Discovery BoxGenesis 46:31-34 
Context46:31 Then Joseph said to his brothers and his father’s household, “I will go up and tell Pharaoh, 1 ‘My brothers and my father’s household who were in the land of Canaan have come to me. 46:32 The men are shepherds; 2 they take care of livestock. 3 They have brought their flocks and their herds and all that they have.’ 46:33 Pharaoh will summon you and say, ‘What is your occupation?’ 46:34 Tell him, ‘Your servants have taken care of cattle 4 from our youth until now, both we and our fathers,’ so that you may live in the land of Goshen, 5 for everyone who takes care of sheep is disgusting 6 to the Egyptians.”
1 tn Heb “tell Pharaoh and say to him.”
2 tn Heb “feeders of sheep.”
3 tn Heb “for men of livestock they are.”
4 tn Heb “your servants are men of cattle.”
5 sn So that you may live in the land of Goshen. Joseph is apparently trying to stress to Pharaoh that his family is self-sufficient, that they will not be a drain on the economy of Egypt. But they will need land for their animals and so Goshen, located on the edge of Egypt, would be a suitable place for them to live. The settled Egyptians were uneasy with nomadic people, but if Jacob and his family settled in Goshen they would represent no threat.
6 tn Heb “is an abomination.” The Hebrew word תּוֹעֵבָה (to’evah, “abomination”) describes something that is loathsome or off-limits. For other practices the Egyptians considered disgusting, see Gen 43:32 and Exod 8:22.
