# Torah with Onkelos
## Parashat Lech Lecha — First Aliyah
### Bereshit 12:1 – 12:13
*The call to Avram, the journey through Canaan and the descent to Egypt, read through Targum Onkelos*
---
## Contents
- [Orientation](#orientation)
- [How this booklet is laid out](#layout)
- [Unit 1 — Bereshit 12:1–9: The call to Avram and the journey into Canaan](#unit-1)
- [Unit 2 — Bereshit 12:10–13: Famine, and the descent to Egypt](#unit-2)
- [Conclusion of the aliyah](#conclusion)
- [Aramaic word list for the aliyah](#glossary)
- [Source note](#source-note)
---
## Orientation
**What happens in this aliyah.** Hashem tells Avram to leave his land, his birthplace and his father's house for a land He will show him, and promises to make him a great people, to bless him and to bless the families of the earth through him. Avram, seventy-five years old, sets out from Charan with Sarai, Lot, their possessions and the people they had gathered there. He passes through Canaan to Shechem, where Hashem is revealed to him and promises the land to his children; he builds an altar there and another east of Beis-Eil, and then journeys southward. A famine drives him down to Egypt, and as they approach he asks Sarai to say that she is his sister, fearing that the Egyptians will kill him on account of her beauty.
**What Onkelos is.** Targum Onkelos is the classical Aramaic translation of the Torah, read for centuries alongside the Hebrew; the Talmud speaks of reviewing the weekly portion "twice in the Hebrew and once in the Targum". Because it is a translation, it rarely adds explanation in so many words. Its interpretation lies in its choices: which Aramaic word it uses, where it adds or omits a word, how it handles a difficult phrase, and where it departs from a word-for-word rendering.
**How this booklet reads Onkelos.** The notes compare the Aramaic with the Hebrew and nothing else. No later commentators are brought in. Where a note draws a conclusion about what Onkelos meant, it is stated as an inference from the text, not as established fact.
**What to look out for in this aliyah.**
- **Language about God.** Hashem 'was revealed' (*itgeli*) rather than 'appeared', the altars are built 'before Hashem' (*kodam Hashem*), and Avram's 'calling in the Name' becomes prayer (12:7, 12:8).
- **The souls 'subjected to the Torah'.** In 12:5 the people Avram and Sarai 'made' in Charan become souls they had brought under the Torah, the one clearly interpretive addition of the aliyah.
- **Plain terms for images.** 'Seed' becomes 'children', 'the sea' becomes 'the west', and 'the Negev' becomes 'the south'.
- **Wordplay kept and lost.** The cognate 'possessions they had acquired' and the repeated root of 'journeyed ... journeying' survive in the Aramaic; the two roots of 'great' and 'make great' in 12:2 do not line up.
- **One Aramaic word for two Hebrew ones.** A single root renders both Hebrew verbs of cursing in 12:3, *bedil* serves for both *lema'an* and *ba'avur* in 12:13, and the root קום stands for the Hebrew verbs of living in 12:12-13.
- **Sarai's words.** At the close of the aliyah Avram's life is preserved not 'because of you' but 'through your words' (12:13).
- **Printed and Yemenite readings.** Several textual notes compare the two, most strikingly 'blessing' against 'blessed' in 12:2 and 'when' against 'that' in 12:12.
---
## How this booklet is laid out
For each verse:
- **Torah** — the Hebrew verse, with vowels and cantillation, followed by an English **Translation** of the Hebrew (Metsudah Chumash).
- **Onkelos** — the Aramaic of Targum Onkelos, followed by **Onkelos in English**, a close translation of the Aramaic. It uses the same wording as the Torah translation wherever the Aramaic says the same thing, so that the differences from the Hebrew can be seen. Words in square brackets are added for sense.
- **What Onkelos tells us** — editorial notes comparing the Aramaic with the Hebrew: what is translated literally, what is changed or added, and what that suggests about how Onkelos read the verse. Selected Aramaic words are listed with their Hebrew equivalents.
Each unit ends with a short **Unit summary**. The booklet ends with a review of the aliyah and an Aramaic word list.
Divine Names in the Hebrew and Aramaic are printed as ה׳ and אלקים. In English, God's proper Name is rendered *Hashem*, and *Elokim* is rendered *God*.
---
## Unit 1 — Bereshit 12:1–9: The call to Avram and the journey into Canaan
Hashem commands Avram to leave his land, kindred and father's house for a land He will show him, promising him greatness and blessing. Avram sets out from Charan with Sarai, Lot and their household, crosses Canaan to Shechem, receives the promise of the land, builds altars and continues southward.
---
### Bereshit 12:1
**Torah**
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר ה׳ אֶל־אַבְרָ֔ם לֶךְ־לְךָ֛ מֵאַרְצְךָ֥ וּמִמּֽוֹלַדְתְּךָ֖ וּמִבֵּ֣ית אָבִ֑יךָ אֶל־הָאָ֖רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַרְאֶֽךָּ׃
**Translation**
Hashem said to Avram, Go from your land, from your birthplace, and from your father's house, [and go] to the land that I will show you.
**Onkelos**
וַאֲמַר ה׳ לְאַבְרָם אִיזֵל לָךְ מֵאַרְעָךְ וּמִיַּלָּדוּתָךְ וּמִבֵּית אֲבוּךְ לְאַרְעָא דִּי אַחֲזִנָּךְ
**Onkelos in English**
Hashem said to Avram, Go from your land, from your birthplace, and from your father's house, to the land that I will show you.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"Go".** The Hebrew *lekh lekha* has the verb followed by the dative "for yourself"; Onkelos keeps the same construction, *izel lakh*, verb plus dative pronoun. The translation follows the Hebrew pattern rather than reducing it to a bare imperative.
- **"To Avram".** The Hebrew preposition *el* ("to") after a verb of speaking is rendered with the prefix *le-*, *le-Avram*. A routine Aramaic equivalent.
