Genesis 27:1-46

Jacob Cheats Esau out of the Blessing

27:1 When ¹  Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he was almost blind, ²  he called his older ³  son Esau and said to him, “My son!” “Here I am!” Esau ⁴  replied. 27:2 Isaac ⁵  said, “Since ⁶  I am so old, I could die at any time. ⁷  27:3 Therefore, take your weapons – your quiver and your bow – and go out into the open fields and hunt down some wild game ⁸  for me. 27:4 Then prepare for me some tasty food, the kind I love, and bring it to me. Then ⁹  I will eat it so that I may bless you ¹⁰  before I die.”

27:5 Now Rebekah had been listening while Isaac spoke to his son Esau. ¹¹  When Esau went out to the open fields to hunt down some wild game and bring it back, ¹²  27:6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Look, I overheard your father tell your brother Esau, 27:7 ‘Bring me some wild game and prepare for me some tasty food. Then I will eat ¹³  it and bless you ¹⁴  in the presence of the Lord ¹⁵  before I die.’ 27:8 Now then, my son, do ¹⁶  exactly what I tell you! ¹⁷  27:9 Go to the flock and get me two of the best young goats. I’ll prepare ¹⁸  them in a tasty way for your father, just the way he loves them. 27:10 Then you will take ¹⁹  it to your father. Thus he will eat it ²⁰  and ²¹  bless you before he dies.”

27:11 “But Esau my brother is a hairy man,” Jacob protested to his mother Rebekah, “and I have smooth skin! ²²  27:12 My father may touch me! Then he’ll think I’m mocking him ²³  and I’ll bring a curse on myself instead of a blessing.” 27:13 So his mother told him, “Any curse against you will fall on me, ²⁴  my son! Just obey me! ²⁵  Go and get them for me!”

27:14 So he went and got the goats ²⁶  and brought them to his mother. She ²⁷  prepared some tasty food, just the way his father loved it. 27:15 Then Rebekah took her older son Esau’s best clothes, which she had with her in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob. 27:16 She put the skins of the young goats ²⁸  on his hands ²⁹  and the smooth part of his neck. 27:17 Then she handed ³⁰  the tasty food and the bread she had made to her son Jacob.

27:18 He went to his father and said, “My father!” Isaac ³¹  replied, “Here I am. Which are you, my son?” ³²  27:19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau, your firstborn. I’ve done as you told me. Now sit up ³³  and eat some of my wild game so that you can bless me.” ³⁴  27:20 But Isaac asked his son, “How in the world ³⁵  did you find it so quickly, ³⁶  my son?” “Because the Lord your God brought it to me,” ³⁷  he replied. ³⁸  27:21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come closer so I can touch you, ³⁹  my son, and know for certain if you really are my son Esau.” ⁴⁰  27:22 So Jacob went over to his father Isaac, who felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s, but the hands are Esau’s.” 27:23 He did not recognize him because his hands were hairy, like his brother Esau’s hands. So Isaac blessed Jacob. ⁴¹  27:24 Then he asked, “Are you really my son Esau?” “I am,” Jacob ⁴²  replied. 27:25 Isaac ⁴³  said, “Bring some of the wild game for me to eat, my son. ⁴⁴  Then I will bless you.” ⁴⁵  So Jacob ⁴⁶  brought it to him, and he ate it. He also brought him wine, and Isaac ⁴⁷  drank. 27:26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here and kiss me, my son.” 27:27 So Jacob ⁴⁸  went over and kissed him. When Isaac caught the scent ⁴⁹  of his clothing, he blessed him, saying,

“Yes, ⁵⁰  my son smells

like the scent of an open field

which the Lord has blessed.

27:28 May God give you

the dew of the sky ⁵¹ 

and the richness ⁵²  of the earth,

and plenty of grain and new wine.

27:29 May peoples serve you

and nations bow down to you.

You will be ⁵³  lord ⁵⁴  over your brothers,

and the sons of your mother will bow down to you. ⁵⁵ 

May those who curse you be cursed,

and those who bless you be blessed.”

27:30 Isaac had just finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely left ⁵⁶  his father’s ⁵⁷  presence, when his brother Esau returned from the hunt. ⁵⁸  27:31 He also prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Esau ⁵⁹  said to him, “My father, get up ⁶⁰  and eat some of your son’s wild game. Then you can bless me.” ⁶¹  27:32 His father Isaac asked, ⁶²  “Who are you?” “I am your firstborn son,” ⁶³  he replied, “Esau!” 27:33 Isaac began to shake violently ⁶⁴  and asked, “Then who else hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it just before you arrived, and I blessed him. ⁶⁵  He will indeed be blessed!”

