67 There is no conditional particle at the beginning of the verse; however, the relationship of the clauses, which lay down the condition first and then (with a vav) the consequences, indicates a conditional construction here. Cf. also , , , .
68 The word מָגוֹן (magon) is a ; accordingly, it has been given a variety of interpretations. The has “grief,” and this has been adopted by some versions (e.g., , ). The idea would be that treating the servant too easily for so long would not train him at all, so he will be of little use, and therefore a grief. J. Reider takes the word to mean “weakling” from the Arabic root na’na (“to be weak”), with a noun/adjective form muna’ana’ (“weak; feeble”); see his “Etymological Studies in Biblical Hebrew,” 4 [1954]: 276–95. This would give a different emphasis to the sentence, but on the whole not very different than the first. In both cases the servant will not be trained well. Rashi, a Jewish scholar who lived a.d. 1040–1105, had the translation “a master.” The servant trained this way will assume authority in the household even as the son. This may be behind the translation “son” (likewise , ). and the have “to be uprooted,” which may reflect a different text entirely.