Exodus 11:3

11:3 (Now the Lord granted the people favor with ¹  the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, respected by Pharaoh’s servants and by the Egyptian people.) ² 

Exodus 12:36

12:36 The Lord ³  gave the people favor ⁴  in the sight of the Egyptians, and they gave them whatever they wanted, ⁵  and so they plundered Egypt. ⁶ 

Genesis 39:21

39:21 But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him kindness. ⁷  He granted him favor in the sight of the prison warden. ⁸ 

Nehemiah 1:11

1:11 Please, ⁹  O Lord, listen attentively ¹⁰  to the prayer of your servant and to the prayer of your servants who take pleasure in showing respect ¹¹  to your name. Grant your servant success today and show compassion to me ¹²  in the presence of this man.”

Now ¹³  I was cupbearer for the king.

Psalms 106:46

106:46 He caused all their conquerors ¹⁴ 

to have pity on them.

Proverbs 16:7

16:7 When a person’s ¹⁵  ways are pleasing to the Lord, ¹⁶ 

he ¹⁷  even reconciles his enemies to himself. ¹⁸ 

Acts 7:10

7:10 and rescued him from all his troubles, and granted him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made ¹⁹  him ruler over Egypt and over all his household.

¹ tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

² tn Heb “in the eyes of the servants of Pharaoh and in the eyes of the people.” In the translation the word “Egyptian” has been supplied to clarify that the Egyptians and not the Israelites are meant here.

³ tn The holy name (“Yahweh,” represented as “the Lord” in the translation) has the vav disjunctive with it. It may have the force: “Now it was Yahweh who gave the people favor….”

⁴ sn God was destroying the tyrant and his nobles and the land’s economy because of their stubborn refusal. But God established friendly, peaceful relations between his people and the Egyptians. The phrase is used outside Exod only in Gen 39:21, referring to Joseph.

⁵ tn The verb וַיַּשְׁאִלוּם (vayyash’ilum) is a Hiphil form that has the root שָׁאַל (sha’al), used earlier in Qal with the meaning “requested” (12:35). The verb here is frequently translated “and they lent them,” but lending does not fit the point. What they gave the Israelites were farewell gifts sought by demanding or asking for them. This may exemplify a “permissive” use of the Hiphil stem, in which “the Hiphil designates an action that is agreeable to the object and allowed by the subject” (B. T. Arnold and J. H. Choi, A Guide to Biblical Hebrew Syntax, 52).

⁶ sn See B. Jacob, “The Gifts of the Egyptians; A Critical Commentary,” Journal of Reformed Judaism 27 (1980): 59-69.

⁷ tn Heb “and he extended to him loyal love.”

⁸ tn Or “the chief jailer” (also in the following verses).

⁹ tn The interjection אָנָּא (’anna’) is an emphatic term of entreaty: “please!” (BDB 58 s.v.; HALOT 69-70 s.v.). This term is normally reserved for pleas for mercy from God in life-and-death situations (2 Kgs 20:3 = Isa 38:3; Pss 116:4; 118:25; Jonah 1:14; 4:2) and for forgiveness of heinous sins that would result or have resulted in severe judgment from God (Exod 32:31; Dan 9:4; Neh 1:5, 11).

¹⁰ tn Heb “let your ear be attentive.”

¹¹ tn Heb “fear.”

¹² tn Heb “grant compassion.” The words “to me” are supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness and style in English.

¹³ tn The vav (ו) on וַאֲנִי (va’ani, “Now, I”) introduces a disjunctive parenthetical clause that provides background information to the reader.

¹⁴ tn Or “captors.”

¹⁵ tn Heb “ways of a man.”

¹⁶ tn The first line uses an infinitive in a temporal clause, followed by its subject in the genitive case: “in the taking pleasure of the Lord” = “when the Lord is pleased with.” So the condition set down for the second colon is a lifestyle that is pleasing to God.

¹⁷ tn The referent of the verb in the second colon is unclear. The straightforward answer is that it refers to the person whose ways please the Lord – it is his lifestyle that disarms his enemies. W. McKane comments that the righteous have the power to mend relationships (Proverbs [OTL], 491); see, e.g., 10:13; 14:9; 15:1; 25:21-22). The life that is pleasing to God will be above reproach and find favor with others. Some would interpret this to mean that God makes his enemies to be at peace with him (cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NLT). This is workable, but in this passage it would seem God would do this through the pleasing life of the believer (cf. NCV, TEV, CEV).

¹⁸ tn Heb “even his enemies he makes to be at peace with him.”

¹⁹ tn Or “appointed.” See Gen 41:41-43.