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 6:22

6:22 And Noah did all ⁴  that God commanded him – he did indeed. ⁵ 

Genesis 12:20

12:20 Pharaoh gave his men orders about Abram, ⁶  and so they expelled him, along with his wife and all his possessions.

Genesis 21:4

21:4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, ⁷  Abraham circumcised him just as God had commanded him to do. ⁸ 

Genesis 26:11

26:11 So Abimelech commanded all the people, “Whoever touches ⁹  this man or his wife will surely be put to death.” 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).

[6:22]  ⁴ tn Heb “according to all.”

[6:22]  ⁵ tn The last clause seems redundant: “and thus (כֵּן, ken) he did.” It underscores the obedience of Noah to all that God had said.

[12:20]  ⁷ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Abram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:4]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Isaac his son, the son of eight days.” The name “Isaac” is repeated in the translation for clarity.

[21:4]  ¹¹ sn Just as God had commanded him to do. With the birth of the promised child, Abraham obeyed the Lord by both naming (Gen 17:19) and circumcising Isaac (17:12).

[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.