41:8 In the morning he 11 was troubled, so he called for 12 all the diviner-priests 13 of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh told them his dreams, 14 but no one could interpret 15 them for him. 16
1 tn Heb “the place.” The article may indicate simply that the place is definite in the mind of the narrator. However, as the story unfolds the place is transformed into a holy place. See A. P. Ross, “Jacob’s Vision: The Founding of Bethel,” BSac 142 (1985): 224-37.
2 tn Heb “and he spent the night there because the sun had gone down.”
3 tn Heb “he took from the stones of the place,” which here means Jacob took one of the stones (see v. 18).
4 tn Heb “and he put [it at] the place of his head.” The text does not actually say the stone was placed under his head to serve as a pillow, although most interpreters and translators assume this. It is possible the stone served some other purpose. Jacob does not seem to have been a committed monotheist yet (see v. 20-21) so he may have believed it contained some spiritual power. Note that later in the story he anticipates the stone becoming the residence of God (see v. 22). Many cultures throughout the world view certain types of stones as magical and/or sacred. See J. G. Fraser, Folklore in the Old Testament, 231-37.
5 tn Heb “lay down.”
6 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
7 tn Heb “weak.”
8 tn Heb “and the sheep and the cattle nursing [are] upon me.”
11 tn Heb “a dream we dreamed.”
12 tn The word “them” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
16 tn Heb “his spirit.”
17 tn Heb “he sent and called,” which indicates an official summons.
18 tn The Hebrew term חַרְטֹם (khartom) is an Egyptian loanword (hyr-tp) that describes a class of priests who were skilled in such interpretations.
19 tn The Hebrew text has the singular (though the Samaritan Pentateuch reads the plural). If retained, the singular must be collective for the set of dreams. Note the plural pronoun “them,” referring to the dreams, in the next clause. However, note that in v. 15 Pharaoh uses the singular to refer to the two dreams. In vv. 17-24 Pharaoh seems to treat the dreams as two parts of one dream (see especially v. 22).
20 tn “there was no interpreter.”
21 tn Heb “for Pharaoh.” The pronoun “him” has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons.
21 tn Heb “dreamed a dream.”
22 tn Heb “there is no one interpreting.”
23 tn Heb “saying.”
24 tn Heb “you hear a dream to interpret it,” which may mean, “you only have to hear a dream to be able to interpret it.”
26 tn Heb “and their heart went out.” Since this expression is used only here, the exact meaning is unclear. The following statement suggests that it may refer to a sudden loss of emotional strength, so “They were dismayed” adequately conveys the meaning (cf. NRSV); NIV has “Their hearts sank.”
27 tn Heb “and they trembled, a man to his neighbor.”
28 tn Heb “What is this God has done to us?” The demonstrative pronoun (“this”) adds emphasis to the question.