He was the father of is a literal translation of the Hebrew; the meaning may be simply “ancestor,” or it may be that Jabal was “the first one” to adopt this way of living as a nomadic herdsman. See also comments on verse 21.

Those who dwell in tents: dwell is the same as in verse 16. Tents are usually associated with people who move about with their herds. The term refers to dwellings made of animal skins or of cloth and held up by poles, and fastened to the ground by cords and pegs. As a descriptive phrase we may say, for example, “a house made of animal hides,” “a house made of cloth,” or “a moveable house.” If such a dwelling is totally unknown, an illustration will help the reader. If a descriptive phrase is unsuitable, it may be necessary to use the local term referring to a brush house or other temporary shelter.

And have cattle is literally “and livestock.” The word translated cattle is a general term and includes all kinds of livestock; have is supplied by Revised Standard Version and in this context means “who raise livestock,” as in Good News Translation and New International Version.

Cattle may be translated “all kinds of farm animals” or “all kinds of domestic animals.” Revised English Bible has “flocks and herds,” which may also be a suitable model for some languages. Some existing translations make a suitable expression by listing the actual domestic animals known by their people; for example, “cows, goats, and sheep.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .