Genesis 6:5

6:5 But the Lord saw ¹  that the wickedness of humankind had become great on the earth. Every inclination ²  of the thoughts ³  of their minds ⁴  was only evil ⁵  all the time. ⁶ 

Genesis 14:24

14:24 I will take nothing ⁷  except compensation for what the young men have eaten. ⁸  As for the share of the men who went with me – Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre – let them take their share.”

Genesis 20:11

20:11 Abraham replied, “Because I thought, ⁹  ‘Surely no one fears God in this place. They will kill me because of ¹⁰  my wife.’

Genesis 24:8

24:8 But if the woman is not willing to come back with you, ¹¹  you will be free ¹²  from this oath of mine. But you must not take my son back there!”

Genesis 26:29

26:29 so that ¹³  you will not do us any harm, just as we have not harmed ¹⁴  you, but have always treated you well ¹⁵  before sending you away ¹⁶  in peace. Now you are blessed by the Lord.” ¹⁷ 

Genesis 41:40

41:40 You will oversee my household, and all my people will submit to your commands. ¹⁸  Only I, the king, will be greater than you. ¹⁹ 

Genesis 50:8

50:8 all Joseph’s household, his brothers, and his father’s household. But they left their little children and their flocks and herds in the land of Goshen.

[6:5]  ¹ sn The Hebrew verb translated “saw” (רָאָה, ra’ah), used here of God’s evaluation of humankind’s evil deeds, contrasts with God’s evaluation of creative work in Gen 1, when he observed that everything was good.

[6:5]  ² tn The noun יֵצֶר (yetser) is related to the verb יָצָר (yatsar, “to form, to fashion [with a design]”). Here it refers to human plans or intentions (see Gen 8:21; 1 Chr 28:9; 29:18). People had taken their God-given capacities and used them to devise evil. The word יֵצֶר (yetser) became a significant theological term in Rabbinic literature for what might be called the sin nature – the evil inclination (see also R. E. Murphy, “Yeser in the Qumran Literature,” Bib 39 [1958]: 334-44).

[6:5]  ³ tn The related verb הָשָׁב (hashav) means “to think, to devise, to reckon.” The noun (here) refers to thoughts or considerations.

[6:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “his heart” (referring to collective “humankind”). The Hebrew term לֵב (lev, “heart”) frequently refers to the seat of one’s thoughts (see BDB 524 s.v. לֵב). In contemporary English this is typically referred to as the “mind.”

[6:5]  ⁵ sn Every inclination of the thoughts of their minds was only evil. There is hardly a stronger statement of the wickedness of the human race than this. Here is the result of falling into the “knowledge of good and evil”: Evil becomes dominant, and the good is ruined by the evil.

[6:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “all the day.”

[14:24]  ⁷ tn The words “I will take nothing” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[14:24]  ⁸ tn Heb “except only what the young men have eaten.”

[20:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “Because I said.”

[20:11]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “over the matter of.”

[24:8]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “ to go after you.”

[24:8]  ²⁰ sn You will be free. If the prospective bride was not willing to accompany the servant back to Canaan, the servant would be released from his oath to Abraham.

[26:29]  ²⁵ tn The oath formula is used: “if you do us harm” means “so that you will not do.”

[26:29]  ²⁶ tn Heb “touched.”

[26:29]  ²⁷ tn Heb “and just as we have done only good with you.”

[26:29]  ²⁸ tn Heb “and we sent you away.”

[26:29]  ²⁹ tn The Philistine leaders are making an observation, not pronouncing a blessing, so the translation reads “you are blessed” rather than “may you be blessed” (cf. NAB).

[41:40]  ³¹ tn Heb “and at your mouth (i.e., instructions) all my people will kiss.” G. J. Wenham translates this “shall kowtow to your instruction” (Genesis [WBC], 2:395). Although there is some textual support for reading “will be judged, ruled by you,” this is probably an attempt to capture the significance of this word. Wenham lists a number of references where individuals have tried to make connections with other words or expressions – such as a root meaning “order themselves” lying behind “kiss,” or an idiomatic idea of “kiss” meaning “seal the mouth,” and so “be silent and submit to.” See K. A. Kitchen, “The Term Nsq in Genesis 41:40,” ExpTim 69 (1957): 30; D. S. Sperling, “Genesis 41:40: A New Interpretation,” JANESCU 10 (1978): 113-19.

[41:40]  ³² tn Heb “only the throne, I will be greater than you.”