Genesis 26:27

26:27 Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me? You hate me ¹  and sent me away from you.”

Genesis 37:27

37:27 Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites, but let’s not lay a hand on him, ²  for after all, he is our brother, our own flesh.” His brothers agreed. ³ 

Genesis 45:4-5

45:4 Joseph said to his brothers, “Come closer to me,” so they came near. Then he said, “I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. 45:5 Now, do not be upset and do not be angry with yourselves because you sold me here, ⁴  for God sent me ⁵  ahead of you to preserve life!

Proverbs 17:17

17:17 A friend ⁶  loves at all times,

and a relative ⁷  is born to help in adversity. ⁸ 

Isaiah 60:14

60:14 The children of your oppressors will come bowing to you;

all who treated you with disrespect will bow down at your feet.

They will call you, ‘The City of the Lord,

Zion of the Holy One of Israel.’ ⁹ 

Acts 7:9-14

7:9 The ¹⁰  patriarchs, because they were jealous of Joseph, sold ¹¹  him into Egypt. But ¹²  God was with him, 7:10 and rescued him from all his troubles, and granted him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made ¹³  him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. 7:11 Then a famine occurred throughout ¹⁴  Egypt and Canaan, causing ¹⁵  great suffering, and our ¹⁶  ancestors ¹⁷  could not find food. 7:12 So when Jacob heard that there was grain ¹⁸  in Egypt, he sent our ancestors ¹⁹  there ²⁰  the first time. 7:13 On their second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers again, and Joseph’s family ²¹  became known to Pharaoh. 7:14 So Joseph sent a message ²²  and invited ²³  his father Jacob and all his relatives to come, seventy-five people ²⁴  in all.

Revelation 3:9

3:9 Listen! ²⁵  I am going to make those people from the synagogue ²⁶  of Satan – who say they are Jews yet ²⁷  are not, but are lying – Look, I will make ²⁸  them come and bow down ²⁹  at your feet and acknowledge ³⁰  that I have loved you.

[26:27]  ¹ tn The disjunctive clause is circumstantial, expressing the reason for his question.

[37:27]  ² tn Heb “let not our hand be upon him.”

[37:27]  ³ tn Heb “listened.”

[45:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “let there not be anger in your eyes.”

[45:5]  ⁵ sn You sold me here, for God sent me. The tension remains as to how the brothers’ wickedness and God’s intentions work together. Clearly God is able to transform the actions of wickedness to bring about some gracious end. But this is saying more than that; it is saying that from the beginning it was God who sent Joseph here. Although harmonization of these ideas remains humanly impossible, the divine intention is what should be the focus. Only that will enable reconciliation.

[17:17]  ⁶ sn The verse uses synonymous parallelism, so “friend” and “relative” are equated. Others, however, will take the verse with antithetical parallelism: W. G. Plaut argues that friendship is a spiritual relationship whereas a brother’s ties are based on a blood relationship – often adversity is the only thing that brings brothers together (Proverbs, 189).

[17:17]  ⁷ tn Heb “a brother.”

[17:17]  ⁸ tn Heb “is born for adversity.” This is not referring to sibling rivalry but to the loyalty a brother shows during times of calamity. This is not to say that a brother only shows loyalty when there is trouble, nor that he always does in these times (e.g., 18:19, 24; 19:7; 27:10). The true friend is the same as a brotherly relation – in times of greatest need the loyal love is displayed.

[60:14]  ⁹ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[7:9]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “And the.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[7:9]  ¹¹ tn The meaning “sell” for the middle voice of ἀποδίδωμι (apodidwmi) is given by BDAG 110 s.v. 5.a. See Gen 37:12-36, esp. v. 28.

[7:9]  ¹² tn Though the Greek term here is καί (kai), in context this remark is clearly contrastive: Despite the malicious act, God was present and protected Joseph.

[7:10]  ¹³ tn Or “appointed.” See Gen 41:41-43.

[7:11]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “came upon all Egypt.”

[7:11]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “and,” but logically causal.

[7:11]  ¹⁶ sn Our. Stephen spoke of “our” ancestors (Grk “fathers”) in an inclusive sense throughout the speech until his rebuke in v. 51, where the nation does what “your” ancestors did, at which point an exclusive pronoun is used. This serves to emphasize the rebuke.

[7:11]  ¹⁷ tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[7:12]  ¹⁸ tn Or possibly “food,” since in a number of extrabiblical contexts the phrase σιτία καὶ ποτά (sitia kai pota) means “food and drink,” where solid food is contrasted with liquid nourishment (L&N 3.42).

[7:12]  ¹⁹ tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[7:12]  ²⁰ tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.

[7:13]  ²¹ tn BDAG 194 s.v. γένος 2. gives “family, relatives” here; another alternative is “race” (see v. 19).

[7:14]  ²² tn The words “a message” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.

[7:14]  ²³ tn Or “Joseph had his father summoned” (BDAG 121 s.v. ἀποστέλλω 2.b).

[7:14]  ²⁴ tn Grk “souls” (here an idiom for the whole person).

[3:9]  ²⁵ tn Grk “behold” (L&N 91.13).

[3:9]  ²⁶ sn See the note on synagogue in 2:9.

[3:9]  ²⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast between what these people claimed and what they were.

[3:9]  ²⁸ tn The verb here is ποιέω (poiew), but in this context it has virtually the same meaning as δίδωμι (didwmi) used at the beginning of the verse. Stylistic variation like this is typical of Johannine literature.

[3:9]  ²⁹ tn The verb here is προσκυνήσουσιν (proskunhsousin), normally used to refer to worship.

[3:9]  ³⁰ tn Or “and know,” “and recognize.”