sinai [SOTBT], 155-57) offers a different interpretation of the phrase, relating יוֹם (yom, usually understood as “day”) to an Akkadian cognate umu (“storm”) and translates the phrase “in the wind of the storm.” If Niehaus is correct, then God is not pictured as taking an afternoon stroll through the orchard, but as coming in a powerful windstorm to confront the man and woman with their rebellion. In this case קוֹל יְהוָה (qol yÿhvah, “sound of the
23 tn The verb used here is the Hitpael, giving the reflexive idea (“they hid themselves”). In v. 10, when Adam answers the
24 tn The Hebrew verb קָרָא (qara’, “to call”) followed by the preposition אֶל־ or לְ (’el- or lÿ, “to, unto”) often carries the connotation of “summon.”
25 sn Where are you? The question is probably rhetorical (a figure of speech called erotesis) rather than literal, because it was spoken to the man, who answers it with an explanation of why he was hiding rather than a location. The question has more the force of “Why are you hiding?”
26 tn Heb “and he said.”
27 tn Heb “your sound.” If one sees a storm theophany here (see the note on the word “time” in v. 8), then one could translate, “your powerful voice.”
28 tn Heb “and he said.” The referent (the
29 sn Who told you that you were naked? This is another rhetorical question, asking more than what it appears to ask. The second question in the verse reveals the
30 sn The Hebrew word order (“Did you from the tree – which I commanded you not to eat from it – eat?”) is arranged to emphasize that the man’s and the woman’s eating of the fruit was an act of disobedience. The relative clause inserted immediately after the reference to the tree brings out this point very well.
31 tn The Hebrew construction in this sentence uses an independent nominative absolute (formerly known as a casus pendens). “The woman” is the independent nominative absolute; it is picked up by the formal subject, the pronoun “she” written with the verb (“she gave”). The point of the construction is to throw the emphasis on “the woman.” But what makes this so striking is that a relative clause has been inserted to explain what is meant by the reference to the woman: “whom you gave me.” Ultimately, the man is blaming God for giving him the woman who (from the man’s viewpoint) caused him to sin.
32 tn The words “some fruit” here and the pronoun “it” at the end of the sentence are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for stylistic reasons.
33 tn The use of the demonstrative pronoun is enclitic, serving as an undeclined particle for emphasis. It gives the sense of “What in the world have you done?” (see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 24, §118).
34 sn The Hebrew word order puts the subject (“the serpent”) before the verb here, giving prominence to it.
35 tn This verb (the Hiphil of נָשָׁא, nasha) is used elsewhere of a king or god misleading his people into false confidence (2 Kgs 18:29 = 2 Chr 32:15 = Isa 36:14; 2 Kgs 19:10 = Isa 37:10), of an ally deceiving a partner (Obad 7), of God deceiving his sinful people as a form of judgment (Jer 4:10), of false prophets instilling their audience with false hope (Jer 29:8), and of pride and false confidence producing self-deception (Jer 37:9; 49:16; Obad 3).
36 sn Note that God asks no question of the serpent, does not call for confession, as he did to the man and the woman; there is only the announcement of the curse. The order in this section is chiastic: The man is questioned, the woman is questioned, the serpent is cursed, sentence is passed on the woman, sentence is passed on the man.
37 tn The Hebrew word translated “cursed,” a passive participle from אָרָר (’arar), either means “punished” or “banished,” depending on how one interprets the following preposition. If the preposition is taken as comparative, then the idea is “cursed [i.e., punished] are you above [i.e., more than] all the wild beasts.” In this case the comparative preposition reflects the earlier comparison: The serpent was more shrewd than all others, and so more cursed than all others. If the preposition is taken as separative (see the note on the word “ground” in 4:11), then the idea is “cursed and banished from all the wild beasts.” In this case the serpent is condemned to isolation from all the other animals.
38 tn Heb “go”; “walk,” but in English “crawl” or “slither” better describes a serpent’s movement.
39 sn Dust you will eat. Being restricted to crawling on the ground would necessarily involve “eating dust,” although that is not the diet of the serpent. The idea of being brought low, of “eating dust” as it were, is a symbol of humiliation.
40 tn The Hebrew word translated “hostility” is derived from the root אֵיב (’ev, “to be hostile, to be an adversary [or enemy]”). The curse announces that there will be continuing hostility between the serpent and the woman. The serpent will now live in a “battle zone,” as it were.
41 sn The Hebrew word translated “offspring” is a collective singular. The text anticipates the ongoing struggle between human beings (the woman’s offspring) and deadly poisonous snakes (the serpent’s offspring). An ancient Jewish interpretation of the passage states: “He made the serpent, cause of the deceit, press the earth with belly and flank, having bitterly driven him out. He aroused a dire enmity between them. The one guards his head to save it, the other his heel, for death is at hand in the proximity of men and malignant poisonous snakes.” See Sib. Or. 1:59-64. For a similar interpretation see Josephus, Ant. 1.1.4 (1.50-51).
42 tn Heb “he will attack [or “bruise”] you [on] the head.” The singular pronoun and verb agree grammatically with the collective singular noun “offspring.” For other examples of singular verb and pronominal forms being used with the collective singular “offspring,” see Gen 16:10; 22:17; 24:60. The word “head” is an adverbial accusative, locating the blow. A crushing blow to the head would be potentially fatal.
43 tn Or “but you will…”; or “as they attack your head, you will attack their heel.” The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) is understood as contrastive. Both clauses place the subject before the verb, a construction that is sometimes used to indicate synchronic action (see Judg 15:14).
44 sn You will attack her offspring’s heel. Though the conflict will actually involve the serpent’s offspring (snakes) and the woman’s offspring (human beings), v. 15b for rhetorical effect depicts the conflict as being between the serpent and the woman’s offspring, as if the serpent will outlive the woman. The statement is personalized for the sake of the addressee (the serpent) and reflects the ancient Semitic concept of corporate solidarity, which emphasizes the close relationship between a progenitor and his offspring. Note Gen 28:14, where the
45 tn Heb “you will attack him [on] the heel.” The verb (translated “attack”) is repeated here, a fact that is obscured by some translations (e.g., NIV “crush…strike”). The singular pronoun agrees grammatically with the collective singular noun “offspring.” For other examples of singular verb and pronominal forms being used with the collective singular “offspring,” see Gen 16:10; 22:17; 24:60. The word “heel” is an adverbial accusative, locating the blow. A bite on the heel from a poisonous serpent is potentially fatal.
46 tn The imperfect verb form is emphasized and intensified by the infinitive absolute from the same verb.
