Discovery BoxGenesis 16:1-16
Context16:1 Now Sarai, 1 Abram’s wife, had not given birth to any children, 2 but she had an Egyptian servant 3 named Hagar. 4 16:2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Since 5 the Lord has prevented me from having children, have sexual relations with 6 my servant. Perhaps I can have a family by her.” 7 Abram did what 8 Sarai told him.
16:3 So after Abram had lived 9 in Canaan for ten years, Sarai, Abram’s wife, gave Hagar, her Egyptian servant, 10 to her husband to be his wife. 11 16:4 He had sexual relations with 12 Hagar, and she became pregnant. 13 Once Hagar realized she was pregnant, she despised Sarai. 14 16:5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “You have brought this wrong on me! 15 I allowed my servant to have sexual relations with you, 16 but when she realized 17 that she was pregnant, she despised me. 18 May the Lord judge between you and me!” 19
16:6 Abram said to Sarai, “Since your 20 servant is under your authority, 21 do to her whatever you think best.” 22 Then Sarai treated Hagar 23 harshly, 24 so she ran away from Sarai. 25
16:7 The Lord’s angel 26 found Hagar near a spring of water in the desert – the spring that is along the road to Shur. 27 16:8 He said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” She replied, “I’m running away from 28 my mistress, Sarai.”
16:9 Then the Lord’s angel said to her, “Return to your mistress and submit 29 to her authority. 16:10 I will greatly multiply your descendants,” the Lord’s angel added, 30 “so that they will be too numerous to count.” 31 16:11 Then the Lord’s angel said to her,
“You are now 32 pregnant
and are about to give birth 33 to a son.
You are to name him Ishmael, 34
for the Lord has heard your painful groans. 35
16:12 He will be a wild donkey 36 of a man.
He will be hostile to everyone, 37
and everyone will be hostile to him. 38
He will live away from 39 his brothers.”
16:13 So Hagar named the Lord who spoke to her, “You are the God who sees me,” 40 for she said, “Here I have seen one who sees me!” 41 16:14 That is why the well was called 42 Beer Lahai Roi. 43 (It is located 44 between Kadesh and Bered.)
16:15 So Hagar gave birth to Abram’s son, whom Abram named Ishmael. 45 16:16 (Now 46 Abram was 86 years old 47 when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael.) 48
Genesis 6:1
Context6:1 When humankind 49 began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born 50 to them, 51
Genesis 8:15
Context8:15 Then God spoke to Noah and said,
Ezekiel 45:20
Context45:20 This is what you must do on the seventh day of the month for anyone who sins inadvertently or through ignorance; so you will make atonement for the temple.
Ezekiel 45:2
Context45:2 Of this area a square 875 feet 52 by 875 feet will be designated for the sanctuary, with 87½ feet 53 set aside for its open space round about.
Colossians 1:19-20
Context1:19 For God 54 was pleased to have all his 55 fullness dwell 56 in the Son 57
1:20 and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross – through him, 58 whether things on earth or things in heaven.
[16:1] 1 tn The disjunctive clause signals the beginning of a new episode in the story.
[16:1] 2 sn On the cultural background of the story of Sarai’s childlessness see J. Van Seters, “The Problem of Childlessness in Near Eastern Law and the Patriarchs of Israel,” JBL 87 (1968): 401-8.
[16:1] 3 tn The Hebrew term שִׁפְחָה (shifkhah, translated “servant” here and in vv. 2, 3, 5, 6, and 8) refers to a menial female servant.
[16:1] 4 sn The passage records the birth of Ishmael to Abram through an Egyptian woman. The story illustrates the limits of Abram’s faith as he tries to obtain a son through social custom. The barrenness of Sarai poses a challenge to Abram’s faith, just as the famine did in chap. 12. As in chap. 12, an Egyptian figures prominently. (Perhaps Hagar was obtained as a slave during Abram’s stay in Egypt.)
[16:2] 5 tn Heb “look.” The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) introduces the foundational clause for the imperative to follow.
[16:2] 6 tn Heb “enter to.” The expression is a euphemism for sexual relations (also in v. 4).
[16:2] 7 tn Heb “perhaps I will be built from her.” Sarai hopes to have a family established through this surrogate mother.
[16:2] 8 tn Heb “listened to the voice of,” which is an idiom meaning “obeyed.”
[16:3] 9 tn Heb “at the end of ten years, to live, Abram.” The prepositional phrase introduces the temporal clause, the infinitive construct serves as the verb, and the name “Abram” is the subject.
[16:3] 10 tn Heb “the Egyptian, her female servant.”
[16:3] 11 sn To be his wife. Hagar became a slave wife, not on equal standing with Sarai. However, if Hagar produced the heir, she would be the primary wife in the eyes of society. When this eventually happened, Hagar become insolent, prompting Sarai’s anger.
[16:4] 12 tn Heb “entered to.” See the note on the same expression in v. 2.
[16:4] 13 tn Or “she conceived” (also in v. 5)
[16:4] 14 tn Heb “and she saw that she was pregnant and her mistress was despised in her eyes.” The Hebrew verb קָלַל (qalal) means “to despise, to treat lightly, to treat with contempt.” In Hagar’s opinion Sarai had been demoted.
[16:5] 15 tn Heb “my wrong is because of you.”
[16:5] 16 tn Heb “I placed my female servant in your bosom.”
[16:5] 18 tn Heb “I was despised in her eyes.” The passive verb has been translated as active for stylistic reasons. Sarai was made to feel supplanted and worthless by Hagar the servant girl.
[16:5] 19 tn Heb “me and you.”
[16:6] 20 tn The clause is introduced with the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh), introducing a foundational clause for the coming imperative: “since…do.”
[16:6] 21 tn Heb “in your hand.”
