And he asked Pharaoh’s officers that were with him in the ward of his lord’s house, saying, Wherefore look ye so sadly to day?
Parallel translations
- WEB He asked Pharaoh’s officers who were with him in custody in his master’s house, saying, “Why do you look so sad today?”
- BSB So he asked the officials of Pharaoh who were in custody with him in his master’s house, “Why are your faces so downcast today?”
- NKJV So he asked Pharaoh’s officers who were with him in the custody of his lord’s house, saying, “Why do you look so sad today?”
- NASB So he asked Pharaoh’s officials who were with him in confinement in his master’s house, “Why are your faces so sad today?”
- NLT “Why do you look so worried today?” he asked them.
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
Joseph asks the officials why they look so sad.
Overview
Joseph's caring question shows genuine concern for the men under his charge. His readiness to engage their trouble reflects a servant's heart. This simple act of kindness becomes the occasion for revealing God's power to interpret dreams.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Neh 2:2Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid,
- 1 Sam 1:8Then said Elkanah her husband to her, Hannah, why weepest thou? and why eatest thou not? and why is thy heart grieved? am not I better to thee than ten sons?
- Judg 18:24And he said, Ye have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and ye are gone away: and what have I more? and what is this that ye say unto me, What aileth thee?
- 2 Sam 13:4And he said unto him, Why art thou, being the king’s son, lean from day to day? wilt thou not tell me? And Amnon said unto him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.
- Luke 24:17And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 40:7 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.