47 tn Heb “your pain and your conception,” suggesting to some interpreters that having a lot of children was a result of the judgment (probably to make up for the loss through death). But the next clause shows that the pain is associated with conception and childbirth. The two words form a hendiadys (where two words are joined to express one idea, like “good and angry” in English), the second explaining the first. “Conception,” if the correct meaning of the noun, must be figurative here since there is no pain in conception; it is a synecdoche, representing the entire process of childbirth and child rearing from the very start. However, recent etymological research suggests the noun is derived from a root הרר (hrr), not הרה (hrh), and means “trembling, pain” (see D. Tsumura, “A Note on הרוֹן (Gen 3,16),” Bib 75 [1994]: 398-400). In this case “pain and trembling” refers to the physical effects of childbirth. The word עִצְּבוֹן (’itsÿvon, “pain”), an abstract noun related to the verb (עָצַב, ’atsav), includes more than physical pain. It is emotional distress as well as physical pain. The same word is used in v. 17 for the man’s painful toil in the field.
48 tn Heb “and toward your husband [will be] your desire.” The nominal sentence does not have a verb; a future verb must be supplied, because the focus of the oracle is on the future struggle. The precise meaning of the noun תְּשׁוּקָה (tÿshuqah, “desire”) is debated. Many interpreters conclude that it refers to sexual desire here, because the subject of the passage is the relationship between a wife and her husband, and because the word is used in a romantic sense in Song 7:11 HT (7:10 ET). However, this interpretation makes little sense in Gen 3:16. First, it does not fit well with the assertion “he will dominate you.” Second, it implies that sexual desire was not part of the original creation, even though the man and the woman were told to multiply. And third, it ignores the usage of the word in Gen 4:7 where it refers to sin’s desire to control and dominate Cain. (Even in Song of Songs it carries the basic idea of “control,” for it describes the young man’s desire to “have his way sexually” with the young woman.) In Gen 3:16 the
49 tn The Hebrew verb מָשַׁל (mashal) means “to rule over,” but in a way that emphasizes powerful control, domination, or mastery. This also is part of the baser human nature. The translation assumes the imperfect verb form has an objective/indicative sense here. Another option is to understand it as having a modal, desiderative nuance, “but he will want to dominate you.” In this case, the
50 tn Since there is no article on the word, the personal name is used, rather than the generic “the man” (cf. NRSV).
51 tn The idiom “listen to the voice of” often means “obey.” The man “obeyed” his wife and in the process disobeyed God.
52 sn For the ground to be cursed means that it will no longer yield its bounty as the blessing from God had promised. The whole creation, Paul writes in Rom 8:22, is still groaning under this curse, waiting for the day of redemption.
53 tn The Hebrew phrase בַּעֲבוּרֶךָ (ba’avurekha) is more literally translated “on your account” or “because of you.” The idiomatic “thanks to you” in the translation tries to capture the point of this expression.
54 sn In painful toil you will eat. The theme of eating is prominent throughout Gen 3. The prohibition was against eating from the tree of knowledge. The sin was in eating. The interrogation concerned the eating from the tree of knowledge. The serpent is condemned to eat the dust of the ground. The curse focuses on eating in a “measure for measure” justice. Because the man and the woman sinned by eating the forbidden fruit, God will forbid the ground to cooperate, and so it will be through painful toil that they will eat.
55 tn The Hebrew term עֵשֶׂב (’esev), when referring to human food, excludes grass (eaten by cattle) and woody plants like vines.
56 tn The expression “the sweat of your brow” is a metonymy, the sweat being the result of painful toil in the fields.
57 sn Until you return to the ground. The theme of humankind’s mortality is critical here in view of the temptation to be like God. Man will labor painfully to provide food, obviously not enjoying the bounty that creation promised. In place of the abundance of the orchard’s fruit trees, thorns and thistles will grow. Man will have to work the soil so that it will produce the grain to make bread. This will continue until he returns to the soil from which he was taken (recalling the creation in 2:7 with the wordplay on Adam and ground). In spite of the dreams of immortality and divinity, man is but dust (2:7), and will return to dust. So much for his pride.
58 sn In general, the themes of the curse oracles are important in the NT teaching that Jesus became the cursed one hanging on the tree. In his suffering and death, all the motifs are drawn together: the tree, the sweat, the thorns, and the dust of death (see Ps 22:15). Jesus experienced it all, to have victory over it through the resurrection.
59 tn Or “Adam”; however, the Hebrew term has the definite article here.
60 sn The name Eve means “Living one” or “Life-giver” in Hebrew.
61 tn The explanatory clause gives the reason for the name. Where the one doing the naming gives the explanation, the text normally uses “saying”; where the narrator explains it, the explanatory clause is typically used.
62 tn The explanation of the name forms a sound play (paronomasia) with the name. “Eve” is חַוָּה (khavvah) and “living” is חַי (khay). The name preserves the archaic form of the verb חָיָה (khayah, “to live”) with the middle vav (ו) instead of yod (י). The form חַי (khay) is derived from the normal form חַיָּה (khayyah). Compare the name Yahweh (יְהוָה) explained from הָיָה (hayah, “to be”) rather than from הַוָה (havah). The biblical account stands in contrast to the pagan material that presents a serpent goddess hawwat who is the mother of life. See J. Heller, “Der Name Eva,” ArOr 26 (1958): 636-56; and A. F. Key, “The Giving of Proper Names in the OT,” JBL 83 (1964): 55-59.
63 sn The
64 tn The particle הֵן (hen) introduces a foundational clause, usually beginning with “since, because, now.”
65 sn The man has become like one of us. See the notes on Gen 1:26 and 3:5.
66 tn The infinitive explains in what way the man had become like God: “knowing good and evil.”
67 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.
68 tn The verb is the Piel preterite of שָׁלַח (shalakh), forming a wordplay with the use of the same verb (in the Qal stem) in v. 22: To prevent the man’s “sending out” his hand, the
69 tn The verb with the vav (ו) consecutive is made subordinate to the next verb forming a temporal clause. This avoids any tautology with the previous verse that already stated that the
70 tn Or “placed in front.” Directions in ancient Israel were given in relation to the east rather than the north.
71 tn The Hebrew word is traditionally transliterated “the cherubim.”
72 tn Heb “the flame of the sword that turns round and round.” The noun “flame” is qualified by the genitive of specification, “the sword,” which in turn is modified by the attributive participle “whirling.” The Hitpael of the verb “turn” has an iterative function here, indicating repeated action. The form is used in Job 37:12 of swirling clouds and in Judg 7:13 of a tumbling roll of bread. Verse 24 depicts the sword as moving from side to side to prevent anyone from passing or as whirling around, ready to cut to shreds anyone who tries to pass.
73 tn The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) introduces a new episode in the ongoing narrative.
74 tn Heb “the man knew,” a frequent euphemism for sexual relations.
