Genesis 27:4

27:4 Then prepare for me some tasty food, the kind I love, and bring it to me. Then ¹  I will eat it so that I may bless you ²  before I die.”

Genesis 27:7

27:7 ‘Bring me some wild game and prepare for me some tasty food. Then I will eat ³  it and bless you ⁴  in the presence of the Lord ⁵  before I die.’

Genesis 27:9

27:9 Go to the flock and get me two of the best young goats. I’ll prepare ⁶  them in a tasty way for your father, just the way he loves them.

Genesis 27:17

27:17 Then she handed ⁷  the tasty food and the bread she had made to her son Jacob.

Genesis 27:31

27:31 He also prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Esau ⁸  said to him, “My father, get up ⁹  and eat some of your son’s wild game. Then you can bless me.” ¹⁰ 

Genesis 25:28

25:28 Isaac loved Esau because he had a taste for fresh game, ¹¹  but Rebekah loved ¹²  Jacob.

Psalms 141:4

141:4 Do not let me have evil desires, ¹³ 

or participate in sinful activities

with men who behave wickedly. ¹⁴ 

I will not eat their delicacies. ¹⁵ 

Proverbs 23:2-3

23:2 and put a knife to your throat ¹⁶ 

if you possess a large appetite. ¹⁷ 

23:3 Do not crave that ruler’s ¹⁸  delicacies,

for ¹⁹  that food is deceptive. ²⁰ 

Luke 21:34

Be Ready!

21:34 “But be on your guard ²¹  so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day close down upon you suddenly like a trap. ²² 

[27:4]  ¹ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:4]  ² 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.

[27:7]  ³ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:7]  ⁴ tn The cohortative, with the prefixed conjunction, also expresses logical sequence. See vv. 4, 19, 27.

[27:7]  ⁵ tn In her report to Jacob, Rebekah plays down Isaac’s strong desire to bless Esau by leaving out נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”), but by adding the phrase “in the presence of the Lord,” she stresses how serious this matter is.

[27:9]  ⁶ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:17]  ⁷ tn Heb “gave…into the hand of.”

[27:31]  ⁸ tn Heb “and he said to his father”; the referent of “he” (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity, while the words “his father” have been replaced by the pronoun “him” for stylistic reasons.

[27:31]  ⁹ tn Or “arise” (i.e., sit up).

[27:31]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “so that your soul may bless me.”

[25:28]  ¹¹ tn Heb “the taste of game was in his mouth.” The word for “game,” “venison” is here the same Hebrew word as “hunter” in the last verse. Here it is a metonymy, referring to that which the hunter kills.

[25:28]  ¹² tn The disjunctive clause juxtaposes Rebekah with Jacob and draws attention to the contrast. The verb here is a participle, drawing attention to Rebekah’s continuing, enduring love for her son.

[141:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “do not turn my heart toward an evil thing.”

[141:4]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “to act sinfully in practices in wickedness with men, doers of evil.”

[141:4]  ¹⁵ sn Their delicacies. This probably refers to the enjoyment that a sinful lifestyle appears to offer.

[23:2]  ¹⁶ sn The expression “put a knife to your throat” is an idiom that means “curb your appetite” or “control yourself” (cf. TEV). The instruction was from a time when people dealt with all-powerful tyrants. To enter the presence of such a person and indulge one’s appetites would be to take a very high risk.

[23:2]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “lord of appetite.” The idiom בַּעַל נֶפֶשׁ (ba’al nefesh) refers to someone who possesses a large appetite (cf. NAB “a ravenous appetite”). A person with a big appetite is in danger of taking liberties when invited to court.

[23:3]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “his”; the referent (the ruler mentioned in v. 1) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:3]  ¹⁹ sn The final line gives the causal clause: The impressive feast is not what it appears to be; the king is not doing you a favor, but rather wants something from you or is observing you (K&D 17:104); cf. TEV “he may be trying to trick you.”

[23:3]  ²⁰ sn Verses 1-3 form the sixth saying about being cautious before rulers (cf. Instruction of Amememope, chap. 23, 23:13-18). One should not get too familiar with rulers, for they always have ulterior motives. The Mishnah cites Gamaliel as warning that a ruler only draws someone into his court for his purpose, but in their day of trouble he will not be there to help them (m. Abot 2:3).

[21:34]  ²¹ tn Grk “watch out for yourselves.”

[21:34]  ²² sn Or like a thief, see Luke 12:39-40. The metaphor of a trap is a vivid one. Most modern English translations traditionally place the words “like a trap” at the end of v. 34, completing the metaphor. In the Greek text (and in the NRSV and REB) the words “like a trap” are placed at the beginning of v. 35. This does not affect the meaning.