1 tn The Hebrew verb נָכָה (nakhah) means “to attack, to strike, to smite.” In this context it appears that the strike was successful, and so a translation of “defeated” is preferable.
2 tn The Hebrew text simply has “night” as an adverbial accusative.
3 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
4 tn Heb “he divided himself…he and his servants.”
5 tn Heb “left.” Directions in ancient Israel were given in relation to the east rather than the north.
3 tn Heb “declared.”
4 tn Heb “that he [was] the brother of her father.”
4 tn Heb “the men of her place,” that is, who lived at the place where she had been.
5 sn The Hebrew noun translated “cult prostitute” is derived from a verb meaning “to be set apart; to be distinct.” Thus the term refers to a woman who did not marry, but was dedicated to temple service as a cult prostitute. The masculine form of this noun is used for male cult prostitutes. Judah thought he had gone to an ordinary prostitute (v. 15); but Hirah went looking for a cult prostitute, perhaps because it had been a sheep-shearing festival. For further discussion see E. M. Yamauchi, “Cultic Prostitution,” Orient and Occident (AOAT), 213-23.
5 tn Heb “And look, seven other cows were coming up after them from the Nile, bad of appearance and thin of flesh.”
6 tn Heb “the Nile.” This has been replaced by “the river” in the translation for stylistic reasons.
6 tn Heb “and I, I will bring you up, also bringing up.” The independent personal pronoun before the first person imperfect verbal form draws attention to the speaker/subject, while the infinitive absolute after the imperfect strongly emphasizes the statement: “I myself will certainly bring you up.”
7 tn Heb “and Joseph will put his hand upon your eyes.” This is a promise of peaceful death in Egypt with Joseph present to close his eyes.