Amplified Bible (AMP)

Jacob’s Fear of Esau

1 Then as Jacob went on his way, the angels of God met him [to reassure and protect him].

2 When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is God’s camp.” So he named that place Mahanaim (double camps).

3 Then Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom.

4 He commanded them, saying, “This is what to say to my lord Esau: ‘Your servant Jacob says this, “I have been living temporarily with Laban, and have stayed there until now;

5 I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, male servants, and female servants; and I have sent [this message] to tell my lord, so that I may find graceandkindness in your sight.”’”

6 The messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and there are four hundred men with him.”

7 Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; and he divided the people who were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two camps;

8 and he said, “If Esau comes to the one camp and attacks it, then the other camp which is left will escape.”

9 Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord, who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your people, and I will make you prosper,’

10 I am unworthy of all the lovingkindnessandcompassion and of all the faithfulness which You have shown to Your servant. With only my staff [long ago] I crossed over this Jordan, and now I have become [blessed and increased into these] two groups [of people].

11 Save me, please, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, that he will come and attack me and the mothers with the children.

12 And You [Lord] said, ‘I will certainly make you prosper and make your descendants as [numerous as] the sand of the sea, which is too great to be counted.’”

13 So Jacob spent the night there. Then he selected a present for his brother Esau from the livestock he had acquired:

14 two hundred female goats, twenty male goats, two hundred ewes, twenty rams,

15 thirty milking camels with their colts, forty cows, ten bulls, twenty female donkeys, and ten [donkey] colts.

16 He put them into the care of his servants, every herd by itself, and said to his servants, “Go on ahead of me, and put an interval [of space] between theindividualherds.”

17 Then he commanded the one in front, saying, “When Esau my brother meets you and asks to whom you belong, and where you are going, and whose are theanimalsin front of you?

18 then you shall say, ‘They are your servant Jacob’s; they are a gift sent to my lord Esau. And he also is behind us.’”

19 And so Jacob commanded the second and the third as well, and all that followed the herds, saying, “This is what you shall say to Esau when you meet him;

20 and you shall say, ‘Look, your servant Jacob is behind us.’” For he said [to himself], “I will try to appease him with the gift that is going ahead of me. Then afterward I will see him; perhaps he will acceptandforgive me.”

21 So the gift [of the herds of livestock] went on ahead of him, and he himself spent that night back in the camp.

22 But he got up that same night and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven children, and waded over the ford of the Jabbok.

23 Then he took them and sent them across the brook. And he also sent across whatever he had.

Jacob Wrestles

24 So Jacob was left alone, and aMan [came and] wrestled with him until daybreak.

25 When the Man saw that He had not prevailed against Jacob, He touched his hip joint; and Jacob’s hip was dislocated as he wrestled with Him.

26 Then He said, “Let Me go, for day is breaking.” But Jacob said, “I will not let You go unless You declare a blessing on me.”

27 So He asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.”

28 And He said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, butIsrael; for you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed.”

29 Then Jacob asked Him, “Please tell me Your name.” But He said, “Why is it that you ask My name?” And He declared a blessing [of the covenant promises] on Jacob there.

30 So Jacob named the place Peniel (the face of God),saying,“For I have seen God face to face, yet my life has not been snatched away.”

31 Now the sun rose on him as he passed Penuel (Peniel), and he was limping because of his hip.

32 Therefore, to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon of the hip which is on the socket of the thigh, because He touched the socket of Jacob’s thigh by the tendon of the hip.

Jacob Meets Esau

1 Then Jacob looked up, and saw Esau coming with four hundred men. So he divided the children among Leah and Rachel and the two maids.

2 He put the maids and their children in front, Leah and her children after them, and Rachel and Joseph last of all.

3 Then Jacob crossed over [the stream] ahead of them and bowed himself to the ground seven times [bowing and moving forward each time], until he approached his brother.

4 But Esau ran to meet him and embraced him, and hugged his neck and kissed him, and they wept [for joy].

5 Esau looked up and saw the women and the children, and said, “Who are these with you?” So Jacob replied, “They are the children whom God has graciously given your servant.”

6 Then the maids approached with their children, and they bowed down.

7 Leah also approached with her children, and they bowed down. Afterward Joseph and Rachel approached, and they bowed down.

8 Esau asked, “What do you mean by all this company which I have met?” And he answered, “[These are] to find favor in the sight of my lord.”

9 But Esau said, “I have plenty, my brother; keep what you have for yourself.”

10 Jacob replied, “No, please, if now I have found favor in your sight, then accept my gift [as a blessing] from my hand, for I see your face as if I had seen the face of God, and you have received me favorably.

11 Please accept my blessing (gift) which has been brought to you, for God has dealt graciously with me and I have everything [that I could possibly want].” So Jacob kept urging him and Esau accepted it.