27:34 When Esau heard ⁶⁶  his father’s words, he wailed loudly and bitterly. ⁶⁷  He said to his father, “Bless me too, my father!” 27:35 But Isaac ⁶⁸  replied, “Your brother came in here deceitfully and took away ⁶⁹  your blessing.” 27:36 Esau exclaimed, “‘Jacob’ is the right name for him! ⁷⁰  He has tripped me up ⁷¹  two times! He took away my birthright, and now, look, he has taken away my blessing!” Then he asked, “Have you not kept back a blessing for me?”

27:37 Isaac replied to Esau, “Look! I have made him lord over you. I have made all his relatives his servants and provided him with grain and new wine. What is left that I can do for you, my son?” 27:38 Esau said to his father, “Do you have only that one blessing, my father? Bless me too!” ⁷²  Then Esau wept loudly. ⁷³ 

27:39 So his father Isaac said to him,

“Indeed, ⁷⁴  your home will be

away from the richness ⁷⁵  of the earth,

and away from the dew of the sky above.

27:40 You will live by your sword

but you will serve your brother.

When you grow restless,

you will tear off his yoke

from your neck.” ⁷⁶ 

27:41 So Esau hated ⁷⁷  Jacob because of the blessing his father had given to his brother. ⁷⁸  Esau said privately, ⁷⁹  “The time ⁸⁰  of mourning for my father is near; then I will kill ⁸¹  my brother Jacob!”

27:42 When Rebekah heard what her older son Esau had said, ⁸²  she quickly summoned ⁸³  her younger son Jacob and told him, “Look, your brother Esau is planning to get revenge by killing you. ⁸⁴  27:43 Now then, my son, do what I say. ⁸⁵  Run away immediately ⁸⁶  to my brother Laban in Haran. 27:44 Live with him for a little while ⁸⁷  until your brother’s rage subsides. 27:45 Stay there ⁸⁸  until your brother’s anger against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him. Then I’ll send someone to bring you back from there. ⁸⁹  Why should I lose both of you in one day?” ⁹⁰ 

27:46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am deeply depressed ⁹¹  because of these daughters of Heth. ⁹²  If Jacob were to marry one of these daughters of Heth who live in this land, I would want to die!” ⁹³ 

Genesis 20:1

Abraham and Abimelech

20:1 Abraham journeyed from there to the Negev ⁹⁴  region and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While he lived as a temporary resident ⁹⁵  in Gerar,

Genesis 21:20

21:20 God was with the boy as he grew. He lived in the wilderness and became an archer.

Genesis 37:8

37:8 Then his brothers asked him, “Do you really think you will rule over us or have dominion over us?” ⁹⁶  They hated him even more ⁹⁷  because of his dream and because of what he said. ⁹⁸ 

Genesis 37:2

37:2 This is the account of Jacob.

Joseph, his seventeen-year-old son, ⁹⁹  was taking care of ¹⁰⁰  the flocks with his brothers. Now he was a youngster ¹⁰¹  working with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives. ¹⁰²  Joseph brought back a bad report about them ¹⁰³  to their father.

Genesis 36:16

36:16 chief Korah, ¹⁰⁴  chief Gatam, chief Amalek. These were the chiefs descended from Eliphaz in the land of Edom; these were the sons ¹⁰⁵  of Adah.

Psalms 34:21

34:21 Evil people self-destruct; ¹⁰⁶ 

those who hate the godly are punished. ¹⁰⁷ 

Proverbs 9:8

9:8 Do not reprove ¹⁰⁸  a mocker or ¹⁰⁹  he will hate you;

reprove a wise person and he will love you.

Proverbs 15:12

15:12 The scorner does not love ¹¹⁰  one who corrects him; ¹¹¹ 

he will not go to ¹¹²  the wise.

Isaiah 49:7

49:7 This is what the Lord,

the protector ¹¹³  of Israel, their Holy One, ¹¹⁴  says

to the one who is despised ¹¹⁵  and rejected ¹¹⁶  by nations, ¹¹⁷ 

a servant of rulers:

“Kings will see and rise in respect, ¹¹⁸ 

princes will bow down,

because of the faithful Lord,

the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you.”