- **"That I will show you".** Hebrew *ar'ekka* (causative of ראה, "cause to see") becomes *ahazinnakh*, the causative of the Aramaic verb of seeing, חזי. Otherwise a literal rendering; *yalladut* ("birthplace") matches the Hebrew *moledet*, which is also a noun from the root of giving birth.
**Words to note:** אִיזֵל *izel* — go (לֶךְ) · וּמִיַּלָּדוּתָךְ *u-mi-yalladutakh* — and from your birthplace (וּמִמּוֹלַדְתְּךָ) · אֲבוּךְ *avukh* — your father (אָבִיךָ) · אַחֲזִנָּךְ *ahazinnakh* — I will show you (אַרְאֶךָּ)
---
### Bereshit 12:2
**Torah**
וְאֶֽעֶשְׂךָ֙ לְג֣וֹי גָּד֔וֹל וַאֲבָ֣רֶכְךָ֔ וַאֲגַדְּלָ֖ה שְׁמֶ֑ךָ וֶהְיֵ֖ה בְּרָכָֽה׃
**Translation**
I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you and make your name great; and you will be a blessing [*and you will be blessed*].
**Onkelos**
וְאֶעְבְּדִנָּךְ לְעַם סַגִּי וֶאֱבָרֵכִנָּךְ וַאֲרַבֵּי שְׁמָךְ וּתְהֵא מְבָרֵךְ
**Onkelos in English**
I will make you into a great people, I will bless you and make your name great; and you will be [one] blessing.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"A great people".** Hebrew *goy* ("nation") is rendered *am* ("people"), and *gadol* ("great") becomes *sagi*.
- **"Make your name great".** The Hebrew uses one root, גדל, for "great" (*gadol*) and "make great" (*va-agaddelah*). Onkelos uses two different roots: *sagi* for the adjective and *va-arabbei* (from רבי, "increase, make great") for the verb. The echo between the two Hebrew words is therefore not kept in the Aramaic.
- **"I will make you".** Hebrew *ve-e'eskha* becomes *ve-e'bedinnakh*, from עבד, the ordinary Aramaic verb for "make, do".
- **"And you will be [one] blessing".** The Hebrew ends with a noun, *berakhah*, "a blessing". Onkelos replaces the noun with a participle. As vocalized in the printed text, *meverekh* is active, "blessing", so Avram himself would be one who blesses; this holds for the printed text only (see the textual note).
- **Textual note.** The Yemenite text vocalizes the last word *mevarakh*, the passive participle, "and you will be blessed", where the printed text has the active *meverekh*, "blessing". On the Yemenite reading the Hebrew "a blessing" is taken to mean that Avram will be blessed, not that he will bless others.
**Words to note:** וְאֶעְבְּדִנָּךְ *ve-e'bedinnakh* — I will make you (וְאֶעֶשְׂךָ) · לְעַם *le-am* — into a people (לְגוֹי) · סַגִּי *sagi* — great (גָּדוֹל) · וַאֲרַבֵּי *va-arabbei* — and I will make great (וַאֲגַדְּלָה) · מְבָרֵךְ *meverekh* — blessing (בְּרָכָה)
---
### Bereshit 12:3
**Torah**
וַאֲבָֽרְכָה֙ מְבָ֣רְכֶ֔יךָ וּמְקַלֶּלְךָ֖ אָאֹ֑ר וְנִבְרְכ֣וּ בְךָ֔ כֹּ֖ל מִשְׁפְּחֹ֥ת הָאֲדָמָֽה׃
**Translation**
I will bless those who bless you, and he who curses you, I will curse; and through you [*and because of you*], will be blessed all the families of the earth.
**Onkelos**
וֶאֱבָרֵךְ מְבָרְכָךְ וּמְלַטְטָךְ אֵילוּט וְיִתְבָּרֲכוּן בְּדִילָךְ כֹּל זַרְעֲיַת אַרְעָא
**Onkelos in English**
I will bless those who bless you, and he who curses you, I will curse; and because of you will be blessed all the families of the earth.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"He who curses you, I will curse".** The Hebrew uses two different verbs for cursing: *u-mekallelkha* (from קלל) for the one who curses Avram and *a'or* for Hashem's curse. Onkelos uses a single root, לוט, for both: *u-melattetakh ... eilut*. The distinction the Hebrew draws between the two curses is levelled in the Aramaic, while the blessing pair (*va-avarekhah ... mevarekhekha*) is matched by a single root in both languages.
- **"Because of you".** Hebrew *vekha*, "through you" or "in you", becomes *bedilakh*, "because of you". Onkelos thus makes Avram the cause of the families' blessing, perhaps to avoid the ambiguity of the bare preposition.
- **"Will be blessed".** Hebrew *ve-nivrekhu* (passive-reflexive) is matched by *ve-yitbarakhun*, the Aramaic reflexive-passive stem.
- **"All the families of the earth".** *Mishpehot* is rendered *zar'ayat*, "families", and *ha-adamah* becomes *ar'a*, the same word Onkelos uses for *eretz* in 12:1, so the Hebrew distinction between *adamah* and *eretz* is not kept in these verses.
**Words to note:** וּמְלַטְטָךְ *u-melattetakh* — and he who curses you (וּמְקַלֶּלְךָ) · אֵילוּט *eilut* — I will curse (אָאֹר) · וְיִתְבָּרֲכוּן *ve-yitbarakhun* — will be blessed (וְנִבְרְכוּ) · בְּדִילָךְ *bedilakh* — because of you (בְךָ) · זַרְעֲיַת *zar'ayat* — families (מִשְׁפְּחֹת)
---
### Bereshit 12:4
**Torah**
וַיֵּ֣לֶךְ אַבְרָ֗ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר דִּבֶּ֤ר אֵלָיו֙ ה׳ וַיֵּ֥לֶךְ אִתּ֖וֹ ל֑וֹט וְאַבְרָ֗ם בֶּן־חָמֵ֤שׁ שָׁנִים֙ וְשִׁבְעִ֣ים שָׁנָ֔ה בְּצֵאת֖וֹ מֵחָרָֽן׃
**Translation**
Avram went as Hashem had told him, and Lot went with him. Avram was seventy-five years old when he left Charan.
