Gen 37-40 | NASB2020 | STEP | Now Jacob lived in the land where his father had lived as a stranger , in the land of Canaan .

‏ Genesis 37

Joseph’s Dreams

1 Now Jacob lived in ^athe land where his father had lived as a stranger, in the land of Canaan. 2 These are the records of the generations of Jacob.

Joseph, when he was ^bseventeen years of age, was pasturing the flock with his brothers, while he was still a youth, along with ^cthe sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives. And Joseph brought back a ^dbad report about them to their father. 3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his other sons, because he was ^ethe son of his old age; and he made him a ^{▼▼Or full-length tunic} ^gmulticolored tunic. 4 And his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers; and so they ^hhated him and could not speak to him ^{▼▼Lit in peace}on friendly terms.

5 Then Joseph ^{▼▼Lit dreamed} ^khad a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. 6 He said to them, “Please listen to this dream which I have ^{▼▼Lit dreamed}had; 7 for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf stood up and also remained standing; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and ^mbowed down to my sheaf.” 8 Then his brothers said to him, “ ⁿAre you actually going to reign over us? Or are you really going to rule over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.

9 Then he ^{▼▼Lit dreamed}had yet another dream, and informed his brothers of it, and said, “Behold, I have ^{▼▼Lit dreamed}had yet another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” 10 He also told it to his father as well as to his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have ^{▼▼Lit dreamed}had? Am I and your mother and ^ryour brothers actually going to come to bow down to the ground before you?” 11 And ^shis brothers were jealous of him, but his father ^tkept the matter in mind.

12 Then his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock in Shechem. 13 And Israel said to Joseph, “Are your brothers not pasturing the flock in ^uShechem? Come, and I will send you to them.” And he said to him, “ ^{▼▼Lit Behold me}I will go.” 14 Then he said to him, “Go now and see about the welfare of your brothers and the welfare of the flock, and bring word back to me.” So he sent him from the Valley of ^wHebron, and he came to Shechem.

15 A man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the field; and the man asked him, “ ^{▼▼Lit saying, “What...?”}What are you looking for?” 16 He said, “I am looking for my brothers; please tell me where they are pasturing the flock.” 17 Then the man said, “They have moved from here; for I heard them say, ‘Let’s go to ^yDothan.’” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan.

The Plot against Joseph

18 ^{▼▼Or And}When they saw him from a distance, and before he came closer to them, they ^aaplotted against him to put him to death. 19 They said to one another, “ ^{▼▼Lit Behold, this master of dreams comes}Here comes this dreamer! 20 Now then, come and let’s kill him, and throw him into one of the pits; and ^acwe will say, ‘A vicious animal devoured him.’ Then we will see what will become of his dreams!” 21 But ^adReuben heard this and rescued him out of their hands ^{▼▼Lit and said}by saying, “Let’s not ^{▼▼Lit strike his soul}take his life.” 22 Then Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but do not lay a hand on him” --so that later he might rescue him out of their hands, to return him to his father. 23 So it came about, when Joseph ^{▼▼Lit came to}reached his brothers, that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the ^{▼▼Or full-length tunic}multicolored tunic that was on him; 24 and they took him and threw him into the pit. Now the pit was empty, without any water in it.

25 Then they sat down to eat ^{▼▼Lit bread}a meal. But as they raised their eyes and looked, behold, a caravan of ^ajIshmaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels carrying ^aklabdanum resin, ^albalsam, and ^{▼▼Or resinous bark}myrrh, ^{▼▼Lit going}on their way to bring them down to Egypt. 26 And Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it for us to kill our brother and ^aocover up his blood? 27 ^apCome, and let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers listened to him. 28 Then some ^aqMidianite traders passed by, so they pulled him out and lifted Joseph out of the pit, and ^arsold ^{▼▼Lit Joseph}him to the Ishmaelites for ^{▼▼About 10 oz. or 280 gm}twenty shekels of silver. So ^authey brought Joseph into Egypt.