Jeremiah 18:18

Jeremiah Petitions the Lord to Punish Those Who Attack Him

18:18 Then some people ¹¹⁹  said, “Come on! Let us consider how to deal with Jeremiah! ¹²⁰  There will still be priests to instruct us, wise men to give us advice, and prophets to declare God’s word. ¹²¹  Come on! Let’s bring charges against him and get rid of him! ¹²²  Then we will not need to pay attention to anything he says.”

Jeremiah 20:10

20:10 I ¹²³  hear many whispering words of intrigue against me.

Those who would cause me terror are everywhere! ¹²⁴ 

They are saying, “Come on, let’s publicly denounce him!” ¹²⁵ 

All my so-called friends ¹²⁶  are just watching for

something that would lead to my downfall. ¹²⁷ 

They say, “Perhaps he can be enticed into slipping up,

so we can prevail over ¹²⁸  him and get our revenge on him.

Jeremiah 43:3-4

43:3 But Baruch son of Neriah is stirring you up against us. ¹²⁹  He wants to hand us over ¹³⁰  to the Babylonians ¹³¹  so that they will kill us or carry us off into exile in Babylon.” 43:4 So Johanan son of Kareah, all the army officers, and all the rest of the people did not obey the Lord’s command to stay in the land.

Amos 5:10

5:10 The Israelites ¹³²  hate anyone who arbitrates at the city gate; ¹³³ 

they despise anyone who speaks honestly.

Zechariah 11:8

11:8 Next I eradicated the three shepherds in one month, ¹³⁴  for I ran out of patience with them and, indeed, they detested me as well.

Matthew 10:22

10:22 And you will be hated by everyone because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

John 3:19-21

3:19 Now this is the basis for judging: ¹³⁵  that the light has come into the world and people ¹³⁶  loved the darkness rather than the light, because their deeds were evil. 3:20 For everyone who does evil deeds hates the light and does not come to the light, so that their deeds will not be exposed. 3:21 But the one who practices the truth comes to the light, so that it may be plainly evident that his deeds have been done in God. ¹³⁷ 

John 7:7

7:7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me, because I am testifying about it that its deeds are evil.

John 15:18-19

The World’s Hatred

15:18 “If the world hates you, be aware ¹³⁸  that it hated me first. ¹³⁹  15:19 If you belonged to the world, ¹⁴⁰  the world would love you as its own. ¹⁴¹  However, because you do not belong to the world, ¹⁴²  but I chose you out of the world, for this reason ¹⁴³  the world hates you. ¹⁴⁴ 

John 17:14

17:14 I have given them your word, ¹⁴⁵  and the world has hated them, because they do not belong to the world, ¹⁴⁶  just as I do not belong to the world. ¹⁴⁷ 

Galatians 4:16

4:16 So then, have I become your enemy by telling you the truth? ¹⁴⁸ 

Revelation 11:7-10

11:7 When ¹⁴⁹  they have completed their testimony, the beast that comes up from the abyss will make war on them and conquer ¹⁵⁰  them and kill them. 11:8 Their ¹⁵¹  corpses will lie in the street ¹⁵²  of the great city that is symbolically ¹⁵³  called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was also crucified. 11:9 For three and a half days those from every ¹⁵⁴  people, tribe, ¹⁵⁵  nation, and language will look at their corpses, because they will not permit them to be placed in a tomb. ¹⁵⁶  11:10 And those who live on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate, even sending gifts to each other, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.

[27:1]  ¹ tn The clause begins with the temporal indicator (“and it happened”), making it subordinate to the main clause that follows later in the sentence.

[27:1]  ² tn Heb “and his eyes were weak from seeing.”

[27:1]  ³ tn Heb “greater” (in terms of age).

[27:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Esau) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Isaac) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:2]  ⁶ tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) here introduces a logically foundational statement, upon which the coming instruction will be based.

[27:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “I do not know the day of my death.”

[27:3]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew word is to be spelled either צַיִד (tsayid) following the marginal reading (Qere), or צֵידָה (tsedah) following the consonantal text (Kethib). Either way it is from the same root as the imperative צוּדָה (tsudah, “hunt down”).

[27:4]  ⁹ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:4]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “so that my soul may bless you.” The use of נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”) as the subject emphasizes that the blessing will be made with all Isaac’s desire and vitality. The conjunction “so that” closely relates the meal to the blessing, suggesting that this will be a ritual meal in conjunction with the giving of a formal blessing.

