Parashat Lech Lecha — Sixth Aliyah

Torah with Onkelos · Bereshit 15:7 – 17:6 · פרשת לך לך, שישי

The covenant between the pieces, the story of Hagar, and the name Avraham, read through Targum Onkelos

Contents

• Orientation
• How this page is laid out
• Unit 1 — Bereshit 15:7–14: The promise of the land and the vision between the pieces
• Unit 2 — Bereshit 15:15–21: The furnace and the torch, and the borders of the land
• Unit 3 — Bereshit 16:1–8: Sarai gives Hagar to Avram, and Hagar flees
• Unit 4 — Bereshit 16:9–16: The angel’s message to Hagar, and the birth of Yishmael
• Unit 5 — Bereshit 17:1–6: El Shaddai, the covenant and the name Avraham
• Conclusion of the aliyah
• Aramaic word list for the aliyah
• Source note

Orientation

What happens in this aliyah. The aliyah opens with Hashem reminding Avram that He brought him out of Ur Kasdim to give him the land. Avram asks for a sign, prepares the animals and divides them, and as the sun sets a deep sleep and a great dread fall on him. He is told of his descendants’ exile, enslavement and departure with great wealth, and of his own peaceful death; a smoking furnace and a torch of fire pass between the pieces, and Hashem makes a covenant granting the land of ten peoples. The scene then turns to Sarai, childless after ten years in Canaan, who gives her Egyptian handmaid Hagar to Avram. Hagar conceives, slights her mistress, is dealt with harshly and flees; an angel finds her by a spring, sends her back, and foretells the birth and character of Yishmael, who is born when Avram is eighty-six. The aliyah closes thirteen years later, when Hashem is revealed to Avram as El Shaddai, promises a covenant and many descendants, and changes his name to Avraham.

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 page 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.

• Taking as offering. In 15:9-10 the Hebrew verb of taking becomes קָרֵב, ‘offer’, and ‘for Me’ becomes קֳדָמַי, ‘before Me’, so that the preparation of the animals reads as worship.
• Seed becomes children. Each time the Hebrew speaks of Avram’s or Hagar’s ‘seed’ in this aliyah, Onkelos writes a word for children or sons, and adjusts the grammar to the plural.
• Ambiguities settled. The triple מְשֻׁלֶּשֶׁת becomes a count, ‘in the middle’ becomes ‘equally’, the double sense of hennah in 15:16 is split into ‘here’ and ‘now’, and et in 15:18 becomes ‘with’.
• Images replaced by their sense. ‘Into your bosom’, ‘from her face’, ‘a wild ass of a man’, ‘walk before Me’ and ‘make fruitful’ are each given a plainer equivalent.
• Language about God. Hashem ‘was revealed’ rather than ‘appeared’, and sets the covenant between Avram and His Memra, ‘Word’.
• New names for places and peoples. Shur, Kadeish and Bared, the Kenites and the Refa’im are all replaced by other names or descriptions.
• Echoes kept and lost. Some Hebrew repetitions survive in the Aramaic, such as the verb that links 15:7 and 15:14; others, such as the play on the name Yishmael, do not.

How this page 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 page 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 15:7–14: The promise of the land and the vision between the pieces

Hashem reminds Avram that He brought him out to give him the land, and Avram asks for a sign. Avram prepares the animals and divides them; as the sun sets, a deep sleep and a great dread fall on him, and he is told of his descendants’ exile, enslavement and departure with great wealth.

Bereshit 15:7

Torah

Translation

He said to him: I am Hashem who brought you out of Ur Kasdim, to give to you this land as an inheritance.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

He said to him: I am Hashem who brought you out of Ura of the Kasdim, to give to you this land as an inheritance.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Ura of the Kasdim”. The Hebrew מֵאוּר כַּשְׂדִּים is a place name. The printed Onkelos writes מֵאוּרָא דְכַשְׂדָאֵי, with the Aramaic determined ending -a on Ur and a separate word ‘of the Kasdim’ (the gentilic plural, ‘the Kasdeans’). Since ura in Aramaic is also the word for ‘fire’, the form may be meant to allow the reading ‘out of the fire of the Kasdim’; the translation keeps it as a name.
• Otherwise literal. The relative אֲשֶׁר becomes the prefix ד in דְאַפֵּקְתָּךְ, and the infinitive with suffix לְרִשְׁתָּהּ is matched by לְמֵירְתַהּ. The verb ‘brought you out’ returns in 15:14 for the descendants’ going out (יִפְקוּן), just as the Hebrew uses one verb in both places.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text reads מֵאוּר דְּכַסְדָּאֵי, ‘out of Ur of the Kasdim’, with no determined ending on Ur. The observation about a possible reading ‘fire’ holds for the printed text only.

Words to note: דְאַפֵּקְתָּךְ de-apektakh — who brought you out (הוֹצֵאתִיךָ) · מֵאוּרָא me-ura — out of Ura (מֵאוּר) · דְכַשְׂדָאֵי de-khasda’ei — of the Kasdim (כַּשְׂדִּים) · לְמֵירְתַהּ le-meirtah — as an inheritance (lit. to inherit it) (לְרִשְׁתָּהּ)

Bereshit 15:8

Torah

Translation

And he said: My Master, God, how will I know that I will inherit it?

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

And he said: Hashem, God, how will I know that I will inherit it?

What Onkelos tells us

• “Hashem, God”. The Hebrew opens Avram’s address with the title ‘my Master’ followed by the Name, which here is read as Elokim. Onkelos has no separate word for ‘my Master’: he writes the Name followed by אֱלֹקִים. One way to read this is that the Aramaic renders the title with the Name and the Name, as it is read in this verse, with Elokim, but this is an inference from the forms.
• Otherwise literal. בְּמָה renders בַּמָּה, ‘how’, and אֲרֵי renders כִּי, ‘that’. The future אִירָשֶׁנָּה, ‘I will inherit it’, is matched by אֵרְתִנַהּ, from the same verb as לְמֵירְתַהּ in 15:7.

Words to note: אֱלֹקִים Elokim — God · אִידַע ida — will I know (אֵדַע) · אֲרֵי arei — that (כִּי) · אֵרְתִנַהּ ertinah — I will inherit it (אִירָשֶׁנָּה)

Bereshit 15:9

Torah

Translation

He said to him: Bring Me [Sacrifice before Me] three heifers, three goats and three rams, a dove, and a young pigeon.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

He said to him: Offer before Me three calves, and three goats, and three rams, and a dove, and a young pigeon.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Offer before Me”. The Hebrew says קְחָה לִי, ‘take for Me’. Onkelos writes קָרֵב קֳדָמַי, ‘offer before Me’. The change of verb suggests that he understood the taking of the animals as a sacrificial act, and ‘before Me’ in place of ‘for Me’ keeps the speech of God at a respectful distance. The same pair of changes recurs in 15:10.
• “Three calves”. The Hebrew מְשֻׁלֶּשֶׁת (and מְשֻׁלָּשׁ for the ram) can mean ‘three-year-old’ or ‘threefold’. Onkelos reads it as a number, תְּלָתָא, ‘three’, and accordingly makes each animal plural: עֶגְלִין for the singular עֶגְלָה, וְעִזִין for וְעֵז, וְדִכְרִין for וְאַיִל. The Aramaic plural ending of עֶגְלִין does not mark the feminine as the Hebrew ‘heifer’ does, so the translation has ‘calves’.
• The birds. וְשַׁפְנִינָא renders וְתֹר, ‘dove’. For וְגוֹזָל, ‘young bird’, Onkelos writes וּבַר יוֹנָה, literally ‘son of a dove’, naming the species where the Hebrew names only the age.

Words to note: קָרֵב karev — offer (קְחָה) · קֳדָמַי kodamai — before Me (לִי) · עֶגְלִין eglin — calves (עֶגְלָה) · תְּלָתָא telata — three (מְשֻׁלֶּשֶׁת) · וְשַׁפְנִינָא ve-shafnina — and a dove (וְתֹר) · וּבַר יוֹנָה u-var yonah — and a young pigeon (lit. son of a dove) (וְגוֹזָל)

Bereshit 15:10

Torah

Translation

He brought [sacrificed] all these to [before] Him; he split them in the middle [into two equal parts], and placed each piece opposite the other. The bird, however, he did not split.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

He offered before Him all these; he split them equally, and placed the pieces, [each] piece opposite its fellow. The bird, however, he did not split.

