Genesis 22:5-7

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Genesis 22:5 tn Heb “And Abraham.” The proper name has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun (“he”) for stylistic reasons.
2. Genesis 22:5 tn The Hebrew verb is masculine plural, referring to the two young servants who accompanied Abraham and Isaac on the journey.
3. Genesis 22:5 tn The disjunctive clause (with the compound subject preceding the verb) may be circumstantial and temporal.
4. Genesis 22:5 tn This Hebrew word literally means “to bow oneself close to the ground.” It often means “to worship.”
5. Genesis 22:5 sn It is impossible to know what Abraham was thinking when he said, “we will…return to you.” When he went he knew (1) that he was to sacrifice Isaac, and (2) that God intended to fulfill his earlier promises through Isaac. How he reconciled those facts is not clear in the text. Heb 11:17-19 suggests that Abraham believed God could restore Isaac to him through resurrection.
6. Genesis 22:6 sn He took the fire and the knife in his hand. These details anticipate the sacrifice that lies ahead.
7. Genesis 22:7 tn The Hebrew text adds “and said.” This is redundant and has not been translated for stylistic reasons.
8. Genesis 22:7 tn Heb “Here I am” (cf. Gen 22:1).
9. Genesis 22:7 tn Heb “and he said, ‘Here is the fire and the wood.’” The referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here and in the following verse the order of the introductory clauses and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.