29 Now Reuben returned to the pit, and behold, Joseph was not in the pit; so he ^avtore his garments. 30 He returned to his brothers and said, “ ^awThe boy is not there; as for me, where am I to go?” 31 So ^axthey took Joseph’s tunic, and slaughtered a male goat, and dipped the tunic in the blood; 32 and they sent the ^{▼▼Or full-length tunic}multicolored tunic and brought it to their father and said, “We found this; please ^{▼▼Or recognize}examine it to see whether it is your son’s tunic or not.” 33 Then he ^{▼▼Or recognized}examined it and said, “It is my son’s tunic. ^bbA vicious animal has devoured him; ^bcJoseph has surely been torn to pieces!” 34 So Jacob ^bdtore his clothes, and put on a sackcloth undergarment over his waist, and mourned for his son many days. 35 Then all his sons and all his daughters got up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. And he said, “Surely I will ^bego down to Sheol in mourning for my son.” So his father wept for him. 36 Meanwhile, the ^{▼▼Lit Medanites}Midianites ^bgsold him in Egypt to Potiphar, Pharaoh’s officer, the captain of the bodyguard.

‏ Genesis 38

Judah and Tamar

1 And it came about at that time, that Judah ^{▼▼Lit went down}departed from his brothers and ^{▼▼Lit turned aside to}visited a certain ^bjAdullamite, whose name was Hirah. 2 Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was ^bkShua; and he took her as a wife and had relations with her. 3 And she conceived and gave birth to a son, and he named him ^blEr. 4 Then she conceived again and gave birth to a son, and she named him ^bmOnan. 5 She gave birth to yet another son and named him ^bnShelah; and it was at Chezib ^{▼▼Lit when}that she gave birth to him.

6 Now Judah took a wife for Er his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. 7 But ^bpEr, Judah’s firstborn, was evil in the sight of the Lord, so the Lord took his life. 8 Then Judah said to Onan, “ ^bqHave relations with your brother’s wife and perform your duty as a brother-in-law to her, and raise up a ^{▼▼Lit seed}child for your brother.” 9 Now Onan knew that the ^{▼▼Lit seed} ^btchild would not be his; so when he had relations with his brother’s wife, he ^{▼▼Lit spilled on the ground}wasted his seed on the ground so that he would not give ^{▼▼Lit seed}a child to his brother. 10 But what he did was displeasing in the sight of the Lord; so He ^bwtook his life also. 11 Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “ ^bxRemain a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up”; for he ^{▼▼Lit said}thought, “I am afraid that he too may die like his brothers.” So Tamar went and lived in her father’s house.

12 Now ^{▼▼Lit the days became many and}after a considerable time Shua’s daughter, the wife of Judah, died; and when ^{▼▼Lit Judah was comforted, he}the time of mourning was ended, Judah went up to his sheepshearers at ^cbTimnah, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. 13 And Tamar was told, “Behold, your father-in-law is going up to ^ccTimnah to shear his sheep.” 14 So she ^{▼▼Lit removed from herself}removed her widow’s garments and ^cecovered herself with a ^{▼▼Or shawl}veil, and wrapped herself, and sat in the gateway of ^{▼▼In Josh 15:34, Enam}Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah had grown up, and ^chshe had not been given to him as a wife. 15 When Judah saw her, he assumed she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. 16 So he turned aside to her by the road, and said, “ ^{▼▼Or Come, now}Here now, let me have relations with you”; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. And she said, “What will you give me, that you may have relations with me?” 17 He said, therefore, “I will send you a ^{▼▼Lit kid of goats}young goat from the flock.” She then said, “Will you give a pledge until you send it?” 18 He said, “What pledge shall I give you?” And she said, “ ^ckYour seal and your cord, and your staff that is in your hand.” So he gave them to her and had relations with her, and she conceived by him. 19 Then she got up and departed, and ^{▼▼Lit removed from herself}removed her ^{▼▼Or shawl}veil and put on her widow’s garments.

