Parashat Toldot — Third Aliyah

Torah with Onkelos · Bereshit 26:13 – 26:22 · פרשת תולדות, שלישי

Yitzchok’s prosperity in Gerar and the quarrels over the wells, read through Targum Onkelos

Contents

• Orientation
• How this page is laid out
• Unit 1 — Bereshit 26:13–17: Yitzchok prospers, and Avimelech sends him away
• Unit 2 — Bereshit 26:18–22: Reopening the wells: Eisek, Sitnah and Rechovos
• Conclusion of the aliyah
• Aramaic word list for the aliyah
• Source note

Orientation

What happens in this aliyah. Yitzchok grows very great in Gerar. He owns flocks, herds and a large household, and the Philistines, jealous of him, stop up the wells that Avraham’s servants had dug and fill them with earth. Avimelech tells him to leave, since he has become much more powerful than they are, and Yitzchok camps in the valley of Gerar. There he reopens his father’s wells and gives them the names his father had given them. His servants dig in the valley and find a well of spring water. The shepherds of Gerar claim the water, and Yitzchok names the well Eisek; they quarrel over a second well too, and he names it Sitnah. He moves on and digs a third well, over which there is no quarrel, and names it Rechovos, saying that Hashem has now made room for them.

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.

• One root for one root. The threefold growth of 26:13, built on the Hebrew root גדל, is matched by one Aramaic root used three times (וּרְבָא, וְרָבֵי, רְבָא), and the idiom ‘went on going’ is kept word for word as וַאֲזַל אֲזִיל.
• The well names. The printed text turns the first name into Aramaic, עִסְקָא, and pairs it with a verb from the same root, אִתְעַסִּיקוּ, so the wordplay survives. שִׂטְנָא gets an Aramaic ending. רְחֹבוֹת is left as in the Hebrew, but the verb that explains it, אַפְתֵּי, comes from a different root, so the play on ‘wide’ is lost.
• One verb of strife. וּנְצוֹ renders the Hebrew root ריב in 26:20, 26:21 and 26:22, including רָבוּ, which could be mistaken for a verb meaning ‘they became many’.
• Images made plain. ‘Living water’ becomes water that springs up, דְּמַיִּין נָבְעִין, and ‘we shall be fruitful’ becomes ‘we shall increase’, וְנִיפוּשׁ.
• Grammar smoothed. A direct object becomes a preposition (וְקַנִּיאוּ בֵהּ), ‘after the death of Avraham’ becomes a clause (בָּתַר דְּמִית אַבְרָהָם), and the father’s naming becomes a continuous past (הֲוָה קָרֵי).
• Word choices that narrow. וּפָלְחָנָא, ‘service, labor’, for וַעֲבֻדָּה, and תְקֵפְתָּא, a word of strength, for עָצַמְתָּ, which can also mean being numerous.
• Textual notes. The printed text records alternative readings in parentheses in 26:13 and 26:14, and the Yemenite text keeps the Hebrew forms of the names in 26:20 and 26:21; each difference is marked in a textual note.

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 26:13–17: Yitzchok prospers, and Avimelech sends him away

Yitzchok grows very great in Gerar, and the Philistines, jealous of his wealth, stop up the wells Avraham’s servants had dug. Avimelech tells him to leave, and he settles in the valley of Gerar.

Bereshit 26:13

Torah

Translation

The man prospered. He continued to prosper until he became very great.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