12 Then Esau said, “Let us get started on our journey and I will go in front of you [to lead the way].”

13 But Jacob replied, “You know, my lord, that the children are frailandneed gentle care, and the nursing flocks and herds [with young] are of concern to me; for if the men should drive them hard for a single day, all the flocks will die.

14 Please let my lord go on ahead of his servant, and I will move on slowly, governed by the pace of the livestock that are in front of me and according to the endurance of the children,until I come to my lord in Seir [in Edom].”

15 Then Esau said, “Please let me leave with you some of the people who are with me.” But Jacob said, “What need is there [for it]? Let me find favor in the sight of my lord.”

16 So Esau turned back [toward the south] that day on his way to Seir.

17 But Jacob journeyed [north] to Succoth, and built himself a house and made shelters for his livestock; so the name of the place is Succoth (huts, shelters).

Jacob Settles in Shechem

18 When Jacob came from Paddan-aram, he arrived safelyandin peace at the city of Shechem, in the land of Canaan, and camped in front of the [walled] city.

19 Then he bought the piece of land on which he had pitched his tents fromthe sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundredpieces of money.

20 There he erected an altar and called itEl-Elohe-Israel.

The Treachery of Jacob’s Sons

1 Now Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out [unescorted] to visit the girls of the land.

2 When Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince (sheik) of the land, saw her, he kidnapped her and lay [intimately] with her by force [humbling and offending her].

3 But his soul longed for and clung to Dinah daughter of Jacob, and he loved the girl and spoke comfortingly to her young heart’s wishes.

4 So Shechem said to his father Hamor, “Get me this young woman as a wife.”

5 Now Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled (violated) Dinah his daughter; but his sons were in the field with his livestock, so Jacob said nothing until they came in.

6 But Shechem’s father Hamor went to Jacob to talk with him.

7 Now when Jacob’s sons heard of it they came in from the field; they were deeply grieved, and they were very angry, for Shechem had done a disgraceful thing toIsrael by lying with Jacob’s daughter, for such a thing is not to be done.

8 But Hamor conferred with them, saying, “The soul of my son Shechem [deeply] longs for your daughter [and sister]. Please give her to him as his wife.

9 And [beyond that] intermarry with us; give your daughters to us [as wives] and take our daughters for yourselves.

10 In this way you shall live with us; the country will be open to you; live and do business in it and acquire propertyandpossessions in it.”

11 Shechem also said to Dinah’s father and to her brothers, “Let me find favor in your sight, and I will give you whatever you ask of me.

12 Demand of me a very large bridal payment and gift [as compensation for giving up your daughter and sister], and I will give you whatever you tell me; only give me the girl to be my wife.”

13 Jacob’s sons answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, because Shechem had defiledanddisgraced their sister Dinah.

14 They said to them, “We cannot do this thing and give our sister [in marriage] to one who is not circumcised, because that would be a disgrace to us.

15 But we will consent to you only on thiscondition:if you will become like us, in that every male among youconsents tobe circumcised,

16 then we will give our daughters to you [in marriage], and we will take your daughters for ourselves, and we will live with you and become one people.

17 But if you do not listen to usandrefuse to be circumcised, then we will take our daughter [Dinah] and go.”

18 Their words seemed reasonable to Hamor and his son Shechem,

19 and the young man did not hesitate to do the [required] thing, for he was delighted with Jacob’s daughter. Now he was more respectedandhonored than all [others] in the household of his father.

20 Then Hamor and Shechem his son came to the gate of their [walled] city [where the leading men would meet] and spoke with the men of the city, saying,

21 “These men are peacefulandfriendly with us; so let them live in the land and do business in it, for the land is large enough [for us and] for them; let us take their daughters for wives and let us give them our daughters [in marriage].

22 But only on thisconditionwill the men consent to our request that they live among us and become one people: that every male among us become circumcised just as they are circumcised.

23 Will not their cattle and their possessions and all their animals be ours [if we do this]? Let us consent [to do as they ask], and they will live here with us.”

24 And every [Canaanite] man who went out of the city gate listenedandconsidered what Hamor and Shechem said; and every male whowas a resident of that city was circumcised.

25 Now on the third day [after the circumcision], when all the men were [terribly] soreandin pain, two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s [full] brothers, took their swords, boldly entered the city [without anyone suspecting them of evil intent], and they killed every male.

26 They killed Hamor and his son Shechem with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house [where she was staying], and left.

27 Then Jacob’s [other] sons came upon those who were killed and looted the town, because their sister had been defiledanddisgraced.

28 They took the Canaanites’ flocks and their herds and their donkeys, and whatever was in the city and in the field;

29 they looted all their wealth, and [took captive] all their children and their wives, even everything that was in the houses.