**Onkelos**
וַאֲזַל אַבְרָם כְּמָא דְּמַלֵּיל עִמֵּהּ ה׳ וַאֲזַל עִמֵּהּ לוֹטּ וְאַבְרָם בַּר שִׁבְעִין וַחֲמֵשׁ שְׁנִין בְּמִפְקֵהּ מֵחָרָן
**Onkelos in English**
Avram went as Hashem had spoken with him, and Lot went with him. Avram was seventy-five years old when he left Charan.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"As Hashem had spoken with him".** Hebrew *dibber elav*, "spoke to him", becomes *mallel immeh*, "spoke with him". The same word *immeh* also renders *itto* ("with him") later in the verse, so the Aramaic uses one preposition where the Hebrew has two.
- **"Seventy-five years".** The Hebrew counts "five years and seventy year", with the smaller number first and the noun repeated. Onkelos reorders to *shiv'in va-hamesh shenin*, "seventy and five years", with a single plural noun, a natural Aramaic order.
- **"When he left".** Hebrew *be-tzeito*, "in his going out", is matched by the Aramaic infinitive *be-mifkeh*. A literal rendering.
**Words to note:** דְּמַלֵּיל *de-malleil* — had spoken (דִּבֶּר) · עִמֵּהּ *immeh* — with him (אֵלָיו) · שִׁבְעִין *shiv'in* — seventy (וְשִׁבְעִים) · בְּמִפְקֵהּ *be-mifkeh* — when he left (בְּצֵאתוֹ)
---
### Bereshit 12:5
**Torah**
וַיִּקַּ֣ח אַבְרָם֩ אֶת־שָׂרַ֨י אִשְׁתּ֜וֹ וְאֶת־ל֣וֹט בֶּן־אָחִ֗יו וְאֶת־כׇּל־רְכוּשָׁם֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר רָכָ֔שׁוּ וְאֶת־הַנֶּ֖פֶשׁ אֲשֶׁר־עָשׂ֣וּ בְחָרָ֑ן וַיֵּצְא֗וּ לָלֶ֙כֶת֙ אַ֣רְצָה כְּנַ֔עַן וַיָּבֹ֖אוּ אַ֥רְצָה כְּנָֽעַן׃
**Translation**
Avram took his wife Sarai, Lot, his brother's son, all their possessions they had acquired, and the souls [people] that they had made [converted] in Charan, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan. They came to the land of Canaan.
**Onkelos**
וּדְבַר אַבְרָם יָת שָׂרַי אִתְּתֵהּ וְיָת לוֹט בַר אֲחוּהִי וְיָת כָּל קִנְיָנְהוֹן דִּי קְנוֹ וְיָת נַפְשָׁתָא דְּשַׁעֲבִּידוּ לְאוֹרַיְתָא בְחָרָן וּנְפָקוּ לְמֵיזַל לְאַרְעָא דִּכְנַעַן וַאֲתוֹ לְאַרְעָא דִּכְנָעַן
**Onkelos in English**
Avram took his wife Sarai, Lot, his brother's son, all their possessions they had acquired, and the souls that they had subjected to the Torah in Charan, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan. They came to the land of Canaan.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"Took".** Hebrew *va-yikkah* is rendered *u-devar*, a verb used for taking or leading people along. The choice may reflect that what is taken here is chiefly persons.
- **"Their possessions they had acquired".** The Hebrew pairs a noun and verb of one root, *rekhusham asher rakhashu*. Onkelos keeps the cognate pairing with his own root קני: *kinyanehon di kenó*.
- **"The souls that they had subjected to the Torah".** The main departure of the verse. The Hebrew says simply "the soul that they made" (*ha-nefesh asher asu*). Onkelos:
- makes the collective singular *nefesh* plural, *nafshata*, "souls";
- replaces "made" with *de-sha'abidu*, a causative form of עבד, "caused to serve, subjected";
- adds *le-orayta*, "to the Torah", which has no counterpart in the Hebrew.
The rendering suggests that Onkelos understood "making souls" not as acquiring servants but as bringing people under the Torah. Since he uses the plain verb of עבד for "make" in 12:2, the causative form here may also keep an echo of the Hebrew "made".
- **"To the land of Canaan".** The Hebrew directional ending (*artzah*) becomes the preposition *le-*: *le-ar'a di-khena'an*. A literal rendering otherwise.
**Words to note:** וּדְבַר *u-devar* — took (וַיִּקַּח) · קִנְיָנְהוֹן *kinyanehon* — their possessions (רְכוּשָׁם) · קְנוֹ *kenó* — they had acquired (רָכָשׁוּ) · נַפְשָׁתָא *nafshata* — the souls (הַנֶּפֶשׁ) · דְּשַׁעֲבִּידוּ *de-sha'abidu* — that they had subjected (עָשׂוּ) · לְאוֹרַיְתָא *le-orayta* — to the Torah
---
### Bereshit 12:6
**Torah**
וַיַּעֲבֹ֤ר אַבְרָם֙ בָּאָ֔רֶץ עַ֚ד מְק֣וֹם שְׁכֶ֔ם עַ֖ד אֵל֣וֹן מוֹרֶ֑ה וְהַֽכְּנַעֲנִ֖י אָ֥ז בָּאָֽרֶץ׃
**Translation**
Avram passed [traveled] through the land until the place of Shechem, until the Plain of Moreh. The Canaanites were then in the land.
**Onkelos**
וַעֲבַר אַבְרָם בְּאַרְעָא עַד אֲתַר שְׁכֶם עַד מֵישַׁר מוֹרֶה וּכְנַעֲנָאָה בְּכֵן בְּאַרְעָא
**Onkelos in English**
Avram passed through the land until the place of Shechem, until the Plain of Moreh. The Canaanites were then in the land.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"The place of Shechem".** Hebrew *mekom* is rendered *atar*, the usual Aramaic word for "place".