[16:6] 22 tn Heb “what is good in your eyes.”
[16:6] 23 tn Heb “her”; the referent (Hagar) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[16:6] 24 tn In the Piel stem the verb עָנָה (’anah) means “to afflict, to oppress, to treat harshly, to mistreat.”
[16:6] 25 tn Heb “and she fled from her presence.” The referent of “her” (Sarai) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[16:7] 26 tn Heb “the messenger of the
[16:7] 27 tn Heb “And the angel of the
[16:8] 28 tn Heb “from the presence of.”
[16:9] 29 tn The imperative וְהִתְעַנִּי (vÿhit’anni) is the Hitpael of עָנָה (’anah, here translated “submit”), the same word used for Sarai’s harsh treatment of her. Hagar is instructed not only to submit to Sarai’s authority, but to whatever mistreatment that involves. God calls for Hagar to humble herself.
[16:10] 30 tn Heb “The
[16:10] 31 tn Heb “cannot be numbered because of abundance.”
[16:11] 32 tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) focuses on her immediate situation: “Here you are pregnant.”
[16:11] 33 tn The active participle refers here to something that is about to happen.
[16:11] 34 sn The name Ishmael consists of the imperfect or jussive form of the Hebrew verb with the theophoric element added as the subject. It means “God hears” or “may God hear.”
[16:11] 35 tn Heb “affliction,” which must refer here to Hagar’s painful groans of anguish.
[16:12] 36 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.
[16:12] 37 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.
[16:12] 38 tn Heb “And the hand of everyone will be against him.”
[16:12] 39 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).
[16:13] 40 tn Heb “God of my seeing.” The pronominal suffix may be understood either as objective (“who sees me,” as in the translation) or subjective (“whom I see”).
[16:13] 41 tn Heb “after one who sees me.”
[16:14] 42 tn The verb does not have an expressed subject and so is rendered as passive in the translation.
[16:14] 43 sn The Hebrew name Beer Lahai Roi (בְּאֵר לַחַי רֹאִי, bÿ’er lakhay ro’i) means “The well of the Living One who sees me.” The text suggests that God takes up the cause of those who are oppressed.
[16:14] 44 tn Heb “look.” The words “it is located” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[16:15] 45 tn Heb “and Abram called the name of his son whom Hagar bore, Ishmael.”
[16:16] 46 tn The disjunctive clause gives information that is parenthetical to the narrative.
[16:16] 47 tn Heb “the son of eighty-six years.”
[16:16] 48 tn The Hebrew text adds, “for Abram.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons; it is somewhat redundant given the three occurrences of Abram’s name in this and the previous verse.
[6:1] 49 tn The Hebrew text has the article prefixed to the noun. Here the article indicates the generic use of the word אָדָם (’adam): “humankind.”
[6:1] 50 tn This disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) is circumstantial to the initial temporal clause. It could be rendered, “with daughters being born to them.” For another example of such a disjunctive clause following the construction וַיְהִיכִּי (vayÿhiki, “and it came to pass when”), see 2 Sam 7:1.
[6:1] 51 tn The pronominal suffix is third masculine plural, indicating that the antecedent “humankind” is collective.
[45:2] 52 tn Heb “five hundred cubits” (i.e., 262.5 meters); the phrase occurs twice in this verse.
[45:2] 53 tn Heb “fifty cubits” (i.e., 26.25 meters).
[1:19] 54 tn The noun “God” does not appear in the Greek text, but since God is the one who reconciles the world to himself (cf. 2 Cor 5:19), he is clearly the subject of εὐδόκησεν (eudokhsen).
[1:19] 55 tn The Greek article τό (to), insofar as it relates to God, may be translated as a possessive pronoun, i.e., “his.” BDAG 404 s.v. εὐδοκέω 1 translates the phrase as “all the fullness willed to dwell in him” thus leaving the referent as impersonal. Insofar as Paul is alluding to the so-called emanations from God this is acceptable. But the fact that “the fullness” dwells in a person (i.e., “in him”) seems to argue for the translation “his fullness” where “his” refers to God.
[1:19] 56 tn The aorist verb κατοικῆσαι (katoikhsai) could be taken as an ingressive, in which case it refers to the incarnation and may be translated as “begin to dwell, to take up residence.” It is perhaps better, though, to take it as a constative aorist and simply a reference to the fact that the fullness of God dwells in Jesus Christ. This is a permanent dwelling, though, not a temporary one, as the present tense in 2:9 makes clear.
[1:19] 57 tn Grk “him”; the referent (the Son; see v. 13) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[1:20] 58 tc The presence or absence of the second occurrence of the phrase δι᾿ αὐτοῦ (di’ autou, “through him”) is a difficult textual problem to solve. External evidence is fairly evenly divided. Many ancient and excellent witnesses lack the phrase (B D* F G I 0278 81 1175 1739 1881 2464 al latt sa), but equally important witnesses have it (Ì46 א A C D1 Ψ 048vid 33 Ï). Both readings have strong Alexandrian support, which makes the problem difficult to decide on external evidence alone. Internal evidence points to the inclusion of the phrase as original. The word immediately preceding the phrase is the masculine pronoun αὐτοῦ (autou); thus the possibility of omission through homoioteleuton in various witnesses is likely. Scribes might have deleted the phrase because of perceived redundancy or awkwardness in the sense: The shorter reading is smoother and more elegant, so scribes would be prone to correct the text in that direction. As far as style is concerned, repetition of key words and phrases for emphasis is not foreign to the corpus Paulinum (see, e.g., Rom 8:23, Eph 1:13, 2 Cor 12:7). In short, it is easier to account for the shorter reading arising from the longer reading than vice versa, so the longer reading is more likely original.
