Genesis 37

vayyeshev ya'aqov be'erets megure aviv be'erets kena'an

Now Jacob was settled in the land where his father had sojourned, the land of Canaan.

elleh toledot ya'aqov yosef ben-sheva-esreh shanah hayah ro'eh et-ekhayw batson vehu na'ar et-bene vilhah ve'et-bene zilpah neshe aviv vayyave yosef et-dibbatam ra'ah el-avihem

This, then, is the line of Jacob: At seventeen years of age, Joseph tended the flocks with his brothers, as a helper to the sons of his father’s wives Bilhah and Zilpah. And Joseph brought bad reports of them to their father.

veyisra'el ahav et-yosef mikkol-banayw ki-ven-zequnim hu lo ve'asah lo ketonet passim

Now Israel loved Joseph best of all his sons—he was the child of his old age; and he had made him an ornamented tunic.

vayyiru ekhayw ki-oto ahav avihem mikkol-ekhayw vayyisne'u oto velo yakhelu dabbero leshalom

And when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of his brothers, they hated him so that they could not speak a friendly word to him.

vayyakhalom yosef khalom vayyagged le'ekhayw vayyosifu od seno oto

Once Joseph had a dream that he told to his brothers; and they hated him even more.

vayyomer alehem shimu-na hakhalom hazzeh asher khalameti

He said to them, “Hear this dream that I have dreamed:

vehinneh anakhnu me'allemim alummim betokh hassadeh vehinneh qamah alummati vegam-nitsavah vehinneh tesubbenah alummotekhem vattishtakhavena la'alummati

There we were binding sheaves in the field, when suddenly my sheaf stood up and remained upright; then your sheaves gathered around and bowed low to my sheaf.”

vayyomeru lo ekhayw hamalokh timlokh alenu im-mashol timshol banu vayyosifu od seno oto al-khalomotayw ve'al-devarayw

His brothers answered, “Do you mean to reign over us? Do you mean to rule over us?” And they hated him even more for his talk about his dreams.

vayyakhalom od khalom akher vayesapper oto le'ekhayw vayyomer hinneh khalamti khalom od vehinneh hashemesh vehayyareakh ve'akhad asar kokhavim mishtakhavim li

He dreamed another dream and told it to his brothers, saying, “Look, I have had another dream: And this time, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”

vayesapper el-aviv ve'el-ekhayw vayyigar-bo aviv vayyomer lo mah hakhalom hazzeh asher khalameta havo navo ani ve'immekha ve'akhekha lehishtakhavot lekha aretsah

And when he told it to his father and brothers, his father berated him. “What,” he said to him, “is this dream you have dreamed? Are we to come, I and your mother and your brothers, and bow low to you to the ground?”

vayeqanu-vo ekhayw ve'aviv shamar et-haddavar

So his brothers were wrought up at him, and his father kept the matter in mind.

vayyelekhu ekhayw lirot eׄtׄ-tson avihem bishkhem

One time, when his brothers had gone to pasture their father’s flock at Shechem,

vayyomer yisra'el el-yosef halo akhekha ro'im bishkhem lekhah ve'eshlakhakha alehem vayyomer lo hinneni

Israel said to Joseph, “Your brothers are pasturing at Shechem. Come, I will send you to them.” He answered, “I am ready.”

vayyomer lo lekh-na re'eh et-shelom akhekha ve'et-shelom hatson vahashiveni davar vayyishlakhehu me'emeq khevron vayyavo shekhemah

And he said to him, “Go and see how your brothers are and how the flocks are faring, and bring me back word.” So he sent him from the valley of Hebron. When he reached Shechem,

vayyimtsa'ehu ish vehinneh to'eh bassadeh vayyishalehu ha'ish lemor mah-ttevaqqesh

a man came upon him wandering in the fields. The man asked him, “What are you looking for?”

vayyomer et-akhay anokhi mevaqqesh haggidah-nna li efoh hem ro'im

He answered, “I am looking for my brothers. Could you tell me where they are pasturing?”

vayyomer ha'ish nase'u mizzeh ki shamati omerim nelekhah dotayenah vayyelekh yosef akhar ekhayw vayyimtsa'em bedotan

The man said, “They have gone from here, for I heard them say: Let us go to Dothan.” So Joseph followed his brothers and found them at Dothan.