The man prospered. He continued (another version: increasing) to prosper until he became very great.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Prospered … continued to prosper … became very great”. The Hebrew uses the root גדל three times (וַיִּגְדַּל, וְגָדֵל, גָדַל). Onkelos matches it with one Aramaic root used three times: וּרְבָא (u-reva), וְרָבֵי (ve-ravei) and רְבָא (reva). He even keeps the sequence of forms: a past tense, a participle, and a past tense again, so the build-up of the Hebrew survives in the Aramaic.
• “He continued”. The Hebrew idiom וַיֵּלֶךְ הָלוֹךְ, ‘he went going’, is reproduced word for word as וַאֲזַל אֲזִיל (va-azal azil), with an Aramaic participle standing for the Hebrew infinitive absolute.
• “Very”. לַחֲדָא (lahada) for מְאֹד, as also in 26:16; עַד דִּי renders the Hebrew עַד כִּי, ‘until’.
• Textual note. The printed text records in parentheses, after אֲזִיל, an alternative reading, סָגֵי (sagei), ‘increasing’, shown in the translation as ‘another version’. The Yemenite text has both words, אָזֵיל סָגֵי, ‘he went on increasing and growing great’.

Words to note: גַּבְרָא gavra — the man (הָאִישׁ) · וּרְבָא u-reva — prospered (grew great) (וַיִּגְדַּל) · אֲזִיל azil — going (continued) (הָלוֹךְ) · וְרָבֵי ve-ravei — to prosper (growing great) (וְגָדֵל) · לַחֲדָא lahada — very (מְאֹד)

Bereshit 26:14

Torah

Translation

He owned flocks of sheep, herds of cattle, and many slaves, and the Philistines were jealous of him.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

He owned flocks of sheep and herds of cattle, and much labor [force] (another version: slaves), and the Philistines were jealous of him.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Flocks of sheep and herds of cattle”. The Hebrew uses the same noun מִקְנֵה for both kinds of livestock, and Onkelos does the same with גֵּיתֵי (geitei), ‘flocks of, herds of’.
• “Much labor [force]”. For the Hebrew וַעֲבֻדָּה רַבָּה, a large body of servants, the printed text has וּפָלְחָנָא (u-falhana) … סַגְיָא (sagya). וּפָלְחָנָא is a noun from פלח, ‘to work, to serve’, and means ‘service, labor’; used here for the Hebrew collective, it perhaps denotes the household’s work force rather than the slaves as persons. For the Hebrew רַבָּה Onkelos uses סַגְיָא, ‘much’, not the root he used for ‘growing great’ in 26:13.
• “Were jealous of him”. Same root קנא, but the Hebrew direct object אֹתוֹ becomes a preposition in Aramaic: וְקַנִּיאוּ בֵהּ (ve-kanni’u veh), literally ‘were jealous against him’. This is a grammatical smoothing, not a change of meaning.
• Textual note. The printed text gives in parentheses an alternative reading, וַעֲבוּדָה, which simply keeps the Hebrew word. The Yemenite text has that reading, וַעֲבֻדָּה סַגִּי, so the point about וּפָלְחָנָא holds for the main printed text only.

Words to note: גֵּיתֵי geitei — flocks of, herds of (מִקְנֵה) · תוֹרִין torin — cattle (בָקָר) · וּפָלְחָנָא u-falhana — and labor [force] (וַעֲבֻדָּה) · סַגְיָא sagya — much (רַבָּה) · וְקַנִּיאוּ ve-kanni’u — and were jealous (וַיְקַנְאוּ)

Bereshit 26:15

Torah

Translation

All the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the days of his father, Avraham—the Philistines plugged them, and filled them with earth.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

All the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the days of his father, Avraham—the Philistines plugged them, and filled them with earth.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Plugged them, and filled them”. A literal rendering, keeping even the Hebrew construction in which ‘all the wells’ stands first and is picked up again by object suffixes on the verbs: טַמּוֹנוּן (tammonun) for סִתְּמוּם and וּמְלוֹנוּן (u-melonun) for וַיְמַלְאוּם. For ‘plugged’ Onkelos uses a verb meaning ‘to stop up’, which returns for the same act in 26:18.

