37:36 Now 2 in Egypt the Midianites 3 sold Joseph 4 to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard. 5
37:1 But Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, 6 in the land of Canaan. 7
28:1 So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. Then he commanded him, “You must not marry a Canaanite woman! 8
1 tn Heb “two, three.” The narrator may be intentionally vague or uncertain here, or the two numbers may represent alternate traditions.
2 tn The disjunctive clause formally signals closure for this episode of Joseph’s story, which will be resumed in Gen 39.
3 tc The MT spells the name of the merchants as מְדָנִים (mÿdanim, “Medanites”) rather than מִדְיָנִים (midyanim, “Midianites”) as in v. 28. It is likely that the MT is corrupt at this point, with the letter yod (י) being accidentally omitted. The LXX, Vulgate, Samaritan Pentateuch, and Syriac read “Midianites” here. Some prefer to read “Medanites” both here and in v. 28, but Judg 8:24, which identifies the Midianites and Ishmaelites, favors the reading “Midianites.”
4 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
5 sn The expression captain of the guard might indicate that Potiphar was the chief executioner.
6 tn Heb “the land of the sojournings of his father.”
7 sn The next section begins with the heading This is the account of Jacob in Gen 37:2, so this verse actually forms part of the preceding section as a concluding contrast with Esau and his people. In contrast to all the settled and expanded population of Esau, Jacob was still moving about in the land without a permanent residence and without kings. Even if the Edomite king list was added later (as the reference to kings in Israel suggests), its placement here in contrast to Jacob and his descendants is important. Certainly the text deals with Esau before dealing with Jacob – that is the pattern. But the detail is so great in chap. 36 that the contrast cannot be missed.
8 tn Heb “you must not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan.”