37:5 Joseph 1 had a dream, 2 and when he told his brothers about it, 3 they hated him even more. 4 37:6 He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: 5 37:7 There we were, 6 binding sheaves of grain in the middle of the field. Suddenly my sheaf rose up and stood upright and your sheaves surrounded my sheaf and bowed down 7 to it!” 37:8 Then his brothers asked him, “Do you really think you will rule over us or have dominion over us?” 8 They hated him even more 9 because of his dream and because of what he said. 10
37:9 Then he had another dream, 11 and told it to his brothers. “Look,” 12 he said. “I had another dream. The sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” 37:10 When he told his father and his brothers, his father rebuked him, saying, “What is this dream that you had? 13 Will I, your mother, and your brothers really come and bow down to you?” 14 37:11 His brothers were jealous 15 of him, but his father kept in mind what Joseph said. 16
37:1 But Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, 19 in the land of Canaan. 20
17:28 When David’s 21 oldest brother Eliab heard him speaking to the men, he became angry 22 with David and said, “Why have you come down here? To whom did you entrust those few sheep in the desert? I am familiar with your pride and deceit! 23 You have come down here to watch the battle!”
12:6 As a matter of fact, 24 even your own brothers
and the members of your own family have betrayed you too.
Even they have plotted to do away with you. 25
So do not trust them even when they say kind things 26 to you.
1 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 tn Heb “dreamed a dream.”
3 sn Some interpreters see Joseph as gloating over his brothers, but the text simply says he told his brothers about it (i.e., the dream). The text gives no warrant for interpreting his manner as arrogant or condescending. It seems normal that he would share a dream with the family.
4 tn The construction uses a hendiadys, “they added to hate,” meaning they hated him even more.
5 tn Heb “hear this dream which I dreamed.”
6 tn All three clauses in this dream report begin with וְהִנֵּה (vÿhinneh, “and look”), which lends vividness to the report. This is represented in the translation by the expression “there we were.”
7 tn The verb means “to bow down to the ground.” It is used to describe worship and obeisance to masters.
8 tn Heb “Ruling, will you rule over us, or reigning, will you reign over us?” The statement has a poetic style, with the two questions being in synonymous parallelism. Both verbs in this statement are preceded by the infinitive absolute, which lends emphasis. It is as if Joseph’s brothers said, “You don’t really think you will rule over us, do you? You don’t really think you will have dominion over us, do you?”
9 tn This construction is identical to the one in Gen 37:5.
10 sn The response of Joseph’s brothers is understandable, given what has already been going on in the family. But here there is a hint of uneasiness – they hated him because of his dream and because of his words. The dream bothered them, as well as his telling them. And their words in the rhetorical question are ironic, for this is exactly what would happen. The dream was God’s way of revealing it.
11 tn Heb “And he dreamed yet another dream.”
12 tn Heb “and he said, ‘Look.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse have been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons. Both clauses of the dream report begin with הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”), which lends vividness to the report.
13 sn The question What is this dream that you had? expresses Jacob’s dismay at what he perceives to be Joseph’s audacity.
14 tn Heb “Coming, will we come, I and your mother and your brothers, to bow down to you to the ground?” The verb “come” is preceded by the infinitive absolute, which lends emphasis. It is as if Jacob said, “You don’t really think we will come…to bow down…do you?”
15 sn Joseph’s brothers were already jealous of him, but this made it even worse. Such jealousy easily leads to action, as the next episode in the story shows. Yet dreams were considered a form of revelation, and their jealousy was not only of the favoritism of their father, but of the dreams. This is why Jacob kept the matter in mind.
16 tn Heb “kept the word.” The referent of the Hebrew term “word” has been specified as “what Joseph said” in the translation for clarity, and the words “in mind” have been supplied for stylistic reasons.
17 tn The Hebrew word can sometimes carry the nuance “evil,” but when used of an animal it refers to a dangerous wild animal.
18 tn Heb “what his dreams will be.”
19 tn Heb “the land of the sojournings of his father.”
20 sn The next section begins with the heading This is the account of Jacob in Gen 37:2, so this verse actually forms part of the preceding section as a concluding contrast with Esau and his people. In contrast to all the settled and expanded population of Esau, Jacob was still moving about in the land without a permanent residence and without kings. Even if the Edomite king list was added later (as the reference to kings in Israel suggests), its placement here in contrast to Jacob and his descendants is important. Certainly the text deals with Esau before dealing with Jacob – that is the pattern. But the detail is so great in chap. 36 that the contrast cannot be missed.
21 tn Heb “his”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
22 tn Heb “the anger of Eliab became hot.”
23 tn Heb “the wickedness of your heart.”
24 tn This is an attempt to give some contextual sense to the particle “for, indeed” (כִּי, ki).
sn If the truth be known, Jeremiah wasn’t safe even in the context of his own family. They were apparently part of the plot by the people of Anathoth to kill him.
25 tn Heb “they have called after you fully”; or “have lifted up loud voices against you.” The word “against” does not seem quite adequate for the preposition “after.” The preposition “against” would be Hebrew עַל (’al). The idea appears to be that they are chasing after him, raising their voices along with those of the conspirators to have him killed.
26 tn Heb “good things.” See BDB 373 s.v. II טוֹב 2 for this nuance and compare Prov 12:25 for usage.
27 sn The Herodians are mentioned in the NT only once in Matt (22:16 = Mark 12:13) and twice in Mark (3:6; 12:13; some
28 sn Teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Very few comments are as deceitful as this one; they did not really believe this at all. The question of the Pharisees and Herodians was specifically designed to trap Jesus.
29 tn Grk “And it is not a concern to you about anyone because you do not see the face of men.”
30 tn Or “lawful,” that is, in accordance with God’s divine law. On the syntax of ἔξεστιν (exestin) with an infinitive and accusative, see BDF §409.3.
31 tn According to L&N 57.180 the term κῆνσος (khnso") was borrowed from Latin and referred to a poll tax, a tax paid by each adult male to the Roman government.
sn This question concerning taxes was specifically designed to trap Jesus. If he answered yes, then his opponents could publicly discredit him as a sympathizer with Rome. If he answered no, then they could go to the Roman governor and accuse Jesus of rebellion.
32 tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).