1 And Jacob dwelt in the land where his father sojourned — in the land of Canaan. 2 These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, fed the flock with his brethren; and he was doing service with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives. And Joseph brought to his father an evil report of them. 3 And Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons, because he was son of his old age; and he made him a vest of many colours. 4 And his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, and they hated him, and could not greet him with friendliness. 5 And Joseph dreamed a dream, and told [it] to his brethren, and they hated him yet the more. 6 And he said to them, Hear, I pray you, this dream, which I have dreamt: 7 Behold, we were binding sheaves in the fields, and lo, my sheaf rose up, and remained standing; and behold, your sheaves came round about and bowed down to my sheaf. 8 And his brethren said to him, Wilt thou indeed be a king over us? wilt thou indeed rule over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams and for his words. 9 And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamt another dream, and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed down to me. 10 And he told [it] to his father and to his brethren. And his father rebuked him, and said to him, What is this dream which thou hast dreamt? Shall we indeed come, I and thy mother and thy brethren, to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? 11 And his brethren envied him; but his father kept the saying. 12 And his brethren went to feed their father's flock at Shechem. 13 And Israel said to Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed [the flock] at Shechem? Come, that I may send thee to them. And he said to him, Here am I. 14 And he said to him, Go, I pray thee, see after the welfare of thy brethren, and after the welfare of the flock; and bring me word again. And he sent him out of the vale of Hebron; and he came towards Shechem. 15 And a man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the country; and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou? 16 And he said, I am seeking my brethren: tell me, I pray thee, where they feed [their flocks]. 17 And the man said, They have removed from this; for I heard them say, Let us go to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren, and found them at Dothan. 18 And when they saw him from afar, and before he came near to them, they conspired against him to put him to death. 19 And they said one to another, Behold, there comes that dreamer! 20 And now come and let us kill him, and cast him into one of the pits, and we will say, An evil beast has devoured him; and we will see what becomes of his dreams. 21 And Reuben heard [it], and delivered him out of their hand, and said, Let us not take his life. 22 And Reuben said to them, Shed no blood: cast him into this pit which is in the wilderness; but lay no hand upon him — in order that he might deliver him out of their hand, to bring him to his father again. 23 And it came to pass when Joseph came to his brethren, that they stripped Joseph of his vest, the vest of many colours, which he had on; 24 and they took him and cast him into the pit; now the pit was empty — there was no water in it. 25 And they sat down to eat bread; and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites came from Gilead; and their camels bore tragacanth, and balsam, and ladanum — going to carry [it] down to Egypt. 26 And Judah said to his brethren, What profit is it that we kill our brother and secrete his blood? 27 Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites; but let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother, our flesh. And his brethren hearkened [to him]. 28 And Midianitish men, merchants, passed by; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty silver-pieces; and they brought Joseph to Egypt. 29 And Reuben returned to the pit, and behold, Joseph [was] not in the pit; and he rent his garments, 30 and returned to his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, where shall I go? 31 And they took Joseph's vest, and slaughtered a buck of the goats, and dipped the vest in the blood; 32 and they sent the vest of many colours and had it carried to their father, and said, This have we found: discern now whether it is thy son's vest or not. 33 And he discerned it, and said, [It is] my son's vest! an evil beast has devoured him: Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces! 34 And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth on his loins, and mourned for his son many days. 35 And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted, and said, For I will go down to my son into Sheol mourning. Thus his father wept for him. 36 And the Midianites sold him into Egypt, to Potiphar, a chamberlain of Pharaoh, the captain of the life-guard.
