Genesis 33:2; 37:3-4, 35; 48:22
Genesis 33:2
33:2 He put the servants and their children in front, with Leah and her children behind them, and Rachel and Joseph behind them. 1Genesis 37:3-4
37:3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons 2 because he was a son born to him late in life, 3 and he made a special 4 tunic for him. 37:4 When Joseph’s 5 brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, 6 they hated Joseph 7 and were not able to speak to him kindly. 8
Genesis 37:35
37:35 All his sons and daughters stood by 9 him to console him, but he refused to be consoled. “No,” he said, “I will go to the grave mourning my son.” 10 So Joseph’s 11 father wept for him.Genesis 48:22
48:22 As one who is above your 12 brothers, I give to you the mountain slope, 13 which I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow.”1 sn This kind of ranking according to favoritism no doubt fed the jealousy over Joseph that later becomes an important element in the narrative. It must have been painful to the family to see that they were expendable.
2 tn The disjunctive clause provides supplemental information vital to the story. It explains in part the brothers’ animosity toward Joseph.
sn The statement Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons brings forward a motif that played an important role in the family of Isaac – parental favoritism. Jacob surely knew what that had done to him and his brother Esau, and to his own family. But now he showers affection on Rachel’s son Joseph.
3 tn Heb “a son of old age was he to him.” This expression means “a son born to him when he [i.e., Jacob] was old.”
4 tn It is not clear what this tunic was like, because the meaning of the Hebrew word that describes it is uncertain. The idea that it was a coat of many colors comes from the Greek translation of the OT. An examination of cognate terms in Semitic suggests it was either a coat or tunic with long sleeves (cf. NEB, NRSV), or a tunic that was richly embroidered (cf. NIV). It set Joseph apart as the favored one.
5 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn Heb “of his brothers.” This is redundant in contemporary English and has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun “them.”
7 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
8 tn Heb “speak to him for peace.”
9 tn Heb “arose, stood”; which here suggests that they stood by him in his time of grief.
10 tn Heb “and he said, ‘Indeed I will go down to my son mourning to Sheol.’” Sheol was viewed as the place where departed spirits went after death.
11 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
12 tn The pronouns translated “your” and “you” in this verse are singular in the Hebrew text.
13 tn The Hebrew word שְׁכֶם (shÿkhem) could be translated either as “mountain slope” or “shoulder, portion,” or even taken as the proper name “Shechem.” Jacob was giving Joseph either (1) one portion above his brothers, or (2) the mountain ridge he took from the Amorites, or (3) Shechem. The ambiguity actually allows for all three to be the referent. He could be referring to the land in Shechem he bought in Gen 33:18-19, but he mentions here that it was acquired by warfare, suggesting that the events of 34:25-29 are in view (even though at the time he denounced it, 34:30). Joseph was later buried in Shechem (Josh 24:32).