- **"The Plain of Moreh".** The Hebrew *elon* is rendered *meishar*, "plain". Onkelos thus names the site by its terrain rather than translating *elon* as a tree.
- **"The Canaanites were then in the land".** The gentilic is kept singular as in the Hebrew (*u-khena'ana'ah*, matching *ve-ha-kena'ani*), and *az*, "then", becomes *bekhen*. A literal rendering.
- **Textual note.** The Yemenite text reads the plural construct *meishrei*, "the plains of Moreh", where the printed text has the singular *meishar*.
**Words to note:** אֲתַר *atar* — place (מְקוֹם) · מֵישַׁר *meishar* — the Plain of (אֵלוֹן) · וּכְנַעֲנָאָה *u-khena'ana'ah* — the Canaanites (וְהַכְּנַעֲנִי) · בְּכֵן *bekhen* — then (אָז)
---
### Bereshit 12:7
**Torah**
וַיֵּרָ֤א ה׳ אֶל־אַבְרָ֔ם וַיֹּ֕אמֶר לְזַ֨רְעֲךָ֔ אֶתֵּ֖ן אֶת־הָאָ֣רֶץ הַזֹּ֑את וַיִּ֤בֶן שָׁם֙ מִזְבֵּ֔חַ לַה׳ הַנִּרְאֶ֥ה אֵלָֽיו׃
**Translation**
Hashem appeared [*became revealed*] to Avram and said: To your descendants I will give this land. There he built an altar to [*before*] Hashem Who had appeared [*been revealed*] to him.
**Onkelos**
וְאִתְגְּלִי ה׳ לְאַבְרָם וַאֲמַר לִבְנָךְ אֶתֵּן יָת אַרְעָא הָדָא וּבְנָא תַמָּן מַדְבְּחָא קֳדָם ה׳ דְּאִתְגְּלִי לֵהּ
**Onkelos in English**
Hashem was revealed to Avram and said: To your children I will give this land. There he built an altar before Hashem Who had been revealed to him.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"Hashem was revealed".** Hebrew *va-yera*, "appeared" (literally "was seen"), becomes *ve-itgeli*, "was revealed". The same verb renders *ha-nir'eh* at the end of the verse, "Who had been revealed to him", so the Hebrew repetition of the root is kept. The change from "was seen" to "was revealed" suggests a reluctance to describe Hashem as an object of sight.
- **"Before Hashem".** Hebrew *la-Hashem*, "to Hashem", becomes *kodam Hashem*, "before Hashem". The altar is built in Hashem's presence rather than "to" Him, perhaps to avoid wording that could suggest giving something to God directly.
- **"To your children".** The Hebrew *le-zar'akha*, "to your seed", becomes *li-vnakh*, "to your children", replacing the agricultural metaphor with the plain term.
**Words to note:** וְאִתְגְּלִי *ve-itgeli* — was revealed (וַיֵּרָא) · לִבְנָךְ *li-vnakh* — to your children (לְזַרְעֲךָ) · מַדְבְּחָא *madbeha* — an altar (מִזְבֵּחַ) · קֳדָם *kodam* — before (לַה׳)
---
### Bereshit 12:8
**Torah**
וַיַּעְתֵּ֨ק מִשָּׁ֜ם הָהָ֗רָה מִקֶּ֛דֶם לְבֵֽית־אֵ֖ל וַיֵּ֣ט אׇהֳלֹ֑ה בֵּֽית־אֵ֤ל מִיָּם֙ וְהָעַ֣י מִקֶּ֔דֶם וַיִּֽבֶן־שָׁ֤ם מִזְבֵּ֙חַ֙ לַֽה׳ וַיִּקְרָ֖א בְּשֵׁ֥ם ה׳׃
**Translation**
From there he moved [*ascended*] to the mountain that was east of Beis-Eil and set up his tent. Beis-Eil was to the west and Ai was to the east. There he built an altar to [*before*] Hashem, and he proclaimed the Name, [*and he prayed in the Name,*] Hashem.
**Onkelos**
וְאִסְתַּלַּק מִתַּמָּן לְטוּרָא מִמַדְנַח לְבֵית אֵל וּפְרַס מַשְׁכְּנֵהּ בֵּית אֵל מִמַּעַרְבָא וְעַי מִמָּדִינְחָא וּבְנָא תַמָּן מִדְבְּחָא קֳדָם ה׳ וְצַלִּי בִּשְׁמָא דַּה׳
**Onkelos in English**
From there he went up to the mountain east of Beis-Eil and spread out his tent. Beis-Eil was to the west and Ai was to the east. There he built an altar before Hashem, and he prayed in the Name of Hashem.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"He went up".** Hebrew *va-ya'tek*, "he moved (on)", becomes *ve-istallak*, a verb of going up or removing oneself, fitting the destination "to the mountain" (*le-tura*).
- **"Spread out his tent".** Hebrew *va-yet oholoh*, "he stretched his tent", is rendered *u-feras mashkeneh*. *Mashkan* is the Aramaic word for a tent or dwelling.
- **"To the west".** The Hebrew says *mi-yam*, "from the sea", the Mediterranean standing for the west. Onkelos drops the geographic image and writes *mi-ma'arava*, "from the west". The two occurrences of *mi-kedem*, "east", are both rendered with forms of the same Aramaic root.
- **"Before Hashem".** As in 12:7, *la-Hashem* becomes *kodam Hashem*.
- **"He prayed in the Name of Hashem".** Hebrew *va-yikra be-shem Hashem*, "he called in the name of Hashem", becomes *ve-tzalli bi-shma de-Hashem*, "he prayed in the Name of Hashem". Onkelos thus reads the Hebrew "calling" as an act of prayer, not as proclamation to others.
- **Textual note.** For printed *u-feras mashkeneh*, "and he spread out his tent", the Yemenite text reads *u-farseih le-mashkeneih*, "and he spread it, his tent", with an anticipatory pronoun. The meaning is the same.
