Kejadian 2:17

2:17 but ¹  you must not eat ²  from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when ³  you eat from it you will surely die.” ⁴ 

Kejadian 4:4

4:4 But Abel brought ⁵  some of the firstborn of his flock – even the fattest ⁶  of them. And the Lord was pleased with ⁷  Abel and his offering,

Kejadian 12:17

12:17 But the Lord struck Pharaoh and his household with severe diseases ⁸  because of Sarai, Abram’s wife.

Kejadian 17:11

17:11 You must circumcise the flesh of your foreskins. This will be a reminder ⁹  of the covenant between me and you.

Kejadian 21:6

21:6 Sarah said, “God has made me laugh. ¹⁰  Everyone who hears about this ¹¹  will laugh ¹²  with me.”

Kejadian 23:15

23:15 “Hear me, my lord. The land is worth ¹³  400 pieces of silver, ¹⁴  but what is that between me and you? So bury your dead.”

Kejadian 29:15

29:15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Should you work ¹⁵  for me for nothing because you are my relative? ¹⁶  Tell me what your wages should be.”

[2:17]  ¹ tn The disjunctive clause here indicates contrast: “but from the tree of the knowledge….”

[2:17]  ² tn The negated imperfect verb form indicates prohibition, “you must not eat.”

[2:17]  ³ tn Or “in the very day, as soon as.” If one understands the expression to have this more precise meaning, then the following narrative presents a problem, for the man does not die physically as soon as he eats from the tree. In this case one may argue that spiritual death is in view. If physical death is in view here, there are two options to explain the following narrative: (1) The following phrase “You will surely die” concerns mortality which ultimately results in death (a natural paraphrase would be, “You will become mortal”), or (2) God mercifully gave man a reprieve, allowing him to live longer than he deserved.

[2:17]  ⁴ tn Heb “dying you will die.” The imperfect verb form here has the nuance of the specific future because it is introduced with the temporal clause, “when you eat…you will die.” That certainty is underscored with the infinitive absolute, “you will surely die.”

[2:17]  sn The Hebrew text (“dying you will die”) does not refer to two aspects of death (“dying spiritually, you will then die physically”). The construction simply emphasizes the certainty of death, however it is defined. Death is essentially separation. To die physically means separation from the land of the living, but not extinction. To die spiritually means to be separated from God. Both occur with sin, although the physical alienation is more gradual than instant, and the spiritual is immediate, although the effects of it continue the separation.

[4:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “But Abel brought, also he….” The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) stresses the contrast between Cain’s offering and Abel’s.

[4:4]  ⁶ tn Two prepositional phrases are used to qualify the kind of sacrifice that Abel brought: “from the firstborn” and “from the fattest of them.” These also could be interpreted as a hendiadys: “from the fattest of the firstborn of the flock.” Another option is to understand the second prepositional phrase as referring to the fat portions of the sacrificial sheep. In this case one may translate, “some of the firstborn of his flock, even some of their fat portions” (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV).

[4:4]  sn Here are two types of worshipers – one (Cain) merely discharges a duty at the proper time, while the other (Abel) goes out of his way to please God with the first and the best.

[4:4]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew verb שָׁעָה (sha’ah) simply means “to gaze at, to have regard for, to look on with favor [or “with devotion”].” The text does not indicate how this was communicated, but it indicates that Cain and Abel knew immediately. Either there was some manifestation of divine pleasure given to Abel and withheld from Cain (fire consuming the sacrifice?), or there was an inner awareness of divine response.

[12:17]  ⁸ tn The cognate accusative adds emphasis to the verbal sentence: “he plagued with great plagues,” meaning the Lord inflicted numerous plagues, probably diseases (see Exod 15:26). The adjective “great” emphasizes that the plagues were severe and overwhelming.

[17:11]  ⁹ tn Or “sign.”

[21:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Laughter God has made for me.”

[21:6]  ¹¹ tn The words “about this” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[21:6]  ¹² sn Sarah’s words play on the name “Isaac” in a final triumphant manner. God prepared “laughter” (צְחֹק, ysÿkhoq ) for her, and everyone who hears about this “will laugh” (יִצְחַק, yitskhaq ) with her. The laughter now signals great joy and fulfillment, not unbelief (cf. Gen 18:12-15).

[23:15]  ¹³ tn The word “worth” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[23:15]  ¹⁴ sn Four hundred pieces of silver. The standards for weighing money varied considerably in the ancient Near East, but the generally accepted weight for the shekel is 11.5 grams (0.4 ounce). This makes the weight of silver here 4.6 kilograms, or 160 ounces (about 10 pounds).

[29:15]  ¹⁵ tn The verb is the perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; the nuance in the question is deliberative.

[29:15]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “my brother.” The term “brother” is used in a loose sense; actually Jacob was Laban’s nephew.