30 Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have ruined me, making me a stench to the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites and the Perizzites! My men are few in number, and the men of the land will band together against me and attack me; I shall be destroyed, I and my household.”

31 But they said, “Should he [be permitted to] treat our sister as a prostitute?”

Jacob Moves to Bethel

1 Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel and live there, and make an altar there to God, who appeared to you [in a distinct manifestation] when you fled [years ago] from Esau your brother.”

2 Then Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the [idols and images of] foreign gods that are among you, and ceremonially purify yourselves and change [into fresh] clothes;

3 then let us get up and go up to Bethel, and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.”

4 So they gave Jacob all the [idols and images of the] foreign gods they had and the rings which were in their ears [worn as charms against evil], and Jacob buried them under theoak tree near Shechem.

5 As they journeyed, there was a great [supernatural] terror [sent from God] on the cities around them, and [for that reason] the Canaanites did not pursue the sons of Jacob.

6 So Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him.

7 There he built an altar [to worship the Lord], and called the place El-bethel (God of the House of God), because there God had revealed Himself to him when he escaped from his brother.

8 Now Deborah, [who once was] Rebekah’s nurse, died and was buried below Bethel under the oak; and the name of it was called Allon-bacuth (Oak of Weeping).

Jacob Is Named Israel

9 Then God [in a visible manifestation] appeared to Jacob again when he came out of Paddan-aram, and declared a blessing on him.

10 Again God said to him,

“Your name is Jacob;

You shall no longer be called Jacob,

But Israel shall be your name.”

So he was calledIsrael.

11 And God said to him,

“I amGod Almighty.

Be fruitful and multiply;

A nation and a company of nations shall come from you,

And kings shall be born of yourloins.

12 “The land which I gave Abraham and Isaac

I will give to you,

and to your descendants after you I will give the land.”

13 Then God ascended from Jacob in the place where He had spoken with him.

14 Jacob set up a pillar (memorial, monument) in the place where he had talked with God, a pillar of stone, and he poured a drink offering [of wine] on it; he also poured oil on it [to declare it sacred for God’s purpose].

15 So Jacob named the place where God had spoken with him, Bethel (the House of God).

16 Then they journeyed from Bethel; and when there was still some distance to go to Ephrath (Bethlehem), Rachel began to give birth and had difficultyandsuffered severely.

17 When she was in hard labor the midwife said to her, “Do not be afraid; you now have another son.”

18 And as her soul was departing, (for she died), she named him Ben-oni (son of my sorrow); but his father called him Benjamin (son of the right hand).

19 So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).

20 Jacob set a pillar (memorial, monument) on her grave; that is thepillar of Rachel’s grave to this day.

21 Then Israel (Jacob) journeyed on and pitched his tent on the other side of the tower of Eder [the lookout point used by shepherds].

22 While Israel was living in that land, Reuben [his eldest son] went and lay with Bilhah his father’sconcubine, and Israel heard about it.

The Sons of Israel

Now Jacob had twelve sons–

23 The sons of Leah: Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn, then Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun;

24 and the sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin;

25 and the sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s maid: Dan and Naphtali;

26 and the sons of Zilpah, Leah’s maid: Gad and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob born to him in Paddan-aram.

27 Jacob came to Isaac his father at Mamre of Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had lived temporarily.

28 Now the days of Isaac were a hundred and eighty years.

29 Isaac’s spirit departed and he died and wasgathered to his people [who had preceded him in death], an old man full of days (satisfied, fulfilled); his sons Esau and Jacob buried him [in the cave of Machpelah with his parents Abraham and Sarah].

Esau Moves

1 Now these arethe records ofthe descendants of Esau, (that is, Edom).

2 Esau took his [three] wives from the daughters of Canaan: Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Oholibamah the daughter of Anah, the son of Zibeon the Hivite,

3 and Basemath, Ishmael’s daughter, sister of Nebaioth.

4 Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau, and Basemath bore Reuel,

5 and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These are the sons of Esau born to him in Canaan.

6 Now Esau took his wives and his sons and his daughters and all the members of his household, and his livestock and all his cattle and all his possessions which he had acquired in the land of Canaan, and he went to a land away from his brother Jacob.

7 For their [great flocks and herds and] possessions made it impossible for them to live together [in the same region]; the land in which they lived temporarily could not support them because of their livestock.

8 So Esau lived in the hill country of Seir; Esau is Edom.

Descendants of Esau

9 These arethe records ofthe generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in the hill country of Seir.

10 These are the names of Esau’s sons: Eliphaz, the son of Adah, Esau’s wife, and Reuel, the son of Basemath, Esau’s wife.

11 And the sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz.

12 And Timna was aconcubine of Eliphaz, Esau’s son; and she bore Amalek to Eliphaz. These are the sons of Adah, Esau’s wife.

13 These are the sons of Reuel: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These are the sons of Basemath, Esau’s wife.