[27:5]  ¹¹ tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by a conjunction with the subject, followed by the predicate) here introduces a new scene in the story.

[27:5]  ¹² tc The LXX adds here “to his father,” which may have been accidentally omitted in the MT.

[27:7]  ¹³ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:7]  ¹⁴ tn The cohortative, with the prefixed conjunction, also expresses logical sequence. See vv. 4, 19, 27.

[27:7]  ¹⁵ tn In her report to Jacob, Rebekah plays down Isaac’s strong desire to bless Esau by leaving out נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”), but by adding the phrase “in the presence of the Lord,” she stresses how serious this matter is.

[27:8]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “listen to my voice.” The Hebrew idiom means “to comply; to obey.”

[27:8]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “to that which I am commanding you.”

[27:9]  ¹⁸ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:10]  ¹⁹ tn The form is the perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive. It carries forward the tone of instruction initiated by the command to “go…and get” in the preceding verse.

[27:10]  ²⁰ tn The form is the perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; it carries the future nuance of the preceding verbs of instruction, but by switching the subject to Jacob, indicates the expected result of the subterfuge.

[27:10]  ²¹ tn Heb “so that.” The conjunction indicates purpose or result.

[27:11]  ²² tn Heb “And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, ‘Look, Esau my brother is a hairy man, but I am a smooth [skinned] man.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:12]  ²³ tn Heb “Perhaps my father will feel me and I will be in his eyes like a mocker.” The Hebrew expression “I will be in his eyes like” means “I would appear to him as.”

[27:13]  ²⁴ tn Heb “upon me your curse.”

[27:13]  ²⁵ tn Heb “only listen to my voice.”

[27:14]  ²⁶ tn The words “the goats” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:14]  ²⁷ tn Heb “his mother.” This has been replaced by the pronoun “she” in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:16]  ²⁸ tn In the Hebrew text the object (“the skins of the young goats”) precedes the verb. The disjunctive clause draws attention to this key element in the subterfuge.

[27:16]  ²⁹ tn The word “hands” probably includes the forearms here. How the skins were attached is not specified in the Hebrew text; cf. NLT “she made him a pair of gloves.”

[27:17]  ³⁰ tn Heb “gave…into the hand of.”

[27:18]  ³¹ tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:18]  ³² sn Which are you, my son? Isaac’s first question shows that the deception is going to require more subterfuge than Rebekah had anticipated. Jacob will have to pull off the deceit.

[27:19]  ³³ tn Heb “get up and sit.” This may mean simply “sit up,” or it may indicate that he was to get up from his couch and sit at a table.

[27:19]  ³⁴ tn Heb “so that your soul may bless me.” These words, though not reported by Rebekah to Jacob (see v. 7) accurately reflect what Isaac actually said to Esau (see v. 4). Perhaps Jacob knew more than Rebekah realized, but it is more likely that this was an idiom for sincere blessing with which Jacob was familiar. At any rate, his use of the precise wording was a nice, convincing touch.

[27:20]  ³⁵ tn Heb “What is this?” The enclitic pronoun “this” adds emphasis to the question, which is comparable to the English rhetorical question, “How in the world?”

[27:20]  ³⁶ tn Heb “you hastened to find.” In translation the infinitive becomes the main verb and the first verb becomes adverbial.

[27:20]  ³⁷ tn Heb “caused to meet before me.”

[27:20]  ³⁸ tn Heb “and he said, ‘Because the Lord your God….’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:21]  ³⁹ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:21]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “Are you this one, Esau, my son, or not?” On the use of the interrogative particle here, see BDB 210 s.v. הֲ.

[27:23]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “and he blessed him.” The referents of the pronouns “he” (Isaac) and “him” (Jacob) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:24]  ⁴² tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:25]  ⁴³ tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:25]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “Bring near to me and I will eat of the wild game, my son.” Following the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.

[27:25]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “so that my soul may bless you.” The presence of נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”) as subject emphasizes Isaac’s heartfelt desire to do this. The conjunction indicates that the ritual meal must be first eaten before the formal blessing may be given.

[27:25]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “and he brought”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:25]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “and he drank”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:27]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:27]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “and he smelled the smell”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:27]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “see.”

[27:28]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “and from the dew of the sky.”

[27:28]  ⁵² tn Heb “and from the fatness.”

