Genesis 2:5

2:5 Now ¹  no shrub of the field had yet grown on the earth, and no plant of the field ²  had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground. ³ 

Genesis 19:4

19:4 Before they could lie down to sleep, ⁴  all the men – both young and old, from every part of the city of Sodom – surrounded the house. ⁵ 

Genesis 27:4

27:4 Then prepare for me some tasty food, the kind I love, and bring it to me. Then ⁶  I will eat it so that I may bless you ⁷  before I die.”

Genesis 41:50

41:50 Two sons were born to Joseph before the famine came. ⁸  Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, was their mother. ⁹ 

[2:5]  ¹ tn Heb “Now every sprig of the field before it was.” The verb forms, although appearing to be imperfects, are technically preterites coming after the adverb טֶּרֶם (terem). The word order (conjunction + subject + predicate) indicates a disjunctive clause, which provides background information for the following narrative (as in 1:2). Two negative clauses are given (“before any sprig…”, and “before any cultivated grain” existed), followed by two causal clauses explaining them, and then a positive circumstantial clause is given – again dealing with water as in 1:2 (water would well up).

[2:5]  ² tn The first term, שִׂיחַ (siakh), probably refers to the wild, uncultivated plants (see Gen 21:15; Job 30:4,7); whereas the second, עֵשֶׂב (’esev), refers to cultivated grains. It is a way of saying: “back before anything was growing.”

[2:5]  ³ tn The two causal clauses explain the first two disjunctive clauses: There was no uncultivated, general growth because there was no rain, and there were no grains because there was no man to cultivate the soil.

[19:4]  ⁴ tn The verb שָׁכַב (shakhav) means “to lie down, to recline,” that is, “to go to bed.” Here what appears to be an imperfect is a preterite after the adverb טֶרֶם (terem). The nuance of potential (perfect) fits well.

[19:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “and the men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, from the young to the old, all the people from the end [of the city].” The repetition of the phrase “men of” stresses all kinds of men.

[27:4]  ⁷ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “so that my soul may bless you.” The use of נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”) as the subject emphasizes that the blessing will be made with all Isaac’s desire and vitality. The conjunction “so that” closely relates the meal to the blessing, suggesting that this will be a ritual meal in conjunction with the giving of a formal blessing.

[41:50]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “before the year of the famine came.”

[41:50]  ¹¹ tn Heb “gave birth for him.”