37:3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons 5 because he was a son born to him late in life, 6 and he made a special 7 tunic for him. 37:4 When Joseph’s 8 brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, 9 they hated Joseph 10 and were not able to speak to him kindly. 11
1 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 tn Heb “went in also to Rachel.” The expression “went in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse, i.e., the consummation of the marriage.
3 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
4 tn Heb “and he loved also Rachel, more than Leah, and he served with him still seven other years.”
5 tn The disjunctive clause provides supplemental information vital to the story. It explains in part the brothers’ animosity toward Joseph.
sn The statement Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons brings forward a motif that played an important role in the family of Isaac – parental favoritism. Jacob surely knew what that had done to him and his brother Esau, and to his own family. But now he showers affection on Rachel’s son Joseph.
6 tn Heb “a son of old age was he to him.” This expression means “a son born to him when he [i.e., Jacob] was old.”
7 tn It is not clear what this tunic was like, because the meaning of the Hebrew word that describes it is uncertain. The idea that it was a coat of many colors comes from the Greek translation of the OT. An examination of cognate terms in Semitic suggests it was either a coat or tunic with long sleeves (cf. NEB, NRSV), or a tunic that was richly embroidered (cf. NIV). It set Joseph apart as the favored one.
8 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
9 tn Heb “of his brothers.” This is redundant in contemporary English and has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun “them.”
10 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
11 tn Heb “speak to him for peace.”
12 tn Heb “and at your mouth (i.e., instructions) all my people will kiss.” G. J. Wenham translates this “shall kowtow to your instruction” (Genesis [WBC], 2:395). Although there is some textual support for reading “will be judged, ruled by you,” this is probably an attempt to capture the significance of this word. Wenham lists a number of references where individuals have tried to make connections with other words or expressions – such as a root meaning “order themselves” lying behind “kiss,” or an idiomatic idea of “kiss” meaning “seal the mouth,” and so “be silent and submit to.” See K. A. Kitchen, “The Term Nsq in Genesis 41:40,” ExpTim 69 (1957): 30; D. S. Sperling, “Genesis 41:40: A New Interpretation,” JANESCU 10 (1978): 113-19.
13 tn Heb “only the throne, I will be greater than you.”