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 34:20

34:20 So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate ⁷  of their city and spoke to the men of their city,

Genesis 39:17

39:17 This is what she said to him: ⁸  “That Hebrew slave ⁹  you brought to us tried to humiliate me, ¹⁰ 

[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.

[34:20]  ⁷ sn The gate. In an ancient Near Eastern city the gate complex was the location for conducting important public business.

[39:17]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and she spoke to him according to these words, saying.”

[39:17]  ¹¹ sn That Hebrew slave. Now, when speaking to her husband, Potiphar’s wife refers to Joseph as a Hebrew slave, a very demeaning description.

[39:17]  ¹² tn Heb “came to me to make fun of me.” The statement needs no explanation because of the connotations of “came to me” and “to make fun of me.” See the note on the expression “humiliate us” in v. 14.