Genesis 9–11

Footnotes

1. 1 Heb “and fear of you and dread of you will be upon every living creature of the earth and upon every bird of the sky.” The suffixes on the nouns “fear” and “dread” are objective genitives. The animals will fear humans from this time forward.
2. 2 Heb “into your hand are given.” The “hand” signifies power. To say the animals have been given into the hands of humans means humans have been given authority over them.
3. 3 Heb “every moving thing that lives for you will be for food.”
4. 4 The words “I gave you” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
5. 5 The perfect verb form describes the action that accompanies the declaration.
6. 6 Heb “only.”
7. 7 Or “flesh.”
8. 8 Heb “its life, its blood.” The second word is in apposition to the first, explaining what is meant by “its life.” Since the blood is equated with life, meat that had the blood in it was not to be eaten.
9. 9 The words “in it” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. You must not eat meat with its life … in it. Because of the carnage produced by the flood, people might conclude that life is cheap and therefore treat it lightly. But God will not permit them to kill or even to eat anything with the lifeblood still in it, serving as a reminder of the sanctity of life.
10. 10 Again the text uses apposition to clarify what kind of blood is being discussed: “your blood, [that is] for your life.” See C. L. Dewar, “The Biblical Use of the Term ‘Blood,’ ” 4 (1953): 204–8.
11. 11 The word “punishment” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarification. The verb דָּרָשׁ (darash) means “to require, to seek, to ask for, to exact.” Here it means that God will exact punishment for the taking of a life. See R. Mawdsley, “Capital Punishment in Gen. 9:6,” 18 (1975): 20–25.
12. 12 Heb “from the hand of,” which means “out of the hand of” or “out of the power of” and is nearly identical in sense to the preposition מִן (min) alone.
13. 13 Heb “and from the hand of the man.” The article has a generic function, indicating the class, i.e., humankind.
14. 14 Heb “of the man.”
15. 15 Heb “from the hand of a man, his brother.” The point is that God will require the blood of someone who kills, since the person killed is a relative (“brother”) of the killer. The language reflects Noah’s situation (after the flood everyone would be part of Noah’s extended family), but also supports the concept of the brotherhood of humankind. According to the Genesis account the entire human race descended from Noah.
16. 16 Heb “the blood of man.”
17. 17 Heb “by man,” a generic term here for other human beings.
18. 18 See the notes on the words “humankind” and “likeness” in , as well as J. Barr, “The Image of God in the Book of Genesis—A Study of Terminology,” 51 (1968/69): 11–26.
19. 19 Heb “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
20. 20 The disjunctive clause (conjunction + pronominal subject + verb) here indicates a strong contrast to what has preceded. Against the backdrop of the warnings about taking life, God now instructs the people to produce life, using terms reminiscent of the mandate given to Adam (Gen 1:28).
21. 21 Heb “to Noah and to his sons with him, saying.”
22. 22 Heb “I, look, I confirm.” The particle הִנְנִי (hinni) used with the participle מֵקִים (meqim) gives the sense of immediacy or imminence, as if to say, “Look! I am now confirming.”
23. 23 The three pronominal suffixes (translated “you,” “your,” and “you”) are masculine plural. As v. 8 indicates, Noah and his sons are addressed.
24. 24 The verbal repetition is apparently for emphasis.
25. 25 The verb וַהֲקִמֹתִי (vahaqimoti) is a perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive and should be translated with the English present tense, just as the participle at the beginning of the speech was (v. 9). Another option is to translate both forms with the English future tense (“I will confirm”).
26. 26 Heb “all flesh.”
27. 27 Heb “cut off.”
28. 28 Heb “and all flesh will not be cut off again by the waters of the flood.”
29. 29 Heb “sign.”
30. 30 On the making of covenants in Genesis, see W. F. Albright, “The Hebrew Expression for ‘Making a Covenant’ in Pre-Israelite Documents,” 121 (1951): 21–22.
31. 31 Heb “between me and between you.”
32. 32 The words “a covenant” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
33. 33 The Hebrew term עוֹלָם (’olam) means “ever, forever, lasting, perpetual.” The covenant would extend to subsequent generations.
