Genesis 15:12

15:12 When the sun went down, Abram fell sound asleep, ¹  and great terror overwhelmed him. ² 

Genesis 17:3

17:3 Abram bowed down with his face to the ground, ³  and God said to him, ⁴ 

Genesis 4:5-6

4:5 but with Cain and his offering he was not pleased. ⁵  So Cain became very angry, ⁶  and his expression was downcast. ⁷ 

4:6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why is your expression downcast?

Genesis 24:64

24:64 Rebekah looked up ⁸  and saw Isaac. She got down from her camel

Genesis 33:4

33:4 But Esau ran to meet him, embraced him, hugged his neck, and kissed him. Then they both wept.

Genesis 44:14

44:14 So Judah and his brothers ⁹  came back to Joseph’s house. He was still there, ¹⁰  and they threw themselves to the ground before him.

Genesis 45:14

45:14 Then he threw himself on the neck of his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck.

Genesis 50:1

The Burials of Jacob and Joseph

50:1 Then Joseph hugged his father’s face. ¹¹  He wept over him and kissed him.

Genesis 50:18

50:18 Then his brothers also came and threw themselves down before him; they said, “Here we are; we are your slaves.”

Genesis 2:21

2:21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep, ¹²  and while he was asleep, ¹³  he took part of the man’s side ¹⁴  and closed up the place with flesh. ¹⁵ 

Genesis 14:10

14:10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits. ¹⁶  When the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, they fell into them, ¹⁷  but some survivors ¹⁸  fled to the hills. ¹⁹ 

Genesis 17:17

17:17 Then Abraham bowed down with his face to the ground and laughed ²⁰  as he said to himself, ²¹  “Can ²²  a son be born to a man who is a hundred years old? ²³  Can Sarah ²⁴  bear a child at the age of ninety?” ²⁵ 

Genesis 25:18

25:18 His descendants ²⁶  settled from Havilah to Shur, which runs next ²⁷  to Egypt all the way ²⁸  to Asshur. ²⁹  They settled ³⁰  away from all their relatives. ³¹ 

Genesis 46:29

46:29 Joseph harnessed his chariot and went up to meet his father Israel in Goshen. When he met him, ³²  he hugged his neck and wept on his neck for quite some time.

Genesis 49:17

49:17 May Dan be a snake beside the road,

a viper by the path,

that bites the heels of the horse

so that its rider falls backward. ³³ 

Genesis 43:18

43:18 But the men were afraid when they were brought to Joseph’s house. They said, “We are being brought in because of ³⁴  the money that was returned in our sacks last time. ³⁵  He wants to capture us, ³⁶  make us slaves, and take ³⁷  our donkeys!”

[15:12]  ¹ tn Heb “a deep sleep fell on Abram.”

[15:12]  ² tn Heb “and look, terror, a great darkness was falling on him.”

[17:3]  ³ tn Heb “And Abram fell on his face.” This expression probably means that Abram sank to his knees and put his forehead to the ground, although it is possible that he completely prostrated himself. In either case the posture indicates humility and reverence.

[17:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “God spoke to him, saying.” This is redundant in contemporary English and has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[4:5]  ⁵ sn The Letter to the Hebrews explains the difference between the brothers as one of faith – Abel by faith offered a better sacrifice. Cain’s offering as well as his reaction to God’s displeasure did not reflect faith. See further B. K. Waltke, “Cain and His Offering,” WTJ 48 (1986): 363-72.

[4:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “and it was hot to Cain.” This Hebrew idiom means that Cain “burned” with anger.

[4:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “And his face fell.” The idiom means that the inner anger is reflected in Cain’s facial expression. The fallen or downcast face expresses anger, dejection, or depression. Conversely, in Num 6 the high priestly blessing speaks of the Lord lifting up his face and giving peace.

[24:64]  ⁷ tn Heb “lifted up her eyes.”