14 And these are the sons of Oholibamah, Esau’s wife, the daughter of Anah, the son of Zibeon. She bore to Esau: Jeush, Jalam, and Korah.

15 These are thetribalchiefs of the sons of Esau: The sons of Eliphaz, the firstborn of Esau: Chiefs Teman, Omar, Zepho, Kenaz,

16 Korah, Gatam, and Amalek. These are the chiefs of Eliphaz in the land of Edom; they are the sons of Adah.

17 These are the sons of Reuel, Esau’s son: Chiefs Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, Mizzah. These are the chiefs of Reuel in the land of Edom; they are the sons of Basemath, Esau’s wife.

18 These are the sons of Oholibamah, Esau’s wife: Chiefs Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These are the chiefs born of Oholibamah, daughter of Anah, Esau’s wife.

19 These are the sons of Esau, (that is, Edom), and these are their chiefs.

20 These are the sons of Seir the Horite, the inhabitants of the land: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah,

21 Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan. These are the chiefs of the Horites, the sons of Seir in the land of Edom.

22 The sons of Lotan are Hori and Hemam; and Lotan’s sister is Timna.

23 The sons of Shobal are these: Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam.

24 These are the sons of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah. This is the Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness as he pastured the donkeys of Zibeon his father.

25 The children of Anah are these: Dishon and Oholibamah [Esau’s wife], the daughter of Anah.

26 These are the sons of Dishon: Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Cheran.

27 Ezer’s sons are these: Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan.

28 The sons of Dishan are these: Uz and Aran.

29 The Horite chiefs are these: Chiefs Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah,

30 Dishon, Ezer, Dishan. These are the Horite chiefs, according to their various clans in the land of Seir.

31 And these are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the Israelites:

32 Bela the son of Beor reigned in Edom, and the name of his city was Dinhabah.

33 Now Bela died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned as his successor.

34 Then Jobab died, and Husham of the land of the Temanites reigned as his successor.

35 And Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who defeated Midian in the country of Moab, reigned as his successor. The name of his [walled] city was Avith.

36 Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah succeeded him.

37 Then Samlah died, and Shaul of Rehoboth on the river [Euphrates] reigned as his successor.

38 And Shaul died, and Baal-hanan son of Achbor reigned as his successor.

39 Baal-hanan the son of Achbor died, and thenHadar reigned [as his successor]. His [walled] city wasPau; his wife’s name was Mehetabel the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab.

40 And these are the names of thetribalchiefs of Esau, according to their families and places of residence, by their names: Chiefs Timna, Alvah, Jetheth,

41 Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon,

42 Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar,

43 Magdiel, and Iram. These are thetribalchiefs of Edom (that is, of Esau the father of the Edomites), according to their dwelling places in the land of their possession.

Joseph’s Dream

1 So Jacob (Israel) lived in the landwhere his father [Isaac] had been a stranger (sojourner, resident alien), in the land of Canaan.

2 These are the generations of Jacob.

Joseph, when he was seventeen years old, was shepherding the flock with his brothers [Dan, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher]; the boy was with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s [secondary] wives; and Joseph brought back a bad report about them to their father.

3 Now Israel (Jacob) loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a [distinctive]multicolored tunic.

4 His brothers saw that their father loved Joseph more than all of his brothers; so they hated him and could not [find it within themselves to] speak to him on friendly terms.

5 Now Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it to his brothers, and theyhated him even more.

6 He said to them, “Please listen to [the details of] this dream which I have dreamed;

7 we [brothers] were binding sheaves [of grain stalks] in the field, and lo, my sheaf [suddenly] got up and stood uprightandremained standing; and behold, your sheaves stood all around my sheaf and bowed down [in respect].”

8 His brothers said to him, “Are you actually going to reign over us? Are you really going to ruleandgovern us as your subjects?” So they hated him even more for [telling them about] his dreams and for his [arrogant] words.

9 But Joseph dreamed still another dream, and told it to his brothers [as well]. He said, “See here, I have again dreamed a dream, and lo, [this time I saw] eleven stars and the sun and the moon bowed down [in respect] to me!”

10 He told it to his father as well as to his brothers; but his father rebuked him and said to him [in disbelief], “What is [the meaning of] this dream that you have dreamed? Shall I and your mother and your brothers actually come to bow down to the ground [in respect] before you?”

11 Joseph’s brothers were enviousandjealous of him, but his father kept the words [of Joseph]in mind[wondering about their meaning].

12 Then his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock near Shechem.

13 Israel (Jacob) said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers pasturing [the flock] at Shechem? Come, and I will send you to them.” And he said, “Here I am [ready to obey you].”

14 Then Jacob said to him, “Please go and see whether everything is all right with your brothers and all right with the flock; then bring word [back] to me.” So he sent him from the Hebron Valley, and he went to Shechem.