20 When Judah sent the ^{▼▼Lit kid of goats by the hand of}young goat by his friend the Adullamite, to receive the pledge from the woman’s hand, he did not find her. 21 He asked the people of her place, saying, “Where is the temple prostitute who was by the road at Enaim?” But they said, “There has been no temple prostitute here.” 22 So he returned to Judah, and said, “I did not find her; and furthermore, the people of the place said, ‘There has been no temple prostitute here.’” 23 Then Judah said, “Let her ^{▼▼Lit take for herself}keep them, otherwise we will become a laughingstock. ^{▼▼Lit Behold}After all, I sent this young goat, but you did not find her.”

24 Now it was about three months later that Judah was ^{▼▼Lit informed, saying}informed, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has prostituted herself, and behold, she is also pregnant by prostitution.” Then Judah said, “Bring her out and ^crhave her burned!” 25 It was while she was being brought out that she sent word to her father-in-law, saying, “I am pregnant by the man to whom these things belong.” She also said, “ ^csPlease examine and see, whose signet ring and cords and staff are these?” 26 And Judah recognized them, and said, “ ^ctShe is more righteous than I, since ^cuI did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not ^{▼▼Lit know her yet again}have relations with her again.

27 It came about at the time she was giving birth, that behold, there were ^cwtwins in her womb. 28 Moreover, it took place while she was giving birth, that one baby put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, “This one came out first.” 29 But it came about as he drew back his hand that behold, his brother came out. Then she said, “What a breach you have made for yourself!” So he was named ^{▼▼I.e., a breach} ^cyPerez. 30 Afterward his brother came out who had the scarlet thread on his hand; and he was named ^{▼▼I.e., a dawning or brightness} ^daZerah.

‏ Genesis 39

Joseph’s Success in Egypt

1 Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an Egyptian officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the bodyguard, bought him ^{▼▼Lit from the hand of}from the ^dcIshmaelites, who had taken him down there. 2 And ^ddthe Lord was with Joseph, so he became a ^{▼▼Or prosperous}successful man. And he was in the house of his master, the Egyptian. 3 Now his master ^dfsaw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord ^dgmade all that he did prosper in his hand. 4 So Joseph ^dhfound favor in his sight and ^{▼▼Or ministered to him}became his personal servant; and he made him overseer over his house, and ^{▼▼Lit handed over to him}put him in charge of ^dkall that he owned. 5 It came about that from the time he made him overseer in his house and over all that he owned, the Lord ^dlblessed the Egyptian’s house on account of Joseph; so ^dmthe Lord’s blessing was upon all that he owned, in the house and in the field. 6 So he left ^{▼▼Lit in Joseph’s hand}Joseph in charge of everything that he owned; and with him there he did not ^{▼▼Lit know}concern himself with anything except the ^{▼▼Lit bread}food which he ^{▼▼Or used to eat}ate.

Now Joseph was ^drhandsome in form and appearance. 7 And it came about after these events ^dsthat his master’s wife ^{▼▼Lit lifted up her eyes at}had her eyes on Joseph, and she said, “ ^duSleep with me.” 8 But ^dvhe refused and said to his master’s wife, “Look, with me here, my master ^{▼▼Lit does not know what is in the house}does not concern himself with anything in the house, and he has ^{▼▼Lit handed over to me}put me in charge of all that he owns. 9 ^{▼▼Or He is not greater} ^dzThere is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil, and ^easin against God?” 10 Though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he did not listen to her to lie beside her or be with her. 11 Now it happened ^{▼▼Lit about this day}one day that he went into the house to do his work, and none of the people of the household was there inside. 12 So she grabbed him by his garment, saying, “Sleep with me!” But he left his garment in her hand and fled, and went outside. 13 ^{▼▼Lit And it came about when}When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled outside, 14 she called to the men of her household and said to them, “See, he has brought in a ^{▼▼Lit Hebrew man}Hebrew to us to make fun of us; he came in to me to sleep with me, and I ^{▼▼Lit called with a great voice}screamed. 15 When he heard that I raised my voice and ^{▼▼Lit called out}screamed, he left his garment beside me and fled and went outside.” 16 So she ^{▼▼Lit let...lie beside}left his garment beside her until his master came home. 17 Then she ^ehspoke to him ^{▼▼Lit according to}with these ^{▼▼Lit words, saying}words: “The Hebrew slave, whom you brought to us, came in to me to make fun of me; 18 but when I raised my voice and ^{▼▼Lit called out}screamed, he left his garment beside me and fled outside.”

