In the King James Version Genesis 27:39 reads “And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above”; and some other translations such as NKJV, ASV, ERV seem to have the same meaning for this verse. However, NASB translated it as “Then Isaac his father answered and said to him, “Behold, away from the fertility of the earth shall be your dwelling, And away from the dew of heaven from above.” Other translations such as ESV, NLT, NIV seem to support this meaning. These two translations seem to be of different meaning to me. Why are they translated differently?<\/p>\n\t
The difficulty comes from the Hebrew preposition\u00a0min<\/em>. This preposition denotes distance or separation, but it doesn’t indicate by itself the direction of the separation. Thus, if I give you something, it is separated from me. If something is taken from you, it is separated from you. In both cases, min<\/em>\u00a0is used.<\/p>\n Looking at the literal reading of the verse:<\/p>\n wayya’an<\/em>\u00a0(and he answered)\u00a0yitschaq<\/em>\u00a0(Isaac)\u00a0‘aviw<\/em>\u00a0(his father)\u00a0wayyo’mer<\/em>\u00a0(and he said)\u00a0‘elav<\/em>\u00a0(to him)\u00a0hinneh<\/em>\u00a0(behold)\u00a0mishmanne<\/em>\u00a0(from the fat of)\u00a0ha’arets<\/em>\u00a0(the land)\u00a0yihyeh<\/em>\u00a0(it will be)\u00a0moshavekha<\/em>\u00a0(your dwelling)\u00a0umittal<\/em>\u00a0(and from the dew of)\u00a0hashshamayim<\/em>\u00a0(the heavens)\u00a0me’ai<\/em>\u00a0(above)<\/p>\n Albert Barnes notes: “Away from the fatness.<\/strong>\u00a0The preposition (\u05de\u05df\u00a0min) is the same as in the blessing of Jacob. But there, after a verb of giving, it had a partitive sense; here, after a noun of place, it denotes distance or separation; for example, Proverbs 20:3.”<\/p>\n So to compare it to Genesis 27:28,<\/p>\n weyitten-iekha<\/em>\u00a0(and He will give to you)\u00a0haeloim<\/em>\u00a0(God)\u00a0mittal<\/em>\u00a0(from the dew of)\u00a0hashshamayim<\/em>\u00a0(the heavens)\u00a0umishmanne<\/em>\u00a0(and from the fat of)\u00a0ha’arets<\/em>\u00a0(the land)\u00a0werov<\/em>\u00a0(and abundance of)\u00a0daghan<\/em>\u00a0(grain)\u00a0wethirosh<\/em>\u00a0(and wine)<\/p>\n Notice that almost the same words are used, but the presence of the verb “will give” drastically changes how we view “from.” In Genesis 27:28 God gives from, but in Genesis 27:39 Esau is told he will be from.<\/p>\n Comparing different translations of Genesis 27:39 we find:<\/p>\n The problem that arises is that “of” is also a proper translation of\u00a0min<\/em>\u00a0when used in the sense of “a portion of.” All the translations used “of” to translate\u00a0min<\/em>\u00a0in Genesis 27:28. I assume some continued to use “of” in Genesis 27:39 to be consistent, but it resulted in a loss of meaning in English. What I find interesting is that “from” could have been used in both verses and the difference in meaning would have been retained in English. But not being a translator, I can’t tell you why this wasn’t done. But it appears to me that “from” is the more accurate translation of\u00a0min<\/em>\u00a0in Genesis 27:39 and it makes far more sense in the context of what is being said.<\/p>\n It is interesting that in Proverbs 20:3, as Albert Barnes noted, all the translations use “from” or something similar for\u00a0min<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Question: In the King James Version Genesis 27:39 reads “And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above”; and some other translations such as NKJV, ASV, ERV seem to have the same meaning for this verse. However,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[26,189,190],"class_list":["post-29095","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-esau","tag-genesis","tag-translation"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1714,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-does-the-fatness-of-the-land-and-the-dew-of-heaven-mean\/","url_meta":{"origin":29095,"position":0},"title":"What does “the fatness of the land and the dew of heaven” mean?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 17, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: What does \"the fatness of the land and the dew of heaven\" mean? Answer: \"Therefore may God give you of the dew of heaven, of the fatness of the earth, and plenty of grain and wine\" (Genesis 27:28). A \"fat\" land is one which produces bountifully. The twelve spies\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2004\/08\/Huge-Cluster-of-Grapes.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":28480,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/was-the-new-testament-written-in-greek-or-aramaic\/","url_meta":{"origin":29095,"position":1},"title":"Was the New Testament written in Greek or Aramaic?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 17, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: In what language was the New Testament written: Greek or Aramaic? Answer: The New Testament was written in Greek. All the earliest manuscripts are in Greek. The style of writing is in the Greek style, though some of the writers, such as Matthew, wrote with a Hebrew \"accent,\" if\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16644,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-do-you-say-judges-1131-is-better-translated-as-whoever-instead-of-that-which\/","url_meta":{"origin":29095,"position":2},"title":"Why do you say Judges 11:31 is better translated as “whoever” instead of “that which?”","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 16, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I don't know where you have received the understanding\u00a0about Judges 11:31 because it is not coming from the text. Verse 31 uses the relative and all-purpose preposition\u00a0'asher. Strictly translated, it means in this case \"that which\". \"And it will be that which is going up from the doors of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9664,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/could-you-explain-the-different-translations-of-psalm-515-in-detail\/","url_meta":{"origin":29095,"position":3},"title":"Could you explain the different translations of Psalm 51:5 in detail?