75 tn Or “she conceived.”
76 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.
77 tn Heb “with the
78 tn Heb “And she again gave birth.”
79 sn The name Abel is not defined here in the text, but the tone is ominous. Abel’s name, the Hebrew word הֶבֶל (hevel), means “breath, vapor, vanity,” foreshadowing Abel’s untimely and premature death.
80 tn Heb “and Abel was a shepherd of the flock, and Cain was a worker of the ground.” The designations of the two occupations are expressed with active participles, רֹעֵה (ro’eh, “shepherd”) and עֹבֵד (’oved, “worker”). Abel is occupied with sheep, whereas Cain is living under the curse, cultivating the ground.
81 tn Heb “And it happened at the end of days.” The clause indicates the passing of a set period of time leading up to offering sacrifices.
82 tn The Hebrew term מִנְחָה (minkhah, “offering”) is a general word for tribute, a gift, or an offering. It is the main word used in Lev 2 for the dedication offering. This type of offering could be comprised of vegetables. The content of the offering (vegetables, as opposed to animals) was not the critical issue, but rather the attitude of the offerer.
83 tn Heb “But Abel brought, also he….” The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) stresses the contrast between Cain’s offering and Abel’s.
84 tn Two prepositional phrases are used to qualify the kind of sacrifice that Abel brought: “from the firstborn” and “from the fattest of them.” These also could be interpreted as a hendiadys: “from the fattest of the firstborn of the flock.” Another option is to understand the second prepositional phrase as referring to the fat portions of the sacrificial sheep. In this case one may translate, “some of the firstborn of his flock, even some of their fat portions” (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV).
85 tn The Hebrew verb שָׁעָה (sha’ah) simply means “to gaze at, to have regard for, to look on with favor [or “with devotion”].” The text does not indicate how this was communicated, but it indicates that Cain and Abel knew immediately. Either there was some manifestation of divine pleasure given to Abel and withheld from Cain (fire consuming the sacrifice?), or there was an inner awareness of divine response.
86 sn The Letter to the Hebrews explains the difference between the brothers as one of faith – Abel by faith offered a better sacrifice. Cain’s offering as well as his reaction to God’s displeasure did not reflect faith. See further B. K. Waltke, “Cain and His Offering,” WTJ 48 (1986): 363-72.
87 tn Heb “and it was hot to Cain.” This Hebrew idiom means that Cain “burned” with anger.
88 tn Heb “And his face fell.” The idiom means that the inner anger is reflected in Cain’s facial expression. The fallen or downcast face expresses anger, dejection, or depression. Conversely, in Num 6 the high priestly blessing speaks of the
89 tn The introduction of the conditional clause with an interrogative particle prods the answer from Cain, as if he should have known this. It is not a condemnation, but an encouragement to do what is right.
90 tn The Hebrew text is difficult, because only one word occurs, שְׂאֵת (sÿ’et), which appears to be the infinitive construct from the verb “to lift up” (נָאָשׂ, na’as). The sentence reads: “If you do well, uplifting.” On the surface it seems to be the opposite of the fallen face. Everything will be changed if he does well. God will show him favor, he will not be angry, and his face will reflect that. But more may be intended since the second half of the verse forms the contrast: “If you do not do well, sin is crouching….” Not doing well leads to sinful attack; doing well leads to victory and God’s blessing.
91 tn The Hebrew term translated “crouching” (רֹבֵץ, rovets) is an active participle. Sin is portrayed with animal imagery here as a beast crouching and ready to pounce (a figure of speech known as zoomorphism). An Akkadian cognate refers to a type of demon; in this case perhaps one could translate, “Sin is the demon at the door” (see E. A. Speiser, Genesis [AB], 29, 32-33).
92 tn Heb “and toward you [is] its desire, but you must rule over it.” As in Gen 3:16, the Hebrew noun “desire” refers to an urge to control or dominate. Here the desire is that which sin has for Cain, a desire to control for the sake of evil, but Cain must have mastery over it. The imperfect is understood as having an obligatory sense. Another option is to understand it as expressing potential (“you can have [or “are capable of having”] mastery over it.”). It will be a struggle, but sin can be defeated by righteousness. In addition to this connection to Gen 3, other linguistic and thematic links between chaps. 3 and 4 are discussed by A. J. Hauser, “Linguistic and Thematic Links Between Genesis 4:1-6 and Genesis 2–3,” JETS 23 (1980): 297-306.
93 tc The MT has simply “and Cain said to Abel his brother,” omitting Cain’s words to Abel. It is possible that the elliptical text is original. Perhaps the author uses the technique of aposiopesis, “a sudden silence” to create tension. In the midst of the story the narrator suddenly rushes ahead to what happened in the field. It is more likely that the ancient versions (Samaritan Pentateuch, LXX, Vulgate, and Syriac), which include Cain’s words, “Let’s go out to the field,” preserve the original reading here. After writing אָחִיו (’akhiyv, “his brother”), a scribe’s eye may have jumped to the end of the form בַּשָּׂדֶה (basadeh, “to the field”) and accidentally omitted the quotation. This would be an error of virtual homoioteleuton. In older phases of the Hebrew script the sequence יו (yod-vav) on אָחִיו is graphically similar to the final ה (he) on בַּשָּׂדֶה.
94 tn Heb “arose against” (in a hostile sense).
95 sn The word “brother” appears six times in vv. 8-11, stressing the shocking nature of Cain’s fratricide (see 1 John 3:12).
96 sn Where is Abel your brother? Again the
97 tn Heb “The one guarding my brother [am] I?”
98 sn What have you done? Again the
99 tn The word “voice” is a personification; the evidence of Abel’s shed blood condemns Cain, just as a human eyewitness would testify in court. For helpful insights, see G. von Rad, Biblical Interpretations in Preaching; and L. Morris, “The Biblical Use of the Term ‘Blood,’” JTS 6 (1955/56): 77-82.
100 tn Heb “cursed are you from the ground.” As in Gen 3:14, the word “cursed,” a passive participle from אָרָר (’arar), either means “punished” or “banished,” depending on how one interprets the following preposition. If the preposition is taken as indicating source, then the idea is “cursed (i.e., punished) are you from [i.e., “through the agency of”] the ground” (see v. 12a). If the preposition is taken as separative, then the idea is “cursed and banished from the ground.” In this case the ground rejects Cain’s efforts in such a way that he is banished from the ground and forced to become a fugitive out in the earth (see vv. 12b, 14).
101 tn Heb “work.”
102 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.
103 tn Heb “its strength.”
104 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).
105 tn The primary meaning of the Hebrew word עָוֹן (’avon) is “sin, iniquity.” But by metonymy it can refer to the “guilt” of sin, or to “punishment” for sin. The third meaning applies here. Just before this the
106 tn Heb “great is my punishment from bearing.” The preposition מִן (min, “from”) is used here in a comparative sense.