What Onkelos tells us

• “He offered before Him”. The Hebrew וַיִּקַּח לוֹ, ‘he took for himself’ (or ‘for Him’), becomes וְקָרֵב קֳדָמוֹהִי, ‘he offered before Him’. As in 15:9, ‘take’ becomes ‘offer’, and the ambiguous ‘to him’ is resolved as a reference to God.
• “Equally”. For בַּתָּוֶךְ, ‘in the middle’, Onkelos writes בְּשָׁוֶה, ‘equally’. Where the Hebrew says where the cut was made, the Aramaic says what it produced: two equal halves.
• “Each piece opposite its fellow”. The Hebrew idiom אִישׁ בִּתְרוֹ לִקְרַאת רֵעֵהוּ, literally ‘a man his piece toward his fellow’, uses ‘man’ for ‘each’. Onkelos drops the idiom: פַּלְגַיָא פִּלוּג לָקֳבֵיל חַבְרֵיהּ, ‘the pieces, piece opposite its fellow’. The root פלג serves for both the verb ‘split’ and the noun ‘piece’, as the Hebrew uses בתר for both.
• “The bird”. עוֹפָא is a general word for bird or fowl; it renders הַצִּפֹּר here and also הָעַיִט, the bird of prey, in 15:11.

Words to note: וְקָרֵב ve-karev — he offered (וַיִּקַּח) · קֳדָמוֹהִי kodamohi — before Him (לוֹ) · וּפַלִיג u-falig — he split (וַיְבַתֵּר) · בְּשָׁוֶה be-shaveh — equally (בַּתָּוֶךְ) · פַּלְגַיָא palgaya — the pieces (בִּתְרוֹ) · לָקֳבֵיל lakovel — opposite (לִקְרַאת)

Bereshit 15:11

Torah

Translation

Birds of prey [vultures] descended upon the carcasses, but Avram drove them away.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

The fowl descended upon the pieces, and Avram drove them away.

What Onkelos tells us

• “The fowl”. The Hebrew הָעַיִט names a bird of prey. Onkelos uses the general עוֹפָא, the same word he used for the bird that was not split in 15:10, so the specific sense of ‘bird of prey’ is not expressed.
• “Upon the pieces”. The Hebrew הַפְּגָרִים means ‘the carcasses’. The printed פַּגְלַיָא appears to be the word פַּלְגַיָא, ‘the pieces’, of 15:10 with two letters transposed. If so, the Aramaic ties the birds’ descent directly to the halves Avram had arranged, rather than to carcasses in general.
• “Drove them away”. וְאַפְרַח renders וַיַּשֵּׁב. Its root פרח means ‘fly’, so the Aramaic perhaps pictures Avram making the birds fly off.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text reads פַּלְגַיָּא, the ordinary form of ‘the pieces’ as in 15:10. This supports taking the printed פַּגְלַיָא as a transposition of the same word.

Words to note: וּנְחַת u-nehat — descended (וַיֵּרֶד) · עוֹפָא ofa — the fowl (הָעַיִט) · פַּגְלַיָא paglaya — the pieces (הַפְּגָרִים) · וְאַפְרַח ve-afrah — and drove away (וַיַּשֵּׁב)

Bereshit 15:12

Torah

Translation

As the sun was setting, a deep sleep fell upon Avram; and behold, a dread of deep darkness fell upon him.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

As the sun was setting [lit. to enter], sleep fell upon Avram; and behold, a dread of deep darkness fell upon him.

What Onkelos tells us

• “The sun… to enter”. לְמֵיעַל, ‘to enter’, renders לָבוֹא, ‘to come’, the usual Hebrew idiom for sunset; the Aramaic says the same with its own verb.
• “Sleep”. The Hebrew וְתַרְדֵּמָה is a deep, heavy sleep. Onkelos writes וְשִׁינְתָא, the ordinary word for sleep, so the special word of the Hebrew is not reproduced.
• “Fell”. The Hebrew moves from the perfect נָפְלָה to the participle נֹפֶלֶת, ‘was falling’. Onkelos uses the same form, נְפָלַת, both times, levelling the shift.
• “A dread of deep darkness”. אֵימָתָא קְבֵל סַגִי follows the Hebrew אֵימָה חֲשֵׁכָה גְדֹלָה word for word: אֵימָתָא for ‘dread’, קְבֵל for ‘darkness’, and סַגִי for ‘great’.

Words to note: לְמֵיעַל le-mei’al — to enter (to set) (לָבוֹא) · וְשִׁינְתָא ve-shinta — sleep (וְתַרְדֵּמָה) · נְפָלַת nefalat — fell (נָפְלָה) · אֵימָתָא eimata — a dread (אֵימָה) · קְבֵל kevel — darkness (חֲשֵׁכָה) · סַגִי sagi — deep (lit. great) (גְדֹלָה)

Bereshit 15:13

Torah

Translation

And He [Hashem] said to Avram: Know for sure that your descendants will be foreigners in a land that is not theirs. They will enslave them and oppress them [for] four hundred years.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

And He said to Avram: Know for sure that your children will be foreigners in a land that is not theirs, and they will enslave them and oppress them [for] four hundred years.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Know for sure”. The doubled verb יָדֹעַ תֵּדַע is kept in the Aramaic as מִדַע תִּדַע.
• “Your children will be foreigners”. The Hebrew has a singular noun and verb with a collective subject: גֵר יִהְיֶה זַרְעֲךָ, ‘your seed will be a stranger’. Onkelos makes everything plural, דַיָרִין יְהוֹן בְּנָיךְ, and replaces ‘seed’ with ‘children’, a plainer word for descendants.
• “That is not theirs”. בְּאֶרֶץ לֹא לָהֶם becomes בְּאַרְעָא דְלָא דִילְהוֹן, with relative ד added before ‘not’ and before the possessive, a grammatical smoothing.
• “They will enslave them”. וַעֲבָדוּם, a single verb with object suffix, is rendered וְיִפְלְחוּן בְּהוֹן, the verb פלח with ב, ‘work by means of them’, that is, put them to work. The same phrase returns in 15:14.

Words to note: מִדַע תִּדַע mida tida — know for sure (יָדֹעַ תֵּדַע) · דַיָרִין dayarin — foreigners (lit. residents) (גֵר) · בְּנָיךְ benaykh — your children (זַרְעֲךָ) · וְיִפְלְחוּן ve-yiflehun — and they will enslave (וַעֲבָדוּם) · וִיעַנוּן vi’anun — and they will oppress (וְעִנּוּ)

Bereshit 15:14

Torah

Translation

But also that nation whom they will serve I will judge; afterwards they will leave with great wealth.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

But also that nation who will enslave them I will judge; and afterwards they will leave with great wealth.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Who will enslave them”. The Hebrew אֲשֶׁר יַעֲבֹדוּ means ‘whom they will serve’, with Avram’s descendants as subject. Onkelos uses the same phrase as in 15:13, דְיִפְלְחוּן בְּהוֹן; if it is read as it is there, the subject shifts to the nation, ‘who will enslave them’. The sense is unchanged, but the Aramaic may suggest a deliberate echo of the previous verse.
• “I will judge”. דָּן אָנֹכִי is matched by the participle דָיִין אֲנָא. Aramaic אֲנָא serves for both Hebrew forms of ‘I’: אָנֹכִי here and אֲנִי in 15:7.
• “They will leave”. יִפְקוּן renders יֵצְאוּ, the same verb as דְאַפֵּקְתָּךְ in 15:7, so the Aramaic keeps the Hebrew link between Avram’s being brought out and his descendants’ going out. בְּקִנְיָנָא סַגִי, ‘great wealth’ (lit. possessions), renders בִּרְכֻשׁ גָּדוֹל.