[44:14]  ⁹ sn Judah and his brothers. The narrative is already beginning to bring Judah to the forefront.

[44:14]  ¹⁰ tn The disjunctive clause here provides supplemental information.

[50:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “fell on.” The expression describes Joseph’s unrestrained sorrow over Jacob’s death; he probably threw himself across the body and embraced his father.

[2:21]  ¹³ tn Heb “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on the man.”

[2:21]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and he slept.” In the sequence the verb may be subordinated to the following verb to indicate a temporal clause (“while…”).

[2:21]  ¹⁵ tn Traditionally translated “rib,” the Hebrew word actually means “side.” The Hebrew text reads, “and he took one from his sides,” which could be rendered “part of his sides.” That idea may fit better the explanation by the man that the woman is his flesh and bone.

[2:21]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “closed up the flesh under it.”

[14:10]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “Now the Valley of Siddim [was] pits, pits of tar.” This parenthetical disjunctive clause emphasizes the abundance of tar pits in the area through repetition of the noun “pits.”

[14:10]  ¹⁶ tn Or “they were defeated there.” After a verb of motion the Hebrew particle שָׁם (sham) with the directional heh (שָׁמָּה, shammah) can mean “into it, therein” (BDB 1027 s.v. שָׁם).

[14:10]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the rest.”

[14:10]  ¹⁸ sn The reference to the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah must mean the kings along with their armies. Most of them were defeated in the valley, but some of them escaped to the hills.

[17:17]  ¹⁷ sn Laughed. The Hebrew verb used here provides the basis for the naming of Isaac: “And he laughed” is וַיִּצְחָק (vayyitskhaq); the name “Isaac” is יִצְחָק (yitskhaq), “he laughs.” Abraham’s (and Sarah’s, see 18:12) laughter signals disbelief, but when the boy is born, the laughter signals surprise and joy.

[17:17]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “And he fell on his face and laughed and said in his heart.”

[17:17]  ¹⁹ tn The imperfect verbal form here carries a potential nuance, as it expresses the disbelief of Abraham.

[17:17]  ²⁰ tn Heb “to the son of a hundred years.”

[17:17]  ²¹ sn It is important to note that even though Abraham staggers at the announcement of the birth of a son, finding it almost too incredible, he nonetheless calls his wife Sarah, the new name given to remind him of the promise of God (v. 15).

[17:17]  ²² tn Heb “the daughter of ninety years.”

[25:18]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “they”; the referent (Ishmael’s descendants) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:18]  ²⁰ tn Heb “which is by the face of,” or near the border. The territory ran along the border of Egypt.

[25:18]  ²¹ tn Heb “as you go.”

[25:18]  ²² sn The name Asshur refers here to a tribal area in the Sinai.

[25:18]  ²³ tn Heb “he fell.”

[25:18]  ²⁴ tn Heb “upon the face of all his brothers.” This last expression, obviously alluding to the earlier oracle about Ishmael (Gen 16:12), could mean that the descendants of Ishmael lived in hostility to others or that they lived in a territory that was opposite the lands of their relatives. While there is some ambiguity about the meaning, the line probably does give a hint of the Ishmaelite-Israelite conflicts to come.

[46:29]  ²¹ tn Heb “and he appeared to him.”

[49:17]  ²³ sn The comparison of the tribe of Dan to a venomous serpent is meant to say that Dan, though small, would be potent, gaining victory through its skill and shrewdness. Jewish commentators have linked the image in part with Samson. That link at least illustrates the point: Though a minority tribe, Dan would gain the upper hand over others.

[43:18]  ²⁵ tn Heb “over the matter of.”

[43:18]  ²⁶ tn Heb “in the beginning,” that is, at the end of their first visit.

[43:18]  ²⁷ tn Heb “to roll himself upon us and to cause himself to fall upon us.” The infinitives here indicate the purpose (as viewed by the brothers) for their being brought to Joseph’s house.

[43:18]  ²⁸ tn The word “take” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.