And his brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind.
Parallel translations
- WEB His brothers envied him, but his father kept this saying in mind.
- KJV And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.
- BSB And his brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept in mind what he had said.
- NKJV And his brothers envied him, but his father kept the matter in mind.
- NLT But while his brothers were jealous of Joseph, his father wondered what the dreams meant.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The brothers envied Joseph, but Jacob pondered the matter. Jealousy grew while Jacob quietly weighed the dream's meaning.
Overview
The brothers' reaction was envy, the dangerous resentment that would soon drive them to violence. Jacob, by contrast, kept the saying in mind, sensing that God might be at work. His thoughtful pondering recalls and anticipates Mary, who 'kept all these things, pondering them in her heart' (Luke 2:19), as God's purposes unfolded.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Acts 7:9“The patriarchs, moved with jealousy against Joseph, sold him into Egypt. God was with him,
- Luke 2:19But Mary kept all these sayings, pondering them in her heart.
- Luke 2:51And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth. He was subject to them, and his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.
- Dan 7:28Here is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts much troubled me, and my face was changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart.
- Jas 4:5Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who lives in us yearns jealously”?
- Matt 27:18For he knew that because of envy they had delivered him up.
- Isa 11:13The envy also of Ephraim will depart, and those who persecute Judah will be cut off. Ephraim won’t envy Judah, and Judah won’t persecute Ephraim.
- Acts 13:45But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with jealousy, and contradicted the things which were spoken by Paul, and blasphemed.
- Eccl 4:4Then I saw all the labor and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.
- Ps 106:16They envied Moses also in the camp, and Aaron, Yahweh’s saint.
- Gen 26:14–16He had possessions of flocks, possessions of herds, and a great household. The Philistines envied him.
- Jas 3:14–16But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, don’t boast and don’t lie against the truth.
- Gal 5:21envy, murders, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these; of which I forewarn you, even as I also forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit God’s Kingdom.
- Isa 26:11Yahweh, your hand is lifted up, yet they don’t see; but they will see your zeal for the people, and be disappointed. Yes, fire will consume your adversaries.
- Titus 3:3For we were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.
- Mark 15:10For he perceived that for envy the chief priests had delivered him up.
- Gen 24:31He said, “Come in, you blessed of Yahweh. Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house, and room for the camels.”
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 37:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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