Genesis 21:16

21:16 Then she went and sat down by herself across from him at quite a distance, about a bowshot ¹  away; for she thought, ²  “I refuse to watch the child die.” ³  So she sat across from him and wept uncontrollably. ⁴ 

Genesis 44:4

44:4 They had not gone very far from the city ⁵  when Joseph said ⁶  to the servant who was over his household, “Pursue the men at once! ⁷  When you overtake ⁸  them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil?

¹ sn A bowshot would be a distance of about a hundred yards (ninety meters).

² tn Heb “said.”

³ 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.

⁴ 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.

⁵ tn Heb “they left the city, they were not far,” meaning “they had not gone very far.”

⁶ tn Heb “and Joseph said.” This clause, like the first one in the verse, has the subject before the verb, indicating synchronic action.

⁷ tn Heb “arise, chase after the men.” The first imperative gives the command a sense of urgency.

⁸ tn After the imperative this perfect verbal form with vav consecutive has the same nuance of instruction. In the translation it is subordinated to the verbal form that follows (also a perfect with vav consecutive): “and overtake them and say,” becomes “when you overtake them, say.”