15 Now a certain man found Joseph, and saw that he was wandering aroundandhad lost his way in the field; so the man asked him, “What are you looking for?”

16 He said, “I am looking for my brothers. Please tell me where they are pasturingour flocks.”

17 Then the man said, “[They were here, but] they have moved on from this place. I heard them say, ‘Let us go toDothan.’” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan.

The Plot against Joseph

18 And when they saw him from a distance, even before he came close to them, they plotted to kill him.

19 They said to one another, “Look, here comes thisdreamer.

20 Now then, come and let us kill him and throw him into one of thepits (cisterns, underground water storage); then we will say [to our father], ‘A wild animal killedanddevoured him’; and we shall see what will become of his dreams!”

21 Now Reuben [the eldest] heard this and rescued him from their hands and said, “Let us not take his life.”

22 Reuben said to them, “Do not shed his blood, but [instead] throw him [alive] into the pit that is here in the wilderness, and do not lay a hand on him [to kill him]”–[he said this so] that he could rescue him from them and return him [safely] to his father.

23 Now when Joseph reached his brothers, they stripped him of his tunic, the [distinctive]multicolored tunic which he was wearing;

24 then they took him and threw him into the pit. Now the pit was empty; there was no water in it.

25 Then they sat down to eat their meal. When they looked up, they saw a caravan ofIshmaelites coming from Gilead [east of the Jordan], with their camels bearing ladanum resin [for perfume] and balm andmyrrh, going on their way to carrythe cargodown to Egypt.

26 Judah said to his brothers, “What do we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood (murder)?

27 Come, let us [instead] sell him to these Ishmaelites [andMidianites] and not lay our hands on him, because he is our brother and our flesh.” So his brothers listened to himandagreed.

28 Then as theMidianite [and Ishmaelite] traders were passing by, the brothers pulled Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and they sold him to the Ishmaelites for twentyshekelsof silver. And so they took Joseph [as a captive] into Egypt.

29 Now Reuben [unaware of what had happened] returned to the pit, and [to his great alarm found that] Joseph was not in the pit; so he tore his clothes [in deep sorrow].

30 He rejoined his brothers and said, “The boy is not there; as for me, where shall I go [to hide from my father]?”

31 Then they took Joseph’s tunic, slaughtered a male goat and dipped the tunic in the blood;

32 and they brought the multicolored tunic to their father, saying, “We have found this; please examine itanddecide whether or not it is your son’s tunic.”

33 He recognized it and said, “It is my son’s tunic. A wild animal has devoured him; Joseph is without doubt torn in pieces!”

34 So Jacob tore his clothes [in grief], puton sackcloth and mourned many days for his son.

35 Then all his sons and daughters attempted to console him, but he refused to be comforted and said, “I will go down to Sheol (the place of the dead) in mourning for my son.” And his father wept for him.

36 Meanwhile, in Egypt the Midianites sold Joseph [as a slave] to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and the captain of the [royal] guard.

Judah and Tamar

1 Now at that time, Judah left his brothers and went down to [stay with] a certain Adullamite named Hirah.

2 There Judah saw a daughter of Shua, a Canaanite, and he took her [as his wife] and lived with her.

3 So she conceived and gave birth to a son and Judah named him Er.

4 Then she conceived again and gave birth to a son and named him Onan.

5 Again she conceived and gave birth to still another son and named him Shelah. It was at Chezib that she gave birth to him.

6 Now Judah took a wife for Er his firstborn; her name was Tamar.

7 But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lordkilled him [in judgment].

8 Then Judah told Onan, “Go in to your brother’s widow, and perform your duty as a brother-in-law [under the levirate marriage custom]; [be her husband and] raise children for [the name of] your brother.”

9 Onan knew that the child (heir) would not be his [but his dead brother’s]; so whenever he lay with his brother’s widow, he spilled his seed on the ground [to prevent conception], so that he would not give a child to his brother.

10 But what he did was displeasing in the sight of the Lord; therefore He killed him also [in judgment].

11 Then Judah said to Tamar, his daughter-in-law, “Remain a widow at your father’s house until Shelah my [youngest] son is grown”; [but he was deceiving her] for he thought that [if Shelah should marry her] he too might die like his brothers did. So Tamar went and lived in her father’s house.

12 But quite a while later, Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua, died; and when the time of mourning was ended, he went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah with his friend Hirah the Adullamite.

13 Tamar was told, “Listen, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep.”

14 So she removed her widow’s clothes and covered herself with a veil, and wrapped herself up [in disguise], and sat in the gateway of Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah had grown up, and she had not been given to him as a wife [as Judah had promised].

15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a [temple] prostitute, for she had covered her face [as such women did].