**Words to note:** וְאִסְתַּלַּק *ve-istallak* — and he went up (וַיַּעְתֵּק) · לְטוּרָא *le-tura* — to the mountain (הָהָרָה) · וּפְרַס *u-feras* — and spread out (וַיֵּט) · מַשְׁכְּנֵהּ *mashkeneh* — his tent (אׇהֳלֹה) · מִמַּעַרְבָא *mi-ma'arava* — to the west (מִיָּם) · וְצַלִּי *ve-tzalli* — and he prayed (וַיִּקְרָא)
---
### Bereshit 12:9
**Torah**
וַיִּסַּ֣ע אַבְרָ֔ם הָל֥וֹךְ וְנָס֖וֹעַ הַנֶּֽגְבָּה׃ {פ}
**Translation**
Avram journeyed, traveling steadily southward.
**Onkelos**
וּנְטַּל אַבְרָם אָזֵל וְנָטֵל לְדָרוֹמָא
**Onkelos in English**
Avram journeyed, going and journeying southward.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"Going and journeying".** The Hebrew uses two infinitive absolutes, *halokh ve-naso'a*, to express continuous travel. Onkelos renders them as participles, *azel ve-natel*, "going and journeying". The root of the main verb (*u-netal*, for *va-yissa*) recurs in *ve-natel*, as the root of *va-yissa* recurs in *ve-naso'a* in the Hebrew, so the repetition is kept.
- **"Southward".** Hebrew *ha-negbah*, "toward the Negev", becomes *le-daroma*, "to the south", a direction rather than the name of the region.
**Words to note:** וּנְטַּל *u-netal* — journeyed (וַיִּסַּע) · אָזֵל *azel* — going (הָלוֹךְ) · וְנָטֵל *ve-natel* — journeying (וְנָסוֹעַ) · לְדָרוֹמָא *le-daroma* — southward (הַנֶּגְבָּה)
---
### Unit 1 summary
Onkelos follows the Hebrew closely through most of the unit, with the usual Aramaic equivalents (ar'a for both eretz and adamah, atar for makom, meishar for elon, kodam Hashem for la-Hashem). His larger departures cluster at a few points. Language about God is rephrased: Hashem 'was revealed' rather than 'appeared', the altars are built 'before Hashem', and Avram's 'calling in the Name' becomes prayer. The 'souls they made' in Charan become 'souls they had subjected to the Torah', the one clearly interpretive addition of the unit. Elsewhere he smooths idiom: 'seed' becomes 'children', 'sea' becomes 'west', the Hebrew infinitives of 12:9 become participles. Some Hebrew wordplay is kept (the cognate 'possessions they had acquired') and some is lost (the two roots of 'great' and 'make great' in 12:2), while two different Hebrew verbs for cursing in 12:3 share a single Aramaic root.
---
## Unit 2 — Bereshit 12:10–13: Famine, and the descent to Egypt
A famine drives Avram down to Egypt. As they approach, he asks Sarai to say she is his sister, fearing the Egyptians will kill him on account of her beauty.
---
### Bereshit 12:10
**Torah**
וַיְהִ֥י רָעָ֖ב בָּאָ֑רֶץ וַיֵּ֨רֶד אַבְרָ֤ם מִצְרַ֙יְמָה֙ לָג֣וּר שָׁ֔ם כִּֽי־כָבֵ֥ד הָרָעָ֖ב בָּאָֽרֶץ׃
**Translation**
There was a famine in the land. Avram went down to Egypt to live there temporarily, for the famine was severe in the land.
**Onkelos**
וַהֲוָה כַפְנָא בְּאַרְעָא וּנְחַת אַבְרָם לְמִצְרַיִם לְאִתּוֹתָבָא תַמָּן אֲרֵי תַקִּיף כַּפְנָא בְּאַרְעָא
**Onkelos in English**
There was a famine in the land. Avram went down to Egypt to settle there, for the famine was strong in the land.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"To settle there".** The Hebrew לָגוּר (*lagur*), 'to sojourn, live temporarily', is rendered לְאִתּוֹתָבָא (*le-ittotava*), a reflexive form from the root יתב, 'sit, dwell'. The Aramaic verb does not itself carry the sense of a temporary stay that the Hebrew word has; the context ('there', during a famine) is left to supply it.
- **"The famine was strong".** Where the Hebrew calls the famine כָבֵד (*khaved*), 'heavy', Onkelos says it was תַקִּיף (*takkif*), 'strong'. The Hebrew image of weight is replaced by one of force.
- **"Famine", "went down".** Otherwise a literal rendering: כַפְנָא (*khafna*) for רָעָב, וּנְחַת (*u-nehat*) for וַיֵּרֶד, and אֲרֵי for the Hebrew כִּי, 'for'.
- **Textual note.** For printed תַקִּיף (*takkif*), an adjective, 'strong', the Yemenite text vocalizes תְּקֵיף (*tekeif*), which reads as a verb, 'had grown strong'. The sense of the verse is unchanged.
**Words to note:** כַּפְנָא *kafna* — famine (רָעָב) · וּנְחַת *u-nehat* — went down (וַיֵּרֶד) · לְאִתּוֹתָבָא *le-ittotava* — to settle (לָגוּר) · תַמָּן *tamman* — there (שָׁם) · תַקִּיף *takkif* — strong (כָבֵד)
---
### Bereshit 12:11
**Torah**
וַיְהִ֕י כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר הִקְרִ֖יב לָב֣וֹא מִצְרָ֑יְמָה וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ אֶל־שָׂרַ֣י אִשְׁתּ֔וֹ הִנֵּה־נָ֣א יָדַ֔עְתִּי כִּ֛י אִשָּׁ֥ה יְפַת־מַרְאֶ֖ה אָֽתְּ׃
**Translation**
As he came near and was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, Behold, I now realize that you are a woman of beautiful appearance.