107 tn Heb “from upon the surface of the ground.”
108 sn I must hide from your presence. The motif of hiding from the
109 tn The Hebrew term לָכֵן (lakhen, “therefore”) in this context carries the sense of “Okay,” or “in that case then I will do this.”
110 sn The symbolic number seven is used here to emphasize that the offender will receive severe punishment. For other rhetorical and hyperbolic uses of the expression “seven times over,” see Pss 12:6; 79:12; Prov 6:31; Isa 30:26.
111 tn Heb “sign”; “reminder.” The term “sign” is not used in the translation because it might imply to an English reader that God hung a sign on Cain. The text does not identify what the “sign” was. It must have been some outward, visual reminder of Cain’s special protected status.
112 sn God becomes Cain’s protector. Here is common grace – Cain and his community will live on under God’s care, but without salvation.
113 sn The name Nod means “wandering” in Hebrew (see vv. 12, 14).
114 tn Heb “knew,” a frequent euphemism for sexual relations.
115 tn Or “she conceived.”
116 tn Heb “according to the name of.”
117 tn Heb “and Irad fathered.”
118 tn Heb “father.” In this passage the word “father” means “founder,” referring to the first to establish such lifestyles and occupations.
119 tn The word “keep” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation. Other words that might be supplied instead are “tend,” “raise” (NIV), or “have” (NRSV).
120 tn The traditional rendering here, “who forged” (or “a forger of”) is now more commonly associated with counterfeit or fraud (e.g., “forged copies” or “forged checks”) than with the forging of metal. The phrase “heated metal and shaped [it]” has been used in the translation instead.
121 tn The Hebrew term יֶלֶד (yeled) probably refers to a youthful warrior here, not a child.
122 sn Seventy-seven times. Lamech seems to reason this way: If Cain, a murderer, is to be avenged seven times (see v. 15), then how much more one who has been unjustly wronged! Lamech misses the point of God’s merciful treatment of Cain. God was not establishing a principle of justice when he warned he would avenge Cain’s murder. In fact he was trying to limit the shedding of blood, something Lamech wants to multiply instead. The use of “seventy-seven,” a multiple of seven, is hyperbolic, emphasizing the extreme severity of the vengeance envisioned by Lamech.
123 tn Heb “knew,” a frequent euphemism for sexual relations.
124 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).
125 tn Heb “offspring.”
126 tn The word “people” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation. The construction uses a passive verb without an expressed subject. “To call was begun” can be interpreted to mean that people began to call.
127 tn Heb “call in the name.” The expression refers to worshiping the
128 tn Heb “book” or “roll.” Cf. NIV “written account”; NRSV “list.”
129 tn Heb “generations.” See the note on the phrase “this is the account of” in 2:4.
130 tn The Hebrew text has אָדָם (’adam).
131 tn Heb “him.” The Hebrew text uses the third masculine singular pronominal suffix on the accusative sign. The pronoun agrees grammatically with its antecedent אָדָם (’adam). However, the next verse makes it clear that אָדָם is collective here and refers to “humankind,” so it is preferable to translate the pronoun with the English plural.
132 tn The Hebrew word used here is אָדָם (’adam).
133 tn Heb “and Adam lived 130 years.” In the translation the verb is subordinated to the following verb, “and he fathered,” and rendered as a temporal clause.
134 tn Heb “The days of Adam.”
135 tn Heb “he fathered.”
136 tn The word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons.
137 tn Heb “all the days of Adam which he lived”
138 sn The genealogy traces the line from Adam to Noah and forms a bridge between the earlier accounts and the flood story. Its constant theme of the reign of death in the human race is broken once with the account of Enoch, but the genealogy ends with hope for the future through Noah. See further G. F. Hasel, “The Genealogies of Gen. 5 and 11 and their Alleged Babylonian Background,” AUSS 16 (1978): 361-74; idem, “Genesis 5 and 11,” Origins 7 (1980): 23-37.
139 tn Heb “he fathered.”
140 tn Heb “he fathered.”
141 tn Here and in vv. 10, 13, 16, 19 the word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons.
142 sn With the seventh panel there is a digression from the pattern. Instead of simply saying that Enoch lived, the text observes that he “walked with God.” The rare expression “walked with” (the Hitpael form of the verb הָלָךְ, halakh, “to walk” collocated with the preposition אֶת, ’et, “with”) is used in 1 Sam 25:15 to describe how David’s men maintained a cordial and cooperative relationship with Nabal’s men as they worked and lived side by side in the fields. In Gen 5:22 the phrase suggests that Enoch and God “got along.” This may imply that Enoch lived in close fellowship with God, leading a life of devotion and piety. An early Jewish tradition, preserved in 1 En. 1:9 and alluded to in Jude 14, says that Enoch preached about the coming judgment. See F. S. Parnham, “Walking with God,” EvQ 46 (1974): 117-18.
143 tn Heb “and Enoch walked with God, after he became the father of Methuselah, [for] 300 years.”
144 tn The word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons.
145 tn The Hebrew construction has the negative particle אֵין (’en, “there is not,” “there was not”) with a pronominal suffix, “he was not.” Instead of saying that Enoch died, the text says he no longer was present.
146 sn The text simply states that God took Enoch. Similar language is used of Elijah’s departure from this world (see 2 Kgs 2:10). The text implies that God overruled death for this man who walked with him.
147 tn The word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons.
148 sn The name Noah appears to be related to the Hebrew word נוּחַ (nuakh, “to rest”). There are several wordplays on the name “Noah” in the story of the flood.
149 tn The Hebrew verb יְנַחֲמֵנוּ (yÿnakhamenu) is from the root נָחָם (nakham), which means “to comfort” in the Piel verbal stem. The letters נ (nun) and ח (heth) pick up the sounds in the name “Noah,” forming a paronomasia on the name. They are not from the same verbal root, and so the connection is only by sound. Lamech’s sentiment reflects the oppression of living under the curse on the ground, but also expresses the hope for relief in some way through the birth of Noah. His words proved to be ironic but prophetic. The relief would come with a new beginning after the flood. See E. G. Kraeling, “The Interpretations of the Name Noah in Genesis 5:29,” JBL 48 (1929): 138-43.
150 tn The word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons.
151 tn Heb “Noah.” The pronoun (“he”) has been employed in the translation for stylistic reasons.
152 tn Or “the South [country]”; Heb “the land of the Negev.”
153 tn Heb “and he sojourned.”
154 tn Heb “came.”
155 tn Heb “Look, you [are] dead.” The Hebrew construction uses the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) with a second person pronominal particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) with by the participle. It is a highly rhetorical expression.
