Genesis 23:10

23:10 (Now Ephron was sitting among the sons of Heth.) Ephron the Hethite ¹  replied to Abraham in the hearing ²  of the sons of Heth – before all who entered the gate ³  of his city –

Genesis 24:50

24:50 Then Laban and Bethuel replied, “This is the Lord’s doing. ⁴  Our wishes are of no concern. ⁵ 

Genesis 27:39

27:39 So his father Isaac said to him,

“Indeed, ⁶  your home will be

away from the richness ⁷  of the earth,

and away from the dew of the sky above.

Genesis 31:31

31:31 “I left secretly because I was afraid!” ⁸  Jacob replied to Laban. “I thought ⁹  you might take your daughters away from me by force. ¹⁰ 

Genesis 31:36

31:36 Jacob became angry ¹¹  and argued with Laban. “What did I do wrong?” he demanded of Laban. ¹²  “What sin of mine prompted you to chase after me in hot pursuit? ¹³ 

Genesis 42:22

42:22 Reuben said to them, “Didn’t I say to you, ‘Don’t sin against the boy,’ but you wouldn’t listen? So now we must pay for shedding his blood!” ¹⁴ 

[23:10]  ¹ tn Or perhaps “Hittite,” but see the note on the name “Heth” in v. 3.

[23:10]  ² tn Heb “ears.” By metonymy the “ears” stand for the presence or proximity (i.e., within earshot) of the persons named.

[23:10]  ³ sn On the expression all who entered the gate see E. A. Speiser, “‘Coming’ and ‘Going’ at the City Gate,” BASOR 144 (1956): 20-23; and G. Evans, “‘Coming’ and ‘Going’ at the City Gate: A Discussion of Professor Speiser’s Paper,” BASOR 150 (1958): 28-33.

[24:50]  ⁴ tn Heb “From the Lord the matter has gone out.”

[24:50]  ⁵ tn Heb “We are not able to speak to you bad or good.” This means that Laban and Bethuel could not say one way or the other what they wanted, for they viewed it as God’s will.

[27:39]  ⁷ tn Heb “look.”

[27:39]  ⁸ tn Heb “from the fatness.”

[31:31]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and Jacob answered and said to Laban, ‘Because I was afraid.’” This statement is a not a response to the question about Laban’s household gods that immediately precedes, but to the earlier question about Jacob’s motivation for leaving so quickly and secretly (see v. 27). For this reason the words “I left secretly” are supplied in the translation to indicate the connection to Laban’s earlier question in v. 27. Additionally the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse have been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[31:31]  ¹¹ tn Heb “for I said.”

[31:31]  ¹² tn Heb “lest you steal your daughters from with me.”

[31:36]  ¹³ tn Heb “it was hot to Jacob.” This idiom refers to anger.

[31:36]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and Jacob answered and said to Laban, ‘What is my sin?’” The proper name “Jacob” has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation and the order of the introductory clause and direct discourse rearranged for stylistic reasons.

[31:36]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “What is my sin that you have hotly pursued after me.” The Hebrew verb translated “pursue hotly” is used elsewhere of soldiers chasing defeated enemies (1 Sam 17:53).

[42:22]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and also his blood, look, it is required.” God requires compensation, as it were, from those who shed innocent blood (see Gen 9:6). In other words, God exacts punishment for the crime of murder.