Words to note: בֵּירִין beirin — wells (הַבְּאֵרֹת) · טַמּוֹנוּן tammonun — plugged them (סִתְּמוּם) · וּמְלוֹנוּן u-melonun — and filled them (וַיְמַלְאוּם) · עַפְרָא afra — earth (עָפָר)

Bereshit 26:16

Torah

Translation

Avimelech said to Yitzchok, Go away from us. You have become much more powerful than us.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Avimelech said to Yitzchok, Go away from us, for you have become much more powerful than us.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Go away”. אִזְּל (izzel) for לֵךְ. Avimelech’s ‘go’ and Yitzchok’s going in 26:17 share a root in Aramaic (וַאֲזַל) as they do in Hebrew.
• “You have become much more powerful”. The Hebrew עָצַמְתָּ can describe being numerous as well as being mighty. Onkelos’s תְקֵפְתָּא (tekefta), from תקף, ‘to be strong’, speaks of strength; this may narrow Avimelech’s complaint to Yitzchok’s power.

Words to note: אִזְּל izzel — go away (לֵךְ) · תְקֵפְתָּא tekefta — you have become more powerful (עָצַמְתָּ) · מִנָּנָא minnana — than us (מִמֶּנּוּ)

Bereshit 26:17

Torah

Translation

Yitzchok went away from there. He camped in the valley of Gerar and settled there.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Yitzchok went away from there. He camped in the valley of Gerar and settled there.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Camped … in the valley of Gerar”. A literal rendering. וּשְׁרָא (u-shera), ‘and camped’, renders וַיִּחַן, and the Hebrew construct בְּנַחַל גְּרָר becomes בְנַחֲלָא דִּגְרָר, ‘the valley of Gerar’, with the particle ד.

Words to note: וּשְׁרָא u-shera — and camped (וַיִּחַן) · בְנַחֲלָא ve-nahala — in the valley (בְּנַחַל) · וִיתֵב vitev — and settled (וַיֵּשֶׁב)

Unit 1 summary

Onkelos follows the Hebrew closely in this unit and keeps its patterns. The threefold growth of 26:13, built on one Hebrew root, is matched by one Aramaic root used three times, and the idiom ‘went on growing’ is reproduced word for word. The Philistines’ acts against the wells are rendered with verbs that keep the Hebrew object suffixes. The changes are small and mostly lexical: תְקֵפְתָּא for the Hebrew verb of might in Avimelech’s words, וּשְׁרָא for camping, and a construct phrase ‘valley of Gerar’ recast with the particle ד. The most notable choice is וּפָלְחָנָא for the Hebrew וַעֲבֻדָּה, a word of ‘service’ where the Yemenite text simply keeps the Hebrew word.

Unit 2 — Bereshit 26:18–22: Reopening the wells: Eisek, Sitnah and Rechovos

Yitzchok reopens his father’s wells and gives them their old names. His servants dig new wells; the shepherds of Gerar quarrel over the first two, and the third, uncontested, he names Rechovos.

Bereshit 26:18

Torah

Translation

Yitzchok returned and excavated the wells of water which were dug in the days of his father, Avraham, and were plugged by the Philistines after Avraham’s death. He gave them the same names that his father had given them.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Yitzchok returned and excavated the wells of water which they had dug in the days of his father, Avraham, and the Philistines had plugged them after Avraham died. He gave them the same names that his father used to give them.

What Onkelos tells us

• “After Avraham died”. The Hebrew has a noun phrase, אַחֲרֵי מוֹת אַבְרָהָם, ‘after the death of Avraham’. Onkelos turns it into a clause with a verb: בָּתַר דְּמִית אַבְרָהָם (batar de-mit Avraham), ‘after [that] Avraham died’.
• “That his father used to give them”. For the simple Hebrew past קָרָא, Onkelos writes הֲוָה קָרֵי (hava karei), ‘was calling’, a past continuous. This may suggest that these were the names the wells had been known by in Avraham’s day, not a single act of naming.
• “Plugged them”. As in 26:15, the Aramaic verb for stopping up renders the Hebrew סתם: וְטַּמּוֹנוּן for וַיְסַתְּמוּם.