[27:29]  ⁵³ tn Heb “and be.” The verb is an imperative, which is used rhetorically in this oracle of blessing. It is an invitation to exercise authority his brothers and indicates that he is granted such authority by the patriarch of the family. Furthermore, the blessing enables the recipient to accomplish this.

[27:29]  ⁵⁴ tn The Hebrew word is גְבִיר (gevir, “lord, mighty one”). The one being blessed will be stronger and therefore more powerful than his brother. See Gen 25:23. The feminine form of this rare noun means “mistress” or “queen-mother.”

[27:29]  ⁵⁵ tn Following the imperative, the prefixed verbal form (which is either an imperfect or a jussive) with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.

[27:30]  ⁵⁶ tn The use of the infinitive absolute before the finite form of the verb makes the construction emphatic.

[27:30]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “the presence of Isaac his father.” The repetition of the proper name (“Isaac”) was

[27:30]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “and Esau his brother came from his hunt.”

[27:31]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “and he said to his father”; the referent of “he” (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity, while the words “his father” have been replaced by the pronoun “him” for stylistic reasons.

[27:31]  ⁶⁰ tn Or “arise” (i.e., sit up).

[27:31]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “so that your soul may bless me.”

[27:32]  ⁶² tn Heb “said.”

[27:32]  ⁶³ tn Heb “and he said, ‘I [am] your son, your firstborn.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged for stylistic reasons.

[27:33]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “and Isaac trembled with a great trembling to excess.” The verb “trembled” is joined with a cognate accusative, which is modified by an adjective “great,” and a prepositional phrase “to excess.” All of this is emphatic, showing the violence of Isaac’s reaction to the news.

[27:33]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “Who then is he who hunted game and brought [it] to me so that I ate from all before you arrived and blessed him?”

[27:34]  ⁶⁶ tn The temporal clause is introduced with the temporal indicator and has the infinitive as its verb.

[27:34]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “and he yelled [with] a great and bitter yell to excess.”

[27:35]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:35]  ⁶⁹ tn Or “took”; “received.”

[27:36]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “Is he not rightly named Jacob?” The rhetorical question, since it expects a positive reply, has been translated as a declarative statement.

[27:36]  ⁷¹ sn He has tripped me up. When originally given, the name Jacob was a play on the word “heel” (see Gen 25:26). The name (since it is a verb) probably means something like “may he protect,” that is, as a rearguard, dogging the heels. This name was probably chosen because of the immediate association with the incident of grabbing the heel. Esau gives the name “Jacob” a negative connotation here, the meaning “to trip up; to supplant.”

[27:38]  ⁷² tn Heb “Bless me, me also, my father.” The words “my father” have not been repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:38]  ⁷³ tn Heb “and Esau lifted his voice and wept.”

[27:39]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “look.”

[27:39]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “from the fatness.”

[27:40]  ⁷⁶ sn You will tear off his yoke from your neck. It may be that this prophetic blessing found its fulfillment when Jerusalem fell and Edom got its revenge. The oracle makes Edom subservient to Israel and suggests the Edomites would live away from the best land and be forced to sustain themselves by violent measures.

[27:41]  ⁷⁷ tn Or “bore a grudge against” (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV). The Hebrew verb שָׂטַם (satam) describes persistent hatred.

[27:41]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “because of the blessing which his father blessed him.”

[27:41]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “said in his heart.” The expression may mean “said to himself.” Even if this is the case, v. 42 makes it clear that he must have shared his intentions with someone, because the news reached Rebekah.

[27:41]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “days.”

[27:41]  ⁸¹ tn The cohortative here expresses Esau’s determined resolve to kill Jacob.

[27:42]  ⁸² tn Heb “and the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah.”

[27:42]  ⁸³ tn Heb “she sent and called for.”

[27:42]  ⁸⁴ tn Heb “is consoling himself with respect to you to kill you.” The only way Esau had of dealing with his anger at the moment was to plan to kill his brother after the death of Isaac.

[27:43]  ⁸⁵ tn Heb “listen to my voice.”

[27:43]  ⁸⁶ tn Heb “arise, flee.”

[27:44]  ⁸⁷ tn Heb “a few days.” Rebekah probably downplays the length of time Jacob will be gone, perhaps to encourage him and assure him that things will settle down soon. She probably expects Esau’s anger to die down quickly. However, Jacob ends up being gone twenty years and he never sees Rebekah again.

