X-Dreamers
Bible chapter guide
Genesis 37
Jacob loves Joseph most and makes him a special robe; Joseph's dreams of his brothers bowing down make them hate him more. At Dothan they strip him of the robe, throw him into a pit and sell him to traders bound for Egypt, and show Jacob the robe dipped in blood.
Summary written for the Labs; read the chapter itself for the full text.
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- Hebrew Word ExplorerHebrew Word ExplorerOpen
- Joseph's RobeMany-coloured · Joseph's RobeOpen
- Joseph's RobeDecorated or embroidered · Joseph's RobeOpen
- Joseph's RobeMade of strips or pieces · Joseph's RobeOpen
- Joseph's RobeA garment handed down from Eden? · Joseph's RobeOpen
- Joseph's RobeA garment of rank · Joseph's RobeOpen
- The Biblical Family TreeJoseph · The Biblical Family TreeOpen
- The Bible Time MapJoseph · The Bible Time MapOpen
- Life Phases of Old Testament HeroesJoseph · Life Phases of Old Testament HeroesOpen
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How sure can we be?
- Textually stated
Jacob (Israel) made the robe for Joseph because he loved him more than all his sons.
Stated directly in the text.
- Textually stated
The Hebrew text never states the robe's colours, length or decoration; it only calls it a ketonet passim.
None of the four mentions in Genesis 37 adds a description. English 'many colours' comes from the Greek and Latin translations, not from a Hebrew colour word.
- Textually stated
Joseph was seventeen, working with the flocks, when Jacob gave him the robe.
Stated directly in the text.
- Textually stated
In biblical Hebrew, passim appears only in the phrase ketonet passim, in Genesis 37 and 2 Samuel 13.
Five verses in the Westminster Leningrad Codex (OSHB lemma 6446): Genesis 37:3, 23, 32 and 2 Samuel 13:18, 19.
- Textually stated
The robe marked Joseph out as his father's favourite.
Genesis 37:3–4 ties the robe to Jacob's love for Joseph, and his brothers hate him when they see it.
- Textually stated
The robe marked Joseph out as his father's favourite, and his brothers stripped it from him and used it to deceive Jacob.
Genesis 37:4 ties the brothers' hatred to Jacob's favouritism; verses 23 and 31–33 tell how the robe was taken, dipped in goat's blood and recognised.