Genesis 14:13

14:13 A fugitive ¹  came and told Abram the Hebrew. ²  Now Abram was living by the oaks ³  of Mamre the Amorite, the brother ⁴  of Eshcol and Aner. (All these were allied by treaty ⁵  with Abram.) ⁶ 

Genesis 28:13

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. ⁷  I will give you and your descendants the ground ⁸  you are lying on.

Genesis 29:2

29:2 He saw ⁹  in the field a well with ¹⁰  three flocks of sheep lying beside it, because the flocks were watered from that well. Now ¹¹  a large stone covered the mouth of the well.

Genesis 38:16

38:16 He turned aside to her along the road and said, “Come on! I want to have sex with you.” ¹²  (He did not realize ¹³  it was his daughter-in-law.) She asked, “What will you give me in exchange for having sex with you?” ¹⁴ 

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 ¹⁵  for the Egyptians.” That is why its name was called ¹⁶  Abel Mizraim, ¹⁷  which is beyond the Jordan.

[14:13]  ¹ 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]  ² 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]  ³ tn Or “terebinths.”

[14:13]  ⁴ tn Or “a brother”; or “a relative”; or perhaps “an ally.”

[14:13]  ⁵ 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]  ⁶ 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.

[28:13]  ⁷ 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]  ⁸ 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.

[29:2]  ¹³ tn Heb “and he saw, and look.” As in Gen 28:12-15, the narrator uses the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) here and in the next clause to draw the reader into the story.

[29:2]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and look, there.”

[29:2]  ¹⁵ tn The disjunctive clause (introduced by the noun with the prefixed conjunction) provides supplemental information that is important to the story.

[38:16]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “I will go to you.” The imperfect verbal form probably indicates his desire here. The expression “go to” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[38:16]  ²⁰ tn Heb “for he did not know that.”

[38:16]  ²¹ tn Heb “when you come to me.” This expression is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[50:11]  ²⁵ tn Heb “this is heavy mourning for Egypt.”

[50:11]  ²⁶ tn The verb has no expressed subject and so it may be translated as passive.

[50:11]  ²⁷ sn The name Abel Mizraim means “the mourning of Egypt.”