21:22 At that time Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, said to Abraham, “God is with you 1 in all that you do.
32:9 Then Jacob prayed, 3 “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O Lord, you said 4 to me, ‘Return to your land and to your relatives and I will make you prosper.’ 5
41:10 Don’t be afraid, for I am with you!
Don’t be frightened, for I am your God! 6
I strengthen you –
yes, I help you –
yes, I uphold you with my saving right hand! 7
1 sn God is with you. Abimelech and Phicol recognized that Abraham enjoyed special divine provision and protection.
2 tn Heb “Look, I [am] with you.” The clause is a nominal clause; the verb to be supplied could be present (as in the translation) or future, “Look, I [will be] with you” (cf. NEB).
3 tn Heb “said.”
4 tn Heb “the one who said.”
5 tn Heb “I will cause good” or “I will treat well [or “favorably”].” The idea includes more than prosperity, though that is its essential meaning. Here the form is subordinated to the preceding imperative and indicates purpose or result. Jacob is reminding God of his promise in the hope that God will honor his word.
6 tn According to BDB (1043 s.v. שָׁעָה), the verb תִּשְׁתָּע (tishta’) in the second line of the poetic couplet is a Hitpael form from the root שָׁעָה (sha’ah, “gaze,” with metathesis of the stem prefix and the first root letter). Taking the Hitpael as iterative, one may then translate “do not anxiously look about.” However, the alleged Hitpael form of שָׁעָה (sha’ah) only occurs here and in verse 23. HALOT 1671 s.v. שׁתע proposes that the verb is instead a Qal form from the root שׁתע (“fear”) which is attested in cognate Semitic languages, including Ugaritic (discovered after the publishing of BDB), suggests the existence of this root. The poetic structure of v. 10 also supports the proposal, for the form in question is in synonymous parallelism to יָרֵא (yare’, “fear”).
7 tn The “right hand” is a symbol of the Lord’s power to deliver (Exod 15:6, 12) and protect (Ps 63:9 HT [63:8 ET]). Here צֶדֶק (tsedeq) has its well-attested nuance of “vindicated righteousness,” i.e., “victory, deliverance” (see 45:8; 51:5, and BDB 841-42 s.v.).
8 sn A quotation from Deut 31:6, 8.