156 tn Heb “and she is owned by an owner.” The disjunctive clause is causal or explanatory in this case.
157 tn The Hebrew term translated “Lord” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
158 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.
159 tn Heb “he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
160 tn Heb “and she, even she.”
161 tn Heb “with the integrity of my heart.”
162 tn Heb “with the integrity of your heart.”
163 tn Heb “and I, even I, kept you.”
164 tn Heb “therefore.”
165 tn Or “for,” if the particle is understood as causal (as many English translations do) rather than asseverative.
166 sn For a discussion of the term prophet see N. Walker, “What is a Nabhi?” ZAW 73 (1961): 99-100.
167 tn After the preceding jussive (or imperfect), the imperative with vav conjunctive here indicates result.
168 tn Heb “if there is not you returning.” The suffix on the particle becomes the subject of the negated clause.
169 tn The imperfect is preceded by the infinitive absolute to make the warning emphatic.
170 tn Heb “And Abimelech rose early in the morning and he summoned.”
171 tn The verb קָרָא (qara’) followed by the preposition לְ (lamed) means “to summon.”
172 tn Heb “And he spoke all these things in their ears.”
173 tn Heb “the men.” This has been replaced by the pronoun “they” in the translation for stylistic reasons.
174 tn Heb “How did I sin against you that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin?” The expression “great sin” refers to adultery. For discussion of the cultural background of the passage, see J. J. Rabinowitz, “The Great Sin in Ancient Egyptian Marriage Contracts,” JNES 18 (1959): 73, and W. L. Moran, “The Scandal of the ‘Great Sin’ at Ugarit,” JNES 18 (1959): 280-81.
175 tn Heb “Deeds which should not be done you have done to me.” The imperfect has an obligatory nuance here.
176 tn Heb “And Abimelech said to.”
177 tn Heb “What did you see that you did this thing?” The question implies that Abraham had some motive for deceiving Abimelech.
178 tn Heb “Because I said.”
179 tn Heb “over the matter of.”
180 tn Heb “but also.”
181 tn The Hebrew verb is plural. This may be a case of grammatical agreement with the name for God, which is plural in form. However, when this plural name refers to the one true God, accompanying predicates are usually singular in form. Perhaps Abraham is accommodating his speech to Abimelech’s polytheistic perspective. (See GKC 463 §145.i.) If so, one should translate, “when the gods made me wander.”
182 tn Heb “This is your loyal deed which you can do for me.”
183 tn Heb “took and gave.”
184 tn Heb “In the [place that is] good in your eyes live!”
185 sn A thousand pieces [Heb “shekels”] of silver. The standards for weighing money varied considerably in the ancient Near East, but the generally accepted weight for the shekel is 11.5 grams (0.4 ounce). This makes the weight of silver here 11.5 kilograms, or 400 ounces (about 25 pounds).
186 sn To your ‘brother.’ Note the way that the king refers to Abraham. Was he being sarcastic? It was surely a rebuke to Sarah. What is amazing is how patient this king was. It is proof that the fear of God was in that place, contrary to what Abraham believed (see v. 11).
187 tn Heb “Look, it is for you a covering of the eyes, for all who are with you, and with all, and you are set right.” The exact meaning of the statement is unclear. Apparently it means that the gift of money somehow exonerates her in other people’s eyes. They will not look on her as compromised (see G. J. Wenham, Genesis [WBC], 2:74).
188 tn In the Hebrew text the clause begins with “because.”
189 tn Heb had completely closed up every womb.” In the Hebrew text infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis.
190 tn Heb “because of.” The words “he took” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
191 sn The Hebrew verb translated “visit” (פָּקַד, paqad ) often describes divine intervention for blessing or cursing; it indicates God’s special attention to an individual or a matter, always with respect to his people’s destiny. He may visit (that is, destroy) the Amalekites; he may visit (that is, deliver) his people in Egypt. Here he visits Sarah, to allow her to have the promised child. One’s destiny is changed when the
192 tn Heb “and the
193 tn Heb “spoken.”
194 tn Or “she conceived.”
195 tn Heb “the one born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.” The two modifying clauses, the first introduced with an article and the second with the relative pronoun, are placed in the middle of the sentence, before the name Isaac is stated. They are meant to underscore that this was indeed an actual birth to Abraham and Sarah in fulfillment of the promise.
196 tn Heb “Isaac his son, the son of eight days.” The name “Isaac” is repeated in the translation for clarity.
197 sn Just as God had commanded him to do. With the birth of the promised child, Abraham obeyed the
198 tn The parenthetical disjunctive clause underscores how miraculous this birth was. Abraham was 100 years old. The fact that the genealogies give the ages of the fathers when their first son is born shows that this was considered a major milestone in one’s life (G. J. Wenham, Genesis [WBC], 2:80).
199 tn Heb “Laughter God has made for me.”
200 tn The words “about this” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
201 sn Sarah’s words play on the name “Isaac” in a final triumphant manner. God prepared “laughter” (צְחֹק, ysÿkhoq ) for her, and everyone who hears about this “will laugh” (יִצְחַק, yitskhaq ) with her. The laughter now signals great joy and fulfillment, not unbelief (cf. Gen 18:12-15).
202 tn Heb “said.”
203 tn The perfect form of the verb is used here to describe a hypothetical situation.
204 tn Heb “made.”
205 sn Children were weaned closer to the age of two or three in the ancient world, because infant mortality was high. If an infant grew to this stage, it was fairly certain he or she would live. Such an event called for a celebration, especially for parents who had waited so long for a child.
206 tn Heb “saw.”
207 tn The Piel participle used here is from the same root as the name “Isaac.” In the Piel stem the verb means “to jest; to make sport of; to play with,” not simply “to laugh,” which is the meaning of the verb in the Qal stem. What exactly Ishmael was doing is not clear. Interpreters have generally concluded that the boy was either (1) mocking Isaac (cf. NASB, NIV, NLT) or (2) merely playing with Isaac as if on equal footing (cf. NAB, NRSV). In either case Sarah saw it as a threat. The same participial form was used in Gen 19:14 to describe how some in Lot’s family viewed his attempt to warn them of impending doom. It also appears later in Gen 39:14, 17, where Potiphar accuses Joseph of mocking them.
208 tn Heb “drive out.” The language may seem severe, but Sarah’s maternal instincts sensed a real danger in that Ishmael was not treating Isaac with the proper respect.
209 tn Heb “and the word was very wrong in the eyes of Abraham on account of his son.” The verb רָעַע (ra’a’) often refers to what is morally or ethically “evil.” It usage here suggests that Abraham thought Sarah’s demand was ethically (and perhaps legally) wrong.
