Meanwhile, the Midianites sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, Pharaoh’s officer, the captain of the bodyguard.
Parallel translations
- WEB The Midianites sold him into Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh’s, the captain of the guard.
- KJV And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh’s, and captain of the guard.
- BSB Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard.
- NKJV Now the Midianites had sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard.
- NLT Meanwhile, the Midianite traders arrived in Egypt, where they sold Joseph to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Potiphar was captain of the palace guard.
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
Meanwhile the traders sell Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh. This places Joseph where God will work out his rise.
Overview
The chapter closes by following Joseph to Egypt, where he is sold to Potiphar, a high official and captain of Pharaoh's guard. What the brothers meant for evil, God is already turning toward good, positioning Joseph in a household that will lead, through further trials, to his exaltation. This quiet verse points ahead to the deliverance of Jacob's family and ultimately to the salvation God works through suffering.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Gen 37:28Midianites who were merchants passed by, and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. They brought Joseph into Egypt.
- Gen 40:4The captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, and he took care of them. They stayed in prison many days.
- Isa 56:3Let no foreigner, who has joined himself to Yahweh, speak, saying, “Yahweh will surely separate me from his people.” Do not let the eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry tree.”
- Gen 25:1–2Abraham took another wife, and her name was Keturah.
- 2 Kgs 25:8Now in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which was the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem.
- Gen 39:1–23Joseph was brought down to Egypt. Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh’s, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the hand of the Ishmaelites that had brought him down there.
- Esth 1:10On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcass, the seven eunuchs who served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king,
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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 37:36 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.