Words to note: וְאַף ve-af — but also (וְגַם) · עַמָא ama — nation (הַגּוֹי) · דְיִפְלְחוּן de-yiflehun — who will enslave (יַעֲבֹדוּ) · דָיִין dayin — I will judge (lit. judging) (דָּן) · יִפְקוּן yifkun — they will leave (יֵצְאוּ) · בְּקִנְיָנָא be-kinyana — with wealth (בִּרְכֻשׁ)

Unit 1 summary

Onkelos follows the Hebrew closely here, but reads the preparation of the animals as worship: twice a Hebrew verb of taking (קְחָה, וַיִּקַּח) becomes ‘offer’ (קָרֵב, וְקָרֵב), and ‘for Me’ and ‘to him’ both become ‘before’ God (קֳדָמַי, קֳדָמוֹהִי). He also settles ambiguities: the triple מְשֻׁלֶּשֶׁת is read as a count, ‘in the middle’ becomes ‘equally’, and the carcasses of 15:11 are, in the printed text, apparently the ‘pieces’ of 15:10. One word, עוֹפָא, serves for both of the Hebrew’s birds. In the prophecy he turns ‘seed’ into ‘children’ and smooths the grammar, while keeping the doubled verb ‘know for sure’ and the echo between Hashem’s bringing Avram out (15:7) and his descendants’ going out (15:14), both from one Aramaic verb. In 15:14 the same phrase used for the enslavers in 15:13 may shift the subject from Israel to the nation.

Unit 2 — Bereshit 15:15–21: The furnace and the torch, and the borders of the land

Hashem tells Avram that he will die in peace and that the fourth generation will return once the sin of the Emorites is complete. After sunset a smoking furnace and a torch of fire pass between the pieces, and Hashem makes a covenant granting Avram’s descendants the land of ten peoples.

Bereshit 15:15

Torah

Translation

You will join your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

And you will enter to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age.

What Onkelos tells us

• “You will enter to your fathers”. The Hebrew תָּבוֹא אֶל (tavo el), “come to”, becomes תֵעוֹל לְוָת (te’ol levat), “enter to”. The verb is from עלל, “enter”, which also renders the Hebrew בוא of the sun’s setting in 15:12 (לְמֵיעַל) and 15:17 (see there); the preposition levat, “to, beside”, replaces el.
• “Buried at a good old age”. Otherwise a literal rendering: the passive תִּקָּבֵר is matched by the passive תִּתְקְבַר (titkevar), and be-seivah tovah by בְּסֵיבוּ טָבָא (be-seivu tava).
• Textual note. For printed תֵעוֹל, “you will enter”, the Yemenite text reads תִּתְכְּנֵישׁ (titkenesh), “you will be gathered”: “you will be gathered to your fathers”. The link with alat in 15:17 holds for the printed text only.

Words to note: תֵעוֹל te’ol — you will enter (תָּבוֹא) · לְוָת levat — to (אֶל) · אַבָהָתָךְ avahatakh — your fathers (אֲבֹתֶיךָ) · תִּתְקְבַר titkevar — you will be buried (תִּקָּבֵר) · בְּסֵיבוּ be-seivu — at an old age (בְּשֵׂיבָה)

Bereshit 15:16

Torah

Translation

The fourth generation will return here, for the sin of the Emorites will not be complete until then [now].

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

And the fourth generation will return here, for the guilt of the Emorites is not complete until now.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Here” and “now”. The Hebrew uses the same word הֵנָּה twice: first of place (“will return here”), then of time (“until now”). Onkelos uses two different words, הָכָא (hakha), “here”, and כְּעָן (ke’an), “now”, so that the double sense of the Hebrew is resolved and the play on the repeated word is lost in the Aramaic.
• “The guilt”. The Hebrew עֲוֺן (avon), “sin”, is rendered חוֹבָא (hova), a word whose basic sense is “debt”; the idea of a sin that must reach its full measure fits the image of a debt not yet complete. The singular “Emorite” of the Hebrew (ha-Emori) is kept as a singular, דֶאֱמוֹרָאָה.
• “Is not complete”. The Hebrew שָׁלֵם is matched by the adjective שְׁלִים (shelim), “complete”, which carries no tense.
• Textual note. For printed הָכָא, “here”, the Yemenite text reads הָלְכָא (halekha), “hither”, stressing the direction of the return. The split between a word of place and a word of time holds in both texts.

Words to note: וְדָרָא ve-dara — and the generation (וְדוֹר) · יְתוּבוּן yetuvun — they will return (יָשׁוּבוּ) · הָכָא hakha — here (הֵנָּה) · חוֹבָא hova — guilt (literally, debt) (עֲוֺן) · כְּעָן ke’an — now (הֵנָּה)

Bereshit 15:17

Torah

Translation

The sun set and it became very dark; and behold, a smoking furnace and a flaming torch had passed between these pieces.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

And it was, the sun set and darkness there was; and behold, a furnace of smoke and a blaze of fire that had passed between these halves.

What Onkelos tells us

• “The sun set”. The Hebrew בָּאָה (ba’ah), literally “came”, becomes עַלַת (alat), literally “entered”, an Aramaic idiom for sunset. It is from the same root, עלל, as לְמֵיעַל for the setting sun in 15:12 and תֵעוֹל in 15:15, so in the printed text the Hebrew’s repetition of בוא across the three verses is mirrored by a repetition in the Aramaic.
• “Darkness”. The rare Hebrew וַעֲלָטָה (alatah), thick darkness, is rendered by the ordinary word וְקִבְלָא (ve-kivla), “and darkness”.
• “A furnace of smoke and a blaze of fire”. The Hebrew sets the nouns side by side, תַנּוּר עָשָׁן and וְלַפִּיד אֵשׁ. Onkelos links each pair with the genitive particle ד: דִתְנַן (ditnan), “of smoke”, and דְאֶשָׁתָא (de-eshata), “of fire”. For lappid, “torch”, he writes וּבָעוּר (u-va’ur), a word for something burning, a blaze or firebrand.
• “Between these halves”. The Hebrew הַגְּזָרִים, “the cut pieces”, becomes פַּלְגַיָא (palgaya), “halves”, a more specific word. The singular verb of the Hebrew, עָבַר, is kept in דִעֲדָא (di-‘ada), “that passed”.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text reads וַהֲוָת (va-havat), a feminine form agreeing with the sun, for printed וַהֲוָה; and it has דְּאִישָׁא עֲדָא (de-isha ada) for printed דְאֶשָׁתָא דִעֲדָא, without the relative particle before the verb, so that the furnace and blaze are the subject of a main verb: “a blaze of fire passed”.

Words to note: עַלַת alat — set (literally, entered) (בָּאָה) · וְקִבְלָא ve-kivla — and darkness (וַעֲלָטָה) · דִתְנַן ditnan — of smoke (עָשָׁן) · וּבָעוּר u-va’ur — and a blaze (וְלַפִּיד) · דִעֲדָא di-‘ada — that passed (עָבַר) · פַּלְגַיָא palgaya — halves (הַגְּזָרִים)

Bereshit 15:18

Torah

Translation

On that day Hashem made a covenant with Avram, saying: To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the Euphrates.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

On that day Hashem made a covenant with Avram, saying: To your children I have given this land, from the river of Egypt and as far as the great river, the river Euphrates.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Made a covenant”. The Hebrew idiom of כָּרַת with בְּרִית, literally “cut a covenant”, is matched by גְזַר with קְיָם (gezar … keyam): gezar also means “cut” (and “decree”), and keyam, literally “that which is established”, is the Aramaic word for covenant. The idiom of cutting is kept, fitting a covenant made between the cut halves of 15:17.
• “With Avram”. The Hebrew אֶת could be read as the object marker; Onkelos writes עִם, “with”, leaving no ambiguity.
• “To your children”. The Hebrew לְזַרְעֲךָ, “to your seed”, becomes לִבְנָךְ (livnakh), “to your children” (literally “your sons”), replacing the metaphor with the plain sense.
• “And as far as”. Onkelos adds a conjunction, וְעַד, “and as far as”, for the Hebrew עַד. The rest is literal: nehar Mitzrayim is נַהֲרָא דְמִצְרַיִם, and nehar Perat is נַהֲרָא פְרָת.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text has עַד, without the added “and”; the point about the added conjunction holds for the printed text only.

Words to note: גְזַר gezar — made (literally, cut) (כָּרַת) · קְיָם keyam — covenant (בְּרִית) · עִם im — with (אֶת) · לִבְנָךְ livnakh — to your children (לְזַרְעֲךָ) · יְהָבִית yehavit — I have given (נָתַתִּי) · נַהֲרָא nahara — the river

Bereshit 15:19

Torah

Translation

[The lands of] the Kenites [Shalmites], Kenizites, Kadmonites,

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

The Shalmites, and the Kenizites, and the Kadmonites,

What Onkelos tells us

• “The Shalmites”. For the Hebrew הַקֵּינִי, “the Kenites”, Onkelos writes a different name, שַׁלְמָאֵי (Shalma’ei). This may reflect an identification of the people with a name current in his own day; the other two names are kept.
• Plural names. The Hebrew names are singular with the article (“the Kenite”); Onkelos gives plural forms ending in -a’ei (Kenizza’ei, Kadmona’ei). The same pattern runs through 15:20 and 15:21.

