Genesis 32:18

32:18 then you must say, ¹  ‘They belong ²  to your servant Jacob. ³  They have been sent as a gift to my lord Esau. ⁴  In fact Jacob himself is behind us.’” ⁵ 

Genesis 44:4

44:4 They had not gone very far from the city ⁶  when Joseph said ⁷  to the servant who was over his household, “Pursue the men at once! ⁸  When you overtake ⁹  them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil?

[32:18]  ¹ tn The form is the perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive; it has the nuance of an imperfect of instruction.

[32:18]  ² tn The words “they belong” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[32:18]  ³ tn Heb “to your servant, to Jacob.”

[32:18]  ⁴ tn Heb “to my lord, to Esau.”

[32:18]  ⁵ tn Heb “and look, also he [is] behind us.” The referent of the pronoun “he” (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[44:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “they left the city, they were not far,” meaning “they had not gone very far.”

[44:4]  ⁷ tn Heb “and Joseph said.” This clause, like the first one in the verse, has the subject before the verb, indicating synchronic action.

[44:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “arise, chase after the men.” The first imperative gives the command a sense of urgency.

[44:4]  ⁹ tn After the imperative this perfect verbal form with vav consecutive has the same nuance of instruction. In the translation it is subordinated to the verbal form that follows (also a perfect with vav consecutive): “and overtake them and say,” becomes “when you overtake them, say.”