Genesis 22:1-24
Context22:1 Some time after these things God tested 1 Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am!” Abraham 2 replied. 22:2 God 3 said, “Take your son – your only son, whom you love, Isaac 4 – and go to the land of Moriah! 5 Offer him up there as a burnt offering 6 on one of the mountains which I will indicate to 7 you.”
22:3 Early in the morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. 8 He took two of his young servants with him, along with his son Isaac. When he had cut the wood for the burnt offering, he started out 9 for the place God had spoken to him about.
22:4 On the third day Abraham caught sight of 10 the place in the distance. 22:5 So he 11 said to his servants, “You two stay 12 here with the donkey while 13 the boy and I go up there. We will worship 14 and then return to you.” 15
22:6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and put it on his son Isaac. Then he took the fire and the knife in his hand, 16 and the two of them walked on together. 22:7 Isaac said to his father Abraham, 17 “My father?” “What is it, 18 my son?” he replied. “Here is the fire and the wood,” Isaac said, 19 “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” 22:8 “God will provide 20 for himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son,” Abraham replied. The two of them continued on together.
22:9 When they came to the place God had told him about, Abraham built the altar there 21 and arranged the wood on it. Next he tied up 22 his son Isaac and placed him on the altar on top of the wood. 22:10 Then Abraham reached out his hand, took the knife, and prepared to slaughter 23 his son. 22:11 But the Lord’s angel 24 called to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” “Here I am!” he answered. 22:12 “Do not harm the boy!” 25 the angel said. 26 “Do not do anything to him, for now I know 27 that you fear 28 God because you did not withhold your son, your only son, from me.”
22:13 Abraham looked up 29 and saw 30 behind him 31 a ram caught in the bushes by its horns. So he 32 went over and got the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. 22:14 And Abraham called the name of that place “The Lord provides.” 33 It is said to this day, 34 “In the mountain of the Lord provision will be made.” 35
22:15 The Lord’s angel called to Abraham a second time from heaven 22:16 and said, “‘I solemnly swear by my own name,’ 36 decrees the Lord, 37 ‘that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 22:17 I will indeed bless you, 38 and I will greatly multiply 39 your descendants 40 so that they will be as countless as the stars in the sky or the grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession 41 of the strongholds 42 of their enemies. 22:18 Because you have obeyed me, 43 all the nations of the earth will pronounce blessings on one another 44 using the name of your descendants.’”
22:19 Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set out together 45 for Beer Sheba where Abraham stayed. 46
22:20 After these things Abraham was told, “Milcah 47 also has borne children to your brother Nahor – 22:21 Uz the firstborn, his brother Buz, Kemuel (the father of Aram), 48 22:22 Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel.” 22:23 (Now 49 Bethuel became the father of Rebekah.) These were the eight sons Milcah bore to Abraham’s brother Nahor. 22:24 His concubine, whose name was Reumah, also bore him children – Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.
Genesis 9:26
Context9:26 He also said,
“Worthy of praise is 50 the Lord, the God of Shem!
May Canaan be the slave of Shem! 51
Genesis 22:3-4
Context22:3 Early in the morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. 52 He took two of his young servants with him, along with his son Isaac. When he had cut the wood for the burnt offering, he started out 53 for the place God had spoken to him about.
22:4 On the third day Abraham caught sight of 54 the place in the distance.
Genesis 22:14-16
Context22:14 And Abraham called the name of that place “The Lord provides.” 55 It is said to this day, 56 “In the mountain of the Lord provision will be made.” 57
22:15 The Lord’s angel called to Abraham a second time from heaven 22:16 and said, “‘I solemnly swear by my own name,’ 58 decrees the Lord, 59 ‘that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,
Genesis 28:12-19
Context28:12 and had a dream. 60 He saw 61 a stairway 62 erected on the earth with its top reaching to the heavens. The angels of God were going up and coming down it 28:13 and the Lord stood at its top. He said, “I am the Lord, the God of your grandfather Abraham and the God of your father Isaac. 63 I will give you and your descendants the ground 64 you are lying on. 28:14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, 65 and you will spread out 66 to the west, east, north, and south. All the families of the earth will pronounce blessings on one another 67 using your name and that of your descendants. 68 28:15 I am with you! 69 I will protect you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I promised you!”