Genesis 37 Darby Translation
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Joseph
Betrayed and enslaved, he rose to rule Egypt and saved his family from famine.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 37; 39–50
Potiphar
An Egyptian officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard who bought Joseph from the Ishmaelites, put him in charge of his household, and had him thrown into prison after his wife's…
Cited in the guide: Genesis 37:36; Genesis 39:1; Genesis 39:4
Cross references (36)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Genesis 17:8; Genesis 23:4; Hebrews 11:9–16; Genesis 36:7; Genesis 28:4
- 2 Genesis 35:25–26; 1 Samuel 2:22–24; Genesis 35:22; 1 Corinthians 11:18; Genesis 10:1
- 3 John 3:35; Genesis 37:32; 2 Samuel 13:18; John 13:22–23; Genesis 37:23
- 4 Genesis 27:41; 1 John 4:20; 1 John 3:12; 1 John 2:11; Psalm 69:4
- 5 Genesis 28:12; Genesis 42:9; John 17:14; Daniel 4:5; Amos 3:7
- 6 Genesis 44:18
- 7 Genesis 42:6; Genesis 44:14; Genesis 43:26; Genesis 42:9; Colossians 1:18
- 8 1 Samuel 10:27; Acts 7:35; Genesis 49:26; Acts 4:27–28; Exodus 2:14
- 9 Acts 7:9–14; Genesis 46:29; Genesis 37:7; Daniel 8:10; Genesis 43:28
- 10 Genesis 27:29; Isaiah 60:14; Philippians 2:10–11; Genesis 37:7
- 11 Acts 7:9; Luke 2:51; Luke 2:19; Daniel 7:28; Isaiah 11:13
- 12 Genesis 37:1; Genesis 33:18; Genesis 34:25–31
- 13 Ephesians 6:1–3; 1 Samuel 17:17–20; Matthew 10:16; 1 Samuel 3:16; Genesis 27:18
- 14 Genesis 35:27; Psalm 125:5; Luke 19:42; Genesis 13:18; 2 Samuel 18:32
- 15 Judges 4:22; John 4:27; Genesis 21:14; John 20:15; John 18:4
- 16 Luke 19:10; Song of Songs 1:7
- 17 2 Kings 6:13
- 18 Acts 23:12; Psalm 37:32; 1 Samuel 19:1; Psalm 37:12; Mark 14:1
- 19 Genesis 28:12; Genesis 37:5; Genesis 49:23; Genesis 37:11
- 20 Titus 3:3; Proverbs 27:4; 2 Kings 2:24; Matthew 2:2–16; Proverbs 1:11–12
- 21 Genesis 42:22; Joshua 10:28; Genesis 35:22; Matthew 10:28; Genesis 9:5
- 22 Exodus 24:11; Matthew 27:24; Genesis 42:22; Genesis 22:12; Acts 12:1
- 23 Genesis 37:31–33; Matthew 27:28; Genesis 37:3; Genesis 42:21; Psalm 22:18
- 24 Jeremiah 38:6; Zechariah 9:11; Psalm 130:1–2; Psalm 40:2; Psalm 88:8
- 25 Genesis 43:11; Jeremiah 8:22; Genesis 37:28; Jeremiah 46:11; Genesis 16:11–12
- 26 Genesis 37:20; Genesis 4:10; Ezekiel 24:7; Jeremiah 41:8; Romans 6:21
- 27 Matthew 16:26; Genesis 42:21; 1 Samuel 18:17; Genesis 29:14; 2 Samuel 12:9
- 28 Acts 7:9; Psalm 105:17; Genesis 25:2; Genesis 45:4–5; Genesis 37:25
- 29 Genesis 37:34; Job 1:20; Joel 2:13; Acts 14:14; Genesis 44:13
- 30 Genesis 42:13; Genesis 42:32; Jeremiah 31:15; Genesis 42:35–36; Genesis 37:20
- 31 Genesis 37:23; Genesis 37:3; Proverbs 28:13
- 32 Luke 15:30; Genesis 44:20–23; Genesis 37:3
- 33 Genesis 44:28; Genesis 37:20; 1 Kings 13:24; 2 Kings 2:24; Proverbs 14:15
- 34 Genesis 37:29; Job 1:20; 2 Samuel 3:31; Esther 4:1–3; Nehemiah 9:1
- 35 Genesis 42:38; Job 2:11; 2 Samuel 12:17; Genesis 42:31; Genesis 35:22–26
- 36 Genesis 40:4; Genesis 37:28; 2 Kings 25:8; Genesis 39:1–23; Genesis 25:1–2
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
Because Joseph was sold into Egypt by his brethren. That Joseph whom the brethren envied, and sold him into Egypt, when sold into Egypt, toiled, was humbled; when made known and exalted, flourished, reigned.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 8 (1888)