Genesis 9:26

9:26 He also said,

“Worthy of praise is ¹  the Lord, the God of Shem!

May Canaan be the slave of Shem! ² 

Genesis 31:30

31:30 Now I understand that ³  you have gone away ⁴  because you longed desperately ⁵  for your father’s house. Yet why did you steal my gods?” ⁶ 

¹ tn Heb “blessed be.”

² tn Heb “a slave to him”; the referent (Shem) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³ tn Heb “and now.” The words “I understand that” have been supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

⁴ tn The infinitive absolute appears before the perfect verbal form to emphasize the certainty of the action.

⁵ tn The infinitive absolute appears before the perfect verbal form to emphasize the degree of emotion involved.

⁶ sn Yet why did you steal my gods? This last sentence is dropped into the speech rather suddenly. See C. Mabee, “Jacob and Laban: The Structure of Judicial Proceedings,” VT 30 (1980): 192-207, and G. W. Coats, “Self-Abasement and Insult Formulas,” JBL 91 (1972): 90-92.