Genesis 37
1 Jacob lived in the land where his father had sojourned, in the land of Canaan.
Jacob settled down and lived in Canaan as his father had done.
2 These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, tended the flock with his brothers; he was an assistant to the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's wives. And Joseph brought a bad report about them to their father.
This is the story of Jacob and his family. Joseph was seventeen, and helped look after the flock with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's wives. Joseph told his father about some of the bad things his brothers were doing.
3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he had been born to him in his old age. And he made a long ornamented robe for him.
Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because Joseph had been born to him when he was already old. He made a colorful robe with long sleeves for Joseph.
4 His brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, and they hated him, and couldn't speak a kind word to him.
When his brothers noticed that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and had nothing good to say about him.
5 Now Joseph had a dream, and he told it to his brothers, and they hated him all the more.
Joseph had a dream, and when he told his brothers about it, they hated him even more.
6 He said to them, "Please listen to this dream I had:
“Listen to this dream I had,” he told them.
7 And look, we were binding sheaves in the field, and look, my sheaf arose and also stood upright. And look, your sheaves gathered around it and bowed down to my sheaf."
“We were tying up bundles of grain out in the fields when all of a sudden my bundle stood up, and your bundles came over and bowed down to it.”
8 Then his brothers said to him, "Will you indeed reign over us? Or will you indeed rule over us?" So they hated him all the more for his dreams and for what he said.
“Do you really think you're going to be our king?” they asked. “Do you honestly believe you're going to rule over us?” They hated him even more because of his dream and how he described it.
9 And he had another dream, and told it to his father and to his brothers, and said, "Look, I had yet another dream, and look, the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed down to me."
Then he had another dream told his brothers about it. “Listen, I had another dream,” he explained. “The sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down before me.”
10 When he told it to his father and to his brothers, his father rebuked him, and said to him, "What is this dream that you had? Will I and your mother and your brothers indeed come and bow down to the ground in front of you?"
He also told his father as well as his brothers, and his father told him off, saying, “What's this dream that you've had? Are we—I and your mother and brothers—really going to come and bow down to the ground before you?”
11 His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept thinking about the matter.
Joseph's brothers became jealous of him, but his father puzzled over the meaning of the dream.
12 Now his brothers went to pasture their father's flock near Shechem.
One day Joseph's brothers took their father's flocks to graze near Shechem.
13 And Israel said to Joseph, "Aren't your brothers pasturing the flock near Shechem? Come, and I will send you to them." And he said to him, "I am ready."
Israel told Joseph, “Your brothers are looking after the sheep near Shechem. Get ready because I want you to go and see them.” “I'll do it,” Joseph replied.
14 So he said to him, "Go now, see whether it is well with your brothers and well with the flock, and report back to me." So he sent him from the Valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.
So he told him, “Off you go and see how your brothers and the flocks are doing, and come back and let me know.” So he sent him off. Joseph set out from the Hebron Valley,
15 And a man found him, and look, he was wandering in the field. And the man asked him, "What are you looking for?"
and arrived in Shechem. A man there found him wandering about in the field, so he asked him, “What are you looking for?”
16 He said, "I am looking for my brothers. Tell me, please, where they are pasturing the flock."
“I'm looking for my brothers,” Joseph replied. “Can you please tell me where they're looking after the flock?”
17 The man said, "They have left here, for I heard them say, 'Let us go to Dothan.'" So Joseph went after his brothers, and found them in Dothan.
“They've already left,” the man replied. “I heard them say, ‘Let's go to Dothan.’” So Joseph followed his brothers and caught up with them at Dothan.
18 Now they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them they plotted against him to kill him.
But they saw him coming way off in the distance, and before he got to them, they made plans to kill him.
19 And they said to one another, "Look, this dreamer is coming.
“Look, here comes the Lord of Dreams!” they said to each other.
20 Come now, and let's kill him and throw him into one of the cisterns, and we will say that a vicious animal has devoured him. Then we will see what will become of his dreams."
“Come on, let's kill him and throw him into one of the pits. We'll say that some wild animal has eaten him. Then we'll see what happens to his dreams!”
21 But Reuben heard it, and delivered him out of their hands, and said, "Let's not take his life."
When Reuben heard all this, he tried to save Joseph from them.
22 Reuben said to them, "Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but lay no hand on him"—that he might deliver him out of their hands, to restore him to his father.
“Let's not attack and kill him,” he suggested. “Don't murder him, just throw him into this pit here in the desert. You don't need to be guilty of violence.” Reuben said this so that he could come back later and rescue Joseph from them and take him home to his father.
23 It happened, when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped Joseph of his robe, the long ornamented robe that he was wearing.
So when Joseph arrived, his brothers ripped off his robe—the colorful long-sleeved robe he was wearing—
24 And they took him and threw him into the cistern. (Now the pit was empty. There was no water in it.)
grabbed him and threw him into a pit. (The pit was empty—it didn't have any water in it.)
25 Then they sat down to eat a meal. And they looked up, and look, a caravan of Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing aromatic gum and balm and myrrh on their way to carry them down to Egypt.
They were just sitting down to have a meal when they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were carrying aromatic spices, balm, and myrrh to take to Egypt.
26 Then Judah said to his brothers, "What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood?
“What's the point of killing our brother?” Judah asked his brothers. “Then we'd have to cover up his death!
27 Come, and let's sell him to the Ishmaelites, and not lay a hand on him, for he is our brother, our flesh." And his brothers agreed.
Instead, why don't we sell him to these Ishmaelites? We don't have to kill him. After all he's our brother, our own flesh and blood.” His brothers agreed.
28 So the Midianites merchants passed by, and they pulled him up and lifted Joseph out of the cistern, and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And they brought Joseph to Egypt.
So when the Ishmaelites (who were traders from Midian) came by, they pulled Joseph out of the pit and sold him to them for twenty pieces of silver. The Ishmaelites took him to Egypt.
29 And Reuben returned to the cistern and saw that Joseph wasn't in the cistern; and he tore his clothes.
When Reuben came back later and looked into the pit, Joseph was gone. He tore his clothes in grief.
30 He went back to his brothers and said, "The boy is gone. Now, what am I to do?"
He returned to his brothers. “The boy's gone!” he moaned. “What am I going to do now?”
31 They took Joseph's robe and killed a male goat and dipped the robe in the blood.
They slaughtered a goat and dipped Joseph's robe in the blood.
32 And they sent the long ornamented robe and they brought it to their father, and said, "We found this. Please examine it to see whether it is your son's robe or not."
Then they sent the colorful robe to their father with the message, “We found this. Please examine it and see if it's your son's robe or not.”
33 And he recognized it, and said, "It is my son's robe. A vicious animal has devoured him. Joseph is without doubt torn to pieces."
His father recognized it right away and said, “This is my son's robe! Some wild animal must have eaten him. Poor Joseph has been ripped to pieces, no doubt about it!”
34 Then Jacob tore his clothes, and put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days.
Jacob tore his clothes in grief and dressed in sackcloth. He mourned the death of his son for a long time.
35 All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. And he said, "Indeed, I will go down to Sheol to my son mourning." And his father wept for him. (Sheol h7585)
All his sons and daughters tried to console him, but he rejected their attempts. “No,” he said, “I will go down into my grave mourning for my son.” So Joseph's father went on weeping for him. (Sheol h7585)
36 Now the Midianites sold him into Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard.
In the meantime the Ishmaelites had arrived in Egypt and had sold Joseph to Potiphar. Potiphar was one of Pharaoh's officers, the captain of the guard.