**Onkelos**
וַהֲוָה כַּד קְרֵיב לְמֵיעַל לְמִצְרָיִם וַאֲמַר לְשָׂרַי אִתְּתֵה הָא כְעַן יְדָעִית אֲרֵי אִתְּתָא שַׁפִּירַת חֵיזוּ אָתְּ
**Onkelos in English**
It was, as he came near and was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, Behold, now I realize that you are a woman of beautiful appearance.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"He came near".** The Hebrew הִקְרִיב (*hikriv*) is a causative (hif'il) form, here used of drawing near. Onkelos uses the simple form קְרֵיב (*kerev*), 'came near', which removes any suggestion of 'bringing' something near.
- **"To enter".** For the Hebrew לָבוֹא (*lavo*), 'to come', Onkelos writes לְמֵיעַל (*le-me'al*), 'to enter', a more specific verb for arriving into a land.
- **"Behold, now".** The Hebrew הִנֵּה נָא combines 'behold' with the particle *na*. Onkelos renders it הָא כְעַן, 'behold, now', turning the particle of request into a word of time; he does the same with *na* in 12:13.
- **"A woman of beautiful appearance".** A literal rendering of the construct phrase: שַׁפִּירַת חֵיזוּ (*shappirat hezu*) for יְפַת מַרְאֶה.
- **Textual note.** For printed יְדָעִית (*yeda'it*), a perfect, 'I realize', the Yemenite text reads יָדַעְנָא (*yada'na*), a participle, 'I know'. Both render the Hebrew יָדַעְתִּי; only the verb form differs.
**Words to note:** כַּד *kad* — as, when (כַּאֲשֶׁר) · קְרֵיב *kerev* — came near (הִקְרִיב) · לְמֵיעַל *le-me'al* — to enter (לָבוֹא) · כְעַן *khe'an* — now (נָא) · שַׁפִּירַת *shappirat* — beautiful of (יְפַת) · חֵיזוּ *hezu* — appearance (מַרְאֶה)
---
### Bereshit 12:12
**Torah**
וְהָיָ֗ה כִּֽי־יִרְא֤וּ אֹתָךְ֙ הַמִּצְרִ֔ים וְאָמְר֖וּ אִשְׁתּ֣וֹ זֹ֑את וְהָרְג֥וּ אֹתִ֖י וְאֹתָ֥ךְ יְחַיּֽוּ׃
**Translation**
It will happen when the Egyptians see you that they will say: This is his wife. They will kill me and let you live.
**Onkelos**
וִיהֵי כַּד (נ''י אֲרֵי) יֶחֱזוּן יָתִיךְ מִצְרָאֵי וְיֵימְרוּן אִתְּתֵהּ דָּא וְיִקְטְלוּן יָתִי וְיָתִיךְ יְקַיְמוּן
**Onkelos in English**
It will happen when (another reading: that) the Egyptians see you that they will say: This is his wife. They will kill me and let you live.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"When".** The Hebrew כִּי is rendered כַּד (*kad*), 'when', taking the word in its temporal sense; elsewhere in this passage (12:10, 12:11) the Hebrew *ki* becomes אֲרֵי (*arei*). The printed text notes אֲרֵי as another reading in parentheses, and the Yemenite text has only that; the temporal *kad* holds for the printed text only.
- **"This is his wife".** The Hebrew word order אִשְׁתּוֹ זֹאת, 'his wife, this', is kept exactly: אִתְּתֵהּ דָּא.
- **"Let you live".** The Hebrew יְחַיּוּ (*yehayyu*), 'let live', is rendered יְקַיְמוּן (*yekaymun*), from the root קום, 'keep in being, sustain'. Onkelos uses the same root again for the Hebrew verb of living in 12:13. 'See' and 'kill' are rendered literally: יֶחֱזוּן (*yehezun*) and וְיִקְטְלוּן (*ve-yiktelun*).
- **Textual note.** The Yemenite text has no כַּד and reads אֲרֵי, 'that' (the reading the printed text gives in parentheses), so the note on 'when' applies to the printed text only.
**Words to note:** כַּד *kad* — when (כִּי) · יֶחֱזוּן *yehezun* — see (יִרְאוּ) · מִצְרָאֵי *mitzra'ei* — the Egyptians (הַמִּצְרִים) · וְיִקְטְלוּן *ve-yiktelun* — they will kill (וְהָרְגוּ) · יְקַיְמוּן *yekaymun* — let live (יְחַיּוּ)
---
### Bereshit 12:13
**Torah**
אִמְרִי־נָ֖א אֲחֹ֣תִי אָ֑תְּ לְמַ֙עַן֙ יִֽיטַב־לִ֣י בַעֲבוּרֵ֔ךְ וְחָיְתָ֥ה נַפְשִׁ֖י בִּגְלָלֵֽךְ׃
**Translation**
Please [*Now*] say [therefore] that you are my sister, so that it will go well with me for your sake, and my life will be spared because of you [*through your words*].
**Onkelos**
אִמְרִי כְעַן אֲחָתִי אָתְּ בְּדִיל דְּיֵיטַב לִי בְּדִילָךְ וְתִתְקַיֵּם נַפְשִׁי בְּפִתְגָּמָיְכִי
**Onkelos in English**
Say now that you are my sister, so that it will go well with me for your sake, and my life will be sustained through your words.
**What Onkelos tells us**
- **"Say now".** As in 12:11, the Hebrew particle נָא is rendered כְעַן (*khe'an*), 'now', rather than with a word of entreaty.
- **"So that ... for your sake".** The Hebrew uses two different words, לְמַעַן (*lema'an*), 'so that', and בַעֲבוּרֵךְ (*ba'avurekh*), 'for your sake'. Onkelos renders both with the one word *bedil*: בְּדִיל דְּיֵיטַב and בְּדִילָךְ (*bedilakh*).
- **"My life will be sustained".** The Hebrew וְחָיְתָה (*ve-hayeta*), 'will live', becomes וְתִתְקַיֵּם (*ve-titkayyem*), a reflexive form of the root קום, 'will be sustained'; the same root rendered the Hebrew verb of living in 12:12.