[27:45]  ⁸⁸ tn The words “stay there” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:45]  ⁸⁹ tn Heb “and I will send and I will take you from there.” The verb “send” has no object in the Hebrew text; one must be supplied in the translation. Either “someone” or “a message” could be supplied, but since in those times a message would require a messenger, “someone” has been used.

[27:45]  ⁹⁰ tn If Jacob stayed, he would be killed and Esau would be forced to run away.

[27:46]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “loathe my life.” The Hebrew verb translated “loathe” refers to strong disgust (see Lev 20:23).

[27:46]  ⁹² tn Some translate the Hebrew term “Heth” as “Hittites” here (see also Gen 23:3), but this gives the impression that these people were the classical Hittites of Anatolia. However, there is no known connection between these sons of Heth, apparently a Canaanite group (see Gen 10:15), and the Hittites of Asia Minor. See H. A. Hoffner, Jr., “Hittites,” Peoples of the Old Testament World, 152-53.

[27:46]  ⁹³ tn Heb “If Jacob takes a wife from the daughters of Heth, like these, from the daughters of the land, why to me life?”

[20:1]  ⁹⁴ tn Or “the South [country]”; Heb “the land of the Negev.”

[20:1]  ⁹⁵ tn Heb “and he sojourned.”

[37:8]  ⁹⁶ tn Heb “Ruling, will you rule over us, or reigning, will you reign over us?” The statement has a poetic style, with the two questions being in synonymous parallelism. Both verbs in this statement are preceded by the infinitive absolute, which lends emphasis. It is as if Joseph’s brothers said, “You don’t really think you will rule over us, do you? You don’t really think you will have dominion over us, do you?”

[37:8]  ⁹⁷ tn This construction is identical to the one in Gen 37:5.

[37:8]  ⁹⁸ sn The response of Joseph’s brothers is understandable, given what has already been going on in the family. But here there is a hint of uneasiness – they hated him because of his dream and because of his words. The dream bothered them, as well as his telling them. And their words in the rhetorical question are ironic, for this is exactly what would happen. The dream was God’s way of revealing it.

[37:2]  ⁹⁹ tn Heb “a son of seventeen years.” The word “son” is in apposition to the name “Joseph.”

[37:2]  ¹⁰⁰ tn Or “tending”; Heb “shepherding” or “feeding.”

[37:2]  ¹⁰¹ tn Or perhaps “a helper.” The significance of this statement is unclear. It may mean “now the lad was with,” or it may suggest Joseph was like a servant to them.

[37:2]  ¹⁰² tn Heb “and he [was] a young man with the sons of Bilhah and with the sons of Zilpah, the wives of his father.”

[37:2]  ¹⁰³ tn Heb “their bad report.” The pronoun is an objective genitive, specifying that the bad or damaging report was about the brothers.

[36:16]  ¹⁰⁴ tc The Samaritan Pentateuch omits the name “Korah” (see v. 11 and 1 Chr 1:36).

[36:16]  ¹⁰⁵ tn Or “grandsons” (NIV); “descendants” (NEB).

[34:21]  ¹⁰⁶ tn Heb “evil kills the wicked [one].” The singular form is representative; the typical evil person is envisioned. The Hebrew imperfect verbal form draws attention to the typical nature of the action.

[34:21]  ¹⁰⁷ tn Heb “are guilty,” but the verb is sometimes used metonymically with the meaning “to suffer the consequences of guilt,” the effect being substituted for the cause.

[9:8]  ¹⁰⁸ tn In view of the expected response for reproof, the text now uses a negated jussive to advise against the attempt. This is paralleled antithetically by the imperative in the second colon. This imperative is in an understood conditional clause: “if you reprove a wise person.”

[9:8]  ¹⁰⁹ tn Heb “lest he hate you.” The particle פֶּן (pen, “lest”) expresses fear or precaution (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 79, §476). The antonyms “love” and “hate” suggest that the latter means “reject” and the former means “choosing and embracing.”

[15:12]  ¹¹⁰ sn This is an understatement, the opposite being intended (a figure called tapeinosis). A scorner rejects any efforts to reform him.

[15:12]  ¹¹¹ tn The form הוֹכֵחַ (hokheakh) is a Hiphil infinitive absolute. It could function as the object of the verb (cf. NIV, NRSV) or as a finite verb (cf. KJV, NASB, NLT). The latter has been chosen here because of the prepositional phrase following it, although that is not a conclusive argument.