Words to note: שַׁלְמָאֵי Shalma’ei — Shalmites (הַקֵּינִי) · קְנִזָאֵי Kenizza’ei — Kenizites (הַקְּנִזִּי) · קַדְמוֹנָאֵי Kadmona’ei — Kadmonites (הַקַּדְמֹנִי)

Bereshit 15:20

Torah

Translation

The Chittites, Perizites, the Refa’im [the mighty ones],

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

And the Chittites, and the Perizites, and the mighty ones,

What Onkelos tells us

• “The mighty ones”. The Hebrew הָרְפָאִים (ha-Refa’im) is not kept as a name: Onkelos writes גִבָּרָאֵי (gibbara’ei), “mighty ones”, perhaps treating the Refa’im as a description of giant warriors rather than as a distinct people. In the printed text the word is given the same -a’ei ending as the ethnic names around it.
• “The Chittites, and the Perizites”. Literal, with plural forms for the Hebrew singulars, as in 15:19.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text reads גִּבָּרַיָּא (gibbaraya), the ordinary plural “the mighty ones”, rather than a form shaped like the ethnic names; the remark about the -a’ei ending holds for the printed text only.

Words to note: חִתָּאֵי Hitta’ei — Chittites (הַחִתִּי) · פְּרִזָאֵי Perizza’ei — Perizites (הַפְּרִזִּי) · גִבָּרָאֵי gibbara’ei — mighty ones (הָרְפָאִים)

Bereshit 15:21

Torah

Translation

The Emorites, Canaanites Girgashites and Yevusites.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

And the Emorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Yevusites.

What Onkelos tells us

• A literal rendering. Each Hebrew singular name becomes a plural in -a’ei. The Emorites here are אֱמוֹרָאֵי, plural, whereas in 15:16 the same Hebrew הָאֱמֹרִי was kept as the singular דֶאֱמוֹרָאָה.

Words to note: אֱמוֹרָאֵי Emora’ei — Emorites (הָאֱמֹרִי) · כְנַעֲנָאֵי Khena’ana’ei — Canaanites (הַכְּנַעֲנִי) · גִרְגָשָׁאֵי Girgasha’ei — Girgashites (הַגִּרְגָּשִׁי) · יְבוּסָאֵי Yevusa’ei — Yevusites (הַיְבוּסִי)

Unit 2 summary

Onkelos follows the Hebrew closely here, but resolves several ambiguities along the way. The Hebrew uses one word, hennah, first for place and then for time in 15:16; Onkelos splits it into hakha, “here”, and ke’an, “now”. The Hebrew particle et in 15:18 becomes im, “with”, so it cannot be read as an object marker, and “your seed” becomes “your children”. The covenant idiom of cutting is kept (gezar keyam for karat berit), and the cut “pieces” become “halves”. In the list of peoples every Hebrew singular gentilic with the article becomes an Aramaic plural; two names are replaced outright, the Kenites by Shalma’ei and the Refa’im by gibbara’ei, “mighty ones”. In the printed text, Onkelos also echoes the Hebrew’s repeated verb of coming (tavo, ba’ah) with a repeated verb of entering (te’ol, alat), the same root already used for the setting sun in 15:12 (le-mei’al), though the Yemenite text breaks this link in 15:15.

Unit 3 — Bereshit 16:1–8: Sarai gives Hagar to Avram, and Hagar flees

Childless after ten years in Canaan, Sarai gives her Egyptian handmaid Hagar to Avram. Once pregnant, Hagar slights her mistress; Sarai complains to Avram, deals harshly with Hagar, and Hagar runs away until an angel finds her by a spring in the desert.

Bereshit 16:1

Torah

Translation

Avram’s wife Sarai had not borne him children. She had an Egyptian handmaid whose name was Hagar.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Avram’s wife Sarai had not borne him [children]. She had an Egyptian handmaid whose name was Hagar.

What Onkelos tells us

• A literal rendering. The verse follows the Hebrew word for word. The Hebrew shifhah, “handmaid”, is rendered amta (אַמְתָא), the word Onkelos uses for Hagar’s status throughout this passage.

Words to note: יְלִידַת yelidat — had borne (יָלְדָה) · אַמְתָא amta — handmaid (שִׁפְחָה) · מִצְרֵיתָא mitzreta — Egyptian (מִצְרִית)

Bereshit 16:2

Torah

Translation

Sarai said to Avram: See now, Hashem has restrained me from having children; pray [now], come to my handmaid perhaps I will be built-up through her. Avram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Sarai said to Avram: See now, Hashem has restrained me from having children; go in now to my handmaid; perhaps I will be built-up through her. Avram accepted the word of Sarai.

What Onkelos tells us

• “See now” … “go in now”. The Hebrew particle na appears twice; Onkelos renders both by ke’an, “now” (כְעַן, כְּעַן), giving it a temporal sense rather than the tone of a polite request.
• “Has restrained me”. The Hebrew verb is from עצר; Onkelos uses man’ani (מַנְעֲנִי), from מנע, “withhold, prevent”. The sense is the same, expressed with the more common Aramaic verb.
• “Go in”. For Hebrew bo, “come” (בֹּא), Onkelos has ul (עוּל), from עלל, “enter, go in”. He uses the same verb when the act is narrated in 16:4.
• “I will be built-up”. Onkelos keeps the Hebrew image: itbenei (אִתְבְּנֵי) is from the same root בני as Hebrew ibbaneh (אִבָּנֶה), so the metaphor of being “built up” through a child survives in the Aramaic.
• “Accepted the word of Sarai”. The Hebrew idiom “hearkened to the voice of” (va-yishma … le-kol) becomes ve-kabbil … le-meimar, literally “accepted the saying of”. Onkelos replaces both the verb and the noun, perhaps to make plain that Avram did what she proposed, not merely that he heard her.

Words to note: כְעַן khe’an — now (נָא) · מַנְעֲנִי man’ani — has restrained me (עֲצָרַנִי) · עוּל ul — go in (בֹּא) · מָאִים ma’im — perhaps (אוּלַי) · אִתְבְּנֵי itbenei — I will be built-up (אִבָּנֶה) · וְקַבִּיל ve-kabbil — accepted (וַיִּשְׁמַע)

Bereshit 16:3

Torah

Translation

Sarai, the wife of Avram took Hagar the Egyptian, her handmaid, at the end of ten years that Avram had lived in the Land of Canaan and gave her to Avram her husband to be his wife.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Sarai, the wife of Avram led Hagar the Egyptian, her handmaid, at the end of ten years that Avram had lived in the Land of Canaan and gave her to Avram her husband to be his wife.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Led”. For Hebrew va-tikkah, “took” (וַתִּקַּח), Onkelos writes u-devarat (וּדְבָרַת), from דבר, “lead, conduct”. Where the object is a person, this may suggest he understood the “taking” as bringing Hagar along rather than seizing her.
• “Her husband”. Hebrew ishah, literally “her man” (אִישָׁהּ), is rendered ba’alah (בַּעֲלַהּ), “her husband”, the ordinary Aramaic term.
• Otherwise literal. “At the end” is mi-sof (מִסוֹף) for Hebrew mi-ketz, and “to be his wife” is leh le-intu, matching lo le-ishah word for word.

Words to note: וּדְבָרַת u-devarat — led (וַתִּקַּח) · מִסוֹף mi-sof — at the end (מִקֵּץ) · לְמִיתַּב le-mittav — lived (לְשֶׁבֶת) · בַּעֲלַהּ ba’alah — her husband (אִישָׁהּ) · לְאִנְתּוּ le-intu — [to be his] wife (לְאִשָּׁה)

Bereshit 16:4

Torah

Translation

He came to Hagar and she conceived. When she realized that she was pregnant, her mistress became slighted in her eyes.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

He went in to Hagar and she conceived. When she realized that she was pregnant, her mistress became slighted in her eyes.

What Onkelos tells us

• “He went in to Hagar”. Hebrew va-yavo el, “he came to”, becomes ve-al levat (וְעַל לְוַת), “he went in to”, the same verb Sarai used in 16:2.
• “Conceived … pregnant”. The Hebrew uses the root הרה twice (va-tahar, harata); Onkelos uses one Aramaic verb for both, adi’at (וְעַדִיאַת, עֲדִיאַת), so the repetition is kept. “Realized” is va-hazat (וַחֲזַת), “she saw”, as in the Hebrew.
• “Became slighted”. U-kelat (וּקְלַת) shares the root קל with Hebrew va-tekal, and ribbantah (רִבָּנְתַּהּ), “her mistress”, renders gevirtah. A literal rendering.

Words to note: וְעַל ve-al — went in (וַיָּבֹא) · לְוַת levat — to (אֶל) · וְעַדִיאַת ve-adi’at — and she conceived (וַתַּהַר) · וּקְלַת u-kelat — became slighted (וַתֵּקַל) · רִבָּנְתַּהּ ribbantah — her mistress (גְּבִרְתָּהּ)

Bereshit 16:5

Torah

Translation

Sarai said to Avram: The insult against me is your fault [I have a judgment against you]. I gave my maid to you and when she saw that she had conceived, I became slighted in her eyes. Let Hashem judge between me and you.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Sarai said to Avram: I have a judgment against you. I gave my maid to you and when she saw that she had conceived, I became slighted in her eyes. Let Hashem judge between me and you.

What Onkelos tells us

• “I have a judgment against you”. The Hebrew hamasi alekha, “my wrong is upon you” (חֲמָסִי עָלֶיךָ), becomes din li alakh (דִין לִי עֲלָךְ), literally “a judgment is mine against you”. The emotive word hamas, “wrong, violence”, is replaced by legal language.
• “Let Hashem judge”. Hebrew yishpot (שפט) is rendered yedin (יְדִין), from דין. The Aramaic therefore uses the root דין at both the start and the end of Sarai’s words, where the Hebrew has two different roots; this frames her complaint, perhaps deliberately, as a single case brought for judgment.
• “To you”. Hebrew be-heikekha, “into your bosom” (בְּחֵיקֶךָ), becomes simply lakh (לָךְ), “to you”. Onkelos drops the physical image, which may reflect a preference for restraint in describing intimacy.
• “When she saw … I became slighted”. The rest of the verse repeats the vocabulary of 16:4 (va-hazat, adi’at), now with the first-person u-kelet for Hebrew va-ekal.

Words to note: דִין din — judgment (חֲמָסִי) · עֲלָךְ alakh — against you (עָלֶיךָ) · יְהָבִית yehavit — I gave (נָתַתִּי) · וּקְלֵית u-kelet — I became slighted (וָאֵקַל) · יְדִין yedin — let [Hashem] judge (יִשְׁפֹּט)

Bereshit 16:6

Torah

Translation

Avram said to Sarai: [The fate of] your maid is in your hands, do with her as you see fit. Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she [Hagar] ran away from her.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Avram said to Sarai: See, your maid is in your hands, do with her as is fitting in your eyes. Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she [Hagar] ran away from before her.

What Onkelos tells us

• “See”. Onkelos renders Hebrew hinneh by ha (הָא), as he did in 16:2.
• “As is fitting in your eyes”. Hebrew ha-tov be-einayikh, “what is good in your eyes”, becomes kid-takin ve-einaikhi (כִּדְתַקִין בְעֵינָיְכִי). Takin, “proper, fitting”, replaces tov, “good”; perhaps Onkelos avoided calling Sarai’s treatment of Hagar “good”, choosing a more neutral word for what she judged appropriate.
• “Dealt harshly” and “ran away”. Ve-anitah (וְעֲנִיתַהּ) keeps the Hebrew root ענה; ve-arkat (וְעָרְקַת), from ערק, renders va-tivrah, “fled”.
• “From before her”. Hebrew mi-paneha, “from her face”, becomes mi-kodamahah (מִקֳדָמָהַהּ), “from before her”; the bodily image of the face is replaced by a preposition of place.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text reads דְּתָקֵין (de-takein), “that which is fitting”, without the prefix “as”; it is thus closer to the Hebrew ha-tov, “what is good”. The meaning of the phrase is not affected.

Words to note: הָא ha — see (הִנֵּה) · עִבִידִי ividi — do (עֲשִׂי) · כִּדְתַקִין kid-takin — as is fitting (הַטּוֹב) · וְעֲנִיתַהּ ve-anitah — dealt harshly with her (וַתְּעַנֶּהָ) · וְעָרְקַת ve-arkat — ran away (וַתִּבְרַח) · מִקֳדָמָהַהּ mi-kodamahah — from before her (מִפָּנֶיהָ)

Bereshit 16:7

Torah

Translation

An angel of Hashem found her by a spring of water in the desert, at the spring on the road to Shur [Chagar].

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

An angel of Hashem found her by a spring of water in the desert, at the spring on the road to Chagra.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Found her”. Hebrew va-yimtza’ah is rendered ve-ashkehah (וְאַשְׁכְּחַהּ), the regular Aramaic verb for “find”.
• “An angel of Hashem”. Malakha da-Hashem (מַלְאָכָא דַה׳) expresses the Hebrew construct with the particle ד, “of”. The Hebrew ein and ha-ayin, both “spring”, are each rendered eina (עֵינָא).
• “Chagra”. For the place name Shur (שׁוּר), Onkelos writes Hagra (דְחַגְרָא). This suggests he substituted the name by which the place was known in his own day, so that his readers could locate it.

Words to note: וְאַשְׁכְּחַהּ ve-ashkehah — found her (וַיִּמְצָאָהּ) · עֵינָא eina — spring (עֵין) · בְּמַדְבְּרָא be-madbera — in the desert (בַּמִּדְבָּר) · דְחַגְרָא de-hagra — [to] Chagra (שׁוּר)

Bereshit 16:8

Torah

Translation

And he said: Hagar, handmaid of Sarai, from where have you come and where are you going? She said: I am running away from my mistress, Sarai.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

And he said: Hagar, handmaid of Sarai, from where are you coming and where are you going? She said: I am running away from before my mistress, Sarai.

What Onkelos tells us

• “From where are you coming”. The Hebrew ei mi-zeh vat uses the form vat (בָאת), which here reads as a past, “have you come”. Onkelos uses a participle with an explicit pronoun, at atya (אַתְּ אָתְיָא), “you are coming”, parallel to at azla (אַתְּ אָזְלָא), “you are going”. The two halves of the question become grammatically matched.
• “I am running away”. Hebrew borahat, a participle, is matched by the participle araka (עֲרָקָא), from ערק, the root Onkelos used for Hagar’s flight in 16:6.
• “From before my mistress”. As in 16:6, Hebrew mi-penei, “from the face of”, becomes min kodam (מִן קֳדָם), “from before”. “My mistress” is ribbanti (רִבָּנְתִּי), the word used for gevirtah in 16:4.
• Textual note. The printed text adds in parentheses an alternative reading, arakat, a perfect form (“fled”) in place of the participle. The Yemenite text has only the participle (עָרְקָא), so the observation above about the matching participles holds for both texts.

Words to note: מְנָן menan — from where (מִזֶּה) · אָתְיָא atya — coming (בָאת) · אָזְלָא azla — going (תֵלֵכִי) · רִבָּנְתִּי ribbanti — my mistress (גְּבִרְתִּי) · עֲרָקָא araka — running away (בֹּרַחַת)

Unit 3 summary

Onkelos follows the narrative closely, keeping the repeated roots that bind it together: the same verb for Hagar’s conceiving, the same verb for her flight in 16:6 and 16:8, and the same terms for “handmaid” and “mistress” throughout. His changes are small but telling. Hebrew idioms are rendered by sense: “hearkened to the voice” becomes “accepted the word”, “into your bosom” becomes “to you”, and “from her face” becomes “from before her”. Sarai’s cry of hamas becomes a legal claim, din, echoed by yedin at the end of the same verse, perhaps framing the dispute as a case for judgment. The neutral takin, “fitting”, for tov, “good”, may avoid approving Sarai’s harshness, and the place name Shur is replaced by Hagra, perhaps the name current in Onkelos’ day.

Unit 4 — Bereshit 16:9–16: The angel’s message to Hagar, and the birth of Yishmael

The angel of Hashem sends Hagar back to Sarai, promises her countless descendants and foretells the birth and character of Yishmael. Hagar names Hashem and the well, and Yishmael is born when Avram is eighty-six.

Bereshit 16:9

Torah

Translation

The angel of Hashem said to her: Return to your mistress and submit yourself to her.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

The angel of Hashem said to her: Return to your mistress and make yourself subservient under her hands.

