Genesis 15:14-18

15:14 But I will execute judgment on the nation that they will serve. ¹  Afterward they will come out with many possessions. 15:15 But as for you, ²  you will go to your ancestors ³  in peace and be buried at a good old age. ⁴  15:16 In the fourth generation ⁵  your descendants ⁶  will return here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its limit.” ⁷ 

15:17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, a smoking firepot with a flaming torch ⁸  passed between the animal parts. ⁹  15:18 That day the Lord made a covenant ¹⁰  with Abram: “To your descendants I give ¹¹  this land, from the river of Egypt ¹²  to the great river, the Euphrates River –

Genesis 17:7

17:7 I will confirm ¹³  my covenant as a perpetual ¹⁴  covenant between me and you. It will extend to your descendants after you throughout their generations. I will be your God and the God of your descendants after you. ¹⁵ 

Genesis 18:18

18:18 After all, Abraham ¹⁶  will surely become ¹⁷  a great and powerful nation, and all the nations on the earth will pronounce blessings on one another ¹⁸  using his name.

Genesis 26:3

26:3 Stay ¹⁹  in this land. Then I will be with you and will bless you, ²⁰  for I will give all these lands to you and to your descendants, ²¹  and I will fulfill ²²  the solemn promise I made ²³  to your father Abraham.

Genesis 26:24

26:24 The Lord appeared to him that night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.”

Genesis 28:12-14

28:12 and had a dream. ²⁴  He saw ²⁵  a stairway ²⁶  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. ²⁷  I will give you and your descendants the ground ²⁸  you are lying on. 28:14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, ²⁹  and you will spread out ³⁰  to the west, east, north, and south. All the families of the earth will pronounce blessings on one another ³¹  using your name and that of your descendants. ³² 

Genesis 32:28

32:28 “No longer will your name be Jacob,” the man told him, ³³  “but Israel, ³⁴  because you have fought ³⁵  with God and with men and have prevailed.”

Genesis 46:2-4

46:2 God spoke to Israel in a vision during the night ³⁶  and said, “Jacob, Jacob!” He replied, “Here I am!” 46:3 He said, “I am God, ³⁷  the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there. 46:4 I will go down with you to Egypt and I myself will certainly bring you back from there. ³⁸  Joseph will close your eyes.” ³⁹ 

Nehemiah 9:8-9

9:8 When you perceived that his heart was faithful toward you, you established a ⁴⁰  covenant with him to give his descendants ⁴¹  the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, and the Girgashites. You have fulfilled your promise, ⁴²  for you are righteous.

9:9 “You saw the affliction of our ancestors in Egypt, and you heard their cry at the Red Sea. ⁴³ 

Psalms 105:6-13

105:6 O children ⁴⁴  of Abraham, ⁴⁵  God’s ⁴⁶  servant,

you descendants ⁴⁷  of Jacob, God’s ⁴⁸  chosen ones!

105:7 He is the Lord our God;

he carries out judgment throughout the earth. ⁴⁹ 

105:8 He always remembers his covenantal decree,

the promise he made ⁵⁰  to a thousand generations –

105:9 the promise ⁵¹  he made to Abraham,

the promise he made by oath to Isaac!

105:10 He gave it to Jacob as a decree,

to Israel as a lasting promise, ⁵² 

105:11 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan

as the portion of your inheritance.”

105:12 When they were few in number,

just a very few, and resident aliens within it,

105:13 they wandered from nation to nation,

and from one kingdom to another. ⁵³ 

Psalms 105:42

105:42 Yes, ⁵⁴  he remembered the sacred promise ⁵⁵ 

he made to Abraham his servant.

Psalms 106:45

106:45 He remembered his covenant with them,

and relented ⁵⁶  because of his great loyal love.