210 tn Heb “Let it not be evil in your eyes.”
211 tn Heb “listen to her voice.” The idiomatic expression means “obey; comply.” Here her advice, though harsh, is necessary and conforms to the will of God. Later (see Gen 25), when Abraham has other sons, he sends them all away as well.
212 tn The imperfect verbal form here draws attention to an action that is underway.
213 tn Or perhaps “will be named”; Heb “for in Isaac offspring will be called to you.” The exact meaning of the statement is not clear, but it does indicate that God’s covenantal promises to Abraham will be realized through Isaac, not Ishmael.
214 tn Heb “and Abraham rose up early in the morning and he took.”
215 tn Heb “bread,” although the term can be used for food in general.
216 tn Heb “He put upon her shoulder, and the boy [or perhaps, “and with the boy”], and he sent her away.” It is unclear how “and the boy” relates syntactically to what precedes. Perhaps the words should be rearranged and the text read, “and he put [them] on her shoulder and he gave to Hagar the boy.”
217 tn Heb “she went and wandered.”
218 tn Or “desert,” although for English readers this usually connotes a sandy desert like the Sahara rather than the arid wasteland of this region with its sparse vegetation.
219 tn Heb “threw,” but the child, who was now thirteen years old, would not have been carried, let alone thrown under a bush. The exaggerated language suggests Ishmael is limp from dehydration and is being abandoned to die. See G. J. Wenham, Genesis (WBC), 2:85.
220 sn A bowshot would be a distance of about a hundred yards (ninety meters).
221 tn Heb “said.”
222 tn Heb “I will not look on the death of the child.” The cohortative verbal form (note the negative particle אַל,’al) here expresses her resolve to avoid the stated action.
223 tn Heb “and she lifted up her voice and wept” (that is, she wept uncontrollably). The LXX reads “he” (referring to Ishmael) rather than “she” (referring to Hagar), but this is probably an attempt to harmonize this verse with the following one, which refers to the boy’s cries.
224 sn God heard the boy’s voice. The text has not to this point indicated that Ishmael was crying out, either in pain or in prayer. But the text here makes it clear that God heard him. Ishmael is clearly central to the story. Both the mother and the
225 tn Heb “What to you?”
226 sn Here the verb heard picks up the main motif of the name Ishmael (“God hears”), introduced back in chap. 16.
227 tn Heb “And God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water.” The referent (Hagar) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
228 sn The wilderness of Paran is an area in the east central region of the Sinai peninsula, northeast from the traditional site of Mt. Sinai and with the Arabah and the Gulf of Aqaba as its eastern border.
229 tn Heb “And his mother took for him a wife from the land of Egypt.”
230 sn God is with you. Abimelech and Phicol recognized that Abraham enjoyed special divine provision and protection.
231 tn Heb “And now swear to me by God here.”
232 tn Heb “my offspring and my descendants.”
233 tn The word “land” refers by metonymy to the people in the land.
234 tn The Hebrew verb means “to stay, to live, to sojourn” as a temporary resident without ownership rights.
235 tn Or “kindness.”
236 tn Heb “According to the loyalty which I have done with you, do with me and with the land in which you are staying.”
237 tn Heb “I swear.” No object is specified in the Hebrew text, but the content of the oath requested by Abimelech is the implied object.
238 tn The Hebrew verb used here means “to argue; to dispute”; it can focus on the beginning of the dispute (as here), the dispute itself, or the resolution of a dispute (Isa 1:18). Apparently the complaint was lodged before the actual oath was taken.
239 tn Heb “concerning the matter of the well of water.”
240 tn The Hebrew verb used here means “to steal; to rob; to take violently.” The statement reflects Abraham’s perspective.
241 tn Heb “and also.”
242 tn Heb “cut a covenant.”
243 tn Heb “What are these?”
244 tn Heb “that it be for me for a witness.”
245 sn This well. Since the king wanted a treaty to share in Abraham’s good fortune, Abraham used the treaty to secure ownership of and protection for the well he dug. It would be useless to make a treaty to live in this territory if he had no rights to the water. Abraham consented to the treaty, but added his rider to it.
246 tn Heb “that is why he called that place.” Some translations render this as an impersonal passive, “that is why that place was called.”
247 sn The name Beer Sheba (בְּאֵר שָׁבַע, bÿ’er shava’) means “well of the oath” or “well of the seven.” Both the verb “to swear” and the number “seven” have been used throughout the account. Now they are drawn in as part of the explanation of the significance of the name.
248 sn The verb forms a wordplay with the name Beer Sheba.
249 tn Heb “cut a covenant.”
250 tn Heb “arose and returned.”
251 sn The Philistines mentioned here may not be ethnically related to those who lived in Palestine in the time of the judges and the united monarchy. See D. M. Howard, “Philistines,” Peoples of the Old Testament World, 238.
252 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
253 sn The planting of the tamarisk tree is a sign of Abraham’s intent to stay there for a long time, not a religious act. A growing tree in the Negev would be a lasting witness to God’s provision of water.
254 tn Heb “he called there in the name of the
255 tn Heb “many days.”
256 tn Heb “and he heard the words of the sons of Laban, saying.”
257 sn The Hebrew word translated “gotten rich” (כָּבוֹד, cavod) has the basic idea of “weight.” If one is heavy with possessions, then that one is wealthy (13:2). Abraham, Jacob, and Joseph all became wealthy when they left the promised land. Jacob’s wealth foreshadows what will happen to Israel when they leave the land of Egypt (Exod 12:35-38).
258 tn Heb “and from that which belonged to our father he has gained all this wealth.”
259 tn Heb “and Jacob saw the face of Laban, and look, he was not with him as formerly.” Jacob knew from the expression on Laban’s face that his attitude toward him had changed – Jacob had become persona non grata.
260 tn Or perhaps “ancestors” (so NRSV), although the only “ancestors” Jacob had there were his grandfather Abraham and his father Isaac.
261 sn I will be with you. Though Laban was no longer “with him,” the
262 tn Heb “sent and called for Rachel and for Leah.” Jacob did not go in person, but probably sent a servant with a message for his wives to meet him in the field.
263 tn Heb “the field.” The word is an adverbial accusative, indicating that this is where Jacob wanted them to meet him. The words “to come to” are supplied in the translation for clarification and stylistic reasons.
264 tn Heb “to his flock.”
265 tn Heb “I see the face of your father, that he is not toward me as formerly.”
266 tn Heb “with all my strength.”
267 tn This rare verb means “to make a fool of” someone. It involves deceiving someone so that their public reputation suffers (see Exod 8:25).
268 tn In the protasis (“if” section) of this conditional clause, the imperfect verbal form has a customary nuance – whatever he would say worked to Jacob’s benefit.
