Genesis 15:2

15:2 But Abram said, “O sovereign Lord, ¹  what will you give me since ²  I continue to be ³  childless, and my heir ⁴  is ⁵  Eliezer of Damascus?” ⁶ 

Genesis 24:2

24:2 Abraham said to his servant, the senior one ⁷  in his household who was in charge of everything he had, “Put your hand under my thigh ⁸ 

Genesis 24:10

24:10 Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed with all kinds of gifts from his master at his disposal. ⁹  He journeyed ¹⁰  to the region of Aram Naharaim ¹¹  and the city of Nahor.

Genesis 39:4

39:4 So Joseph found favor in his sight and became his personal attendant. ¹²  Potiphar appointed Joseph ¹³  overseer of his household and put him in charge ¹⁴  of everything he owned.

Genesis 39:9

39:9 There is no one greater in this household than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you because you are his wife. So how could I do ¹⁵  such a great evil and sin against God?”

[15:2]  ¹ tn The Hebrew text has אֲדֹנָי יֱהוִה (’adonay yehvih, “Master, Lord”). Since the tetragrammaton (YHWH) usually is pointed with the vowels for the Hebrew word אֲדֹנָי (’adonay, “master”) to avoid pronouncing the divine name, that would lead in this place to a repetition of אֲדֹנָי. So the tetragrammaton is here pointed with the vowels for the word אֱלֹהִים (’elohim, “God”) instead. That would produce the reading of the Hebrew as “Master, God” in the Jewish textual tradition. But the presence of “Master” before the holy name is rather compelling evidence that the original would have been “Master, Lord,” which is rendered here “sovereign Lord.”

[15:2]  ² tn The vav (ו) disjunctive at the beginning of the clause is circumstantial, expressing the cause or reason.

[15:2]  ³ tn Heb “I am going.”

[15:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “the son of the acquisition of my house.”

[15:2]  ⁵ tn The pronoun is anaphoric here, equivalent to the verb “to be” (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 23, §115).

[15:2]  ⁶ sn The sentence in the Hebrew text employs a very effective wordplay on the name Damascus: “The son of the acquisition (בֶּן־מֶשֶׁק, ben-mesheq) of my house is Eliezer of Damascus (דַּמֶּשֶׁק, dammesheq).” The words are not the same; they have different sibilants. But the sound play gives the impression that “in the nomen is the omen.” Eliezer the Damascene will be Abram’s heir if Abram dies childless because “Damascus” seems to mean that. See M. F. Unger, “Some Comments on the Text of Genesis 15:2-3,” JBL 72 (1953): 49-50; H. L. Ginsberg, “Abram’s ‘Damascene’ Steward,” BASOR 200 (1970): 31-32.

[24:2]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew term זָקֵן (zaqen) may refer to the servant who is oldest in age or senior in authority (or both).

[24:2]  ⁸ sn Put your hand under my thigh. The taking of this oath had to do with the sanctity of the family and the continuation of the family line. See D. R. Freedman, “Put Your Hand Under My Thigh – the Patriarchal Oath,” BAR 2 (1976): 2-4, 42.

[24:10]  ⁹ tn Heb “and every good thing of his master was in his hand.” The disjunctive clause is circumstantial, explaining that he took all kinds of gifts to be used at his discretion.

[24:10]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and he arose and went.”

[24:10]  ¹¹ tn The words “the region of” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[39:4]  ¹² sn The Hebrew verb translated became his personal attendant refers to higher domestic service, usually along the lines of a personal attendant. Here Joseph is made the household steward, a position well-attested in Egyptian literature.

[39:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[39:4]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “put into his hand.”

[39:9]  ¹⁵ tn The nuance of potential imperfect fits this context.