Genesis 37:18-30
New English Translation
18 Now Joseph’s brothers[a] saw him from a distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him. 19 They said to one another, “Here comes this master of dreams![b] 20 Come now, let’s kill him, throw him into one of the cisterns, and then say that a wild[c] animal ate him. Then we’ll see how his dreams turn out!”[d]
21 When Reuben heard this, he rescued Joseph[e] from their hands,[f] saying,[g] “Let’s not take his life!”[h] 22 Reuben continued,[i] “Don’t shed blood! Throw him into this cistern that is here in the wilderness, but don’t lay a hand on him.”[j] (Reuben said this[k] so he could rescue Joseph[l] from them[m] and take him back to his father.)
23 When Joseph reached his brothers, they stripped him[n] of his tunic, the special tunic that he wore. 24 Then they took him and threw him into the cistern. (Now the cistern was empty;[o] there was no water in it.)
25 When they sat down to eat their food, they looked up[p] and saw[q] a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were carrying spices, balm, and myrrh down to Egypt.[r] 26 Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is there if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? 27 Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites, but let’s not lay a hand on him,[s] for after all, he is our brother, our own flesh.” His brothers agreed.[t] 28 So when the Midianite[u] merchants passed by, Joseph’s brothers pulled[v] him[w] out of the cistern and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. The Ishmaelites[x] then took Joseph to Egypt.
29 Later Reuben returned to the cistern to find that Joseph was not in it![y] He tore his clothes, 30 returned to his brothers, and said, “The boy isn’t there! And I, where can I go?”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Genesis 37:18 tn Heb “and they”; the referent (Joseph’s brothers) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 37:19 tn Heb “Look, this master of dreams is coming.” The brothers’ words have a sarcastic note and indicate that they resent his dreams.
- Genesis 37:20 tn The Hebrew word can sometimes carry the nuance “evil,” but when used of an animal it refers to a dangerous wild animal.
- Genesis 37:20 tn Heb “what his dreams will be.”
- Genesis 37:21 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 37:21 sn From their hands. The instigators of this plot may have been the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah (see v. 2).
- Genesis 37:21 tn Heb “and he said.”
- Genesis 37:21 tn Heb “we must not strike him down [with respect to] life.”
- Genesis 37:22 tn Heb “and Reuben said to them.”
- Genesis 37:22 sn The verbs translated shed, throw, and lay sound alike in Hebrew; the repetition of similar sounds draws attention to Reuben’s words.
- Genesis 37:22 tn The words “Reuben said this” are not in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 37:22 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 37:22 tn Heb “from their hands” (cf. v. 21). This expression has been translated as “them” here for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 37:23 tn Heb “Joseph”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 37:24 tn The disjunctive clause gives supplemental information that helps the reader or hearer to picture what happened.
- Genesis 37:25 tn Heb “lifted up their eyes.”
- Genesis 37:25 tn Heb “and they saw and look.” By the use of וְהִנֵּה (vehinneh, “and look”), the narrator invites the reader to see the event through the eyes of the brothers.
- Genesis 37:25 tn Heb “and their camels were carrying spices, balm, and myrrh, going to go down to Egypt.”
- Genesis 37:27 tn Heb “let not our hand be upon him.”
- Genesis 37:27 tn Heb “listened.”
- Genesis 37:28 sn On the close relationship between Ishmaelites (v. 25) and Midianites, see Judg 8:24.
- Genesis 37:28 tn Heb “they drew and they lifted up.” The referent (Joseph’s brothers) has been specified in the translation for clarity; otherwise the reader might assume the Midianites had pulled Joseph from the cistern (but cf. NAB).
- Genesis 37:28 tn Heb “Joseph” (both here and in the following clause); the proper name has been replaced both times by the pronoun “him” in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 37:28 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Ishmaelites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 37:29 tn Heb “and look, Joseph was not in the cistern.” By the use of וְהִנֵּה (vehinneh, “and look”), the narrator invites the reader to see the situation through Reuben’s eyes.
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