34. 34 The translation assumes that the perfect verbal form is used rhetorically, emphasizing the certainty of the action. Other translation options include “I have placed” (present perfect; cf. , ) and “I place” (instantaneous perfect; cf. ).
35. 35 The Hebrew word קֶשֶׁת (qeshet) normally refers to a warrior’s bow. Some understand this to mean that God the warrior hangs up his battle bow at the end of the flood, indicating he is now at peace with humankind, but others question the legitimacy of this proposal. See C. Westermann, Genesis, 1:, and G. J. Wenham, Genesis (), 1:.
36. 36 The perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here has the same aspectual function as the preceding perfect of certitude.
37. 37 The temporal indicator (וְהָיָה, véhayah, conjunction + the perfect verb form), often translated “it will be,” anticipates a future development.
38. 38 Heb “which [is] between me and between you.”
39. 39 Heb “all flesh.”
40. 40 Heb “to destroy.”
41. 41 Heb “all flesh.”
42. 42 The translation assumes that the infinitive לִזְכֹּר (lizkor, “to remember”) here expresses the result of seeing the rainbow. Another option is to understand it as indicating purpose, in which case it could be translated, “I will look at it so that I may remember.”
43. 43 Heb “all flesh.”
44. 44 The concluding disjunctive clause is parenthetical. It anticipates the following story, which explains that the Canaanites, Ham’s descendants through Canaan, were cursed because they shared the same moral abandonment that their ancestor displayed. See A. van Selms, “The Canaanites in the Book of Genesis,” 12 (1958): 182–213.
45. 45 Heb “was scattered.” The verb פָּצָה (patsah, “to scatter” [Niphal, “to be scattered”]) figures prominently in story of the dispersion of humankind in chap. 11.
46. 46 The epithet a man of the soil indicates that Noah was a farmer.
47. 47 Or “Noah, a man of the soil, was the first to plant a vineyard”; Heb “and Noah, a man of the ground, began and he planted a vineyard.”
48. 48 The Hebrew verb גָּלָה (galah) in the Hitpael verbal stem (וַיִּתְגַּל, vayyitggal) means “to uncover oneself” or “to be uncovered.” Noah became overheated because of the wine and uncovered himself in the tent.
49. 49 For the second time (see v. 18) the text informs the reader of the relationship between Ham and Canaan. Genesis 10 will explain that Canaan was the ancestor of the Canaanite tribes living in the promised land.
50. 50 Some would translate “had sexual relations with,” arguing that Ham committed a homosexual act with his drunken father for which he was cursed. However, the expression “see nakedness” usually refers to observation of another’s nakedness, not a sexual act (see Gen 42:9, 12 where “nakedness” is used metaphorically to convey the idea of “weakness” or “vulnerability”; Deut 23:14 where “nakedness” refers to excrement; Isa 47:3; Ezek 16:37; Lam 1:8). The following verse (v. 23) clearly indicates that visual observation, not a homosexual act, is in view here. In Lev 20:17 the expression “see nakedness” does appear to be a euphemism for sexual intercourse, but the context there, unlike that of Gen 9:22, clearly indicates that in that passage sexual contact is in view. The expression “see nakedness” does not in itself suggest a sexual connotation. Some relate Gen 9:22 to Lev 18:6–11, 15–19, where the expression “uncover [another’s] nakedness” (the Piel form of גָּלָה, galah) refers euphemistically to sexual intercourse. However, Gen 9:22 does not say Ham “uncovered” the nakedness of his father. According to the text, Noah uncovered himself; Ham merely saw his father naked. The point of the text is that Ham had no respect for his father. Rather than covering his father up, he told his brothers. Noah then gave an oracle that Ham’s descendants, who would be characterized by the same moral abandonment, would be cursed. Leviticus 18 describes that greater evil of the Canaanites (see vv. 24–28). Saw the nakedness. It is hard for modern people to appreciate why seeing another’s nakedness was such an abomination, because nakedness is so prevalent today. In the ancient world, especially in a patriarchal society, seeing another’s nakedness was a major offense. (See the account in Herodotus, Histories 1.8–13, where a general saw the nakedness of his master’s wife, and one of the two had to be put to death.) Besides, Ham was not a little boy wandering into his father’s bedroom; he was over a hundred years old by this time. For fuller discussion see A. P. Ross, “The Curse of Canaan,” 137 (1980): .
51. 51 The word translated “garment” has the Hebrew definite article on it. The article may simply indicate that the garment is definite and vivid in the mind of the narrator, but it could refer instead to Noah’s garment. Did Ham bring it out when he told his brothers?
52. 52 Heb “their faces [were turned] back.”
53. 53 Heb “his wine,” used here by metonymy for the drunken stupor it produced.
54. 54 Heb “he knew.”
55. 55 The Hebrew verb עָשָׂה (’asah, “to do”) carries too general a sense to draw the conclusion that Ham had to have done more than look on his father’s nakedness and tell his brothers.
56. 56 For more on the curse, see H. C. Brichto, The Problem of “Curse” in the Hebrew Bible (), and J. Scharbert, 1:405–18.
57. 57 Cursed be Canaan. The curse is pronounced on Canaan, not Ham. Noah sees a problem in Ham’s character, and on the basis of that he delivers a prophecy about the future descendants who will live in slavery to such things and then be controlled by others. (For more on the idea of slavery in general, see E. M. Yamauchi, “Slaves of God,” 9 [1966]: 31–49). In a similar way Jacob pronounced oracles about his sons based on their revealed character (see Gen 49).
58. 58 Heb “a servant of servants” (עֶבֶד עֲבָדִים, ’eved ’avadim), an example of the superlative genitive. It means Canaan will become the most abject of slaves.
59. 59 Heb “blessed be.”
60. 60 Heb “a slave to him”; the referent (Shem) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
61. 61 Heb “may God enlarge Japheth.” The words “territory and numbers” are supplied in the translation for clarity. There is a wordplay (paronomasia) on the name Japheth. The verb יַפְתְּ (yaft, “may he enlarge”) sounds like the name יֶפֶת (yefet, “Japheth”). The name itself suggested the idea. The blessing for Japheth extends beyond the son to the descendants. Their numbers and their territories will be enlarged, so much so that they will share in Shem’s territories. Again, in this oracle, Noah is looking beyond his immediate family to future generations. For a helpful study of this passage and the next chapter, see T. O. Figart, A Biblical Perspective on the Race Problem, 55–58.
62. 62 In this context the prefixed verbal form is a jussive (note the distinct jussive forms both before and after this in vv. 26 and 27).
63. 1 The title אֵלֶּה תּוֹלְדֹת (’elle tolédot, here translated as “This is the account”) here covers 10:1–11:9, which contains the so-called Table of Nations and the account of how the nations came to be dispersed.
64. 2 Sons were born to them. A vertical genealogy such as this encompasses more than the names of sons. The list includes cities, tribes, and even nations. In a loose way, the names in the list have some derivation or connection to the three ancestors.
65. 3 It appears that the Table of Nations is a composite of at least two ancient sources: Some sections begin with the phrase “the sons of” (בְּנֵי, béne) while other sections use “begot” (יָלָד, yalad). It may very well be that the “sons of” list was an old, “bare bones” list that was retained in the family records, while the “begot” sections were editorial inserts by the writer of Genesis, reflecting his special interests. See A. P. Ross, “The Table of Nations in Genesis 10—Its Structure,” 137 (1980): ; idem, “The Table of Nations in Genesis 10—Its Content,” 138 (1981): .
66. 4 The Greek form of the name Japheth, Iapetos, is used in Greek tradition for the ancestor of the Greeks.
67. 5 Gomer was the ancestor of the Cimmerians. For a discussion of the Cimmerians see E. M. Yamauchi, Foes from the Northern Frontier (), 49–61.
68. 6 For a discussion of various proposals concerning the descendants of Magog see E. M. Yamauchi, Foes from the Northern Frontier (), 22–24.
69. 7 Madai was the ancestor of the Medes, who lived east of Assyria.