Luke 1:72-73

1:72 He has done this ⁵⁷  to show mercy ⁵⁸  to our ancestors, ⁵⁹ 

and to remember his holy covenant ⁶⁰  –

1:73 the oath ⁶¹  that he swore to our ancestor ⁶²  Abraham.

This oath grants ⁶³ 

[15:14]  ¹ tn The participle דָּן (dan, from דִּין, din) is used here for the future: “I am judging” = “I will surely judge.” The judgment in this case will be condemnation and punishment. The translation “execute judgment on” implies that the judgment will certainly be carried out.

[15:15]  ² tn The vav with the pronoun before the verb calls special attention to the subject in contrast to the preceding subject.

[15:15]  ³ sn You will go to your ancestors. This is a euphemistic expression for death.

[15:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “in a good old age.”

[15:16]  ⁵ sn The term generation is being used here in its widest sense to refer to a full life span. When the chronological factors are considered and the genealogies tabulated, there are four hundred years of bondage. This suggests that in this context a generation is equivalent to one hundred years.

[15:16]  ⁶ tn Heb “they”; the referent (“your descendants”) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[15:16]  ⁷ tn Heb “is not yet complete.”

[15:17]  ⁸ sn A smoking pot with a flaming torch. These same implements were used in Mesopotamian rituals designed to ward off evil (see E. A. Speiser, Genesis [AB], 113-14).

[15:17]  ⁹ tn Heb “these pieces.”

[15:18]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “cut a covenant.”

[15:18]  ¹¹ 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]  ¹² sn The river of Egypt is a wadi (a seasonal stream) on the northeastern border of Egypt, not to the River Nile.

[17:7]  ¹³ tn The verb קוּם (qum, “to arise, to stand up”) in the Hiphil verbal stem means “to confirm, to give effect to, to carry out” (i.e., a covenant or oath; see BDB 878-79 s.v. קוּם).

[17:7]  ¹⁴ tn Or “as an eternal.”

[17:7]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “to be to you for God and to your descendants after you.”

[18:18]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “And Abraham.” The disjunctive clause is probably causal, giving a reason why God should not hide his intentions from Abraham. One could translate, “Should I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation?”

[18:18]  ¹⁷ tn The infinitive absolute lends emphasis to the finite verb that follows.

[18:18]  ¹⁸ tn Theoretically the Niphal 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 Abram were going to be a channel or source of blessing. But in later 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 [or “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 18:18 (like 12:2) predicts that Abraham 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.

[26:3]  ¹⁹ tn The Hebrew verb גּוּר (gur) means “to live temporarily without ownership of land.” Abraham’s family will not actually possess the land of Canaan until the Israelite conquest hundreds of years later.

[26:3]  ²⁰ tn After the imperative “stay” the two prefixed verb forms with prefixed conjunction here indicate consequence.

[26:3]  ²¹ 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.

[26:3]  ²² tn The Hiphil stem of the verb קוּם (qum) here means “to fulfill, to bring to realization.” For other examples of this use of this verb form, see Lev 26:9; Num 23:19; Deut 8:18; 9:5; 1 Sam 1:23; 1 Kgs 6:12; Jer 11:5.

[26:3]  ²³ tn Heb “the oath which I swore.”

[28:12]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and dreamed.”

[28:12]  ²⁵ 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 Lord himself” (Narrative Art in Genesis [SSN], 51-52).

[28:12]  ²⁶ 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]  ²⁷ 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]  ²⁸ 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]  ²⁹ tn This is the same Hebrew word translated “ground” in the preceding verse.

[28:14]  ³⁰ tn The verb is singular in the Hebrew; Jacob is addressed as the representative of his descendants.

[28:14]  ³¹ 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]  ³² tn Heb “and they will pronounce blessings by you, all the families of the earth, and by your offspring.”