16 He turned to her by the road, and said, “Please come, let me lie with you”; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. And she said, “What will you give me, that you may lie with me?”

17 He answered, “I will send you a young goat from the flock.” And she said, “Will you give me a pledge [as a deposit] until you send it?”

18 He said, “What pledge shall I give you?” She said, “Your seal and your cord, and the staff that is in your hand.” So he gave them to her and was intimate with her, and she conceived by him.

19 Then she got up and left, and removed her veil and put on her widow’s clothing.

20 When Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite, to get his pledge [back] from the woman, he was unable to find her.

21 He asked the men of that place, “Where is the temple prostitute who was by the roadside at Enaim?” They said, “There was no prostitute here.”

22 So he returned to Judah, and said, “I cannot find her; also the local men said, ‘There was no prostitute around here.’”

23 Then Judah said, “Let her keep the things (pledge articles) for herself, otherwise we will be a laughingstock [searching everywhere for her]. After all, I sent this young goat, but you did not find her.”

24 About three months later Judah was told, “Tamar your daughter-in-law has played the [role of a] prostitute, and she is with child because of her immorality.” So Judah said, “Bring her out and let her be burned [to death as punishment]!”

25 While she was being brought out, she [took the things Judah had given her and] sent [them along with a message] to her father-in-law, saying, “I am with child by the man to whom these articles belong.” And she added, “Please examine [them carefully] and see [clearly] to whom these things belong, the seal and the cord and staff.”

26 Judah recognized the articles, and said, “She has been more righteous [in this matter] than I, because I did not give her to my son Shelah [as I had promised].” And Judah did not have [intimate] relations with her again.

27 Now when the time came for her to give birth, there were twins in her womb.

28 And when she was in labor, one [baby] put out his hand, and the midwife took his hand and tied a scarlet thread on it, saying, “This one was born first.”

29 But he pulled back his hand, and his brother was born first. And she said, “What a breach you have made for yourself [to be the firstborn]!” So he was named Perez (breach, break forth).

30 Afterward his brother who had the scarlet [thread] on his hand was born and was named Zerah (brightness).

Joseph’s Success in Egypt

1 Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an Egyptian officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the [royal] guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites, who had taken him down there.

2 The Lordwas with Joseph, and he [even though a slave] became a successfulandprosperous man; and he was in the house of his master, the Egyptian.

3 Now his master saw that the Lordwas with him and that the Lordcaused all that he did to prosper (succeed) in his hand.

4 So Joseph pleased Potipharandfound favor in his sight and he served him as his personal servant. He made Joseph overseer over his house, and he put all that he owned in Joseph’s charge.

5 It happened that from the time that he made Joseph overseer in his house and [put him in charge] over all that he owned, that the Lordblessed the Egyptian’s house because of Joseph; so the Lord’sblessing was on everything that Potiphar owned, in the house and in the field.

6 So Potiphar left all that he owned in Joseph’s charge; and with Joseph there he did not [need to]pay attention to anything except the food he ate.

Now Joseph was handsomeandattractive in form and appearance.

7 Then after a time his master’s wifelooked at Joseph with desire, and she said, “Lie with me.”

8 But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Look, with me in the house, my master does not concern himself with anything; he has put everything that he owns in my charge.

9 He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept anything from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil and sin against God [and your husband]?”

10 And so it was that she spoke to Joseph [persistently] day after day, but he did not listen to her [plea] to lie beside her or be with her.

11 Then it happened one day that Joseph went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the men of the household was there in the house.

12 She caught Joseph by his [outer] robe, saying, “Lie with me!” But he left his robe in her hand and ran, and got outside [the house].

13 When she saw that he had left his robe in her hand and had run outside,

14 she called to the men of her household and said to them, “Look at this, your master has brought a Hebrew [into the household] to mockandinsult us; he came to me to lie with me, and I screamed.

15 When he heard me screaming, he left his robe with me and ran outside [the house].”

16 So she left Joseph’s [outer] robe beside her until his master came home.

17 Then she told her husband the same story, saying, “The Hebrew servant, whom you brought among us, came to me to mockandinsult me;

18 then as soon as I raised my voice and screamed, he left his robe with me and ran outside [the house].”

Joseph Imprisoned

19 And when Joseph’s master heard the words of his wife, saying, “This is the way your servant treated me,” his anger burned.

20 So Joseph’s master took him and put him in the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were confined; so he was there in the prison.

21 But the Lordwas with Joseph and extended lovingkindness to him, and gave him favor in the sight of the warden.

22 The warden committed to Joseph’s care (management) all the prisoners who were in the prison; so that whatever was done there, he wasin charge of it.

23 The warden paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph’s care because the Lordwas with him; whatever Joseph did, the Lordmade to prosper.

