| New King James Version | New International Version |
| 1Now Jacob dwelt in the land where his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan. | 1Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan. |
| 2This is the history of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brothers. And the lad was with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives; and Joseph brought a bad report of them to his father. | 2This is the account of Jacob's family line. Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them. |
| 3Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age. Also he made him a tunic of many colors. | 3Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe for him. |
| 4But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him. | 4When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him. |
| 5Now Joseph had a dream, and he told it to his brothers; and they hated him even more. | 5Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. |
| 6So he said to them, “Please hear this dream which I have dreamed: | 6He said to them, "Listen to this dream I had: |
| 7There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf.” | 7We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it." |
| 8And his brothers said to him, “Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words. | 8His brothers said to him, "Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?" And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said. |
| 9Then he dreamed still another dream and told it to his brothers, and said, “Look, I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me.” | 9Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. "Listen," he said, "I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me." |
| 10So he told it to his father and his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?” | 10When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, "What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?" |
| 11And his brothers envied him, but his father kept the matter in mind. | 11His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind. |
| 12Then his brothers went to feed their father’s flock in Shechem. | 12Now his brothers had gone to graze their father's flocks near Shechem, |
| 13And Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers feeding the flock in Shechem? Come, I will send you to them.” So he said to him, “Here I am.” | 13and Israel said to Joseph, "As you know, your brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem. Come, I am going to send you to them." "Very well," he replied. |
| 14Then he said to him, “Please go and see if it is well with your brothers and well with the flocks, and bring back word to me.” So he sent him out of the Valley of Hebron, and he went to Shechem. | 14So he said to him, "Go and see if all is well with your brothers and with the flocks, and bring word back to me." Then he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron. When Joseph arrived at Shechem, |
| 15Now a certain man found him, and there he was, wandering in the field. And the man asked him, saying, “What are you seeking?” | 15a man found him wandering around in the fields and asked him, "What are you looking for?" |
| 16So he said, “I am seeking my brothers. Please tell me where they are feeding their flocks.” | 16He replied, "I'm looking for my brothers. Can you tell me where they are grazing their flocks?" |
| 17And the man said, “They have departed from here, for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’ ” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them in Dothan. | 17"They have moved on from here," the man answered. "I heard them say, 'Let's go to Dothan.'" So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. |
| 18Now when they saw him afar off, even before he came near them, they conspired against him to kill him. | 18But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him. |
| 19Then they said to one another, “Look, this dreamer is coming! | 19"Here comes that dreamer!" they said to each other. |
| 20Come therefore, let us now kill him and cast him into some pit; and we shall say, ‘Some wild beast has devoured him.’ We shall see what will become of his dreams!” | 20"Come now, let's kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we'll see what comes of his dreams." |
| 21But Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands, and said, “Let us not kill him.” | 21When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue him from their hands. "Let's not take his life," he said. |
| 22And Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit which is in the wilderness, and do not lay a hand on him”—that he might deliver him out of their hands, and bring him back to his father. | 22"Don't shed any blood. Throw him into this cistern here in the wilderness, but don't lay a hand on him." Reuben said this to rescue him from them and take him back to his father. |
| 23So it came to pass, when Joseph had come to his brothers, that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the tunic of many colors that was on him. | 23So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe--the ornate robe he was wearing-- |
| 24Then they took him and cast him into a pit. And the pit was empty; there was no water in it. | 24and they took him and threw him into the cistern. The cistern was empty; there was no water in it. |
| 25And they sat down to eat a meal. Then they lifted their eyes and looked, and there was a company of Ishmaelites, coming from Gilead with their camels, bearing spices, balm, and myrrh, on their way to carry them down to Egypt. | 25As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with spices, balm and myrrh, and they were on their way to take them down to Egypt. |
| 26So Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is there if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? | 26Judah said to his brothers, "What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? |
| 27Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother and our flesh.” And his brothers listened. | 27Come, let's sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood." His brothers agreed. |
| 28Then Midianite traders passed by; so the brothers pulled Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt. | 28So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt. |
| 29Then Reuben returned to the pit, and indeed Joseph was not in the pit; and he tore his clothes. | 29When Reuben returned to the cistern and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes. |
| 30And he returned to his brothers and said, “The lad is no more; and I, where shall I go?” | 30He went back to his brothers and said, "The boy isn't there! Where can I turn now?" |
| 31So they took Joseph’s tunic, killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the tunic in the blood. | 31Then they got Joseph's robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. |
| 32Then they sent the tunic of many colors, and they brought it to their father and said, “We have found this. Do you know whether it is your son’s tunic or not?” | 32They took the ornate robe back to their father and said, "We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son's robe." |
| 33And he recognized it and said, “It is my son’s tunic. A wild beast has devoured him. Without doubt Joseph is torn to pieces.” | 33He recognized it and said, "It is my son's robe! Some ferocious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces." |
| 34Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth on his waist, and mourned for his son many days. | 34Then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days. |
| 35And all his sons and all his daughters arose to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted, and he said, “For I shall go down into the grave to my son in mourning.” Thus his father wept for him. | 35All his sons and daughters came to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. "No," he said, "I will continue to mourn until I join my son in the grave." So his father wept for him. |
| 36Now the Midianites had sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard. | 36Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh's officials, the captain of the guard. |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. |
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