Genesis 4:2

4:2 Then she gave birth ¹  to his brother Abel. ²  Abel took care of the flocks, while Cain cultivated the ground. ³ 

Genesis 4:12

4:12 When you try to cultivate ⁴  the

ground it will no longer yield ⁵  its best ⁶  for you. You will be a homeless wanderer ⁷  on the earth.”

Genesis 8:12

8:12 He waited another seven days and sent the dove out again, ⁸  but it did not return to him this time. ⁹ 

Genesis 18:29

18:29 Abraham ¹⁰  spoke to him again, ¹¹  “What if forty are found there?” He replied, “I will not do it for the sake of the forty.”

Genesis 37:8

37:8 Then his brothers asked him, “Do you really think you will rule over us or have dominion over us?” ¹²  They hated him even more ¹³  because of his dream and because of what he said. ¹⁴ 

Genesis 38:26

38:26 Judah recognized them and said, “She is more upright ¹⁵  than I am, because I wouldn’t give her to Shelah my son.” He did not have sexual relations with her ¹⁶  again.

Genesis 44:23

44:23 But you said to your servants, ‘If your youngest brother does not come down with you, you will not see my face again.’

[4:2]  ¹ tn Heb “And she again gave birth.”

[4:2]  ² sn The name Abel is not defined here in the text, but the tone is ominous. Abel’s name, the Hebrew word הֶבֶל (hevel), means “breath, vapor, vanity,” foreshadowing Abel’s untimely and premature death.

[4:2]  ³ tn Heb “and Abel was a shepherd of the flock, and Cain was a worker of the ground.” The designations of the two occupations are expressed with active participles, רֹעֵה (ro’eh, “shepherd”) and עֹבֵד (’oved, “worker”). Abel is occupied with sheep, whereas Cain is living under the curse, cultivating the ground.

[4:12]  ⁴ tn Heb “work.”

[4:12]  ⁵ tn Heb “it will not again (תֹסֵף, tosef) give (תֵּת, tet),” meaning the ground will no longer yield. In translation the infinitive becomes the main verb, and the imperfect verb form becomes adverbial.

[4:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “its strength.”

[4:12]  ⁷ tn Two similar sounding synonyms are used here: נָע וָנָד (na’ vanad, “a wanderer and a fugitive”). This juxtaposition of synonyms emphasizes the single idea. In translation one can serve as the main description, the other as a modifier. Other translation options include “a wandering fugitive” and a “ceaseless wanderer” (cf. NIV).

[8:12]  ⁷ tn The word “again” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[8:12]  ⁸ tn Heb “it did not again return to him still.” For a study of this section of the flood narrative, see W. O. E. Oesterley, “The Dove with the Olive Leaf (Gen VIII 8–11),” ExpTim 18 (1906/07): 377-78.

[18:29]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:29]  ¹¹ tn The construction is a verbal hendiadys – the preterite (“he added”) is combined with an adverb “yet” and an infinitive “to speak.”

[37:8]  ¹³ tn Heb “Ruling, will you rule over us, or reigning, will you reign over us?” The statement has a poetic style, with the two questions being in synonymous parallelism. Both verbs in this statement are preceded by the infinitive absolute, which lends emphasis. It is as if Joseph’s brothers said, “You don’t really think you will rule over us, do you? You don’t really think you will have dominion over us, do you?”

[37:8]  ¹⁴ tn This construction is identical to the one in Gen 37:5.

[37:8]  ¹⁵ sn The response of Joseph’s brothers is understandable, given what has already been going on in the family. But here there is a hint of uneasiness – they hated him because of his dream and because of his words. The dream bothered them, as well as his telling them. And their words in the rhetorical question are ironic, for this is exactly what would happen. The dream was God’s way of revealing it.

[38:26]  ¹⁶ tn Traditionally “more righteous”; cf. NCV, NRSV, NLT “more in the right.”

[38:26]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and he did not add again to know her.” Here “know” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.