Genesis 1:30

1:30 And to all the animals of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to all the creatures that move on the ground – everything that has the breath of life in it – I give ¹  every green plant for food.” It was so.

Genesis 14:13

14:13 A fugitive ²  came and told Abram the Hebrew. ³  Now Abram was living by the oaks ⁴  of Mamre the Amorite, the brother ⁵  of Eshcol and Aner. (All these were allied by treaty ⁶  with Abram.) ⁷ 

Genesis 14:17

14:17 After Abram ⁸  returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet Abram ⁹  in the Valley of Shaveh (known as the King’s Valley). ¹⁰ 

Genesis 20:16

20:16 To Sarah he said, “Look, I have given a thousand pieces of silver ¹¹  to your ‘brother.’ ¹²  This is compensation for you so that you will stand vindicated before all who are with you.” ¹³ 

Genesis 31:53

31:53 May the God of Abraham and the god of Nahor, ¹⁴  the gods of their father, judge between us.” Jacob took an oath by the God whom his father Isaac feared. ¹⁵ 

Genesis 38:29

38:29 But then he drew back his hand, and his brother came out before him. ¹⁶  She said, “How you have broken out of the womb!” ¹⁷  So he was named Perez. ¹⁸ 

Genesis 40:20

40:20 On the third day it was Pharaoh’s birthday, so he gave a feast for all his servants. He “lifted up” ¹⁹  the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker in the midst of his servants.

Genesis 42:21

42:21 They said to one other, ²⁰  “Surely we’re being punished ²¹  because of our brother, because we saw how distressed he was ²²  when he cried to us for mercy, but we refused to listen. That is why this distress ²³  has come on us!”

Genesis 43:29

43:29 When Joseph looked up ²⁴  and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, he said, “Is this your youngest brother, whom you told me about?” Then he said, “May God be gracious to you, my son.” ²⁵ 

Genesis 46:29

46:29 Joseph harnessed his chariot and went up to meet his father Israel in Goshen. When he met him, ²⁶  he hugged his neck and wept on his neck for quite some time.

Genesis 47:24

47:24 When you gather in the crop, ²⁷  give ²⁸  one-fifth of it to Pharaoh, and the rest ²⁹  will be yours for seed for the fields and for you to eat, including those in your households and your little children.”

Genesis 48:20

48:20 So he blessed them that day, saying,

“By you ³⁰  will Israel bless, ³¹  saying,

‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’”

So he put Ephraim before Manasseh. ³² 

Genesis 50:11

50:11 When the Canaanites who lived in the land saw them mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, “This is a very sad occasion ³³  for the Egyptians.” That is why its name was called ³⁴  Abel Mizraim, ³⁵  which is beyond the Jordan.

[1:30]  ¹ tn The phrase “I give” is not in the Hebrew text but has been supplied in the translation for clarification.

[14:13]  ² tn Heb “the fugitive.” The article carries a generic force or indicates that this fugitive is definite in the mind of the speaker.

[14:13]  ³ sn E. A. Speiser (Genesis [AB], 103) suggests that part of this chapter came from an outside source since it refers to Abram the Hebrew. That is not impossible, given that the narrator likely utilized traditions and genealogies that had been collected and transmitted over the years. The meaning of the word “Hebrew” has proved elusive. It may be related to the verb “to cross over,” perhaps meaning “immigrant.” Or it might be derived from the name of Abram’s ancestor Eber (see Gen 11:14-16).

[14:13]  ⁴ tn Or “terebinths.”

[14:13]  ⁵ tn Or “a brother”; or “a relative”; or perhaps “an ally.”

[14:13]  ⁶ tn Heb “possessors of a treaty with.” Since it is likely that the qualifying statement refers to all three (Mamre, Eshcol, and Aner) the words “all these” have been supplied in the translation to make this clear.

[14:13]  ⁷ tn This parenthetical disjunctive clause explains how Abram came to be living in their territory, but it also explains why they must go to war with Abram.

[14:17]  ³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[14:17]  ⁴ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[14:17]  ⁵ sn The King’s Valley is possibly a reference to what came to be known later as the Kidron Valley.

[20:16]  ⁴ sn A thousand pieces [Heb “shekels”] of silver. The standards for weighing money varied considerably in the ancient Near East, but the generally accepted weight for the shekel is 11.5 grams (0.4 ounce). This makes the weight of silver here 11.5 kilograms, or 400 ounces (about 25 pounds).

