Genesis 32:11-13

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Genesis 32:11 tn The imperative has the force of a prayer here, not a command.
2. Genesis 32:11 tn The “hand” here is a metonymy for “power.”
3. Genesis 32:11 tn Heb “from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau.”
4. Genesis 32:11 tn Heb “for I am afraid of him, lest he come.”
5. Genesis 32:11 sn Heb “me, [the] mother upon [the] sons.” The first person pronoun “me” probably means here “me and mine,” as the following clause suggests.
6. Genesis 32:12 tn Heb “But you, you said.” One of the occurrences of the pronoun “you” has been left untranslated for stylistic reasons.sn Some commentators have thought this final verse of the prayer redundant, but it actually follows the predominant form of a lament in which God is motivated to act. The primary motivation Jacob can offer to God is God’s promise, and so he falls back on that at the end of the prayer.
7. Genesis 32:12 tn Or “will certainly deal well with you.” The infinitive absolute appears before the imperfect, underscoring God’s promise to bless. The statement is more emphatic than in v. 9.
8. Genesis 32:12 tn The form is the perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive, carrying the nuance of the preceding verb forward.
9. Genesis 32:12 tn Heb “which cannot be counted because of abundance.” The imperfect verbal form indicates potential here.
10. Genesis 32:13 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
11. Genesis 32:13 tn Heb “and he took from that which was going into his hand,” meaning that he took some of what belonged to him.
12. Genesis 32:13 sn The Hebrew noun translated gift can in some contexts refer to the tribute paid by a subject to his lord. Such a nuance is possible here, because Jacob refers to Esau as his lord and to himself as Esau’s servant (v. 4).