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 4, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Could you explain the difference between the NIV and the rest of the versions concerning Psalms 51:5? In detail, if you can. The NIV seems to be saying we are born sinful, while the rest indicates we are born into a sinful world. I understand the difference but I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":32758,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/were-esau-and-ishmaels-descendants-considered-gentiles\/","url_meta":{"origin":29095,"position":4},"title":"Were Esau and Ishmael’s descendants considered Gentiles?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 4, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: We are studying Genesis 36 and the generations of Esau.\u00a0 Several questions arose that have generated some good discussion, but we are needing some help. The questions asked \"Were Esau and Ishmael's families considered Gentiles? Or were they Jews?\u00a0 We are a little confused about when the Jewish nation\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":54237,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-the-meaning-of-pipes-prepared-in-thee\/","url_meta":{"origin":29095,"position":5},"title":"What is the meaning of “pipes prepared in thee”?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 16, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: In the book of Ezekiel 28:13, what is the meaning of \"pipes prepared in thee\"? Did Satan have musical instruments as part of him? Did he have a harp as part of his body? Answer: \"Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29095","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29095"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29095\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29095"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29095"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29095"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}(NKJV) Then Isaac his father answered and said to him: “Behold, your dwelling shall be\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the fatness of the earth, And\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven from above.
\n(NAS95) Then Isaac his father answered and said to him, “Behold, away\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the fertility of the earth shall be your dwelling, And away\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven from above.
\n(NIV) His father Isaac answered him, “Your dwelling will be away\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the earth’s richness, away\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven above.
\n(KJV) And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the earth, and\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven from above;
\n(ASV) And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold,\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the fatness of the earth shall be thy dwelling, And\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven from above.
\n(BBE) Then Isaac his father made answer and said to him, Far\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the fertile places of the earth, and far\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven on high will your living-place be:
\n(DBY) And Isaac his father answered and said to him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the fatness of the earth, And\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven from above;
\n(MKJV) And Isaac his father answered and said to him, Behold! Your dwelling shall be\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the fatness of the earth and\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven from above.
\n(RSV) Then Isaac his father answered him: “Behold, away\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the fatness of the earth shall your dwelling be, and away\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven on high.
\n(WEB) Isaac his father answered him, “Behold,\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the fatness of the earth will be your dwelling, and\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of the sky from above.
\n(YLT) And Isaac his father answereth and saith unto him, `Lo,\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the fatness of the earth is thy dwelling, and\u00a0of\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of the heavens from above;
\n(NASB) Then Isaac his father answered and said to him, “Behold, away\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the fertility of the earth shall be your dwelling, And away\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven from above.
\n(NRSV) Then his father Isaac answered him: “See, away\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the fatness of the earth shall your home be, and away\u00a0from\u00a0<\/strong>the dew of heaven on high.<\/blockquote>\n