Genesis 44:4

44:4 They had not gone very far from the city ¹  when Joseph said ²  to the servant who was over his household, “Pursue the men at once! ³  When you overtake ⁴  them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil?

Psalms 7:4

7:4 or have wronged my ally, ⁵ 

or helped his lawless enemy, ⁶ 

Psalms 35:12

35:12 They repay me evil for the good I have done; ⁷ 

I am overwhelmed with sorrow. ⁸ 

Proverbs 17:13

17:13 As for the one who repays ⁹  evil for good,

evil will not leave ¹⁰  his house. ¹¹ 

Jeremiah 18:20

18:20 Should good be paid back with evil?

Yet they are virtually digging a pit to kill me. ¹² 

Just remember how I stood before you

pleading on their behalf ¹³ 

to keep you from venting your anger on them. ¹⁴ 

[44:4]  ¹ tn Heb “they left the city, they were not far,” meaning “they had not gone very far.”

[44:4]  ² tn Heb “and Joseph said.” This clause, like the first one in the verse, has the subject before the verb, indicating synchronic action.

[44:4]  ³ tn Heb “arise, chase after the men.” The first imperative gives the command a sense of urgency.

[44:4]  ⁴ tn After the imperative this perfect verbal form with vav consecutive has the same nuance of instruction. In the translation it is subordinated to the verbal form that follows (also a perfect with vav consecutive): “and overtake them and say,” becomes “when you overtake them, say.”

[7:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “if I have repaid the one at peace with me evil.” The form שׁוֹלְמִי (sholÿmi, “the one at peace with me”) probably refers to a close friend or ally, i.e., one with whom the psalmist has made a formal agreement. See BDB 1023 s.v. שָׁלוֹם 4.a.

[7:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “or rescued my enemy in vain.” The preterite with vav (ו) consecutive (the verb form is pseudo-cohortative; see IBHS 576-77 §34.5.3) carries on the hypothetical nuance of the perfect in the preceding line. Some regard the statement as a parenthetical assertion that the psalmist is kind to his enemies. Others define חָלַץ (khalats) as “despoil” (cf. NASB, NRSV “plundered”; NIV “robbed”), an otherwise unattested nuance for this verb. Still others emend the verb to לָחַץ (lakhats, “oppress”). Most construe the adverb רֵיקָם (reqam, “emptily, vainly”) with “my enemy,” i.e., the one who is my enemy in vain.” The present translation (1) assumes an emendation of צוֹרְרִי (tsorÿriy, “my enemy”) to צוֹרְרוֹ (tsorÿro, “his [i.e., the psalmist’s ally’s] enemy”) following J. Tigay, “Psalm 7:5 and Ancient Near Eastern Treaties,” JBL 89 (1970): 178-86, (2) understands the final mem (ם) on רֵיקָם as enclitic, and (3) takes רִיק (riq) as an adjective modifying “his enemy.” (For other examples of a suffixed noun followed by an attributive adjective without the article, see Pss 18:17 (“my strong enemy”), 99:3 (“your great and awesome name”) and 143:10 (“your good spirit”). The adjective רִיק occurs with the sense “lawless” in Judg 9:4; 11:3; 2 Chr 13:7. In this case the psalmist affirms that he has not wronged his ally, nor has he given aid to his ally’s enemies. Ancient Near Eastern treaties typically included such clauses, with one or both parties agreeing not to lend aid to the treaty partner’s enemies.

[35:12]  ⁷ tn Heb “they repay me evil instead of good.”

[35:12]  ⁸ tn Heb “[there is] bereavement to my soul.”

[17:13]  ⁹ tn The sentence begins with the participle מֵשִׁיב (meshiv, “the one who repays”). The whole first colon may be taken as an independent nominative absolute, with the formal sentence to follow. Some English versions have made the first colon a condition by supplying “if” (NAB, NIV, TEV, NLT).

[17:13]  ¹⁰ tn The verb מוּשׁ (mush) means “to depart; to remove.” The Kethib is a Hiphil, which would yield a meaning of “to take away”; so the Qere, which is the Qal, makes more sense in the line.

[17:13]  ¹¹ sn The proverb does not explain whether God will turn evil back on him directly or whether people will begin to treat him as he treated others.

[18:20]  ¹² tn Or “They are plotting to kill me”; Heb “They have dug a pit for my soul.” This is a common metaphor for plotting against someone. See BDB 500 s.v. כָּרָה Qal and for an example see Pss 7:16 (7:15 HT) in its context.

[18:20]  ¹³ tn Heb “to speak good concerning them” going back to the concept of “good” being paid back with evil.

[18:20]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “to turn back your anger from them.”