23
Whenוַיְהִי כַּאֲשֶׁרJosephיוֹסֵףcameבָּאto his brothers,אֶל אֶחָיוthey strippedוַיַּפְשִׁיטוּJosephאֶת יוֹסֵףof his robe,אֶת כֻּתָּנְתּוֹthe longהַפַּסִּיםrobeאֶת כְּתֹנֶתthatאֲשֶׁרwas on him;עָלָיו
Genesis 37:23
Study it in the app“When Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped Joseph of his robe, the long robe that was on him;”
Joseph is thrown into a cistern by his own brothers and soldLoneliness
With the Hebrew beneath
Genesis 37:23, word by word
- Whenיְהִיyehi
happen
For something to occur or take place; many stories open with this word.
Where else “yehi” appears- Josephיוֹסֵףyosef
Joseph
Joseph, a name borne by several Israelites, above all the son of Jacob and Rachel, sold into Egypt, who became ruler there and saved his family; his sons Ephraim and Manasseh became tribes. The name means "may he add".
Where else “yosef” appears- cameבָּאba
come
To come, arrive: "days are coming".
Where else “ba” appears- to his brothersאֶחָיechay
brother
A son of the same father or the same mother.
Where else “echay” appears- they strippedיַּפְשִׁיטוּyafshitu
strip
To take off clothes, or strip another.
Where else “yafshitu” appears- of his robeכֻּתָּנְתּkutant
tunic, robe
Tunic, robe: a long garment covering the body.
Where else “kutant” appears- the longפַּסִּיםpasim
long robe
A word of uncertain meaning describing a special tunic: long, reaching to the hands and feet, or of many colors.
Where else “pasim” appears
The context
22Reuben said to them, “Do not shed blood; throw him into this cistern that is in the wilderness, but do not lay a hand on him,” so that he might deliver him from their hands to bring him back to his father.
23 · This verse (above)
24and they took him and threw him into the cistern. The cistern was empty; there was no water in it.
To study Genesis 37 in a group
1. What it says
What did the brothers do to Joseph, and what did they tell Jacob (vv. 23-33)?
2. What it means
What reasons did the brothers have for hating Joseph (vv. 3-4, 8)?
3. How I live it
How do you handle envy when someone receives more attention than you?