Genesis 15:13

15:13 Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain ¹  that your descendants will be strangers ²  in a foreign country. ³  They will be enslaved and oppressed ⁴  for four hundred years.

Genesis 35:27

35:27 So Jacob came back to his father Isaac in Mamre, ⁵  to Kiriath Arba ⁶  (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. ⁷ 

[15:13]  ¹ tn The Hebrew construction is emphatic, with the Qal infinitive absolute followed by the imperfect from יָדַע (yada’, “know”). The imperfect here has an obligatory or imperatival force.

[15:13]  ² tn The Hebrew word גֵּר (ger, “sojourner, stranger”) is related to the verb גּוּר (gur, “to sojourn, to stay for awhile”). Abram’s descendants will stay in a land as resident aliens without rights of citizenship.

[15:13]  ³ tn Heb “in a land not theirs.”

[15:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “and they will serve them and they will oppress them.” The verb עִנּוּ, (’innu, a Piel form from עָנָה, ’anah, “to afflict, to oppress, to treat harshly”), is used in Exod 1:11 to describe the oppression of the Israelites in Egypt.

[35:27]  ⁵ tn This is an adverbial accusative of location.

[35:27]  ⁶ tn The name “Kiriath Arba” is in apposition to the preceding name, “Mamre.”

[35:27]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew verb גּוּר (gur), traditionally rendered “to sojourn,” refers to temporary settlement without ownership rights.