Joseph Imprisoned

19 Now when his master heard the words of his wife which she spoke to him, saying, “ ^{▼▼Lit According to these things your slave}This is what your slave did to me,” ^emhis anger burned. 20 So Joseph’s master took him and ^enput him into the prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined; and he was there in the prison. 21 But ^eothe Lord was with Joseph and extended kindness to him, and ^epgave him favor in the sight of the warden of the prison. 22 And the warden of the prison ^{▼▼Lit handed over to Joseph all} ^erput Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in the prison; so that whatever was done there, he was ^{▼▼Lit the doer}responsible for it. 23 ^etThe warden of the prison did not supervise anything ^{▼▼Lit in his hand}under Joseph’s authority, because ^evthe Lord was with him; and, ^ewthe Lord made whatever he did prosper.

‏ Genesis 40

Joseph Interprets Dreams

1 Then it came about after these things, that ^exthe cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt offended their lord, the king of Egypt. 2 And Pharaoh was ^eyfurious with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker. 3 So he put them in confinement in the house of the ^ezcaptain of the bodyguard, in the prison, the same place where Joseph was imprisoned. 4 And the captain of the bodyguard put Joseph in charge of them, and he ^{▼▼Lit ministered to}took care of them; and they were in confinement for ^{▼▼Lit days}some time. 5 Then the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison, both had a dream the same night, each man with his own dream and each dream with its own interpretation. 6 ^{▼▼Or And}When Joseph came to them in the morning and saw them, ^{▼▼Lit and behold}behold, they were dejected. 7 So he asked Pharaoh’s officials who were with him in confinement in his master’s house, “ ^{▼▼Lit saying, Why} ^ffWhy are your faces so sad today?” 8 And they said to him, “ ^fgWe have ^{▼▼Lit dreamed}had a dream, and there is no one to interpret it.” Then Joseph said to them, “ ^fiDo interpretations not belong to God? Tell it to me, please.”

9 So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph, ^{▼▼Lit and said}saying to him, “In my dream, ^{▼▼Lit and behold}behold, there was a vine in front of me; 10 and on the vine were three branches. And as it was budding, its blossoms came out, and its clusters produced ripe grapes. 11 Now Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand; so I took the grapes and squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I put the cup into Pharaoh’s ^{▼▼Lit palm}hand.” 12 Then Joseph said to him, “This is the ^fminterpretation of it: the three branches are three days; 13 within three more days Pharaoh will ^{▼▼I.e., a royal gesture of forgiveness}lift up your head and restore you to your office; and you will put Pharaoh’s cup into his hand as in your former practice when you were his cupbearer. 14 Only ^{▼▼Lit remember me with yourself}keep me in mind when it goes well for you, and please ^fpdo me a kindness ^{▼▼Lit and mention}by mentioning me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this ^{▼▼Lit house}prison. 15 For ^fsI was in fact kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing that they should have put me into the ^{▼▼Or pit}dungeon.”

16 When the chief baker saw that he had interpreted favorably, he said to Joseph, “I also saw in my dream, and behold, there were three baskets of white bread on my head; 17 and in the top basket there were some of all ^{▼▼Lit food for Pharaoh made by a baker}kinds of baked food for Pharaoh, and the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.” 18 Then Joseph answered and said, “This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days; 19 within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head from you and will hang you on a wooden post, and the birds will eat your flesh off you.”

20 So it came about on the third day, which was ^fvPharaoh’s birthday, that he held a feast for all his servants; ^fwand he lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants. 21 He restored the chief cupbearer to his ^{▼▼Lit wine-pouring}office, and ^fyhe put the cup into Pharaoh’s ^{▼▼Lit palm}hand; 22 but ^gahe hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had interpreted to them. 23 Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but ^gbforgot him.