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I was reading Gen 25:8 in Sefaria

וַיִּגְוַ֨ע וַיָּ֧מׇת אַבְרָהָ֛ם בְּשֵׂיבָ֥ה טוֹבָ֖ה זָקֵ֣ן וְשָׂבֵ֑עַ וַיֵּאָ֖סֶף אֶל־עַמָּֽיו׃

Abraham became faint, and he died at a ripe old age — old in years, and satisfied to see that what he had wanted was accomplished; and he was brought into eternal life, together with all the righteous of his people. (אונקלוס, ספורנו.)

Then I read the same verse in BibleHub.com, which offers many variants of the same type:

Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age, an old man and full of years; and he was gathered to his people.

All of them missing the and he was brought into eternal life part, which is weird for christians to do, as the promise of eternal life is so prominent in Jesus' preaching.

I don't read hebrew, so I can't compare the hebrew text in BibleHub.com against Sefaria's.

What is the explanation for this difference?

1 Answer 1

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The phrase under discussion comprises the three Hebrew words:

ויאסף אל עמיו

va-ye'asef el amav

which can be literally translated as something like "and he was gathered to his people".

This translation (or something similar) is what you are seeing in the Christian translations you consulted, as well as in the majority of the Jewish translations available on Sefaria.

The particular translation you linked to from Sefaria is Rabbi Charles Kahane's Torah Yesharah, which calls itself a "Traditional Interpretative Translation", and which incorporates a heavy amount of later commentary into the translation itself.

Thus, following Seforno (as noted in Hebrew in the parentheses following the translated verse) R. Kahane interprets the idea of being "gathered to one's people" as a reference to attaining eternal life alongside the righteous.

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  • seforimblog.com/2023/03/…
    – Joel K
    Commented Dec 1 at 10:48
  • Is that our Micha Berger in the comments?
    – Rabbi Kaii
    Commented Dec 1 at 11:08
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    @CandidMoe The reputation is all explained on the blog post. In terms of fear of heaven, the author is trustworthy. In terms of the translation being a direct and true translation, no, it's more akin to a "commentary". You don't "have to" study anything. As a Christian who wants to take Jewish law seriously, you should check out what you are and are not allowed to study (there's lots of info on that here). I'm also surprised you are interested, given the negative reputation the New Testament gives the "pharisees", i.e. our beloved holy sages, who's works and teachings we are discussing
    – Rabbi Kaii
    Commented Dec 1 at 11:34
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    I was a Christian, but studying the Bible led me to reject Christianity. Knowledge of Jewish culture helped me see the NT and particularly Paul as something abhorrent, totally disconnected from the Torah. I hold rabbis in high regard: they give me answers, while priests give me speeches devoid of logic and sense.
    – Candid Moe
    Commented Dec 1 at 11:50
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    @CandidMoe how exciting for you, I wish I could be in your shoes right now. You've got so much to learn! Sounds like you are exploring the idea of eternal life at the moment. Check out this site there's lots of info on it, and feel free to keep the questions coming
    – Rabbi Kaii
    Commented Dec 1 at 11:52

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