Kejadian 29:30

29:30 Jacob ¹  had marital relations ²  with Rachel as well. He loved Rachel more than Leah, so he worked for Laban ³  for seven more years. ⁴ 

Kejadian 37:3-4

37:3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons ⁵  because he was a son born to him late in life, ⁶  and he made a special ⁷  tunic for him. 37:4 When Joseph’s ⁸  brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, ⁹  they hated Joseph ¹⁰  and were not able to speak to him kindly. ¹¹ 

[29:30]  ¹ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:30]  ² tn Heb “went in also to Rachel.” The expression “went in to” in this context refers to sexual intercourse, i.e., the consummation of the marriage.

[29:30]  ³ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Laban) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[29:30]  ⁴ tn Heb “and he loved also Rachel, more than Leah, and he served with him still seven other years.”

[37:3]  ⁵ 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]  ⁶ 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]  ⁷ 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.

[37:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “his”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[37:4]  ⁹ tn Heb “of his brothers.” This is redundant in contemporary English and has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun “them.”

[37:4]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[37:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “speak to him for peace.”