Genesis 39:6

39:6 So Potiphar ¹  left ²  everything he had in Joseph’s care; ³  he gave no thought ⁴  to anything except the food he ate. ⁵ 

Now Joseph was well built and good-looking. ⁶ 

Genesis 41:21

41:21 When they had eaten them, ⁷  no one would have known ⁸  that they had done so, for they were just as bad-looking as before. Then I woke up.

Genesis 41:27

41:27 The seven lean, bad-looking cows that came up after them represent seven years, as do the seven empty heads of grain burned with the east wind. They represent ⁹  seven years of famine.

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¹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Potiphar) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² sn The Hebrew verb translated left indicates he relinquished the care of it to Joseph. This is stronger than what was said earlier. Apparently Potiphar had come to trust Joseph so much that he knew it was in better care with Joseph than with anyone else.

³ tn Heb “hand.” This is a metonymy for being under the control or care of Joseph.

⁴ tn Heb “did not know.”

⁵ sn The expression except the food he ate probably refers to Potiphar’s private affairs and should not be limited literally to what he ate.

⁶ tn Heb “handsome of form and handsome of appearance.” The same Hebrew expressions were used in Gen 29:17 for Rachel.

⁷ tn Heb “when they went inside them.”

⁸ tn Heb “it was not known.”

⁹ tn Heb “are.” Another option is to translate, “There will be seven years of famine.”