Joseph Interprets a Dream

1 Now some time later, the cupbearer (butler) and the baker for the king of Egypt offended their lord, Egypt’s king.

2 Pharaoh (Sesostris II) was extremely angry with his two officials, the chief of the cupbearers and the chief of the bakers.

3 He put them in confinement in the house of the captain of the guard, in the same prison where Joseph was confined.

4 The captain of the guard put Joseph in charge of them, and he served them; and they continued to be in custody for some time.

5 Then the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison, both dreamed a dream in the same night, each man with his [own significant] dream and each dream with its [personal] interpretation.

6 When Joseph came to them in the morning and looked at them, [he saw that] they were sadanddepressed.

7 So he asked Pharaoh’s officials who were in confinement with him in his master’s house, “Why do you look so down-hearted today?”

8 And they said to him, “We have [each] dreamed [distinct] dreams and there is no one to interpret them.” So Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Please tell me [your dreams].”

9 So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, “In my dream there was a grapevine in front of me;

10 and on the vine were three branches. Then as soon as it budded, its blossoms burst open, and its clusters produced ripe grapes [in rapid succession].

11 Now Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes and squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup; then I placed the cup into Pharaoh’s hand.”

12 Then Joseph said to him, “This is the interpretation of it: the three branches represent three days;

13 within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head (present you in public) and restore you to your position; and you will [again] put Pharaoh’s cup into his hand just as [you did] when you were his cupbearer.

14 Only think of me when it goes well with you, and please show me kindness by mentioning me to Pharaoh and get me out of this house.

15 For in fact I wastaken (stolen) from the land of the Hebrews by [unlawful] force, and even here I have done nothing for which they should put me in the dungeon.”

16 When the chief baker saw that the interpretation [of the dream] was good, he said to Joseph, “I also dreamed, and [in my dream] there were three cake baskets on my head;

17 and in the top basket there were some of all sorts of baked food for Pharaoh, but the birds [of prey] were eating [these foods] out of the basket on my head.”

18 Joseph answered, “This is the interpretation of it: the three baskets represent three days;

19 within three more days Pharaoh willlift up your head and will hang you on a tree (gallows, pole), and [you will not so much as be given a burial, but] the birds will eat your flesh.”

20 Now on the third day, [which was] the Pharaoh’s birthday, he [released the two men from prison and] made a feast for all his servants; and he lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker [that is, presented them in public] among his servants.

21 He restored the chief cupbearer to his office, and the cupbearer [once again] put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand;

22 but Pharaoh hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had interpreted [the meaning of the dreams] to them.

23 Yet [even after all that] the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot [all about] him.

Pharaoh’s Dream

1 Now it happened at the end of two full years that Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing by theNile.

2 And lo, there came up out of the Nile seven [healthy] cows, sleekandhandsome and fat; and they grazed in the reed grass [in a marshy pasture].

3 Then behold, seven other cows came up after them out of the Nile, ugly and gauntandraw-boned, and stood by thefatcows on the bank of the Nile.

4 Then the ugly and gauntandraw-boned cows ate up the seven sleek and fat cows. Then Pharaoh awoke.

5 Then he fell asleep and dreamed a second time; and behold, seven ears of grain came up on a single stalk, plump and good.

6 Then behold, seven ears [of grain], thin and dried up by the east wind, sprouted after them.

7 Then the thin ears swallowed the seven plump and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and it was a dream.

8 So when morning came his spirit was troubledanddisturbed and he sent and called for all the magicians and all the wise men of Egypt. And Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them to him.

9 Then the chief cupbearer spoke to Pharaoh, saying, “I would mention my faults today.

10 [Two years ago] Pharaoh was angry with his servants, and he put me in confinement in the house of the captain of the guard, both me and the chief baker.

11 We dreamed a dream on the same night, he and I; each of us dreamed according to [the significance of] the interpretation of his own dream.

12 Now there was with us [in the prison] a young man, a Hebrew, servant to the captain of the guard; and we told him, and he interpreted our dreams for us, to each man according to the significance of his own dream.

13 And just as he interpreted [the dreams] for us, so it happened; I was restored to my office [as chief cupbearer], and the baker was hanged.”

Joseph Interprets

14 Then Pharaoh sent and called for Joseph, and they hurriedly brought him out of the dungeon; and when Joseph shaved himself and changed his clothes [making himself presentable], he came to Pharaoh.

15 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have dreamed a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it; and I have heard it said about you that you can understand a dream and interpret it.”

16 Joseph answered Pharaoh, “It is not in me [to interpret the dream]; God [not I] will give Pharaoh afavorable answer [through me].”

17 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “In my dream, I was standing on the bank of the Nile;

18 and seven fat, sleekandhandsome cows came up out of the river, and they grazed in the reed grass [of a marshy pasture].

19 Lo, seven other cows came up after them, very ugly and gaunt [just skin and bones]; such emaciated animals as I have never seen in all the land of Egypt.