[32:28]  ³³ tn Heb “and he said.” The referent of the pronoun “he” (the man who wrestled with Jacob) has been specified for clarity, and the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[32:28]  ³⁴ sn The name Israel is a common construction, using a verb with a theophoric element (אֵל, ’el) that usually indicates the subject of the verb. Here it means “God fights.” This name will replace the name Jacob; it will be both a promise and a call for faith. In essence, the Lord was saying that Jacob would have victory and receive the promises because God would fight for him.

[32:28]  ³⁵ sn You have fought. The explanation of the name Israel includes a sound play. In Hebrew the verb translated “you have fought” (שָׂרִיתָ, sarita) sounds like the name “Israel” (יִשְׂרָאֵל, yisra’el ), meaning “God fights” (although some interpret the meaning as “he fights [with] God”). The name would evoke the memory of the fight and what it meant. A. Dillmann says that ever after this the name would tell the Israelites that, when Jacob contended successfully with God, he won the battle with man (Genesis, 2:279). To be successful with God meant that he had to be crippled in his own self-sufficiency (A. P. Ross, “Jacob at the Jabboq, Israel at Peniel,” BSac 142 [1985]: 51-62).

[46:2]  ³⁶ tn Heb “in visions of the night.” The plural form has the singular meaning, probably as a plural of intensity.

[46:3]  ³⁷ tn Heb “the God.”

[46:4]  ³⁸ tn Heb “and I, I will bring you up, also bringing up.” The independent personal pronoun before the first person imperfect verbal form draws attention to the speaker/subject, while the infinitive absolute after the imperfect strongly emphasizes the statement: “I myself will certainly bring you up.”

[46:4]  ³⁹ tn Heb “and Joseph will put his hand upon your eyes.” This is a promise of peaceful death in Egypt with Joseph present to close his eyes.

[9:8]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “the” (so NAB).

[9:8]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “seed.”

[9:8]  ⁴² tn Heb “your words.”

[9:9]  ⁴³ tn Heb “the Sea of Reeds.” Traditionally this is identified as the Red Sea, and the modern designation has been used in the translation for clarity.

[105:6]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”

[105:6]  ⁴⁵ tc Some mss have “Israel,” which appears in the parallel version of this psalm in 1 Chr 16:13.

[105:6]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “his”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[105:6]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “sons.”

[105:6]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “his”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[105:7]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “in all the earth [are] his judgments.”

[105:8]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “[the] word he commanded.” The text refers here to God’s unconditional covenantal promise to Abraham and the patriarchs, as vv. 10-12 make clear.

[105:9]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “which.”

[105:10]  ⁵² tn Or “eternal covenant.”

[105:13]  ⁵³ tn Heb “and from a kingdom to another nation.”

[105:42]  ⁵⁴ tn Or “for.”

[105:42]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “his holy word.”

[106:45]  ⁵⁶ tn The Niphal of נָחַם (nakham) refers here to God relenting from a punishment already underway.

[1:72]  ⁵⁷ tn The words “He has done this” (referring to the raising up of the horn of salvation from David’s house) are not in the Greek text, but are supplied to allow a new sentence to be started in the translation. The Greek sentence is lengthy and complex at this point, while contemporary English uses much shorter sentences.

[1:72]  ⁵⁸ sn Mercy refers to God’s loyal love (steadfast love) by which he completes his promises. See Luke 1:50.

[1:72]  ⁵⁹ tn Or “our forefathers”; Grk “our fathers.” This begins with the promise to Abraham (vv. 55, 73), and thus refers to many generations of ancestors.

[1:72]  ⁶⁰ sn The promises of God can be summarized as being found in the one promise (the oath that he swore) to Abraham (Gen 12:1-3).

[1:73]  ⁶¹ tn This is linked back grammatically by apposition to “covenant” in v. 72, specifying which covenant is meant.

[1:73]  ⁶² tn Or “forefather”; Grk “father.”

[1:73]  ⁶³ tn Again for reasons of English style, the infinitival clause “to grant us” has been translated “This oath grants” and made the beginning of a new sentence in the translation.