70. 8 Javan was the father of the Hellenic race, the Ionians who lived in western Asia Minor.
71. 9 Tubal was the ancestor of militaristic tribes that lived north of the Black Sea. For a discussion of ancient references to Tubal see E. M. Yamauchi, Foes from the Northern Frontier (), 24–26.
72. 10 Meshech was the ancestor of the people known in Assyrian records as the Musku. For a discussion of ancient references to them see E. M. Yamauchi, Foes from the Northern Frontier (), 24–26.
73. 11 Tiras was the ancestor of the Thracians, some of whom possibly became the Pelasgian pirates of the Aegean.
74. 12 The descendants of Gomer were all northern tribes of the Upper Euphrates.
75. 13 Askenaz was the ancestor of a northern branch of Indo-Germanic tribes, possibly Scythians. For discussion see E. M. Yamauchi, Foes from the Northern Frontier (), 63.
76. 14 The descendants of Riphath lived in a district north of the road from Haran to Carchemish.
77. 15 Togarmah is also mentioned in Ezek 38:6, where it refers to Til-garimmu, the capital of Kammanu, which bordered Tabal in eastern Turkey. See E. M. Yamauchi, Foes from the Northern Frontier (), 26, n. 28.
78. 16 The descendants of Elishah populated Cyprus.
79. 17 The descendants of Tarshish settled along the southern coast of what is modern Turkey. However, some identify the site Tarshish (see Jonah 1:3) with Sardinia or Spain.
80. 18 The name Kittim is associated with Cyprus, as well as coastlands east of Rhodes. It is used in later texts to refer to the Romans.
81. 19 Most of the read “Dodanim” here, but 1 Chr 1:7 has “Rodanim,” perhaps referring to the island of Rhodes. But the Qere reading in 1 Chr 1:7 suggests “Dodanim.” Dodona is one of the most ancient and revered spots in ancient Greece.
82. 20 The descendants of Cush settled in Nubia (Ethiopia).
83. 21 The descendants of Mizraim settled in Upper and Lower Egypt.
84. 22 The descendants of Put settled in Libya.
85. 23 The descendants of Canaan lived in the region of Phoenicia (Palestine).
86. 24 The descendants of Seba settled in Upper Egypt along the Nile.
87. 25 The Hebrew name Havilah apparently means “stretch of sand” (see חֲוִילָה). Havilah’s descendants settled in eastern Arabia.
88. 26 The descendants of Sabtah settled near the western shore of the Persian Gulf in ancient Hadhramaut.
89. 27 The descendants of Raamah settled in southwest Arabia.
90. 28 The descendants of Sabteca settled in Samudake, east toward the Persian Gulf.
91. 29 Sheba became the name of a kingdom in southwest Arabia.
92. 30 The name Dedan is associated with Ula in northern Arabia.
93. 31 Heb “fathered.” Embedded within Cush’s genealogy is an account of Nimrod, a mighty warrior. There have been many attempts to identify him, but none are convincing.
94. 32 The Hebrew word for “hunt” is צַיִד (tsayid), which is used on occasion for hunting men (1 Sam 24:12; Jer 16:16; Lam 3:15).
95. 33 Another option is to take the divine name here, לִפְנֵי יִהוָה (lifne yéhvah, “before the Lord [YHWH]”), as a means of expressing the superlative degree. In this case one may translate “Nimrod was the greatest hunter in the world.”
96. 34 Heb “beginning.” E. A. Speiser, Genesis (), , suggests “mainstays,” citing Jer 49:35 as another text where the Hebrew noun is so used.
97. 35 Or “Babylon.”
98. 36 Erech (ancient Uruk, modern Warka), one of the most ancient civilizations, was located southeast of Babylon.
99. 37 Akkad, or ancient Agade, was associated with Sargon and located north of Babylon.
100. 38 No such place is known in Shinar (i.e., Babylonia). Therefore some have translated the Hebrew term כַלְנֵה (khalneh) as “all of them,” referring to the three previous names (cf. ).
101. 39 Shinar is another name for Babylonia.