Words to note: וְתָב ve-tav — returned (וַיָּשׇׁב) · וְטַּמּוֹנוּן ve-tammonun — and had plugged them (וַיְסַתְּמוּם) · בָּתַר batar — after (אַחֲרֵי) · דְּמִית de-mit — [that] died (מוֹת) · שְׁמָהָן shemahan — names (שֵׁמוֹת) · קָרֵי karei — giving (calling) (קָרָא)

Bereshit 26:19

Torah

Translation

Yitzchok’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of spring water.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

Yitzchok’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of springing water.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Springing water”. The Hebrew מַיִם חַיִּים (mayim hayyim), ‘living water’, is an idiom for water from a spring. Onkelos replaces the image with a description: דְּמַיִּין נָבְעִין (de-mayyin nave’in), ‘of water springing up’, from נבע, ‘to well up’.
• “Found”. וְאַשְׁכָּחוּ (ve-ashkahu) for וַיִּמְצְאוּ; otherwise a literal rendering.

Words to note: וְאַשְׁכָּחוּ ve-ashkahu — and found (וַיִּמְצְאוּ) · בֵּירָא beira — a well (בְּאֵר) · נָבְעִין nave’in — springing (חַיִּים)

Bereshit 26:20

Torah

Translation

The shepherds of Gerar argued with the shepherds of Yitzchok, saying, the water is ours. He named the well Eisek [Quarrel], because they had quarreled with him.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

The shepherds of Gerar argued with the shepherds of Yitzchok, saying, the water is ours. He named the well Iska [Quarrel], because they had quarreled with him.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Argued”. וּנְצוֹ (u-netzo), ‘and they strove’, renders וַיָּרִיבוּ. The same verb renders the Hebrew root ריב again in 26:21 and in 26:22.
• “Iska … they had quarreled”. The Hebrew names the well עֵשֶׂק (Eisek) because they הִתְעַשְּׂקוּ (hit’assku), ‘quarreled’, with him. The printed Onkelos translates the name into an Aramaic noun, עִסְקָא (Iska), and renders the verb with the same Aramaic root: אִתְעַסִּיקוּ (it’assiku). The wordplay between name and reason is thus kept in Aramaic, with the Aramaic root עסק standing for the Hebrew עשק.
• “The water is ours”. דִּי לָנָא מַיָּא (di lana maya), with the possessive particle, for לָנוּ הַמָּיִם: same meaning.
• Textual note. Where the printed text has עִסְקָא, the Yemenite text keeps the Hebrew name עֵשֶׂק, while still using the Aramaic verb אִתְעַסַּקוּ. In the Yemenite text, then, the name is not translated, and the link between name and verb is a play across the two languages; the point above holds for the printed text only.

Words to note: וּנְצוֹ u-netzo — argued (וַיָּרִיבוּ) · רַעֲוָתָא ra’avata — shepherds of (רֹעֵי) · עִסְקָא iska — Iska (Quarrel) (עֵשֶׂק) · אִתְעַסִּיקוּ it’assiku — they had quarreled (הִתְעַשְּׂקוּ)

Bereshit 26:21

Torah

Translation

They dug another well and they also argued about it. He named the well Sitnah [Obstruction].

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

They dug another well and they also argued about it. He named the well Sitna [Obstruction].

What Onkelos tells us

• “Sitna”. The Hebrew name שִׂטְנָה keeps its root שטן in Aramaic, but the printed text gives it an Aramaic ending: שִׂטְנָא (Sitna). Unlike עִסְקָא in 26:20, no explaining verb follows, so there is no wordplay to keep.
• “Also argued”. וּנְצוֹ אַף (u-netzo af) for וַיָּרִיבוּ גַּם: the same verb of strife as in 26:20; otherwise a literal rendering.
• Textual note. The Yemenite text keeps the Hebrew form of the name, שִׂטְנָה, so the Aramaic ending noted above belongs to the printed text only.