28:16 Then Jacob woke up 70 and thought, 71 “Surely the Lord is in this place, but I did not realize it!” 28:17 He was afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! This is nothing else than the house of God! This is the gate of heaven!”
28:18 Early 72 in the morning Jacob 73 took the stone he had placed near his head 74 and set it up as a sacred stone. 75 Then he poured oil on top of it. 28:19 He called that place Bethel, 76 although the former name of the town was Luz.
Genesis 29:2-8
Context29:2 He saw 77 in the field a well with 78 three flocks of sheep lying beside it, because the flocks were watered from that well. Now 79 a large stone covered the mouth of the well. 29:3 When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds 80 would roll the stone off the mouth of the well and water the sheep. Then they would put the stone back in its place over the well’s mouth.
29:4 Jacob asked them, “My brothers, where are you from?” They replied, “We’re from Haran.” 29:5 So he said to them, “Do you know Laban, the grandson 81 of Nahor?” “We know him,” 82 they said. 29:6 “Is he well?” 83 Jacob asked. They replied, “He is well. 84 Now look, here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.” 29:7 Then Jacob 85 said, “Since it is still the middle of the day, 86 it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. You should water the sheep and then go and let them graze some more.” 87 29:8 “We can’t,” they said, “until all the flocks are gathered and the stone is rolled off the mouth of the well. Then we water 88 the sheep.”
Genesis 29:1
Context29:1 So Jacob moved on 89 and came to the land of the eastern people. 90
Genesis 14:1
Context14:1 At that time 91 Amraphel king of Shinar, 92 Arioch king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of nations 93
Genesis 15:18
Context15:18 That day the Lord made a covenant 94 with Abram: “To your descendants I give 95 this land, from the river of Egypt 96 to the great river, the Euphrates River –
Malachi 3:10
Context3:10 “Bring the entire tithe into the storehouse 97 so that there may be food in my temple. Test me in this matter,” says the Lord who rules over all, “to see if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until there is no room for it all.
[22:1] 1 sn The Hebrew verb used here means “to test; to try; to prove.” In this passage God tests Abraham to see if he would be obedient. See T. W. Mann, The Book of the Torah, 44-48. See also J. L. Crenshaw, A Whirlpool of Torment (OBT), 9-30; and J. I. Lawlor, “The Test of Abraham,” GTJ 1 (1980): 19-35.
[22:1] 2 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[22:2] 3 tn Heb “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[22:2] 4 sn Take your son…Isaac. The instructions are very clear, but the details are deliberate. With every additional description the commandment becomes more challenging.
[22:2] 5 sn There has been much debate over the location of Moriah; 2 Chr 3:1 suggests it may be the site where the temple was later built in Jerusalem.
[22:2] 6 sn A whole burnt offering signified the complete surrender of the worshiper and complete acceptance by God. The demand for a human sacrifice was certainly radical and may have seemed to Abraham out of character for God. Abraham would have to obey without fully understanding what God was about.
[22:2] 7 tn Heb “which I will say to.”
[22:3] 8 tn Heb “Abraham rose up early in the morning and saddled his donkey.”
[22:3] 9 tn Heb “he arose and he went.”
[22:4] 10 tn Heb “lifted up his eyes and saw.”
[22:5] 11 tn Heb “And Abraham.” The proper name has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun (“he”) for stylistic reasons.
[22:5] 12 tn The Hebrew verb is masculine plural, referring to the two young servants who accompanied Abraham and Isaac on the journey.
[22:5] 13 tn The disjunctive clause (with the compound subject preceding the verb) may be circumstantial and temporal.
[22:5] 14 tn This Hebrew word literally means “to bow oneself close to the ground.” It often means “to worship.”
[22:5] 15 sn It is impossible to know what Abraham was thinking when he said, “we will…return to you.” When he went he knew (1) that he was to sacrifice Isaac, and (2) that God intended to fulfill his earlier promises through Isaac. How he reconciled those facts is not clear in the text. Heb 11:17-19 suggests that Abraham believed God could restore Isaac to him through resurrection.
