Genesis 17:20

17:20 As for Ishmael, I have heard you. ¹  I will indeed bless him, make him fruitful, and give him a multitude of descendants. ²  He will become the father of twelve princes; ³  I will make him into a great nation.

Genesis 19:11

19:11 Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, from the youngest to the oldest, ⁴  with blindness. The men outside ⁵  wore themselves out trying to find the door.

Genesis 29:7

29:7 Then Jacob ⁶  said, “Since it is still the middle of the day, ⁷  it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. You should water the sheep and then go and let them graze some more.” ⁸ 

Genesis 46:3

46:3 He said, “I am God, ⁹  the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there.

Genesis 50:10

50:10 When they came to the threshing floor of Atad ¹⁰  on the other side of the Jordan, they mourned there with very great and bitter sorrow. ¹¹  There Joseph observed a seven day period of mourning for his father.

[17:20]  ¹ sn The Hebrew verb translated “I have heard you” forms a wordplay with the name Ishmael, which means “God hears.” See the note on the name “Ishmael” in 16:11.

[17:20]  ² tn Heb “And I will multiply him exceedingly, exceedingly.” The repetition is emphatic.

[17:20]  ³ tn For a discussion of the Hebrew word translated “princes,” see E. A. Speiser, “Background and Function of the Biblical Nasi’,” CBQ 25 (1963): 111-17.

[19:11]  ⁴ tn Heb “from the least to the greatest.”

[19:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the men of Sodom outside the door) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:7]  ⁷ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:7]  ⁸ tn Heb “the day is great.”

[29:7]  ⁹ tn Heb “water the sheep and go and pasture [them].” The verbal forms are imperatives, but Jacob would hardly be giving direct orders to someone else’s shepherds. The nuance here is probably one of advice.

[46:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the God.”

[50:10]  ¹³ sn The location of the threshing floor of Atad is not certain. The expression the other side of the Jordan could refer to the eastern or western bank, depending on one’s perspective. However, it is commonly used in the OT for Transjordan. This would suggest that the entourage came up the Jordan Valley and crossed into the land at Jericho, just as the Israelites would in the time of Joshua.

[50:10]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and they mourned there [with] very great and heavy mourning.” The cognate accusative, as well as the two adjectives and the adverb, emphasize the degree of their sorrow.