Words to note: אַף af — also (גַּם) · עֲלַהּ alah — about it (עָלֶיהָ) · שִׂטְנָא sitna — Sitna (Obstruction) (שִׂטְנָה)

Bereshit 26:22

Torah

Translation

He moved away from there and he dug another well, and there was no argument over it. He named it Rechovos [Wide Spaces], and said, For now Hashem has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.

Onkelos

Onkelos in English

He moved away from there and he dug another well, and they did not argue over it. He named it Rechovos [Wide Spaces], and said, For now Hashem has made room for us, and we shall increase in the land.

What Onkelos tells us

• “Moved away”. וְאִסְתַּלַּק (ve-istallak), ‘and he departed’, from סלק, renders וַיַּעְתֵּק.
• “They did not argue”. The Hebrew רָבוּ (ravu) is from ריב, ‘to quarrel’, though it could be mistaken for a verb meaning ‘they became many’. Onkelos renders it נְצוֹ (netzo), the same verb he used for וַיָּרִיבוּ in 26:20 and 26:21, so the sense of quarrelling is fixed.
• “Rechovos … has made room”. In the Hebrew the name רְחֹבוֹת and the verb הִרְחִיב (hirhiv) share the root רחב. Onkelos leaves the name unchanged but renders the verb with אַפְתֵּי (aftei), from פתי, ‘to widen’. The play between name and explanation is therefore not kept in Aramaic, in contrast with עִסְקָא in 26:20.
• “We shall increase”. For וּפָרִינוּ (u-farinu), ‘and we shall be fruitful’, a perfect with vav, Onkelos writes the imperfect וְנִיפוּשׁ (ve-nifush), ‘and we shall increase’, from פוש. The future is expressed by the verb form itself, and the image of fruit gives way to plain increase.

Words to note: וְאִסְתַּלַּק ve-istallak — he moved away (וַיַּעְתֵּק) · נְצוֹ netzo — argued (רָבוּ) · כְעַן khe’an — now (עַתָּה) · אַפְתֵּי aftei — has made room (הִרְחִיב) · וְנִיפוּשׁ ve-nifush — and we shall increase (וּפָרִינוּ)

Unit 2 summary

The interest of this unit lies in the names. The printed Onkelos turns the first two well names into Aramaic forms, עִסְקָא and שִׂטְנָא, and in the first case keeps the wordplay by pairing the name with a verb from the same Aramaic root. The third name, רְחֹבוֹת, is left exactly as in the Hebrew, while the verb that explains it comes from a different Aramaic root, so that the Hebrew play on ‘wide’ is not carried over. Elsewhere Onkelos smooths the grammar: ‘after the death of Avraham’ becomes a clause, ‘after Avraham died’; his father’s naming becomes a continuous past; ‘living water’ is rendered as water that springs up; and the Hebrew homograph ravu, ‘quarreled’, is translated with the same verb of strife used for the earlier quarrels.

Conclusion of the aliyah

The movement of the aliyah

The aliyah moves from prosperity to conflict to room. In the first unit Yitzchok grows great, the Philistines stop up the wells out of jealousy, and Avimelech sends him away; Onkelos follows this closely, keeping the Hebrew’s repeated root, its idiom and its object suffixes, and making only small lexical changes. In the second unit the interest moves to the wells and their names. Yitzchok reopens his father’s wells under their old names, and his servants dig new ones: two are contested and named for the quarrel, and the third, uncontested, is named for the room Hashem has made. Here Onkelos’s handling of the names becomes the main point: the first wordplay is kept in Aramaic, the second name receives an Aramaic ending, and the third name is kept while its wordplay is not.