[22:6] 16 sn He took the fire and the knife in his hand. These details anticipate the sacrifice that lies ahead.
[22:7] 17 tn The Hebrew text adds “and said.” This is redundant and has not been translated for stylistic reasons.
[22:7] 18 tn Heb “Here I am” (cf. Gen 22:1).
[22:7] 19 tn Heb “and he said, ‘Here is the fire and the wood.’” The referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here and in the following verse the order of the introductory clauses and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[22:8] 20 tn Heb “will see for himself.” The construction means “to look out for; to see to it; to provide.”
[22:9] 21 sn Abraham built an altar there. The theme of Abraham’s altar building culminates here. He has been a faithful worshiper. Will he continue to worship when called upon to make such a radical sacrifice?
[22:9] 22 sn Then he tied up. This text has given rise to an important theme in Judaism known as the Aqedah, from the Hebrew word for “binding.” When sacrifices were made in the sanctuary, God remembered the binding of Isaac, for which a substitute was offered. See D. Polish, “The Binding of Isaac,” Jud 6 (1957): 17-21.
[22:10] 23 tn Heb “in order to slaughter.”
[22:11] 24 sn Heb “the messenger of the
[22:12] 25 tn Heb “Do not extend your hand toward the boy.”
[22:12] 26 tn Heb “and he said, ‘Do not extend…’”; the referent (the angel) has been specified in the context for clarity. The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[22:12] 27 sn For now I know. The test was designed to see if Abraham would be obedient (see v. 1).
[22:12] 28 sn In this context fear refers by metonymy to obedience that grows from faith.
[22:13] 29 tn Heb “lifted his eyes.”
[22:13] 30 tn Heb “and saw, and look.” The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) draws attention to what Abraham saw and invites the audience to view the scene through his eyes.
[22:13] 31 tc The translation follows the reading of the MT; a number of Hebrew
[22:13] 32 tn Heb “Abraham”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[22:14] 33 tn Heb “the Lord sees” (יְהוָה יִרְאֶה, yÿhvah yir’eh, traditionally transliterated “Jehovah Jireh”; see the note on the word “provide” in v. 8). By so naming the place Abraham preserved in the memory of God’s people the amazing event that took place there.
[22:14] 34 sn On the expression to this day see B. Childs, “A Study of the Formula ‘Until this Day’,” JBL 82 (1963): 279-92.
[22:14] 35 sn The saying connected with these events has some ambiguity, which was probably intended. The Niphal verb could be translated (1) “in the mountain of the Lord it will be seen/provided” or (2) “in the mountain the Lord will appear.” If the temple later stood here (see the note on “Moriah” in Gen 22:2), the latter interpretation might find support, for the people went to the temple to appear before the Lord, who “appeared” to them by providing for them his power and blessings. See S. R. Driver, Genesis, 219.
[22:16] 36 tn Heb “By myself I swear.”
[22:16] 37 tn Heb “the oracle of the
[22:17] 38 tn The use of the infinitive absolute before the finite verbal form (either an imperfect or cohortative) emphasizes the certainty of the blessing.
[22:17] 39 tn Here too the infinitive absolute is used for emphasis before the following finite verb (either an imperfect or cohortative).
[22:17] 40 tn The Hebrew term זֶרַע (zera’) occurring here and in v. 18 may mean “seed” (for planting), “offspring” (occasionally of animals, but usually of people), or “descendants” depending on the context.
[22:17] 42 tn Heb “gate,” which here stands for a walled city. To break through the gate complex would be to conquer the city, for the gate complex was the main area of defense (hence the translation “stronghold”).
[22:18] 43 tn In the Hebrew text this causal clause comes at the end of the sentence. The translation alters the word order for stylistic reasons.
[22:18] 44 tn Traditionally the verb is taken as passive (“will be blessed”) here, as if Abraham’s descendants were going to be a channel or source of blessing to the nations. But the Hitpael is better understood here as reflexive/reciprocal, “will bless [i.e., pronounce blessings on] themselves/one another” (see also Gen 26:4). Elsewhere the Hitpael of the verb “to bless” is used with a reflexive/reciprocal sense in Deut 29:18; Ps 72:17; Isa 65:16; Jer 4:2. Gen 12:2 predicts that Abram will be held up as a paradigm of divine blessing and that people will use his name in their blessing formulae. For examples of blessing formulae utilizing an individual as an example of blessing see Gen 48:20 and Ruth 4:11. Earlier formulations of this promise (see Gen 12:2; 18:18) use the Niphal stem. (See also Gen 28:14.)