[15:12]  ¹¹² tc The MT has אֶל (’el, “to [the wise]”), suggesting seeking the advice of the wise. The LXX, however, has “with the wise,” suggesting אֶת (’et).

[49:7]  ¹¹³ tn Heb “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[49:7]  ¹¹⁴ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[49:7]  ¹¹⁵ tc The Hebrew text reads literally “to [one who] despises life.” It is preferable to read with the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a לבזוי, which should be vocalized as a passive participle, לִבְזוּי (livzuy, “to the one despised with respect to life” [נֶפֶשׁ is a genitive of specification]). The consonantal sequence וי was probably misread as ה in the MT tradition. The contextual argument favors the 1QIsa^a reading. As J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 2:294) points out, the three terse phrases “convey a picture of lowliness, worthlessness, and helplessness.”

[49:7]  ¹¹⁶ tn MT’s Piel participle (“to the one who rejects”) does not fit contextually. The form should be revocalized as a Pual, “to the one rejected.”

[49:7]  ¹¹⁷ tn Parallelism (see “rulers,” “kings,” “princes”) suggests that the singular גּוֹי (goy) be emended to a plural or understood in a collective sense (see 55:5).

[49:7]  ¹¹⁸ tn For this sense of קוּם (qum), see Gen 19:1; 23:7; 33:10; Lev 19:32; 1 Sam 20:41; 25:41; 1 Kgs 2:19; Job 29:8.

[18:18]  ¹¹⁹ tn Heb “They.” The referent is unidentified; “some people” has been used in the translation.

[18:18]  ¹²⁰ tn Heb “Let us make plans against Jeremiah.” See 18:18 where this has sinister overtones as it does here.

[18:18]  ¹²¹ tn Heb “Instruction will not perish from priest, counsel from the wise, word from the prophet.”

[18:18]  ¹²² tn Heb “Let us smite him with our tongues.” It is clear from the context that this involved plots to kill him.

[20:10]  ¹²³ tn It would be difficult to render accurately the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) that introduces this verse without lengthening the English line unduly. It probably means something like “This is true even though I…,” i.e., the particle is concessive (cf. BDB s.v. כִּי 2.c). No other nuance seems appropriate. The particle is left out of the translation, but its presence is acknowledged here.

[20:10]  ¹²⁴ tn The phrase translated “Those who would cause me terror are everywhere” has already occurred in 6:25 in the context of the terror caused by the enemy from the north and in 20:3 in reference to the curse pronounced on Pashhur who would experience it first hand. Some have seen the phrase here not as Jeremiah’s ejaculation of terror but of his assailant’s taunts of his message or even their taunting nickname for him. But comparison of this passage with the first two lines of Ps 31:13 (31:14 HT) which are word for word the same as these two will show that it refers to the terror inspired by the plots of his enemies to do away with him. It is also clear from the context of that passage and the following context here that the “whispering of many” (the literal translation of “many whispering words of intrigue against me) refers to intrigues to take vengeance on him and do away with him.

[20:10]  ¹²⁵ tn Heb “Denounce and let us denounce him.” The verb which is translated “denounce” (נָגַד, nagad) does not take an accusative object of person as it does here very often. When it does it usually means to inform someone. The only relevant passage appears to be Job 17:5 where it means something like “denounce.” What is probably involved here are the attempts to portray Jeremiah as a traitor (Jer 26:10) and a false prophet (see his conflict with Hananiah in Jer 28).

[20:10]  ¹²⁶ tn Heb “the men of my peace [who are concerned about my welfare].” For this phrase compare Ps 41:9 (41:10 HT); Jer 38:22. It is generally agreed that irony is being invoked here, hence “so-called” is supplied in the translation to bring out the irony.

[20:10]  ¹²⁷ tn Heb “watching my stumbling [for me to stumble].” Metaphorically they were watching for some slip-up that would lead to his downfall. Compare the use in Pss 35:15 and 38:17 (38:18 HT).

[20:10]  ¹²⁸ tn All the text says literally is “Perhaps he can be enticed so that we can prevail over him.” However the word “enticed” needs some qualification. As W. McKane (Jeremiah [ICC], 1:479) notes it should probably be read in the context of the “stumbling” (= “something that would lead to my downfall”). Hence “slipping up” has been supplied as an object. It is vague enough to avoid specifics as the original text does but suggests some reference to “something that would lead to my downfall.”

[43:3]  ¹²⁹ tn Or “is inciting you against us.”

