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Genesis 37:28-30
New English Translation
Genesis 37:28-30
New English Translation
28 So when the Midianite[a] merchants passed by, Joseph’s brothers pulled[b] him[c] out of the cistern and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. The Ishmaelites[d] then took Joseph to Egypt.
29 Later Reuben returned to the cistern to find that Joseph was not in it![e] He tore his clothes, 30 returned to his brothers, and said, “The boy isn’t there! And I, where can I go?”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Genesis 37:28 sn On the close relationship between Ishmaelites (v. 25) and Midianites, see Judg 8:24.
- Genesis 37:28 tn Heb “they drew and they lifted up.” The referent (Joseph’s brothers) has been specified in the translation for clarity; otherwise the reader might assume the Midianites had pulled Joseph from the cistern (but cf. NAB).
- Genesis 37:28 tn Heb “Joseph” (both here and in the following clause); the proper name has been replaced both times by the pronoun “him” in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 37:28 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Ishmaelites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 37:29 tn Heb “and look, Joseph was not in the cistern.” By the use of וְהִנֵּה (vehinneh, “and look”), the narrator invites the reader to see the situation through Reuben’s eyes.
New English Translation (NET)
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