[22:19] 45 tn Heb “and they arose and went together.”
[22:19] 46 tn Heb “and Abraham stayed in Beer Sheba. This has been translated as a relative clause for stylistic reasons.
[22:20] 47 tn In the Hebrew text the sentence begins with הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) which draws attention to the statement.
[22:21] 48 sn This parenthetical note about Kemuel’s descendant is probably a later insertion by the author/compiler of Genesis and not part of the original announcement.
[22:23] 49 tn The disjunctive clause gives information that is important but parenthetical to the narrative. Rebekah would become the wife of Isaac (Gen 24:15).
[9:26] 50 tn Heb “blessed be.”
[9:26] 51 tn Heb “a slave to him”; the referent (Shem) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[22:3] 52 tn Heb “Abraham rose up early in the morning and saddled his donkey.”
[22:3] 53 tn Heb “he arose and he went.”
[22:4] 54 tn Heb “lifted up his eyes and saw.”
[22:14] 55 tn Heb “the Lord sees” (יְהוָה יִרְאֶה, yÿhvah yir’eh, traditionally transliterated “Jehovah Jireh”; see the note on the word “provide” in v. 8). By so naming the place Abraham preserved in the memory of God’s people the amazing event that took place there.
[22:14] 56 sn On the expression to this day see B. Childs, “A Study of the Formula ‘Until this Day’,” JBL 82 (1963): 279-92.
[22:14] 57 sn The saying connected with these events has some ambiguity, which was probably intended. The Niphal verb could be translated (1) “in the mountain of the Lord it will be seen/provided” or (2) “in the mountain the Lord will appear.” If the temple later stood here (see the note on “Moriah” in Gen 22:2), the latter interpretation might find support, for the people went to the temple to appear before the Lord, who “appeared” to them by providing for them his power and blessings. See S. R. Driver, Genesis, 219.
[22:16] 58 tn Heb “By myself I swear.”
[22:16] 59 tn Heb “the oracle of the
[28:12] 60 tn Heb “and dreamed.”
[28:12] 61 tn Heb “and look.” The scene which Jacob witnessed is described in three clauses introduced with הִנֵּה (hinneh). In this way the narrator invites the reader to witness the scene through Jacob’s eyes. J. P. Fokkelman points out that the particle goes with a lifted arm and an open mouth: “There, a ladder! Oh, angels! and look, the
[28:12] 62 tn The Hebrew noun סֻלָּם (sullam, “ladder, stairway”) occurs only here in the OT, but there appears to be an Akkadian cognate simmiltu (with metathesis of the second and third consonants and a feminine ending) which has a specialized meaning of “stairway, ramp.” See H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena (SBLDS), 34. For further discussion see C. Houtman, “What Did Jacob See in His Dream at Bethel? Some Remarks on Genesis 28:10-22,” VT 27 (1977): 337-52; J. G. Griffiths, “The Celestial Ladder and the Gate of Heaven,” ExpTim 76 (1964/65): 229-30; and A. R. Millard, “The Celestial Ladder and the Gate of Heaven,” ExpTim 78 (1966/67): 86-87.
[28:13] 63 tn Heb “the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac.” The Hebrew word for “father” can typically be used in a broader sense than the English word, in this case referring to Abraham (who was Jacob’s grandfather). For stylistic reasons and for clarity, the words “your father” are supplied with “Isaac” in the translation.
[28:13] 64 tn The Hebrew term אֶרֶץ (’erets) can mean “[the] earth,” “land,” “region,” “piece of ground,” or “ground” depending on the context. Here the term specifically refers to the plot of ground on which Jacob was lying, but at the same time this stands by metonymy for the entire land of Canaan.
[28:14] 65 tn This is the same Hebrew word translated “ground” in the preceding verse.
[28:14] 66 tn The verb is singular in the Hebrew; Jacob is addressed as the representative of his descendants.