What Onkelos tells us

• “The angel of Hashem”. The Hebrew construct mal’akh Hashem is rendered with the Aramaic genitive particle: mal’akha de-Hashem. The meaning is unchanged.
• “Make yourself subservient”. The Hebrew ve-hit’anni comes from the root ענה, “afflict, humble”: “afflict yourself” or “submit to affliction”. Onkelos uses a different root, עבד, “serve”: ve-ishta’bedi, “make yourself subservient” or “submit to servitude”. The Aramaic thus speaks of Hagar’s status as a servant rather than of suffering; this may suggest a wish to present the angel’s instruction as a return to service, not as a command to accept affliction.
• “Under her hands”. The idiom tahat yadeha is kept word for word: tehot yedaha. Levat, “to”, renders the preposition el, and ribbontikh, “your mistress”, renders gevirtekh.

Words to note: מַלְאֲכָא mal’akha — angel (מַלְאַךְ) · רִבּוֹנְתִּיךְ ribbontikh — your mistress (גְּבִרְתֵּךְ) · וְאִשְׁתַּעְבְּדִי ve-ishta’bedi — and make yourself subservient (וְהִתְעַנִּי) · תְּחוֹת tehot — under (תַּחַת)

Bereshit 16:10

Torah

Translation

The angel of Hashem said to her: I will greatly multiply your descendants that they can not be counted because of their great number.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

The angel of Hashem said to her: I will greatly multiply your children that they can not be counted because of their great number.

What Onkelos tells us

• “I will greatly multiply”. The Hebrew doubles the verb for emphasis (harbah arbeh, root רבה); Onkelos keeps the doubling with his own root סגי: asga’a asgei. The same root returns at the end of the verse in misgei, “because of great number”, for the Hebrew me-rov (also from רבה), so the echo between the verb and the noun is preserved.
• “Your children”. The Hebrew zar’ekh, “your seed”, is rendered benaykhi, “your children” (literally “your sons”). The metaphor gives way to the plain sense.
• “They can not be counted”. The Hebrew verb yissafer is singular, agreeing with the collective noun “seed”. The Aramaic yittimnun is plural, agreeing with “children” — a grammatical consequence of the change of noun.

Words to note: אַסְגָאָה אַסְגֵי asga’a asgei — greatly multiply (הַרְבָּה אַרְבֶּה) · בְּנָיְכִי benaykhi — your children (זַרְעֵךְ) · יִתִּמְנוּן yittimnun — they can be counted (יִסָּפֵר) · מִסְגֵי misgei — because of great number (מֵרֹֽב)

Bereshit 16:11

Torah

Translation

The angel of Hashem said to her: Behold you will conceive, and give birth to a son. You shall name him Yishmael, for Hashem has heard [accepted] your prayer.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

The angel of Hashem said to her: Behold you are pregnant, and give birth to a son. You shall name him Yishmael, for Hashem has accepted your prayer.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Behold you are pregnant”. The Hebrew hinnakh harah (“behold you are pregnant”) is rendered ha at me’adya, with the Aramaic participle me’adya, “pregnant”. Ha, “behold”, renders hinneh.
• “Hashem has accepted your prayer”. Both key words of the Hebrew are changed. The Hebrew says Hashem “heard” (shama) “your affliction” (onyekh); Onkelos says He “accepted” (kabbil) “your prayer” (tzelotikh). The verb kabbil is the same one Onkelos uses for Avram in 16:2, where “hearkened to the voice of Sarai” becomes “accepted the word of Sarai”, so the change need not concern language about God; it perhaps stresses that the plea was granted, not merely heard. The second change turns Hagar’s suffering into a prayer, perhaps reading her affliction as an implicit plea.
• Wordplay dropped. In the Hebrew, the name Yishmael is explained by the verb shama, “heard”. The name is kept in the Aramaic, but the verb kabbil comes from a different root, so the link between the name and its explanation is not visible in the translation.

Words to note: מְעַדְיָא me’adya — pregnant (הָרָה) · וְתֵלְדִין ve-teledin — and give birth (וְיֹלַדְתְּ) · קַבִּיל kabbil — has accepted (שָׁמַע) · צְלוֹתִיךְ tzelotikh — your prayer (עׇנְיֵֽךְ)

Bereshit 16:12

Torah

Translation

He will be a wild, uncivilized man [rebel against people]. His hand [will be] against everyone [He will need everyone] and everyone’s hand will be against him [and everyone’s hand will need him]; and in the presence of all his brothers he will dwell.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

He will be a rebel among people. He will be in need of everyone and also all the sons of men will be in need of him; and in the presence of all his brothers he will dwell.

What Onkelos tells us

• “A rebel among people”. The Hebrew image pere adam, “a wild ass of a man”, is not translated literally. Onkelos writes marod be-enasha, “a rebel among people”, replacing the animal metaphor with a description of character.
• “He will be in need of everyone”. The Hebrew “his hand against everyone and everyone’s hand against him” describes mutual hostility. Onkelos drops the word “hand” in both clauses and renders: “he will be in need (tzerikh) of everyone, and also all the sons of men will be in need (tzerikhin) of him”. The relationship becomes one of mutual dependence rather than conflict. This may reflect a reading of “his hand in everyone” as a hand stretched out to others in need; the Aramaic adds hu yehe, “he will be”, to open the new clause.
• “He will dwell”. Yishrei renders yishkon; al apei, literally “upon the face of”, renders al penei, “in the presence of”.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text lacks kol benei, reading ve-af enasha yehon tzerikhin leih, “and also people will be in need of him”. The sense of mutual need is the same; only the phrase “all the sons of men” belongs to the printed text.

Words to note: מָרוֹד marod — a rebel (פֶּרֶא אָדָם) · בֶּאֱנָשָׁא be-enasha — among people · צְרִיךְ tzerikh — in need (יָדוֹ) · וְאַף ve-af — and also · יִשְׁרֵי yishrei — he will dwell (יִשְׁכֹּֽן)

Bereshit 16:13

Torah

Translation

She called [She prayed in] the Name Hashem Who had spoken to her: [She said] You are Almighty Who sees [everything], for she said: Have I also seen here [a vestige] after my having seen? [Have I also began to see here [a vestige] after it was revealed to me?]

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

She prayed in the Name of Hashem Who was speaking with her; she said: You are the God Who sees everything; for she said: Is it indeed here (another version: Have I too) [that] I began to see after it was revealed to me?

What Onkelos tells us

• “She prayed in the Name of Hashem”. The Hebrew va-tikra shem Hashem, “she called the Name of Hashem”, is rendered ve-tzali’at bi-shma de-Hashem, “she prayed in the Name of Hashem”. Calling upon the Name becomes an act of prayer, and Hagar’s words that follow become the content of that prayer; Onkelos adds amarat, “she said”, to introduce them.
• “Who was speaking with her”. The Hebrew participle ha-dover, “who speaks”, is rendered by the Aramaic participle de-mitmalal, with immah, “with her”, for eleha, “to her”.
• “The God Who sees everything”. The Hebrew El ro’i is compact and ambiguous (“a God of seeing”, or “God Who sees me”). Onkelos makes it a general statement: elaha de-hazei khola, “the God Who sees everything”. The object “everything” is added.
• “I began to see after it was revealed to me”. The Hebrew “Have I also here seen after my seeing?” is obscure. Onkelos renders the first “seeing” as shareiti hazya, “I began to see”, and the second, ro’i, as de-itgeli li, “it was revealed to me”. The language of revelation replaces a second use of the verb “see”, perhaps to distinguish Hagar’s own sight from the vision granted to her.
• A double reading in the printed text. The printed Onkelos gives havram hakha, “is it indeed here” (for the Hebrew ha-gam halom), and then, in parentheses marked as another version (nusha aharina), ha’af ana, “have I too”. Both are translated above.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text reads de-itmalal, a past form (“Who had spoken”), for the printed participle de-mitmalal; and elaha hazei khola without the relative de-.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text has neither havram hakha nor the question particle: it reads af ana shareiti hazya, “I too began to see after it was revealed to me” — a statement, not a question. The parenthetical alternative in the printed text is close to this reading. The rendering of the Hebrew halom, “here”, by hakha holds for the printed text only.

