Genesis 2:16

2:16 Then the Lord God commanded ¹  the man, “You may freely eat ²  fruit ³  from every tree of the orchard,

Genesis 18:12

18:12 So Sarah laughed to herself, thinking, ⁴  “After I am worn out will I have pleasure, ⁵  especially when my husband is old too?” ⁶ 

Genesis 18:15

18:15 Then Sarah lied, saying, “I did not laugh,” because she was afraid. But the Lord said, “No! You did laugh.” ⁷ 

Genesis 23:3

23:3 Then Abraham got up from mourning his dead wife ⁸  and said to the sons of Heth, ⁹ 

Genesis 26:11

26:11 So Abimelech commanded all the people, “Whoever touches ¹⁰  this man or his wife will surely be put to death.” ¹¹ 

Genesis 30:24

30:24 She named him Joseph, ¹²  saying, “May the Lord give me yet another son.”

Genesis 34:4

34:4 Shechem said to his father Hamor, “Acquire this young girl as my wife.” ¹³ 

Genesis 34:20

34:20 So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate ¹⁴  of their city and spoke to the men of their city,

Genesis 37:15

37:15 When Joseph reached Shechem, ¹⁵  a man found him wandering ¹⁶  in the field, so the man asked him, “What are you looking for?”

Genesis 38:13

38:13 Tamar was told, ¹⁷  “Look, your father-in-law is going up ¹⁸  to Timnah to shear his sheep.”

Genesis 39:12

39:12 She grabbed him by his outer garment, saying, “Have sex with me!” But he left his outer garment in her hand and ran ¹⁹  outside. ²⁰ 

Genesis 41:9

41:9 Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I recall my failures. ²¹ 

Genesis 41:16

41:16 Joseph replied to Pharaoh, “It is not within my power, ²²  but God will speak concerning ²³  the welfare of Pharaoh.” ²⁴ 

Genesis 42:14

42:14 But Joseph told them, “It is just as I said to you: ²⁵  You are spies!

Genesis 44:19

44:19 My lord asked his servants, ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’

Genesis 47:5

47:5 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you.

[2:16]  ¹ sn This is the first time in the Bible that the verb tsavah (צָוָה, “to command”) appears. Whatever the man had to do in the garden, the main focus of the narrative is on keeping God’s commandments. God created humans with the capacity to obey him and then tested them with commands.

[2:16]  ² tn The imperfect verb form probably carries the nuance of permission (“you may eat”) since the man is not being commanded to eat from every tree. The accompanying infinitive absolute adds emphasis: “you may freely eat,” or “you may eat to your heart’s content.”

[2:16]  ³ tn The word “fruit” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied as the direct object of the verb “eat.” Presumably the only part of the tree the man would eat would be its fruit (cf. 3:2).

[18:12]  ⁴ tn Heb “saying.”

[18:12]  ⁵ tn It has been suggested that this word should be translated “conception,” not “pleasure.” See A. A. McIntosh, “A Third Root ‘adah in Biblical Hebrew,” VT 24 (1974): 454-73.

[18:12]  ⁶ tn The word “too” has been added in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[18:15]  ⁷ tn Heb “And he said, ‘No, but you did laugh.’” The referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “And Abraham arose from upon the face of his dead.”

[23:3]  ¹¹ tn Some translate the Hebrew term “Heth” as “Hittites” here (also in vv. 5, 7, 10, 16, 18, 20), but this gives the impression that these people were the classical Hittites of Anatolia. However, there is no known connection between these sons of Heth, apparently a Canaanite group (see Gen 10:15), and the Hittites of Asia Minor. See H. A. Hoffner, Jr., “Hittites,” Peoples of the Old Testament World, 152-53.

[26:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “strikes.” Here the verb has the nuance “to harm in any way.” It would include assaulting the woman or killing the man.

[26:11]  ¹⁴ tn The use of the infinitive absolute before the imperfect makes the construction emphatic.

[30:24]  ¹⁶ sn The name Joseph (יוֹסֵף, yoseph) means “may he add.” The name expresses Rachel’s desire to have an additional son. In Hebrew the name sounds like the verb (אָסַף,’asasf) translated “taken away” in the earlier statement made in v. 23. So the name, while reflecting Rachel’s hope, was also a reminder that God had removed her shame.

[34:4]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Take for me this young woman for a wife.”

[34:20]  ²² sn The gate. In an ancient Near Eastern city the gate complex was the location for conducting important public business.

[37:15]  ²⁵ tn Heb “and he [i.e., Joseph] went to Shechem.” The referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[37:15]  ²⁶ tn Heb “and a man found him and look, he was wandering in the field.” By the use of וְהִנֵּה (vÿhinneh, “and look”), the narrator invites the reader to see the action through this unnamed man’s eyes.

[38:13]  ²⁸ tn Heb “And it was told to Tamar, saying.”

[38:13]  ²⁹ tn The active participle indicates the action was in progress or about to begin.

[39:12]  ³¹ tn Heb “he fled and he went out.” The construction emphasizes the point that Joseph got out of there quickly.

[39:12]  ³² sn For discussion of this episode, see A. M. Honeyman, “The Occasion of Joseph’s Temptation,” VT 2 (1952): 85-87.

[41:9]  ³⁴ tn Heb “sins, offenses.” He probably refers here to the offenses that landed him in prison (see 40:1).

[41:16]  ³⁷ tn Heb “not within me.”

[41:16]  ³⁸ tn Heb “God will answer.”

[41:16]  ³⁹ tn The expression שְׁלוֹם פַּרְעֹה (shÿlom par’oh) is here rendered “the welfare of Pharaoh” because the dream will be about life in his land. Some interpret it to mean an answer of “peace” – one that will calm his heart, or give him the answer that he desires (cf. NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[42:14]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “to you, saying.”