20 And the lean and ugly cows ate up the first seven fat cows.

21 Yet when they had devoured them, it could not be detected that they had eaten them, because they were still as thinandemaciated as before. Then I awoke [but again I fell asleep and dreamed].

22 I saw in my [second] dream, seven ears [of grain], plump and good, growing on a single stalk;

23 and lo, seven [other] ears, withered, thin, and scorched by the east wind, sprouted after them;

24 and the thin ears devoured the seven good ears. Now I told this to the magiciansandsoothsayers, but there was no one who could explain it [to me].”

25 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The [two] dreams are one [and the same and have one interpretation]; God has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do.

26 The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good ears are seven years; the [two] dreams are one [and the same].

27 The seven thin and ugly cows that came up after them are seven years; and also the seven thin ears, dried upandscorched by the east wind, they are seven years of famineandhunger.

28 This is the message just as I have told Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do.

29 Listen very carefully: seven years of great abundance will come throughout all the land of Egypt;

30 but afterward seven years of famineandhunger will come, and [there will be such desperate need that] all the great abundance [of the previous years] will be forgotten in the land of Egypt [as if it never happened], and famineanddestitution will ravageanddestroy the land.

31 So the great abundance will become forgotten in the land because of that subsequent famine, for it will be very severe.

32 That the dream was repeated twice to Pharaoh [and in two different ways] indicates that this matter is fully determinedandestablished by God, and God will bring it to pass very quickly.

33 So now let Pharaoh [prepare ahead and] look for a man discerningandclear-headed and wise, and set him [in charge] over the land of Egypt [as governor under Pharaoh].

34 Let Pharaoh take action to appoint overseersandofficials over the land, and set aside one-fifth [of the produce] of the [entire] land of Egypt in the seven years of abundance.

35 Let them gather [as a tax] all [of the fifth of] the food of these good years that are coming, and store up grain under the directionandauthority of Pharaoh, and let them guard the food [in fortified granaries] in the cities.

36 That food shall be put [in storage] as a reserve for the land against the seven years of famineandhunger which will occur in the land of Egypt, so that the land (people) will not be ravaged during the famine.”

37 Now the plan seemed good to Pharaoh and to all of his servants.

Joseph Is Made a Ruler of Egypt

38 So Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find a man like this [a man equal to Joseph], in whom is the divine spirit [of God]?”

39 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since [your] God has shown you all this, there is no one as discerningandclear-headed and wise as you are.

40 You shall have charge over my house, and all my people shallbe governed according to your word and pay respect [to you with reverence, submission, and obedience]; only in [matters of] the throne will I be greater than you [in Egypt].”

41 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have set you [in charge] over all the land of Egypt.”

42 Then Pharaoh took off his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, and dressed him in [official] vestments of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck.

43 He had him ride in his second chariot; and runners proclaimed before him, “[Attention,] bow the knee!” And he set him over all the land of Egypt.

44 Moreover, Pharaoh said to Joseph, “ThoughI am Pharaoh, yet without your permission shall no man raise his hand [to do anything] or set his foot [to go anywhere] in all the land of Egypt [all classes of people shall submit to your authority].”

45 Then Pharaoh named JosephZaphenath-paneah; and he gave him Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On (Heliopolis in Egypt), as his wife. And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt [to inspect and govern it].

46 Now Joseph [had been in Egypt thirteen years and] was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Joseph departed from the presence of Pharaoh and went through all the land of Egypt [performing his duties].

47 In the seven abundant years the earth produced handfuls [for each seed planted].

48 And Joseph gathered all the [surplus] food of the seven [good] years in the land of Egypt and stored [enormous quantities of] the food in the cities. He stored away in every city the food [collected] from its own surrounding fields.

49 Thus Joseph gatheredandstored up grain in great abundance like the sand of the sea, until he stopped counting it, for it could not be measured.

The Sons of Joseph

50 Now two sons were born to Joseph before the years of famine came, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, bore to him.

51 Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh (causing to forget), forhe said,“God has made me forget all my troubleandhardship and all [the sorrow of the loss of] my father’s household.”

52 He named the second [son] Ephraim (fruitfulness), for “God has caused me to be fruitfulandvery successful in the land of my suffering.”

53 When the seven years of plenty came to an end in the land of Egypt,

54 the seven years of famine began to come, just as Joseph had said [they would]; the famine was in all the [surrounding] lands, but in the land of Egypt there was bread (food).

55 So when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried out to Pharaoh for food; and Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph; do whatever he says to you.”

56 When the famine wasspreadover all the land, Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold [surplus grain] to the Egyptians; and the famine grew [extremely] severe in the land of Egypt.

57 And [the people of] all countries came to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain, because the famine was severe over all the [known] earth.