- **"Through your words".** The largest change in the verse. The Hebrew בִּגְלָלֵךְ (*biglalekh*) means 'because of you'. Onkelos writes בְּפִתְגָּמָיְכִי (*be-fitgamaykhi*), 'through your words'. This suggests that he understood the rescue to depend on what Sarai would say, the very thing Avram asks of her at the start of the verse, rather than on her person.
- **Textual note.** For printed אֲחָתִי, 'my sister', the Yemenite text reads דַּאֲחָת, 'that ... a sister', without the possessive.
- **Textual note.** For printed בְּפִתְגָּמָיְכִי, plural, 'your words', the Yemenite text reads בְּפִתְגָמַכִי in the singular, 'your word'. The point about speech holds for both.
**Words to note:** כְעַן *khe'an* — now (נָא) · אֲחָתִי *ahati* — my sister (אֲחֹתִי) · בְּדִיל *bedil* — so that (לְמַעַן) · בְּדִילָךְ *bedilakh* — for your sake (בַעֲבוּרֵךְ) · וְתִתְקַיֵּם *ve-titkayyem* — will be sustained (וְחָיְתָה) · בְּפִתְגָּמָיְכִי *be-fitgamaykhi* — through your words (בִּגְלָלֵךְ)
---
### Unit 2 summary
Onkelos follows the Hebrew closely through this short episode, but several small choices stand out. The famine that is 'heavy' in the Hebrew becomes 'strong' in the Aramaic, and Avram's going 'to sojourn' is rendered with a verb of settling. The Hebrew particle of request, na, appears twice and both times becomes 'now' (khe'an). One Aramaic root, kum, stands for both Hebrew verbs of living in Avram's fear and his plan (12:12, 12:13), and the single word bedil serves for both lema'an and ba'avur in 12:13. The largest change is at the very end: Avram's life is to be preserved not 'on account of you' but 'through your words', which may suggest that Onkelos tied the rescue to what Sarai was asked to say. The printed text also reads 'when' rather than 'that' for the Hebrew ki in 12:12, a reading the Yemenite text does not share.
---
## Conclusion of the aliyah
### The movement of the aliyah
The aliyah moves from command to journey to crisis. It opens with Hashem's call and promises, follows Avram from Charan into Canaan, to Shechem and the mountain east of Beis-Eil, where the promise of the land is given and altars are built, and then turns sharply: famine sends Avram down to Egypt, and the last verses are his anxious instructions to Sarai. Onkelos follows this movement closely, keeping the order and most of the wording of the Hebrew, and his larger departures fall at a few points: where the text speaks of Hashem's appearing and of Avram's worship, where it speaks of the souls made in Charan, and in the final phrase of Avram's plea.
### What Onkelos tells us in this aliyah
1. **"Go" (12:1).** *Izel lakh* keeps the Hebrew pattern of verb plus dative pronoun rather than reducing it to a bare imperative.
2. **"I will make your name great" (12:2).** *Sagi* and *va-arabbei* come from two different roots, so the Hebrew echo of *gadol* and *va-agaddelah* is not kept.
3. **"You will be a blessing" (12:2).** The printed *meverekh* is active, so Avram would be one who blesses; the Yemenite *mevarakh* makes him one who is blessed.
4. **"He who curses you, I will curse" (12:3).** One root, לוט, renders both Hebrew verbs of cursing, levelling the distinction the Hebrew draws.
5. **"Because of you" (12:3).** *Bedilakh* for *vekha* makes Avram the cause of the families' blessing.
6. **"The souls that they had subjected to the Torah" (12:5).** The plural *nafshata*, the causative *de-sha'abidu* and the added *le-orayta* suggest that Onkelos understood 'making souls' as bringing people under the Torah.
7. **"The Plain of Moreh" (12:6).** *Meishar* names the site by its terrain rather than translating *elon* as a tree.
8. **"Hashem was revealed" (12:7).** *Ve-itgeli* replaces 'was seen', and the same verb renders *ha-nir'eh* at the end of the verse, keeping the Hebrew repetition.
9. **"He prayed in the Name of Hashem" (12:8).** *Ve-tzalli* reads the Hebrew 'calling' as prayer, not proclamation.
10. **"To settle there" (12:10).** *Le-ittotava* does not itself carry the sense of a temporary stay that *lagur* has; the context supplies it.
11. **"Behold, now" (12:11).** The particle *na* becomes *khe'an*, 'now', a word of time rather than of request, here and in 12:13.
12. **"Through your words" (12:13).** *Be-fitgamaykhi* for *biglalekh* suggests that the rescue depends on what Sarai will say rather than on her person.
### Recurring features
- **Reverent language about Hashem.** 'Was revealed' for 'appeared' (12:7) and 'before Hashem' for 'to Hashem' at both altars (12:7, 12:8).
- **Standard equivalents.** *Ar'a* for both *eretz* and *adamah*, *atar* for *makom*, *meishar* for *elon*, and *arei* for the Hebrew *ki* in 12:10 and 12:11.
- **Images replaced by plain terms.** 'Seed' becomes 'children', 'sea' becomes 'west', the Negev becomes 'the south', and the 'heavy' famine becomes 'strong'.
- **Several Hebrew words drawn into one Aramaic word.** The two verbs of cursing (12:3), *elav* and *itto* both rendered *immeh* (12:4), *lema'an* and *ba'avur* by *bedil* (12:13), and the verbs of living by the root קום (12:12, 12:13).
- **Hebrew repetitions sometimes kept.** The cognate pair of 12:5, the repeated 'revealed' of 12:7 and the repeated root of journeying in 12:9 all survive; the pairing of 'great' and 'make great' in 12:2 does not.
- **Textual notes.** The printed and Yemenite texts differ at several points, marked where they occur; most differences are of form, but in 12:2 and 12:12 they affect the sense.
### Aliyah takeaway
For most of this aliyah Onkelos is a close and literal guide to the Hebrew, and the reader can follow the call, the journey and the descent to Egypt almost word for word. His interventions are few but consistent: he speaks of Hashem being revealed and of altars built before Him, he turns Avram's calling in the Name into prayer, he reads the souls made in Charan as people brought under the Torah, and he ties Avram's survival in Egypt to Sarai's words. Attending to these few points, and to the small levellings and substitutions around them, shows how the translation reads the story as it goes.