What Onkelos tells us in this aliyah

1. “He continued to prosper” (26:13). One Aramaic root, used three times, matches the three uses of גדל, and the sequence of forms, past, participle, past, is kept, so the build-up of the Hebrew survives.
2. “Much labor [force]” (26:14). וּפָלְחָנָא, a noun from פלח, ‘to work, to serve’, renders וַעֲבֻדָּה; it perhaps denotes the household’s work force rather than the slaves as persons. The parenthetical reading, וַעֲבוּדָה, simply keeps the Hebrew word.
3. “Plugged them” (26:15). טַמּוֹנוּן, from a verb meaning ‘to stop up’, keeps the Hebrew object suffix, and the same verb returns for the same act in 26:18.
4. “Much more powerful” (26:16). תְקֵפְתָּא, from תקף, ‘to be strong’, speaks of strength; this may narrow Avimelech’s complaint to Yitzchok’s power.
5. “After Avraham died” (26:18). The noun phrase ‘after the death of Avraham’ becomes a clause with a verb, בָּתַר דְּמִית אַבְרָהָם.
6. “That his father used to give them” (26:18). הֲוָה קָרֵי, a past continuous, for the simple past קָרָא; this may suggest that these were the names the wells had been known by in Avraham’s day.
7. “Springing water” (26:19). The idiom ‘living water’ is replaced by a description, דְּמַיִּין נָבְעִין, ‘of water springing up’.
8. “Iska … they had quarreled” (26:20). The printed text translates the name as עִסְקָא and renders the verb with the same Aramaic root, אִתְעַסִּיקוּ, keeping the wordplay between name and reason.
9. “Sitna” (26:21). The name keeps its root but takes an Aramaic ending, שִׂטְנָא; no explaining verb follows, so there is no wordplay to keep.
10. “They did not argue” (26:22). נְצוֹ, the verb used for וַיָּרִיבוּ in 26:20 and 26:21, fixes the sense of quarrelling for the Hebrew רָבוּ.
11. “Rechovos … has made room” (26:22). The name is left unchanged, but the verb is אַפְתֵּי, from פתי, ‘to widen’, so the Hebrew play between name and explanation is not kept, in contrast with עִסְקָא.
12. “We shall increase” (26:22). The imperfect וְנִיפוּשׁ replaces the Hebrew perfect with vav, and the image of fruit gives way to plain increase.

Recurring features

• Close rendering. Much of the aliyah is translated literally; the notes repeatedly describe a verse, or the rest of a verse, as a literal rendering.
• One Aramaic verb for one Hebrew act. The verb of stopping up renders סתם in both 26:15 and 26:18, וּנְצוֹ renders ריב in all three verses of quarrelling, and Avimelech’s ‘go’ and Yitzchok’s going in 26:16-17 share a root in Aramaic as in Hebrew.
• Hebrew constructions recast with Aramaic particles. The construct ‘valley of Gerar’ becomes בְנַחֲלָא דִּגְרָר with the particle ד, ‘the water is ours’ becomes דִּי לָנָא מַיָּא, and the object of jealousy is introduced by a preposition, בֵהּ.
• Images replaced by plain description. ‘Living water’ and ‘be fruitful’ are rendered by what they describe: water that springs up, and increase.
• Names handled case by case. Of the three new wells, the first name is translated into Aramaic, the second given an Aramaic ending, and the third left as in the Hebrew; whether the Hebrew wordplay survives depends on the choice made in each case.
• The Yemenite text closer to the Hebrew in places. Where the printed text has Aramaic words, the Yemenite text keeps the Hebrew word for the household (26:14) and the Hebrew forms of the names Eisek and Sitnah (26:20, 26:21).

Aliyah takeaway

In this aliyah Onkelos stays close to the Hebrew, and his choices show in small things: a word of labor for a body of servants, a word of strength for a word that can also mean numbers, a clause for a noun phrase, a description for an image. Where the Hebrew’s meaning depends on sound, as in the names of the wells, he keeps the play where an Aramaic word allows it and lets it go where it does not. The textual notes add that the printed text and the Yemenite text do not always make the same choice, so some of these features belong to the printed text alone.

Aramaic word list for the aliyah

Source note

Aliyah boundary. Bereshit 26:13 – 26:22, following the aliyah divisions in Sefaria’s index of Bereshit (the next aliyah begins at Bereshit 26:23).

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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