Kejadian 37:3

37:3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons ¹  because he was a son born to him late in life, ²  and he made a special ³  tunic for him.

Kejadian 45:7-11

45:7 God sent me ⁴  ahead of you to preserve you ⁵  on the earth and to save your lives ⁶  by a great deliverance. 45:8 So now, it is not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me an adviser ⁷  to Pharaoh, lord over all his household, and ruler over all the land of Egypt. 45:9 Now go up to my father quickly ⁸  and tell him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: “God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; do not delay! 45:10 You will live ⁹  in the land of Goshen, and you will be near me – you, your children, your grandchildren, your flocks, your herds, and everything you have. 45:11 I will provide you with food ¹⁰  there because there will be five more years of famine. Otherwise you would become poor – you, your household, and everyone who belongs to you.”’

[37:3]  ¹ tn The disjunctive clause provides supplemental information vital to the story. It explains in part the brothers’ animosity toward Joseph.

[37:3]  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.

[37:3]  ² 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.”

[37:3]  ³ 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.

[45:7]  ⁴ sn God sent me. The repetition of this theme that God sent Joseph is reminiscent of commission narratives in which the leader could announce that God sent him (e.g., Exod 3:15).

[45:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “to make you a remnant.” The verb, followed here by the preposition לְ (lÿ), means “to make.”

[45:7]  ⁶ tn The infinitive gives a second purpose for God’s action.

[45:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “a father.” The term is used here figuratively of one who gives advice, as a father would to his children.

[45:9]  ⁸ tn Heb “hurry and go up.”

[45:10]  ⁹ tn The perfect verbal form with vav consecutive here expresses instruction.

[45:11]  ¹⁰ tn The verb כּוּל (kul) in the Pilpel stem means “to nourish, to support, to sustain.” As in 1 Kgs 20:27, it here means “to supply with food.”