vayyiru oto merakhoq uveterem yiqrav alehem vayyitnakkelu oto lahamito

They saw him from afar, and before he came close to them they conspired to kill him.

vayyomeru ish el-akhiv hinneh ba'al hakhalomot hallazeh ba

They said to one another, “Here comes that dreamer!

ve'attah lekhu venahargehu venashlikhehu be'akhad habborot ve'amarnu khayyah ra'ah akhalatehu venireh mah-yyihyu khalomotayw

Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; and we can say, ‘A savage beast devoured him.’ We shall see what comes of his dreams!”

vayyishma re'uven vayyatsilehu miyyadam vayyomer lo nakkennu nafesh

But when Reuben heard it, he tried to save him from them. He said, “Let us not take his life.”

vayyomer alehem re'uven al-tishpekhu-dam hashlikhu oto el-habbor hazzeh asher bammidbar veyad al-tishlekhu-vo lema'an hatsil oto miyyadam lahashivo el-aviv

And Reuben went on, “Shed no blood! Cast him into that pit out in the wilderness, but do not touch him yourselves”—intending to save him from them and restore him to his father.

vayehi ka'asher-ba yosef el-ekhayw vayyafshitu et-yosef et-kuttonto et-ketonet happassim asher alayw

When Joseph came up to his brothers, they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the ornamented tunic that he was wearing,

vayyiqqakhuhu vayyashlikhu oto habborah vehabbor req en bo mayim

and took him and cast him into the pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it.

vayyeshevu le'ekhol-lekhem vayyisu enehem vayyiru vehinneh orekhat yishme'elim ba'ah miggilad ugemallehem nose'im nekhot utseri valot holekhim lehorid mitsrayemah

Then they sat down to a meal. Looking up, they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, their camels bearing gum, balm, and ladanum to be taken to Egypt.

vayyomer yehudah el-ekhayw mah-bbetsa ki naharog et-akhinu vekhissinu et-damo

Then Judah said to his brothers, “What do we gain by killing our brother and covering up his blood?

lekhu venimkerennu layyishme'elim veyadenu al-tehi-vo ki-akhinu vesarenu hu vayyishme'u ekhayw

Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, but let us not do away with him ourselves. After all, he is our brother, our own flesh.” His brothers agreed.

vayya'avru anashim midyanim sokharim vayyimshekhu vayya'alu et-yosef min-habbor vayyimkeru et-yosef layyishme'elim be'esrim kasef vayyavi'u et-yosef mitsrayemah

When those Midianite traders passed by, the brothers pulled Joseph up out of the pit. They sold Joseph for twenty pieces of silver to the Ishmaelites, who brought Joseph to Egypt.

vayyashov re'uven el-habbor vehinneh en-yosef babbor vayyiqra et-begadayw

When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not in the pit, he rent his clothes.

vayyashov el-ekhayw vayyomar hayyeled enennu va'ani anah ani-va

Returning to his brothers, he said, “The boy is gone! Now, what am I to do?”

vayyiqkhu et-ketonet yosef vayyishkhatu se'ir izzim vayyitbelu et-hakkuttonet baddam

Then they took Joseph’s tunic, slaughtered a kid, and dipped the tunic in the blood.

vayeshallekhu et-ketonet happassim vayyavi'u el-avihem vayyomeru zot matsanu hakker-na hakketonet binkha hiv im-lo

They had the ornamented tunic taken to their father, and they said, “We found this. Please examine it; is it your son’s tunic or not?”

vayyakkirah vayyomer ketonet beni khayyah ra'ah akhalatehu tarof toraf yosef

He recognized it, and said, “My son’s tunic! A savage beast devoured him! Joseph was torn by a beast!”

vayyiqra ya'aqov simlotayw vayyasem saq bemotnayw vayyitabbel al-beno yamim rabbim

Jacob rent his clothes, put sackcloth on his loins, and observed mourning for his son many days.

vayyaqumu khol-banayw vekhol-benotayw lenakhamo vayema'en lehitnakhem vayyomer ki-ered el-beni avel she'olah vayyevk oto aviv

All his sons and daughters sought to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted, saying, “No, I will go down mourning to my son in Sheol.” Thus his father bewailed him.

vehammedanim makheru oto el-mitsrayim lefotifar seris paroh sar hattabbakhim

The Midianites, meanwhile, sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, a courtier of Pharaoh and his prefect.