1:20 God said, “Let the water swarm with swarms 1 of living creatures and let birds fly 2 above the earth across the expanse of the sky.”
16:12 He will be a wild donkey 12 of a man.
He will be hostile to everyone, 13
and everyone will be hostile to him. 14
He will live away from 15 his brothers.”
23:19 After this Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah next to Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan.
33:18 After he left Paddan Aram, Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem in the land of Canaan, and he camped near 21 the city.
41:56 While the famine was over all the earth, 22 Joseph opened the storehouses 23 and sold grain to the Egyptians. The famine was severe throughout the land of Egypt.
43:3 But Judah said to him, “The man solemnly warned 24 us, ‘You will not see my face 25 unless your brother is with you.’
1 tn The Hebrew text again uses a cognate construction (“swarm with swarms”) to emphasize the abundant fertility. The idea of the verb is one of swift movement back and forth, literally swarming. This verb is used in Exod 1:7 to describe the rapid growth of the Israelite population in bondage.
2 tn The Hebrew text uses the Polel form of the verb instead of the simple Qal; it stresses a swarming flight again to underscore the abundant fruitfulness.
3 tn Heb “from upon the surface of the ground.”
4 sn I must hide from your presence. The motif of hiding from the
5 tn Or “seven pairs” (cf. NRSV).
6 tn Here (and in v. 9) the Hebrew text uses the normal generic terms for “male and female” (זָכָר וּנְקֵבָה, zakhar unÿqevah).
7 tn Heb “to keep alive offspring.”
7 tn A translation of “heavens” for שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) fits this context because the Babylonian ziggurats had temples at the top, suggesting they reached to the heavens, the dwelling place of the gods.
8 tn The form וְנַעֲשֶׂה (vÿna’aseh, from the verb עשׂה, “do, make”) could be either the imperfect or the cohortative with a vav (ו) conjunction (“and let us make…”). Coming after the previous cohortative, this form expresses purpose.
9 tn The Hebrew particle פֶּן (pen) expresses a negative purpose; it means “that we be not scattered.”
10 sn The Hebrew verb פָּוָץ (pavats, translated “scatter”) is a key term in this passage. The focal point of the account is the dispersion (“scattering”) of the nations rather than the Tower of Babel. But the passage also forms a polemic against Babylon, the pride of the east and a cosmopolitan center with a huge ziggurat. To the Hebrews it was a monument to the judgment of God on pride.
9 sn A wild donkey of a man. The prophecy is not an insult. The wild donkey lived a solitary existence in the desert away from society. Ishmael would be free-roaming, strong, and like a bedouin; he would enjoy the freedom his mother sought.
10 tn Heb “His hand will be against everyone.” The “hand” by metonymy represents strength. His free-roaming life style would put him in conflict with those who follow social conventions. There would not be open warfare, only friction because of his antagonism to their way of life.
11 tn Heb “And the hand of everyone will be against him.”
12 tn Heb “opposite, across from.” Ishmael would live on the edge of society (cf. NASB “to the east of”). Some take this as an idiom meaning “be at odds with” (cf. NRSV, NLT) or “live in hostility toward” (cf. NIV).
11 tn The Hebrew participle expresses an imminent action here.
12 tn Heb “for their outcry.” The words “about this place” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
13 tn Heb “the
13 sn The cave of Machpelah was the place Abraham had purchased as a burial place for his wife Sarah (Gen 23:17-18).
15 tn Heb “I see the face of your father, that he is not toward me as formerly.”
17 tn Heb “in front of.”
19 tn Or “over the entire land”; Heb “over all the face of the earth.” The disjunctive clause is circumstantial-temporal to the next clause.
20 tc The MT reads “he opened all that was in [or “among”] them.” The translation follows the reading of the LXX and Syriac versions.
21 tn The infinitive absolute with the finite verb stresses the point. The primary meaning of the verb is “to witness; to testify.” It alludes to Joseph’s oath, which was tantamount to a threat or warning.
22 tn The idiom “see my face” means “have an audience with me.”
23 tn The construction uses a perfect verbal form with the vav consecutive to introduce the conditional clause and then another perfect verbal form with a vav consecutive to complete the sentence: “if you take…then you will bring down.”
24 sn The expression bring down my gray hair is figurative, using a part for the whole – they would put Jacob in the grave. But the gray head signifies a long life of worry and trouble. See Gen 42:38.
25 tn Heb “evil/calamity.” The term is different than the one used in the otherwise identical statement recorded in v. 31 (see also 42:38).
26 tn Heb “to Sheol,” the dwelling place of the dead.