Genesis 12:6-7
New English Translation
6 Abram traveled through the land as far as the oak tree[a] of Moreh[b] at Shechem.[c] (At that time the Canaanites were in the land.)[d] 7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants[e] I will give this land.” So Abram[f] built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him.
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- Genesis 12:6 tn Or “terebinth.”
- Genesis 12:6 sn The Hebrew word Moreh (מוֹרֶה, moreh) means “teacher.” It may well be that the place of this great oak tree was a Canaanite shrine where instruction took place.
- Genesis 12:6 tn Heb “as far as the place of Shechem, as far as the oak of Moreh.”
- Genesis 12:6 tn The disjunctive clause gives important information parenthetical in nature—the promised land was occupied by Canaanites.
- Genesis 12:7 tn The same Hebrew term זֶרַע (zeraʿ) may mean “seed” (for planting), “offspring” (occasionally of animals, but usually of people), or “descendants” depending on the context.
- Genesis 12:7 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abram) has been supplied in the translation for clarification.
Genesis 33:18-20
New English Translation
18 After he left Paddan Aram, Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem in the land of Canaan, and he camped near[a] the city. 19 Then he purchased the portion of the field where he had pitched his tent; he bought it[b] from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for 100 pieces of money.[c] 20 There he set up an altar and called it “The God of Israel is God.”[d]
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- Genesis 33:18 tn Heb “in front of.”
- Genesis 33:19 tn The words “he bought it” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text v. 19 is one long sentence.
- Genesis 33:19 tn The Hebrew word קְשִׂיטָה (qesitah) is generally understood to refer to a unit of money, but the value is unknown. (However, cf. REB, which renders the term as “sheep”).
- Genesis 33:20 tn Heb “God, the God of Israel.” Rather than translating the name, a number of modern translations merely transliterate it from the Hebrew as “El Elohe Israel” (cf. NIV, NRSV, REB). It is not entirely clear how the name should be interpreted grammatically. One option is to supply an equative verb, as in the translation: “The God of Israel [is] God.” Another interpretive option is “the God of Israel [is] strong [or “mighty”].” Buying the land and settling down for a while was a momentous step for the patriarch, so the commemorative naming of the altar is significant.
Deuteronomy 11:29
New English Translation
29 When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are to possess, you must pronounce the blessing on Mount Gerizim and the curse on Mount Ebal.[a]
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- Deuteronomy 11:29 sn Mount Gerizim…Mount Ebal. These two mountains are near the ancient site of Shechem and the modern city of Nablus. The valley between them is like a great amphitheater with the mountain slopes as seating sections. The place was sacred because it was there that Abraham pitched his camp and built his first altar after coming to Canaan (Gen 12:6). Jacob also settled at Shechem for a time and dug a well from which Jesus once requested a drink of water (Gen 33:18-20; John 4:5-7). When Joshua and the Israelites finally brought Canaan under control they assembled at Shechem as Moses commanded and undertook a ritual of covenant reaffirmation (Josh 8:30-35; 24:1, 25). Half the tribes stood on Mt. Gerizim and half on Mt. Ebal and in antiphonal chorus pledged their loyalty to the Lord before Joshua and the Levites who stood in the valley below (Josh 8:33; cf. Deut 27:11-13).
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