[20:16]  ⁵ sn To your ‘brother.’ Note the way that the king refers to Abraham. Was he being sarcastic? It was surely a rebuke to Sarah. What is amazing is how patient this king was. It is proof that the fear of God was in that place, contrary to what Abraham believed (see v. 11).

[20:16]  ⁶ tn Heb “Look, it is for you a covering of the eyes, for all who are with you, and with all, and you are set right.” The exact meaning of the statement is unclear. Apparently it means that the gift of money somehow exonerates her in other people’s eyes. They will not look on her as compromised (see G. J. Wenham, Genesis [WBC], 2:74).

[31:53]  ⁵ tn The God of Abraham and the god of Nahor. The Hebrew verb translated “judge” is plural, suggesting that Laban has more than one “god” in mind. The Samaritan Pentateuch and the LXX, apparently in an effort to make the statement monotheistic, have a singular verb. In this case one could translate, “May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” However, Laban had a polytheistic world view, as evidenced by his possession of household idols (cf. 31:19). The translation uses “God” when referring to Abraham’s God, for Genesis makes it clear that Abraham worshiped the one true God. It employs “god” when referring to Nahor’s god, for in the Hebrew text Laban refers to a different god here, probably one of the local deities.

[31:53]  ⁶ tn Heb “by the fear of his father Isaac.” See the note on the word “fears” in v. 42.

[38:29]  ⁶ tn Heb “Look, his brother came out.” By the use of the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”), the narrator invites the reader to view the scene through the midwife’s eyes. The words “before him” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[38:29]  ⁷ tn Heb “How you have made a breach for yourself!” The Hebrew verb translated “make a breach” frequently occurs, as here, with a cognate accusative. The event provided the meaningful name Perez, “he who breaks through.”

[38:29]  ⁸ sn The name Perez means “he who breaks through,” referring to Perez reaching out his hand at birth before his brother was born. The naming signified the completion of Tamar’s struggle and also depicted the destiny of the tribe of Perez who later became dominant (Gen 46:12 and Num 26:20). Judah and his brothers had sold Joseph into slavery, thinking they could thwart God’s plan that the elder brothers should serve the younger. God demonstrated that principle through these births in Judah’s own family, affirming that the elder will serve the younger, and that Joseph’s leadership could not so easily be set aside. See J. Goldin, “The Youngest Son; or, Where Does Genesis 38 Belong?” JBL 96 (1977): 27-44.

[40:20]  ⁷ tn The translation puts the verb in quotation marks because it is used rhetorically here and has a double meaning. With respect to the cup bearer it means “reinstate” (see v. 13), but with respect to the baker it means “decapitate” (see v. 19).

[42:21]  ⁸ tn Heb “a man to his neighbor.”

[42:21]  ⁹ tn Or “we are guilty”; the Hebrew word can also refer to the effect of being guilty, i.e., “we are being punished for guilt.”

[42:21]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the distress of his soul.”

[42:21]  ¹¹ sn The repetition of the Hebrew noun translated distress draws attention to the fact that they regard their present distress as appropriate punishment for their refusal to ignore their brother when he was in distress.

[43:29]  ⁹ tn Heb “and he lifted his eyes.” The referent of “he” (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[43:29]  ¹⁰ sn Joseph’s language here becomes warmer and more personal, culminating in calling Benjamin my son.

[46:29]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and he appeared to him.”

[47:24]  ¹¹ tn The words “the crop” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[47:24]  ¹² tn The perfect form with the vav (ו) consecutive is equivalent to an imperfect of instruction here.

[47:24]  ¹³ tn Heb “four parts.”

[48:20]  ¹² tn The pronoun is singular in the Hebrew text, apparently elevating Ephraim as the more prominent of the two. Note, however, that both are named in the blessing formula that follows.

[48:20]  ¹³ tn Or “pronounce a blessing.”

[48:20]  ¹⁴ sn On the elevation of Ephraim over Manasseh see E. C. Kingsbury, “He Set Ephraim Before Manasseh,” HUCA 38 (1967): 129-36; H. Mowvley, “The Concept and Content of ‘Blessing’ in the Old Testament,” BT 16 (1965): 74-80; and I. Mendelsohn, “On the Preferential Status of the Eldest Son,” BASOR 156 (1959): 38-40.

[50:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “this is heavy mourning for Egypt.”

[50:11]  ¹⁴ tn The verb has no expressed subject and so it may be translated as passive.

[50:11]  ¹⁵ sn The name Abel Mizraim means “the mourning of Egypt.”