[28:14] 67 tn Theoretically the Niphal stem can be translated either as passive or reflexive/reciprocal. (The Niphal of “bless” is only used in formulations of the Abrahamic covenant. See Gen 12:2; 18:18; 28:14.) Traditionally the verb is taken as passive here, as if Jacob were going to be a channel or source of blessing. But in other formulations of the Abrahamic covenant (see Gen 22:18; 26:4) the Hitpael replaces this Niphal form, suggesting a translation “will bless (i.e., pronounce blessings upon) themselves/one another.” The Hitpael of “bless” is used with a reflexive/reciprocal sense in Deut 29:18; Ps 72:17; Isa 65:16; Jer 4:2. Gen 28:14 predicts that Jacob will be held up as a paradigm of divine blessing and that people will use his name in their blessing formulae (see Gen 12:2 and 18:18 as well, where Abram/Abraham receives this promise). For examples of blessing formulae utilizing an individual as an example of blessing see Gen 48:20 and Ruth 4:11.
[28:14] 68 tn Heb “and they will pronounce blessings by you, all the families of the earth, and by your offspring.”
[28:15] 69 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).
[28:16] 70 tn Heb “woke up from his sleep.” This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[28:18] 72 tn Heb “and he got up early…and he took.”
[28:18] 73 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[28:18] 74 tn See the note on this phrase in v. 11.
[28:18] 75 tn Heb “standing stone.”
[28:19] 76 tn The name Bethel means “house of God” in Hebrew (see v. 17).
[29:2] 77 tn Heb “and he saw, and look.” As in Gen 28:12-15, the narrator uses the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) here and in the next clause to draw the reader into the story.
[29:2] 78 tn Heb “and look, there.”
[29:2] 79 tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by the noun with the prefixed conjunction) provides supplemental information that is important to the story.
[29:3] 80 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the shepherds) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[29:5] 82 tn Heb “and they said, ‘We know.’” The word “him” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the translation several introductory clauses throughout this section have been placed after the direct discourse they introduce for stylistic reasons as well.
[29:6] 83 tn Heb “and he said to them, ‘Is there peace to him?’”
[29:7] 85 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[29:7] 86 tn Heb “the day is great.”
[29:7] 87 tn Heb “water the sheep and go and pasture [them].” The verbal forms are imperatives, but Jacob would hardly be giving direct orders to someone else’s shepherds. The nuance here is probably one of advice.
[29:8] 88 tn The perfect verbal forms with the vav (ו) consecutive carry on the sequence begun by the initial imperfect form.
[29:1] 89 tn Heb “and Jacob lifted up his feet.” This unusual expression suggests that Jacob had a new lease on life now that God had promised him the blessing he had so desperately tried to gain by his own efforts. The text portrays him as having a new step in his walk.
[29:1] 90 tn Heb “the land of the sons of the east.”
[14:1] 91 tn The sentence begins with the temporal indicator וַיְהִי (vayÿhi) followed by “in the days of.”
[14:1] 92 sn Shinar (also in v. 9) is the region of Babylonia.
[14:1] 93 tn Or “king of Goyim.” The Hebrew term גּוֹיִם (goyim) means “nations,” but a number of modern translations merely transliterate the Hebrew (cf. NEB “Goyim”; NIV, NRSV “Goiim”).
[15:18] 94 tn Heb “cut a covenant.”
[15:18] 95 tn The perfect verbal form is understood as instantaneous (“I here and now give”). Another option is to understand it as rhetorical, indicating certitude (“I have given” meaning it is as good as done, i.e., “I will surely give”).
[15:18] 96 sn The river of Egypt is a wadi (a seasonal stream) on the northeastern border of Egypt, not to the River Nile.
[3:10] 97 tn The Hebrew phrase בֵּית הָאוֹצָר (bet ha’otsar, here translated “storehouse”) refers to a kind of temple warehouse described more fully in Nehemiah (where the term לִשְׁכָּה גְדוֹלָה [lishkah gÿdolah, “great chamber”] is used) as a place for storing grain, frankincense, temple vessels, wine, and oil (Neh 13:5). Cf. TEV “to the Temple.”