102. 40 The subject of the verb translated “went” is probably still Nimrod. However, it has also been interpreted that “Ashur went,” referring to a derivative power.
103. 41 Heb “Asshur.”
104. 42 Nineveh was an ancient Assyrian city situated on the Tigris River.
105. 43 The name Rehoboth-Ir means “and broad streets of a city,” perhaps referring to a suburb of Nineveh.
106. 44 Calah (modern Nimrud) was located twenty miles north of Nineveh.
107. 45 Heb “and Resen between Nineveh and Calah; it [i.e., Calah] is the great city.”
108. 46 Mizraim is the Hebrew name for Egypt (cf. ).
109. 47 Heb “fathered.”
110. 48 The Ludites were African tribes west of the Nile Delta.
111. 49 The Anamites lived in North Africa, west of Egypt, near Cyrene.
112. 50 The Lehabites are identified with the Libyans.
113. 51 The Naphtuhites lived in Lower Egypt (the Nile Delta region).
114. 52 The Pathrusites are known in Egyptian as P-to-reshi; they resided in Upper Egypt.
115. 53 The Casluhites lived in Crete and eventually settled east of the Egyptian Delta, between Egypt and Canaan.
116. 54 Several commentators prefer to reverse the order of the words to put this clause after the next word, since the Philistines came from Crete (where the Caphtorites lived). But the table may suggest migration rather than lineage, and the Philistines, like the Israelites, came through the Nile Delta region of Egypt. For further discussion of the origin and migration of the Philistines, see D. M. Howard, “Philistines,” Peoples of the Old Testament World, 232.
117. 55 The Caphtorites resided in Crete, but in Egyptian literature Caphtor refers to “the region beyond” the Mediterranean.
118. 56 Heb “fathered.”
119. 57 Sidon was the foremost city in Phoenicia; here Sidon may be the name of its founder.
120. 58 Some see a reference to “Hittites” here (cf. ), but this seems unlikely. See the note on the phrase “sons of Heth” in .
121. 59 The Jebusites were the Canaanite inhabitants of ancient Jerusalem.
122. 60 Here Amorites refers to smaller groups of Canaanite inhabitants of the mountainous regions of Palestine, rather than the large waves of Amurru, or western Semites, who migrated to the region.
123. 61 The Girgashites are an otherwise unknown Canaanite tribe, though the name is possibly mentioned in Ugaritic texts (see G. J. Wenham, Genesis [], 1:).
124. 62 The Hivites were Canaanite tribes of a Hurrian origin.
125. 63 The Arkites lived in Arka, a city in Lebanon, north of Sidon.
126. 64 The Sinites lived in Sin, another town in Lebanon.
127. 65 The Arvadites lived in the city Arvad, located on an island near the mainland close to the river El Kebir.
128. 66 The Zemarites lived in the town Sumur, north of Arka.
129. 67 The Hamathites lived in Hamath on the Orontes River.
130. 68 Heb “were.”
131. 69 For location see ; ; .
132. 70 Heb “as you go.”
133. 71 Heb “as you go.”
134. 72 Heb “And to Shem was born.”
135. 73 Or “whose older brother was Japheth.” Some translations render Japheth as the older brother, understanding the adjective הַגָּדוֹל (haggadol, “older”) as modifying Japheth. However, in Hebrew when a masculine singular definite attributive adjective follows the sequence masculine singular construct noun + proper name, the adjective invariably modifies the noun in construct, not the proper name. Such is the case here. See Deut 11:7; Judg 1:13; 2:7; 3:9; 9:5; 2 Kgs 15:35; 2 Chr 27:3; Neh 3:30; Jer 13:9; 36:10; Ezek 10:19; 11:1.
136. 74 The Hebrew name Elam (עֵילָם, ’elam) means “highland.” The Elamites were a non-Semitic people who lived east of Babylon.
137. 75 Asshur is the name for the Assyrians. Asshur was the region in which Nimrod expanded his power (see v. 11, where the name is also mentioned). When names appear in both sections of a genealogical list, it probably means that there were both Hamites and Shemites living in that region in antiquity, especially if the name is a place name.
