Kejadian 14:13

14:13 A fugitive ¹  came and told Abram the Hebrew. ²  Now Abram was living by the oaks ³  of Mamre the Amorite, the brother ⁴  of Eshcol and Aner. (All these were allied by treaty ⁵  with Abram.) ⁶ 

Kejadian 34:30

34:30 Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought ruin ⁷  on me by making me a foul odor ⁸  among the inhabitants of the land – among the Canaanites and the Perizzites. I ⁹  am few in number; they will join forces against me and attack me, and both I and my family will be destroyed!”

Kejadian 43:23

43:23 “Everything is fine,” ¹⁰  the man in charge of Joseph’s household told them. “Don’t be afraid. Your God and the God of your father has given you treasure in your sacks. ¹¹  I had your money.” ¹²  Then he brought Simeon out to them.

[14:13]  ¹ tn Heb “the fugitive.” The article carries a generic force or indicates that this fugitive is definite in the mind of the speaker.

[14:13]  ² sn E. A. Speiser (Genesis [AB], 103) suggests that part of this chapter came from an outside source since it refers to Abram the Hebrew. That is not impossible, given that the narrator likely utilized traditions and genealogies that had been collected and transmitted over the years. The meaning of the word “Hebrew” has proved elusive. It may be related to the verb “to cross over,” perhaps meaning “immigrant.” Or it might be derived from the name of Abram’s ancestor Eber (see Gen 11:14-16).

[14:13]  ³ tn Or “terebinths.”

[14:13]  ⁴ tn Or “a brother”; or “a relative”; or perhaps “an ally.”

[14:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “possessors of a treaty with.” Since it is likely that the qualifying statement refers to all three (Mamre, Eshcol, and Aner) the words “all these” have been supplied in the translation to make this clear.

[14:13]  ⁶ tn This parenthetical disjunctive clause explains how Abram came to be living in their territory, but it also explains why they must go to war with Abram.

[34:30]  ⁷ tn The traditional translation is “troubled me” (KJV, ASV), but the verb refers to personal or national disaster and suggests complete ruin (see Josh 7:25, Judg 11:35, Prov 11:17). The remainder of the verse describes the “trouble” Simeon and Levi had caused.

[34:30]  ⁸ tn In the causative stem the Hebrew verb בָּאַשׁ (ba’ash) means “to cause to stink, to have a foul smell.” In the contexts in which it is used it describes foul smells, stenches, or things that are odious. Jacob senses that the people in the land will find this act terribly repulsive. See P. R. Ackroyd, “The Hebrew Root באשׁ,” JTS 2 (1951): 31-36.

[34:30]  ⁹ tn Jacob speaks in the first person as the head and representative of the entire family.

[43:23]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and he said, ‘peace to you.’” Here the statement has the force of “everything is fine,” or perhaps even “calm down.” The referent of “he” (the man in charge of Joseph’ household) has been specified in the translation for clarity, and the order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged for stylistic reasons.

[43:23]  ¹¹ sn Your God and the God of your father…This is the first clear reference in the story to the theme of divine providence – that God works through the human actions to do his will.

[43:23]  ¹² tn Heb “your money came to me.”