Genesis 6:11

6:11 The earth was ruined ¹  in the sight of ²  God; the earth was filled with violence. ³ 

Genesis 31:19

31:19 While Laban had gone to shear his sheep, ⁴  Rachel stole the household idols ⁵  that belonged to her father.

Genesis 32:2

32:2 When Jacob saw them, he exclaimed, ⁶  “This is the camp of God!” So he named that place Mahanaim. ⁷ 

[6:11]  ¹ tn Apart from Gen 6:11-12, the Niphal form of this verb occurs in Exod 8:20 HT (8:24 ET), where it describes the effect of the swarms of flies on the land of Egypt; Jer 13:7 and 18:4, where it is used of a “ruined” belt and “marred” clay pot, respectively; and Ezek 20:44, where it describes Judah’s morally “corrupt” actions. The sense “morally corrupt” fits well in Gen 6:11 because of the parallelism (note “the earth was filled with violence”). In this case “earth” would stand by metonymy for its sinful inhabitants. However, the translation “ruined” works just as well, if not better. In this case humankind’s sin is viewed has having an adverse effect upon the earth. Note that vv. 12b-13 make a distinction between the earth and the living creatures who live on it.

[6:11]  ² tn Heb “before.”

[6:11]  ³ tn The Hebrew word translated “violence” refers elsewhere to a broad range of crimes, including unjust treatment (Gen 16:5; Amos 3:10), injurious legal testimony (Deut 19:16), deadly assault (Gen 49:5), murder (Judg 9:24), and rape (Jer 13:22).

[31:19]  ⁴ tn This disjunctive clause (note the pattern conjunction + subject + verb) introduces a new scene. In the English translation it may be subordinated to the following clause.

[31:19]  ⁵ tn Or “household gods.” Some translations merely transliterate the Hebrew term תְּרָפִים (tÿrafim) as “teraphim,” which apparently refers to household idols. Some contend that possession of these idols guaranteed the right of inheritance, but it is more likely that they were viewed simply as protective deities. See M. Greenberg, “Another Look at Rachel’s Theft of the Teraphim,” JBL 81 (1962): 239-48.

[32:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “and Jacob said when he saw them.”

[32:2]  ⁸ sn The name Mahanaim apparently means “two camps.” Perhaps the two camps were those of God and of Jacob.