138. 76 The descendants of Arphaxad may have lived northeast of Nineveh.
139. 77 Lud may have been the ancestor of the Ludbu, who lived near the Tigris River.
140. 78 Aram became the collective name of the northern tribes living in the steppes of Mesopotamia and speaking Aramaic dialects.
141. 79 The reads “Mash”; the and 1 Chr 1:17 read “Meshech.” Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash. Little is known about these descendants of Aram.
142. 80 Heb “fathered.”
143. 81 The reads “Arphaxad fathered Shelah”; the reads “Arphaxad fathered Cainan, and Cainan fathered Sala [= Shelah].” The reading also appears to lie behind Luke 3:35–36.
144. 82 Genesis 11 traces the line of Shem through Eber (עֵבֶר, ’ever) to Abraham the “Hebrew” (עִבְרִי, ’ivri).
145. 83 The expression “the earth was divided” may refer to dividing the land with canals, but more likely it anticipates the division of languages at Babel (Gen 11). The verb פָּלָג (palag, “separate, divide”) is used in Ps 55:9 for a division of languages.
146. 84 Heb “fathered.”
147. 85 The name Almodad combines the Arabic article al with modad (“friend”). Almodad was the ancestor of a South Arabian people.
148. 86 The name Sheleph may be related to Shilph, a district of Yemen; Shalph is a Yemenite tribe.
149. 87 The name Hazarmaveth should be equated with Hadramawt, located in Southern Arabia.
150. 88 The name Jerah means “moon.”
151. 89 Uzal was the name of the old capital of Yemen.
152. 90 The name Diklah means “date-palm.”
153. 91 Obal was a name used for several localities in Yemen.
154. 92 The name Abimael is a genuine Sabean form which means “my father, truly, he is God.”
155. 93 The descendants of Sheba lived in South Arabia, where the Joktanites were more powerful than the Hamites.
156. 94 Ophir became the name of a territory in South Arabia. Many of the references to Ophir are connected with gold (e.g., 1 Kgs 9:28, 10:11, 22:48; 1 Chr 29:4; 2 Chr 8:18, 9:10; Job 22:24, 28:16; Ps 45:9; Isa 13:12).
157. 95 Havilah is listed with Ham in v. 7.
158. 96 Heb “as you go.”
159. 97 Or “separated.”
160. 1 The whole earth. Here “earth” is a metonymy of subject, referring to the people who lived in the earth. Genesis 11 begins with everyone speaking a common language, but chap. 10 has the nations arranged by languages. It is part of the narrative art of Genesis to give the explanation of the event after the narration of the event. On this passage see A. P. Ross, “The Dispersion of the Nations in Genesis 11:1–9,” 138 (1981): .
161. 2 Heb “one lip and one [set of] words.” The term “lip” is a metonymy of cause, putting the instrument for the intended effect. They had one language. The term “words” refers to the content of their speech. They had the same vocabulary.
162. 3 Heb “they”; the referent (the people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
163. 4 Or perhaps “from the east” () or “in the east.”
164. 5 Heb “in the land of Shinar.” Shinar is the region of Babylonia.
165. 6 Heb “a man to his neighbor.” The Hebrew idiom may be translated “to each other” or “one to another.”
166. 7 The speech contains two cohortatives of exhortation followed by their respective cognate accusatives: “let us brick bricks” (נִלְבְּנָה לְבֵנִים, nilbbénah lévenim) and “burn for burning” (נִשְׂרְפָה לִשְׂרֵפָה, nisréfah lisrefah). This stresses the intensity of the undertaking; it also reflects the Akkadian text which uses similar constructions (see E. A. Speiser, Genesis [], ).
167. 8 Or “bitumen” (cf. , ).
168. 9 The disjunctive clause gives information parenthetical to the narrative.
169. 10 A translation of “heavens” for שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) fits this context because the Babylonian ziggurats had temples at the top, suggesting they reached to the heavens, the dwelling place of the gods.
170. 11 The form וְנַעֲשֶׂה (véna’aseh, from the verb עשׂה, “do, make”) could be either the imperfect or the cohortative with a vav (ו) conjunction (“and let us make …”). Coming after the previous cohortative, this form expresses purpose.