269 tn Heb “speckled” (twice this verse). The word “animals” (after the first occurrence of “speckled”) and “offspring” (after the second) have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. The same two terms (“animals” and “offspring”) have been supplied after the two occurrences of “streaked” later in this verse.
270 tn The sentence begins with the temporal indicator, “and it happened at the time of.”
271 tn Heb “in the time of the breeding of the flock I lifted up my eyes and I saw.”
272 tn Heb “going up on,” that is, mounting for intercourse.
273 tn Heb “lift up (now) your eyes and see.”
274 tn Heb “going up on,” that is, mounting for intercourse.
275 map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.
276 sn You anointed the sacred stone. In Gen 28:18 the text simply reported that Jacob poured oil on top of the stone. Now that pouring is interpreted by the
277 sn And made a vow to me. The second clause reminds Jacob of the vow he made to the
278 tn Heb “arise, leave!” The first imperative draws attention to the need for immediate action.
279 tn The two nouns may form a hendiadys, meaning “a share in the inheritance” or “a portion to inherit.”
280 tn Heb “and he devoured, even devouring.” The infinitive absolute (following the finite verb here) is used for emphasis.
281 tn Heb “our money.” The word “money” is used figuratively here; it means the price paid for Leah and Rachel. A literal translation (“our money”) makes it sound as if Laban wasted money that belonged to Rachel and Leah, rather than the money paid for them.
282 tn Heb “and Jacob arose and he lifted up his sons and his wives on to the camels.”
283 tn Heb “drove,” but this is subject to misunderstanding in contemporary English.
284 tn Heb “and he led away all his cattle and all his moveable property which he acquired, the cattle he obtained, which he acquired in Paddan Aram to go to Isaac his father to the land of Canaan.”
285 tn This disjunctive clause (note the pattern conjunction + subject + verb) introduces a new scene. In the English translation it may be subordinated to the following clause.
286 tn Or “household gods.” Some translations merely transliterate the Hebrew term תְּרָפִים (tÿrafim) as “teraphim,” which apparently refers to household idols. Some contend that possession of these idols guaranteed the right of inheritance, but it is more likely that they were viewed simply as protective deities. See M. Greenberg, “Another Look at Rachel’s Theft of the Teraphim,” JBL 81 (1962): 239-48.
287 tn Heb “stole the heart of,” an expression which apparently means “to deceive.” The repetition of the verb “to steal” shows that Jacob and Rachel are kindred spirits. Any thought that Laban would have resigned himself to their departure was now out of the question.
288 tn Heb “fleeing,” which reflects Jacob’s viewpoint.
289 tn Heb “and he fled.”
290 tn Heb “he arose and crossed.” The first verb emphasizes that he wasted no time in getting across.
291 tn Heb “the river”; the referent (the Euphrates) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
292 tn Heb “he set his face.”
293 tn Heb “and it was told to Laban on the third day that Jacob had fled.”
294 tn Heb “his brothers.”
295 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
296 tn Heb “and he pursued after him a journey of seven days.”
297 tn Heb “drew close to.”
298 tn Heb “said to him.”
299 tn Heb “watch yourself,” which is a warning to be on guard against doing something that is inappropriate.
300 tn Heb “lest you speak with Jacob from good to evil.” The precise meaning of the expression, which occurs only here and in v. 29, is uncertain. Since Laban proceeded to speak to Jacob at length, it cannot mean to maintain silence. Nor does it seem to be a prohibition against criticism (see vv. 26-30). Most likely it refers to a formal pronouncement, whether it be a blessing or a curse. Laban was to avoid saying anything to Jacob that would be intended to enhance him or to harm him.
301 tn Heb “and Jacob pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban pitched with his brothers in the hill country of Gilead.” The juxtaposition of disjunctive clauses (note the pattern conjunction + subject + verb in both clauses) indicates synchronism of action.
302 tn Heb “and you have stolen my heart.” This expression apparently means “to deceive” (see v. 20).
303 tn Heb “and you have led away my daughters like captives of a sword.”
304 tn Heb “Why did you hide in order to flee?” The verb “hide” and the infinitive “to flee” form a hendiadys, the infinitive becoming the main verb and the other the adverb: “flee secretly.”
305 tn Heb “and steal me.”
306 tn Heb “And [why did] you not tell me so I could send you off with joy and with songs, with a tambourine and with a harp?”
307 tn Heb “my sons and my daughters.” Here “sons” refers to “grandsons,” and has been translated “grandchildren” since at least one granddaughter, Dinah, was involved. The order has been reversed in the translation for stylistic reasons.
308 tn Heb “there is to my hand.”
309 tn Heb “watch yourself,” which is a warning to be on guard against doing something that is inappropriate.
310 tn Heb “from speaking with Jacob from good to evil.” The precise meaning of the expression, which occurs only here and in v. 24, is uncertain. See the note on the same phrase in v. 24.
311 tn Heb “and now.” The words “I understand that” have been supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.
312 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the perfect verbal form to emphasize the certainty of the action.
313 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the perfect verbal form to emphasize the degree of emotion involved.
314 sn Yet why did you steal my gods? This last sentence is dropped into the speech rather suddenly. See C. Mabee, “Jacob and Laban: The Structure of Judicial Proceedings,” VT 30 (1980): 192-207, and G. W. Coats, “Self-Abasement and Insult Formulas,” JBL 91 (1972): 90-92.
315 tn Heb “and Jacob answered and said to Laban, ‘Because I was afraid.’” This statement is a not a response to the question about Laban’s household gods that immediately precedes, but to the earlier question about Jacob’s motivation for leaving so quickly and secretly (see v. 27). For this reason the words “I left secretly” are supplied in the translation to indicate the connection to Laban’s earlier question in v. 27. Additionally the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse have been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
316 tn Heb “for I said.”
317 tn Heb “lest you steal your daughters from with me.”
318 tn Heb “With whomever you find your gods, he will not live.”
319 tn Heb “brothers.”
320 tn Heb “recognize for yourself what is with me and take for yourself.”
321 tn The disjunctive clause (introduced here by a vav [ו] conjunction) provides supplemental material that is important to the story. Since this material is parenthetical in nature, it has been placed in parentheses in the translation.
322 tn No direct object is specified for the verb “find” in the Hebrew text. The words “the idols” have been supplied in the translation for clarification.
323 tn Heb “and he went out from the tent of Leah and went into the tent of Rachel.”
324 tn The “camel’s saddle” was probably some sort of basket-saddle, a cushioned saddle with a basket bound on. Cf. NAB “inside a camel cushion.”
325 tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by a vav [ו] conjunction) provides another parenthetical statement necessary to the storyline.
326 tn The word “them” has been supplied in the translation for clarification.