Words to note: וְצַלִיאַת ve-tzali’at — she prayed (וַתִּקְרָא) · דְמִתְמַלֵל de-mitmalal — Who was speaking (הַדֹּבֵר) · דְחָזֵי כֹלָא de-hazei khola — Who sees everything (רֳאִי) · הַבְרַם הָכָא havram hakha — is it indeed here (הֲגַם הֲלֹם) · שָּׁרֵיתִי shareiti — I began (רָאִיתִי) · דְאִתְגְלִי de-itgeli — it was revealed (רֹאִֽי)

Bereshit 16:14

Torah

Translation

Therefore the well was called: Be’er Lachai Ro’i [the well at which a living angel appeared]; it is between Kadeish [Rekem] and Bared [Chagar].

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Therefore he called the well: The well at which a living angel appeared; behold it is between Rekem and Chagra.

What Onkelos tells us

• “The well at which a living angel appeared”. The Hebrew name Be’er Lahai Ro’i is not transliterated but translated and expanded: be’era de-malakh kayama ittahazi alah, “the well at which a living angel appeared”. The Hebrew lahai, “the living one”, is understood as a living angel (malakh kayama), and ro’i, “seeing”, becomes the passive ittahazi, “appeared” — the seeing is described from the side of the one seen. This keeps the name in line with the angel of the preceding verses.
• “Rekem and Chagra”. The place names Kadeish and Bared are replaced by Rekem and Hagra, perhaps the names by which these places were known to Onkelos’s audience.
• “Behold it is”. The Hebrew hinneh, “behold”, is rendered ha hi, “behold it is”, with the pronoun added for the well.

Words to note: בְּאֵרָא be’era — the well (בְּאֵר) · קַיָימָא kayama — living (לַחַי) · אִתַּחֲזִי ittahazi — appeared (רֹאִי) · רְקָם Rekam — Rekem (קָדֵשׁ) · חַגְרָא Hagra — Chagra (בָּֽרֶד)

Bereshit 16:15

Torah

Translation

Hagar bore Avram a son and Avram named his son, that Hagar bore him, Yishmael.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Hagar bore Avram a son and Avram named his son, that Hagar bore [him], Yishmael.

What Onkelos tells us

• A literal rendering. Shum, “name”, renders shem, and berei, “his son”, renders beno; the relative asher becomes the prefix di- in di-lidat, “that [she] bore”.

Words to note: שׁוּם shum — name (שֶׁם) · בְּרֵיהּ berei — his son (בְּנוֹ)

Bereshit 16:16

Torah

Translation

Avram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Yishmael to Avram.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Avram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Yishmael to Avram.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Eighty-six years”. The Hebrew says literally “eighty year and six years”, repeating the word for year. Onkelos writes temanan ve-shit shenin, “eighty and six years”, with the noun once — a grammatical smoothing.
• “When Hagar bore”. The Hebrew infinitive be-ledet, “at the bearing of”, becomes a finite clause with kad, “when”: kad yelidat, “when [she] bore”. The sense is the same.

Words to note: תְּמָנָן וְשִׁית שְׁנִין temanan ve-shit shenin — eighty-six years (שְׁמֹנִים שָׁנָה וְשֵׁשׁ שָׁנִים) · כַּד kad — when

Unit 4 summary

Onkelos follows the narrative closely but reshapes its most charged expressions. Hagar is told to make herself subservient rather than to afflict herself; the metaphor ‘seed’ becomes ‘children’; Hashem ‘accepts’ her prayer instead of ‘hearing’ her affliction, so that the play on the name Yishmael does not survive in the Aramaic. The ‘wild ass of a man’ becomes ‘a rebel among people’, and the mutual hostility of ‘his hand against all’ is recast as mutual need. In verse 13, Hagar’s ‘calling’ the Name becomes prayer, the obscure ‘El Ro’i’ becomes ‘the God Who sees everything’, and her puzzling question is rendered through the language of revelation. The well’s name is explained as the place where a living angel appeared, and the place names Kadeish and Bared are replaced by Rekem and Chagra. The closing birth notice (verses 15-16) is rendered literally, with only small grammatical smoothing.

Unit 5 — Bereshit 17:1–6: El Shaddai, the covenant and the name Avraham

At ninety-nine, Avram is addressed by Hashem, who commands him to be perfect and promises a covenant and many descendants. Avram falls on his face, and his name is changed to Avraham, father of a multitude of nations.

Bereshit 17:1

Torah

Translation

When Avram was ninety-nine years old, Hashem appeared [became revealed] to Avram and said to him: I am Almighty Shaddai, walk [worship] before Me and be perfect.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

When Avram was ninety-nine years old, Hashem was revealed to Avram and said to him: I am Almighty Shaddai, worship before Me and be perfect.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Was revealed”. The Hebrew va-yera, “appeared” (literally “was seen”), becomes ve-itgeli, “and [He] was revealed”, a reflexive form of גלי. The change may reflect a reluctance to describe God as an object of sight; the Aramaic speaks of revelation rather than of being seen.
• “Worship before Me”. The Hebrew hithallekh lefanai, “walk before Me”, is a figure of speech. Onkelos replaces the image with what it seems to mean: pelah kodamai, “worship before Me”. “Before Me” is kodamai rather than a word for “face”.
• “Perfect”. The Hebrew tamim becomes shelim, “whole, complete”, a close equivalent.
• El Shaddai. The divine name is left untranslated, as אֵל שַׁדַי.
• “Ninety-nine years”. The Hebrew says “ninety years and nine years”, repeating the word for years; the Aramaic says “ninety and nine years” (tish’in u-tsha’ shenin), with the noun once.

Words to note: וְאִתְגְלִי ve-itgeli — and [He] was revealed (וַיֵּרָא) · פְּלַח pelah — worship (הִתְהַלֵּךְ) · קֳדָמַי kodamai — before Me (לְפָנַי) · שְׁלִים shelim — perfect (whole, complete) (תָמִים)

Bereshit 17:2

Torah

Translation

I will give My covenant between Me [My Word] and you, and I will multiply you[r descendants] exceedingly.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

I will give My covenant between My Word and you, and I will multiply you exceedingly.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Between My Word and you”. The Hebrew beini, “between Me”, becomes bein meimri, “between My Word”. Placing the Memra between God and the human partner may indicate a wish to avoid setting God Himself as one party alongside a person.
• “My covenant”. Hebrew beriti is rendered keyami, a word related to kayyam, “established, enduring”: a covenant as something established and binding.
• “Multiply”. Hebrew ve-arbeh (root רבה) becomes ve-asgei (root סגי). The same root סגי gives sagi, “multitude”, in 17:4 and 17:5.
• “Exceedingly”. The doubled Hebrew bi-me’od me’od is matched by a doubled lahada lahada.

Words to note: קְיָמִי keyami — My covenant (בְרִיתִי) · מֵימְרִי meimri — My Word · וְאַסְגֵי ve-asgei — and I will multiply (וְאַרְבֶּה) · לַחֲדָא lahada — exceedingly (בִּמְאֹד)

Bereshit 17:3

Torah

Translation

Avram fell on his face. God spoke with him, saying:

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Avram fell on his face. Hashem spoke with him, saying:

What Onkelos tells us

• “Hashem spoke”. The Hebrew has Elokim, “God”, but the Aramaic (both the printed and the Yemenite text) has the Tetragrammaton, printed ה׳. Since the speaker is the same Hashem who was revealed in 17:1, the change keeps one Name through the scene; whether this is its purpose can only be inferred.
• “On his face”. Hebrew panav becomes appohi, the Aramaic word for “face” in this idiom of prostration. Otherwise a literal rendering, with u-maleil (root מלל) for va-yedabber.

Words to note: אַפּוֹהִי appohi — his face (פָּנָיו) · וּמַלֵיל u-maleil — spoke (וַיְדַבֵּר) · ה׳ Hashem — Hashem (אֱלֹקִים)

Bereshit 17:4

Torah

Translation

As for Me, here is My covenant with you; you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

As for Me, here [I] decree My covenant with you; you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Decree”. The Hebrew is a verbless clause, “As for Me, here is My covenant with you”. The printed Aramaic adds gezar, “decree” (literally “cut”), giving the covenant an explicit act of establishing it. The word is printed in parentheses, which suggests the editors treated it as uncertain or supplementary.
• “Multitude of nations”. Hebrew hamon goyim becomes sagi ammemin. Sagi, “much, many”, is from the same root as ve-asgei, “I will multiply”, in 17:2, so the Aramaic links the promise of increase with Avram’s new title. Ammemin is the plural of the Aramaic word for “people”, here rendering goyim.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text has the word without parentheses and vocalized גָּזַר (gazar), a participle, “decreeing”, where the printed גְזַר reads as a past form, “decreed”. The added verb itself is present in both.