171. 12 The Hebrew particle פֶּן (pen) expresses a negative purpose; it means “that we be not scattered.”
172. 13 The Hebrew verb פָּוָץ (pavats, translated “scatter”) is a key term in this passage. The focal point of the account is the dispersion (“scattering”) of the nations rather than the Tower of Babel. But the passage also forms a polemic against Babylon, the pride of the east and a cosmopolitan center with a huge ziggurat. To the Hebrews it was a monument to the judgment of God on pride.
173. 14 Heb “the sons of man.” The phrase is intended in this polemic to portray the builders as mere mortals, not the lesser deities that the Babylonians claimed built the city.
174. 15 The Hebrew text simply has בָּנוּ (banu), but since v. 8 says they left off building the city, an ingressive idea (“had started building”) should be understood here.
175. 16 Heb “and one lip to all of them.”
176. 17 Heb “and now.” The foundational clause beginning with הֵן (hen) expresses the condition, and the second clause the result. It could be rendered “If this … then now.”
177. 18 Heb “all that they purpose to do will not be withheld from them.”
178. 19 The cohortatives mirror the cohortatives of the people. They build to ascend the heavens; God comes down to destroy their language. God speaks here to his angelic assembly. See the notes on the word “make” in and “know” in , as well as 10:22–23, where an angel recounts this incident and says “And the Lord our God said to us.… And the Lord went down and we went down with him. And we saw the city and the tower which the sons of men built.” On the chiastic structure of the story, see G. J. Wenham, Genesis (), 1:.
179. 20 Heb “they will not hear, a man the lip of his neighbor.”
180. 21 The infinitive construct לִבְנֹת (livnot, “building”) here serves as the object of the verb “they ceased, stopped,” answering the question of what they stopped doing.
181. 22 The verb has no expressed subject and so can be rendered as a passive in the translation.
182. 23 Babel. Here is the climax of the account, a parody on the pride of Babylon. In the Babylonian literature the name bab-ili meant “the gate of God,” but in Hebrew it sounds like the word for “confusion,” and so retained that connotation. The name “Babel” (בָּבֶל, bavel) and the verb translated “confused” (בָּלַל, balal) form a paronomasia (sound play). For the many wordplays and other rhetorical devices in Genesis, see J. P. Fokkelman, Narrative Art in Genesis ().
183. 24 The word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons.
184. 25 The word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons.
185. 26 The reading of the is followed in vv. 11–12; the reads, “And [= when] Arphaxad had lived thirty-five years, [and] he fathered [= became the father of] Cainan. And after he fathered [= became the father of] Cainan, Arphaxad lived four hundred and thirty years and fathered [= had] [other] sons and daughters, and [then] he died. And [= when] Cainan had lived one hundred and thirty years, [and] he fathered [= became the father of] Sala [= Shelah]. And after he fathered [= became the father of] Sala [= Shelah], Cainan lived three hundred and thirty years and fathered [= had] [other] sons and daughters, and [then] he died.” See also the note on “Shelah” in ; the reading also appears to lie behind Luke 3:35–36.
186. 27 Here and in vv. 16, 19, 21, 23, 25 the word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons.
187. 28 The phrase of the Chaldeans is a later editorial clarification for the readers, designating the location of Ur. From all evidence there would have been no Chaldeans in existence at this early date; they are known in the time of the neo-Babylonian empire in the first millennium b.c.
188. 29 Heb “upon the face of Terah his father.”
189. 30 The name Sarai (a variant spelling of “Sarah”) means “princess” (or “lady”). Sharratu was the name of the wife of the moon god Sin. The original name may reflect the culture out of which the patriarch was called, for the family did worship other gods in Mesopotamia.
190. 31 The name Milcah means “Queen.” But more to the point here is the fact that Malkatu was a title for Ishtar, the daughter of the moon god. If the women were named after such titles (and there is no evidence that this was the motivation for naming the girls “Princess” or “Queen”), that would not necessarily imply anything about the faith of the two women themselves.