[43:3]  ¹³⁰ tn Heb “in order to give us into the hands of the Chaldeans.” The substitution “he wants to” as the equivalent of the purpose clause has been chosen to shorten the sentence to better conform with contemporary English style.

[43:3]  ¹³¹ tn Heb “Chaldeans.” See the study note on 21:4 for explanation.

[5:10]  ¹³² tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Israelites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:10]  ¹³³ sn In ancient Israelite culture, legal disputes were resolved in the city gate, where the town elders met.

[11:8]  ¹³⁴ sn Zechariah is only dramatizing what God had done historically (see the note on the word “cedars” in 11:1). The “one month” probably means just any short period of time in which three kings ruled in succession. Likely candidates are Elah, Zimri, Tibni (1 Kgs 16:8-20); Zechariah, Shallum, Menahem (2 Kgs 15:8-16); or Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, Zedekiah (2 Kgs 24:1–25:7).

[3:19]  ¹³⁵ tn Or “this is the reason for God judging,” or “this is how judgment works.”

[3:19]  ¹³⁶ tn Grk “and men,” but in a generic sense, referring to people of both genders (as “everyone” in v. 20 makes clear).

[3:21]  ¹³⁷ sn John 3:16-21 provides an introduction to the (so-called) “realized” eschatology of the Fourth Gospel: Judgment has come; eternal life may be possessed now, in the present life, as well as in the future. The terminology “realized eschatology” was originally coined by E. Haenchen and used by J. Jeremias in discussion with C. H. Dodd, but is now characteristically used to describe Dodd’s own formulation. See L. Goppelt, Theology of the New Testament, 1:54, note 10, and R. E. Brown (John [AB], 1:cxvii-cxviii) for further discussion. Especially important to note is the element of choice portrayed in John’s Gospel. If there is a twofold reaction to Jesus in John’s Gospel, it should be emphasized that that reaction is very much dependent on a person’s choice, a choice that is influenced by his way of life, whether his deeds are wicked or are done in God (John 3:20-21). For John there is virtually no trace of determinism at the surface. Only when one looks beneath the surface does one find statements like “no one can come to me, unless the Father who sent me draws him” (John 6:44).

[15:18]  ¹³⁸ tn Grk “know.”

[15:18]  ¹³⁹ tn Grk “it hated me before you.”

[15:19]  ¹⁴⁰ tn Grk “if you were of the world.”

[15:19]  ¹⁴¹ tn The words “you as” are not in the original but are supplied for clarity.

[15:19]  ¹⁴² tn Grk “because you are not of the world.”

[15:19]  ¹⁴³ tn Or “world, therefore.”

[15:19]  ¹⁴⁴ sn I chose you out of the world…the world hates you. Two themes are brought together here. In 8:23 Jesus had distinguished himself from the world in addressing his Jewish opponents: “You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world.” In 15:16 Jesus told the disciples “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you.” Now Jesus has united these two ideas as he informs the disciples that he has chosen them out of the world. While the disciples will still be “in” the world after Jesus has departed, they will not belong to it, and Jesus prays later in John 17:15-16 to the Father, “I do not ask you to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” The same theme also occurs in 1 John 4:5-6: “They are from the world; therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us.” Thus the basic reason why the world hates the disciples (as it hated Jesus before them) is because they are not of the world. They are born from above, and are not of the world. For this reason the world hates them.

[17:14]  ¹⁴⁵ tn Or “your message.”

[17:14]  ¹⁴⁶ tn Grk “because they are not of the world.”

[17:14]  ¹⁴⁷ tn Grk “just as I am not of the world.”

[4:16]  ¹⁴⁸ tn Or “have I become your enemy because I am telling you the truth?” The participle ἀληθεύων (alhqeuwn) can be translated as a causal adverbial participle or as a participle of means (as in the translation).

[11:7]  ¹⁴⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[11:7]  ¹⁵⁰ tn Or “be victorious over”; traditionally, “overcome.”

[11:8]  ¹⁵¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[11:8]  ¹⁵² tn The Greek word πλατεῖα (plateia) refers to a major (broad) street (L&N 1.103).

[11:8]  ¹⁵³ tn Grk “spiritually.”

[11:9]  ¹⁵⁴ tn The word “every” is not in the Greek text, but is implied by the following list.

[11:9]  ¹⁵⁵ tn The Greek term καί (kai) has not been translated before this and the following items in the list, since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[11:9]  ¹⁵⁶ tn Or “to be buried.”