Genesis 3:14

3:14 The Lord God said to the serpent, ¹ 

“Because you have done this,

cursed ²  are you above all the wild beasts

and all the living creatures of the field!

On your belly you will crawl ³ 

and dust you will eat ⁴  all the days of your life.

Genesis 19:19

19:19 Your ⁵  servant has found favor with you, ⁶  and you have shown me great ⁷  kindness ⁸  by sparing ⁹  my life. But I am not able to escape to the mountains because ¹⁰  this disaster will overtake ¹¹  me and I’ll die. ¹² 

Genesis 20:6

20:6 Then in the dream God replied to him, “Yes, I know that you have done this with a clear conscience. ¹³  That is why I have kept you ¹⁴  from sinning against me and why ¹⁵  I did not allow you to touch her.

Genesis 24:14

24:14 I will say to a young woman, ‘Please lower your jar so I may drink.’ May the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac reply, ‘Drink, and I’ll give your camels water too.’ ¹⁶  In this way I will know that you have been faithful to my master.” ¹⁷ 

Genesis 27:45

27:45 Stay there ¹⁸  until your brother’s anger against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him. Then I’ll send someone to bring you back from there. ¹⁹  Why should I lose both of you in one day?” ²⁰ 

Genesis 32:10

32:10 I am not worthy of all the faithful love ²¹  you have shown ²²  your servant. With only my walking stick ²³  I crossed the Jordan, ²⁴  but now I have become two camps.

[3:14]  ¹ sn Note that God asks no question of the serpent, does not call for confession, as he did to the man and the woman; there is only the announcement of the curse. The order in this section is chiastic: The man is questioned, the woman is questioned, the serpent is cursed, sentence is passed on the woman, sentence is passed on the man.

[3:14]  ² tn The Hebrew word translated “cursed,” a passive participle from אָרָר (’arar), either means “punished” or “banished,” depending on how one interprets the following preposition. If the preposition is taken as comparative, then the idea is “cursed [i.e., punished] are you above [i.e., more than] all the wild beasts.” In this case the comparative preposition reflects the earlier comparison: The serpent was more shrewd than all others, and so more cursed than all others. If the preposition is taken as separative (see the note on the word “ground” in 4:11), then the idea is “cursed and banished from all the wild beasts.” In this case the serpent is condemned to isolation from all the other animals.

[3:14]  ³ tn Heb “go”; “walk,” but in English “crawl” or “slither” better describes a serpent’s movement.

[3:14]  ⁴ sn Dust you will eat. Being restricted to crawling on the ground would necessarily involve “eating dust,” although that is not the diet of the serpent. The idea of being brought low, of “eating dust” as it were, is a symbol of humiliation.

[19:19]  ⁵ tn The second person pronominal suffixes are singular in this verse (note “your eyes,” “you have made great,” and “you have acted”). Verse 18a seems to indicate that Lot is addressing the angels, but the use of the singular and the appearance of the divine title “Lord” (אֲדֹנָי, ’adonay) in v. 18b suggests he is speaking to God.

[19:19]  ⁶ tn Heb “in your eyes.”

[19:19]  ⁷ tn Heb “you made great your kindness.”

[19:19]  ⁸ sn The Hebrew word חֶסֶד (khesed) can refer to “faithful love” or to “kindness,” depending on the context. The precise nuance here is uncertain.

[19:19]  ⁹ tn The infinitive construct explains how God has shown Lot kindness.

[19:19]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “lest.”

[19:19]  ¹¹ tn The Hebrew verb דָּבַק (davaq) normally means “to stick to, to cleave, to join.” Lot is afraid he cannot outrun the coming calamity.

[19:19]  ¹² tn The perfect verb form with vav consecutive carries the nuance of the imperfect verbal form before it.

[20:6]  ⁹ tn Heb “with the integrity of your heart.”

[20:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and I, even I, kept you.”

[20:6]  ¹¹ tn Heb “therefore.”

[24:14]  ¹³ sn I will also give your camels water. It would be an enormous test for a young woman to water ten camels. The idea is that such a woman would not only be industrious but hospitable and generous.

[24:14]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “And let the young woman to whom I say, ‘Lower your jar that I may drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink and I will also give your camels water,’ – her you have appointed for your servant, for Isaac, and by it I will know that you have acted in faithfulness with my master.”

[27:45]  ¹⁷ tn The words “stay there” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:45]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “and I will send and I will take you from there.” The verb “send” has no object in the Hebrew text; one must be supplied in the translation. Either “someone” or “a message” could be supplied, but since in those times a message would require a messenger, “someone” has been used.

[27:45]  ¹⁹ tn If Jacob stayed, he would be killed and Esau would be forced to run away.

[32:10]  ²¹ tn Heb “the loving deeds and faithfulness” (see 24:27, 49).

[32:10]  ²² tn Heb “you have done with.”

[32:10]  ²³ tn Heb “for with my staff.” The Hebrew word מַקֵל (maqel), traditionally translated “staff,” has been rendered as “walking stick” because a “staff” in contemporary English refers typically to the support personnel in an organization.

[32:10]  ²⁴ tn Heb “this Jordan.”