Genesis 47:1

Joseph’s Wise Administration

47:1 Joseph went and told Pharaoh, “My father, my brothers, their flocks and herds, and all that they own have arrived from the land of

Canaan. They are now ¹  in the land of Goshen.”

Genesis 47:21

47:21 Joseph ²  made all the people slaves ³  from one end of Egypt’s border to the other end of it.

Genesis 47:24

47:24 When you gather in the crop, ⁴  give ⁵  one-fifth of it to Pharaoh, and the rest ⁶  will be yours for seed for the fields and for you to eat, including those in your households and your little children.”

Genesis 47:1

Joseph’s Wise Administration

47:1 Joseph went and told Pharaoh, “My father, my brothers, their flocks and herds, and all that they own have arrived from the land of

Canaan. They are now ⁷  in the land of Goshen.”

Genesis 2:7

2:7 The Lord God formed ⁸  the man from the soil of the ground ⁹  and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, ¹⁰  and the man became a living being. ¹¹ 

¹ tn Heb “Look they [are] in the land of Goshen.” Joseph draws attention to the fact of their presence in Goshen.

² tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³ tc The MT reads “and the people he removed to the cities,” which does not make a lot of sense in this context. The Samaritan Pentateuch and the LXX read “he enslaved them as slaves.”

⁴ tn The words “the crop” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁵ tn The perfect form with the vav (ו) consecutive is equivalent to an imperfect of instruction here.

⁶ tn Heb “four parts.”

⁷ tn Heb “Look they [are] in the land of Goshen.” Joseph draws attention to the fact of their presence in Goshen.

⁸ tn Or “fashioned.” The prefixed verb form with vav (ו) consecutive initiates narrative sequence. The Hebrew word יָצַר (yatsar) means “to form” or “to fashion,” usually by plan or design (see the related noun יֵצֶר [yetser] in Gen 6:5). It is the term for an artist’s work (the Hebrew term יוֹצֵר [yotser] refers to a potter; see Jer 18:2-4.)

⁹ tn The line literally reads “And Yahweh God formed the man, soil, from the ground.” “Soil” is an adverbial accusative, identifying the material from which the man was made.

¹⁰ tn The Hebrew word נְשָׁמָה (nÿshamah, “breath”) is used for God and for the life imparted to humans, not animals (see T. C. Mitchell, “The Old Testament Usage of Nÿshama,” VT 11 [1961]: 177-87). Its usage in the Bible conveys more than a breathing living organism (נֶפֶשׁ חַיַּה, nefesh khayyah). Whatever is given this breath of life becomes animated with the life from God, has spiritual understanding (Job 32:8), and has a functioning conscience (Prov 20:27).

¹¹ tn The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “being”) is often translated “soul,” but the word usually refers to the whole person. The phrase נֶפֶשׁ חַיַּה (nefesh khayyah, “living being”) is used of both animals and human beings (see 1:20, 24, 30; 2:19).