---
## Aramaic word list for the aliyah
| Aramaic | Transliteration | Meaning | Hebrew in the verse |
|---|---|---|---|
| אִיזֵל | *izel* | go | לֶךְ |
| אַחֲזִנָּךְ | *ahazinnakh* | I will show you | אַרְאֶךָּ |
| וְאֶעְבְּדִנָּךְ | *ve-e'bedinnakh* | I will make you | וְאֶעֶשְׂךָ |
| סַגִּי | *sagi* | great | גָּדוֹל |
| וַאֲרַבֵּי | *va-arabbei* | and I will make great | וַאֲגַדְּלָה |
| מְבָרֵךְ | *meverekh* | blessing | בְּרָכָה |
| וּמְלַטְטָךְ | *u-melattetakh* | and he who curses you | וּמְקַלֶּלְךָ |
| אֵילוּט | *eilut* | I will curse | אָאֹר |
| וְיִתְבָּרֲכוּן | *ve-yitbarakhun* | will be blessed | וְנִבְרְכוּ |
| בְּדִילָךְ | *bedilakh* | because of you | בְךָ |
| זַרְעֲיַת | *zar'ayat* | families | מִשְׁפְּחֹת |
| עִמֵּהּ | *immeh* | with him | אֵלָיו |
| שִׁבְעִין | *shiv'in* | seventy | וְשִׁבְעִים |
| בְּמִפְקֵהּ | *be-mifkeh* | when he left | בְּצֵאתוֹ |
| וּדְבַר | *u-devar* | took | וַיִּקַּח |
| קִנְיָנְהוֹן | *kinyanehon* | their possessions | רְכוּשָׁם |
| קְנוֹ | *kenó* | they had acquired | רָכָשׁוּ |
| נַפְשָׁתָא | *nafshata* | the souls | הַנֶּפֶשׁ |
| דְּשַׁעֲבִּידוּ | *de-sha'abidu* | that they had subjected | עָשׂוּ |
| לְאוֹרַיְתָא | *le-orayta* | to the Torah | — |
| אֲתַר | *atar* | place | מְקוֹם |
| מֵישַׁר | *meishar* | the Plain of | אֵלוֹן |
| וּכְנַעֲנָאָה | *u-khena'ana'ah* | the Canaanites | וְהַכְּנַעֲנִי |
| בְּכֵן | *bekhen* | then | אָז |
| וְאִתְגְּלִי | *ve-itgeli* | was revealed | וַיֵּרָא |
| לִבְנָךְ | *li-vnakh* | to your children | לְזַרְעֲךָ |
| קֳדָם | *kodam* | before | לַה׳ |
| וְאִסְתַּלַּק | *ve-istallak* | and he went up | וַיַּעְתֵּק |
| לְטוּרָא | *le-tura* | to the mountain | הָהָרָה |
| וּפְרַס | *u-feras* | and spread out | וַיֵּט |
| מַשְׁכְּנֵהּ | *mashkeneh* | his tent | אׇהֳלֹה |
| מִמַּעַרְבָא | *mi-ma'arava* | to the west | מִיָּם |
| וְצַלִּי | *ve-tzalli* | and he prayed | וַיִּקְרָא |
| וּנְטַּל | *u-netal* | journeyed | וַיִּסַּע |
| אָזֵל | *azel* | going | הָלוֹךְ |
| לְדָרוֹמָא | *le-daroma* | southward | הַנֶּגְבָּה |
| כַּפְנָא | *kafna* | famine | רָעָב |
| וּנְחַת | *u-nehat* | went down | וַיֵּרֶד |
| לְאִתּוֹתָבָא | *le-ittotava* | to settle | לָגוּר |
| תַקִּיף | *takkif* | strong | כָבֵד |
| קְרֵיב | *kerev* | came near | הִקְרִיב |
| לְמֵיעַל | *le-me'al* | to enter | לָבוֹא |
| שַׁפִּירַת | *shappirat* | beautiful of | יְפַת |
| חֵיזוּ | *hezu* | appearance | מַרְאֶה |
| יֶחֱזוּן | *yehezun* | see | יִרְאוּ |
---
## Source note
**Aliyah boundary.** Bereshit 12:1 – 12:13, following the aliyah divisions in Sefaria's index of Bereshit (the next aliyah begins at Bereshit 12:14).
**Torah text.** *Miqra according to the Masorah* (CC-BY-SA), the Masoretic text based on the Aleppo Codex, from Wikisource via [Sefaria](https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis?lang=he).
**Targum Onkelos.** The Aramaic is the commonly printed text, from the Torat Emet edition (Public Domain), via [Sefaria](https://www.sefaria.org/Onkelos_Genesis?lang=he).
**Comparison text.** "Targum Onkelos, vocalized according to the Yemenite Taj" (CC-BY-SA), from Wikisource via Sefaria. Its readings were compared with the printed text word by word; only differences that change a word or the meaning are noted.
**Translation of the Torah.** *Metsudah Chumash, Metsudah Publications, 2009* (CC-BY), via Sefaria, with the Divine Names rendered Hashem and God.
**Translation of Onkelos, notes and summaries.** New, prepared for this booklet. The Onkelos translation follows the wording of the Torah translation wherever the Aramaic agrees with the Hebrew, so that the differences stand out.
**Divine Names.** In the Hebrew and Aramaic, the Tetragrammaton and the Aramaic abbreviation of the Name are printed as ה׳, and *Elokim* as אלקים.
**Notes.** The notes compare the Aramaic with the Hebrew only. No later commentaries on Onkelos have been used. Where a note suggests why Onkelos translated as he did, this is presented as an inference from the text.
**Licence.** The Hebrew and Aramaic texts are shared under their own licences as stated above; CC-BY-SA material remains under CC-BY-SA.