Words to note: (גְזַר) gezar — decree · קְיָמִי keyami — My covenant (בְרִיתִי) · סַגִי sagi — multitude (literally “many”) (הֲמוֹן) · עַמְמִין ammemin — nations (גּוֹיִם)

Bereshit 17:5

Torah

Translation

No longer shall your name be called Avram, but your name shall be Avraham, for the father of a multitude of nations I have appointed you.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

No longer shall your name be called Avram, but your name shall be Avraham, for the father of a multitude of nations I have appointed you.

What Onkelos tells us

• A literal rendering. The niphal yikkare, “shall be called”, is matched by the reflexive yitkerei, and netattikha, “I have appointed (literally given) you”, by yehavitakh, from יהב, “give”.
• “Avraham” and “father of a multitude”. The names are kept as they are. In the Hebrew the new name Avraham echoes av hamon, “father of a multitude”; in the Aramaic explanation, av sagi ammemin, only av still echoes the name, so the wordplay is largely lost.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text reads לְאַב (le-av), “[as] a father”, with the preposition, as in 17:4 and in the Hebrew לְאַב there; the printed text and the Hebrew of this verse have plain אַב.

Words to note: יִתְקְרֵי yitkerei — shall be called (יִקָּרֵא) · סַגִי sagi — multitude (literally “many”) (הֲמוֹן) · יְהָבִתָךְ yehavitakh — I have appointed you (נְתַתִּיךָ)

Bereshit 17:6

Torah

Translation

I will make you exceedingly fruitful and I will make you into nations [assemblies]; and kings [who rule over nations] will descend from you.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

I will increase you exceedingly and I will make you into assemblies; and kings who rule over nations will descend from you.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Increase”. The Hebrew ve-hifreti, “I will make fruitful” becomes ve-appish, “I will increase”. The image of fruit-bearing gives way to its plain sense.
• “Exceedingly”. As in 17:2, the doubled bi-me’od me’od is matched by lahada lahada.
• “Assemblies”. In 17:4 and 17:5 goyim is rendered ammemin, but here le-goyim becomes le-khinshin, “into assemblies, congregations”, from כנש. This may indicate that Onkelos read the “nations” coming from Avraham himself as communities of his descendants rather than as separate peoples.
• “Kings who rule over nations”. The Hebrew says only “kings”. Onkelos adds a relative clause, de-shalitin be-ammemaya, “who rule over nations”, perhaps to specify that sovereign kings are meant.

Words to note: וְאַפִּישׁ ve-appish — I will increase (וְהִפְרֵתִי) · לְכִנְשִׁין le-khinshin — into assemblies (לְגוֹיִם) · דְשַׁלִיטִין de-shalitin — who rule · בְּעַמְמַיָא be-ammemaya — over nations · יִפְקוּן yifkun — will descend (literally “go out”) (יֵצֵאוּ)

Unit 5 summary

Onkelos follows this revelation closely while adjusting its language about God and its metaphors. Hashem “was revealed” (itgeli) rather than “appeared”; the covenant is set between Avram and God’s Memra, “Word”, rather than “Me”; and the Name Elokim in 17:3 is rendered by the Tetragrammaton (printed ה׳). Figurative phrases become plain: “walk before Me” becomes “worship before Me”, and “make fruitful” becomes “increase”. The root סגי ties together “multiply” (17:2) and “multitude” (17:4, 17:5), although the sound link between Avraham and av hamon is not carried over. In 17:4 Onkelos supplies a verb, “decree”, for the Hebrew’s verbless “here is My covenant”, and in 17:6 “nations” becomes “assemblies” and the “kings” are defined as rulers over nations.

Conclusion of the aliyah

The movement of the aliyah

The aliyah moves from vision to household and back to vision. The covenant between the pieces is rendered closely, but Onkelos frames Avram’s preparations as an offering and resolves the Hebrew’s doubtful words. The Hagar story follows the Hebrew’s narrative and keeps its repeated roots, while recasting its sharper phrases: Sarai’s outcry becomes a legal claim, Hagar’s affliction becomes subservience and her suffering becomes prayer, and Yishmael’s hostility becomes mutual need. The closing revelation to Avram brings the aliyah back to covenant, with Onkelos’ characteristic language of revelation, the Memra and worship, and a root of increase that binds the promise of multiplication to Avraham’s new title.

What Onkelos tells us in this aliyah

1. “Offer before Me” (15:9). קָרֵב קֳדָמַי turns ‘take for Me’ into an act of offering; the same pair of changes recurs in 15:10.
2. “Three calves” (15:9). The ambiguous ‘three-year-old’ or ‘threefold’ is read as a number, and each animal becomes plural.
3. “Equally” (15:10). Where the Hebrew says where the cut was made, the Aramaic says what it produced: two equal halves.
4. “The fowl” (15:11). One general word, עוֹפָא, serves for both the unsplit bird and the bird of prey, so the specific sense of ‘bird of prey’ is not expressed.
5. “Who will enslave them” (15:14). The phrase from 15:13 is repeated, which may shift the subject from Israel to the nation; the verb of going out echoes Hashem’s bringing Avram out in 15:7.
6. “Here” and “now” (15:16). The single Hebrew hennah is split into הָכָא and כְּעָן, resolving its double sense and losing the play on the repeated word.
7. “Made a covenant” (15:18). גְזַר … קְיָם keeps the idiom of cutting, fitting a covenant made between the cut halves.
8. “I have a judgment against you” (16:5). דִין replaces hamas, and יְדִין at the end of the verse uses the same root, perhaps framing Sarai’s complaint as a case for judgment.
9. “Hashem has accepted your prayer” (16:11). קַבִּיל … צְלוֹתִיךְ changes both key words of the Hebrew, and the link between the name Yishmael and the verb ‘heard’ is not visible in the Aramaic.
10. “A rebel among people” (16:12). מָרוֹד replaces the animal image, and ‘his hand against all’ becomes mutual need.
11. “Worship before Me” (17:1). פְּלַח replaces the figure of walking, and Hashem ‘was revealed’ (וְאִתְגְלִי) rather than ‘appeared’.
12. “Into assemblies” (17:6). Where 17:4-5 render goyim as ‘nations’, here לְכִנְשִׁין may indicate that the nations coming from Avraham were read as communities of his descendants.

Recurring features

• Before rather than to or for. ‘For Me’, ‘to him’, ‘walk before Me’ and ‘from her face’ are all expressed with the Aramaic word for ‘before’.
• Seed as children. In 15:13, 15:18 and 16:10 the Hebrew ‘seed’ becomes a plural word for children or sons, with the grammar adjusted to match.
• Names updated. Places and peoples are given different names (Shalma’ei, Hagra, Rekem) or a description in place of a name (the ‘mighty ones’ for the Refa’im), perhaps names current in Onkelos’ day.
• Figures given their sense. Bodily and natural images, such as the bosom, the face, the wild ass and fruitfulness, are replaced by plain equivalents.
• Repeated roots preserved. Onkelos often keeps the Hebrew’s repetitions with his own roots: the doubled ‘know for sure’ and ‘greatly multiply’, the conceiving and the flight in the Hagar story, and the root of וְאַסְגֵי and סַגִי linking ‘multiply’ with ‘multitude’.
• Wordplay that does not cross over. The puns on Yishmael and on Avraham as av hamon, and the double use of hennah, are not carried into the Aramaic.

Aliyah takeaway

Onkelos in this aliyah stays close to the Hebrew’s narrative while reading it with consistent concerns. The covenant scene is framed as worship and its doubtful words are made definite; the Hagar story is told in a more measured vocabulary of judgment, service and prayer; and God is spoken of through revelation, the Memra and worship. The cost of this clarity is that some of the Hebrew’s wordplay, built on names and repeated words, does not survive, even as other repetitions are carefully kept.

Aramaic word list for the aliyah

Source note

Aliyah boundary. Bereshit 15:7 – 17:6, following the aliyah divisions in Sefaria’s index of Bereshit (the next aliyah begins at Bereshit 17:7).

Torah text. Miqra according to the Masorah (CC-BY-SA), the Masoretic text based on the Aleppo Codex, from Wikisource via Sefaria .

Targum Onkelos. The Aramaic is the commonly printed text, from the Torat Emet edition (Public Domain), via Sefaria .

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 page. 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.

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