327 tn Heb “she”; the referent (Rachel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
328 tn Heb “let it not be hot in the eyes of my lord.” This idiom refers to anger, in this case as a result of Rachel’s failure to stand in the presence of her father as a sign of respect.
329 tn Heb “I am unable to rise.”
330 tn Heb “the way of women is to me.” This idiom refers to a woman’s menstrual period.
331 tn The word “thoroughly” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied.
332 tn Heb “it was hot to Jacob.” This idiom refers to anger.
333 tn Heb “and Jacob answered and said to Laban, ‘What is my sin?’” The proper name “Jacob” has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation and the order of the introductory clause and direct discourse rearranged for stylistic reasons.
334 tn Heb “What is my sin that you have hotly pursued after me.” The Hebrew verb translated “pursue hotly” is used elsewhere of soldiers chasing defeated enemies (1 Sam 17:53).
335 tn Heb “what did you find from all the goods of your house?”
336 tn Heb “your relatives.” The word “relatives” has not been repeated in the translation here for stylistic reasons.
337 tn Heb “that they may decide between us two.”
338 tn The imperfect verbal form indicates that this was a customary or typical action.
339 tn Heb “from my hand you exacted it.” The imperfect verbal form again indicates that this was a customary or typical action. The words “for every missing animal” are supplied in the translation for clarity; the following clause in Hebrew, “stolen by day or stolen by night,” probably means “stolen by wild beasts” and refers to the same animals “torn by wild beasts” in the previous clause, although it may refer to animals stolen by people. The translation used here, “missing,” is ambiguous enough to cover either eventuality.
340 tn Or “by drought.”
341 tn Heb “frost, ice,” though when contrasted with the חֹרֶב (khorev, “drought, parching heat”) of the day, “piercing cold” is more appropriate as a contrast.
342 tn Heb “and my sleep fled from my eyes.”
343 tn Heb “this to me.”
344 tn Heb “served you,” but in this accusatory context the meaning is more “worked like a slave.”
345 tn Heb “the fear of Isaac,” that is, the one whom Isaac feared and respected. For further discussion of this title see M. Malul, “More on pahad yitschaq (Gen. 31:42,53) and the Oath by the Thigh,” VT 35 (1985): 192-200.
346 tn Heb “My oppression and the work of my hands God saw.”
347 tn Heb “answered and said.”
348 tn Heb “daughters.”
349 tn Heb “children.”
350 tn Heb “but to my daughters what can I do to these today?”
351 tn Heb “cut a covenant.”
352 tn The verb הָיָה (hayah) followed by the preposition לְ (lÿ) means “become.”
353 tn Heb “and it will become a witness between me and you.”
354 tn Heb “Jacob”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
355 sn The Hebrew word for “pile” is גַּל (gal), which sounds like the name “Galeed” (גַּלְעֵד, gal’ed). See v. 48.
356 sn Jegar Sahadutha. Laban the Aramean gave the place an Aramaic name which means “witness pile” or “the pile is a witness.”
357 sn Galeed also means “witness pile” or “the pile is a witness,” but this name is Canaanite or Western Semitic and closer to later Hebrew. Jacob, though certainly capable of speaking Aramaic, here prefers to use the western dialect.
358 tn Heb “a witness between me and you.”
359 tn Heb “and Mizpah.”
360 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
361 tn Heb “between me and you.”
362 tn Heb “for we will be hidden, each man from his neighbor.”
363 tn Heb “see.”
364 tn Heb “between me and you.”
365 tn Heb “and Laban said to Jacob, ‘Behold this heap and behold the pillar which I have set between men and you.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
366 tn Heb “This pile is a witness and the pillar is a witness, if I go past this pile to you and if you go past this pile and this pillar to me for harm.”
367 tn The God of Abraham and the god of Nahor. The Hebrew verb translated “judge” is plural, suggesting that Laban has more than one “god” in mind. The Samaritan Pentateuch and the LXX, apparently in an effort to make the statement monotheistic, have a singular verb. In this case one could translate, “May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” However, Laban had a polytheistic world view, as evidenced by his possession of household idols (cf. 31:19). The translation uses “God” when referring to Abraham’s God, for Genesis makes it clear that Abraham worshiped the one true God. It employs “god” when referring to Nahor’s god, for in the Hebrew text Laban refers to a different god here, probably one of the local deities.
368 tn Heb “by the fear of his father Isaac.” See the note on the word “fears” in v. 42.
369 tn The construction is a cognate accusative with the verb, expressing a specific sacrifice.
370 tn Heb “bread, food.” Presumably this was a type of peace offering, where the person bringing the offering ate the animal being sacrificed.
371 sn Beginning with 31:55, the verse numbers in the English Bible through 32:32 differ by one from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 31:55 ET = 32:1 HT, 32:1 ET = 32:2 HT, etc., through 32:32 ET = 32:33 HT. From 33:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.
372 tn Heb “and Laban got up early in the morning and he kissed.”
373 tn Heb “his sons.”
374 tn Heb “to his place.”
375 tn Grk “Judas,” traditionally “Jude” in English versions to distinguish him from the one who betrayed Jesus. The word “From” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.
376 tn Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). At the same time, perhaps “servant” is apt in that the δοῦλος of Jesus Christ took on that role voluntarily, unlike a slave. The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.
377 sn Although Jude was half-brother of Jesus, he humbly associates himself with James, his full brother. By first calling himself a slave of Jesus Christ, it is evident that he wants no one to place stock in his physical connections. At the same time, he must identify himself further: Since Jude was a common name in the 1st century (two of Jesus’ disciples were so named, including his betrayer), more information was needed, that is to say, brother of James.
378 tn Grk “loved in.” The perfect passive participle suggests that the audience’s relationship to God is not recent; the preposition ἐν (en) before πατρί (patri) could be taken as sphere or instrument (agency is unlikely, however). Another possible translation would be “dear to God.”
379 tn Or “by.” Datives of agency are quite rare in the NT (and other ancient Greek), almost always found with a perfect verb. Although this text qualifies, in light of the well-worn idiom of τηρέω (threw) in eschatological contexts, in which God or Christ keeps the believer safe until the parousia (cf. 1 Thess 5:23; 1 Pet 1:4; Rev 3:10; other terms meaning “to guard,” “to keep” are also found in similar eschatological contexts [cf. 2 Thess 3:3; 2 Tim 1:12; 1 Pet 1:5; Jude 24]), it is probably better to understand this verse as having such an eschatological tinge. It is at the same time possible that Jude’s language was intentionally ambiguous, implying both ideas (“kept by Jesus Christ [so that they might be] kept for Jesus Christ”). Elsewhere he displays a certain fondness for wordplays; this may be a hint of things to come.