for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and behold, your sheaves came around, and bowed down to my sheaf.”
Parallel Translations
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for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and behold, your sheaves came around, and bowed down to my sheaf.”
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For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf.
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for, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves came round about, and bowed down to my sheaf.'
Cross-references (7)
Passages linked to Genesis 37:7 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Genesis 42:6 Joseph was the governor over the land. It was he who sold to all the people of the land. Joseph’s brothers came, and bowed themselves down to him with their faces to the earth.
- Genesis 44:14 Judah and his brothers came to Joseph’s house, and he was still there. They fell on the ground before him.
- Genesis 43:26 When Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves down to the earth before him.
- Genesis 42:9 Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed about them, and said to them, “You are spies! You have come to see the nakedness of the land.”
- Genesis 44:19 My lord asked his servants, saying, ‘Have you a father, or a brother?’
- Philippians 2:10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth,
- Colossians 1:18 He is the head of the body, the assembly, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he might have the preeminence.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (12 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Gen 37:7 For, behold, we [were] binding sheaves in…
Gen 37:7 For, behold, we [were] binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf.
Ver. 7. We were binding sheaves.] This was fulfilled, when they came to him for grain into Egypt. Here Joseph dreams of his advancement, but not of his imprisonment: so do many professors, which therefore prove apostates.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain We were binding sheaves in the field; a secret…
We were binding sheaves in the field; a secret insinuation of the occasion of Joseph’s advancement, which was from his counsel and care about the corn of Egypt.
Your sheaves stood round about; this was a posture of ministry and service, as is manifest both from Scripture and from common usage.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And his brethren said unto him,.... After he had…
And his brethren said unto him,.... After he had told his dream, being highly offended with him, understanding the dream, and the meaning of it, better than he did:
shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shall thou indeed have dominion over us? denying that he ever should, and reproving him for his vanity, in concluding from hence that he would have the dominion over them. So the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan, dost thou think, suppose, or imagine that thou shall rule over us? it looks as if by telling us this dream that such a whim and fancy has got into thine head:
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and they hated him yet the more for his dreams and for his words; for it seems by this that he had dreamt, and told them more dreams besides this, and they hated him both for them, and for his telling them to them; though Jarchi thinks the phrase, "for his words", refers to the ill report he gave of them to his father, Gen 37:2.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 7. We were binding sheaves in the field]…
Verse 7. We were binding sheaves in the field] Though in these early times we read little of tillage, yet it is evident from this circumstance that it was practised by Jacob and his sons. The whole of this dream is so very plain as to require no comment, unless we could suppose that the sheaves of grain might have some reference to the plenty in Egypt under Joseph's superintendence, and the scarcity in Canaan, which obliged the brethren to go down to Egypt for corn, where the dream was most literally fulfilled, his brethren there bowing in the most abject manner before him.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Gen 37:7. Behold, we were binding sheaves in the…
Gen 37:7. Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field — This was a secret intimation of the occasion of Joseph’s advancement, which was from his counsel and care about the corn in Egypt. Your sheaves stood round about — A posture this of ministry and service; and made obeisance to my sheaf — How wonderfully was this fulfilled when his brethren, making application to him for corn, came and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth!
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Sheaf. Joseph probably knew not what this portended, as…
Sheaf. Joseph probably knew not what this portended, as the prophets were sometimes ignorant of the real purport of their visions. (Calmet) --- But it admirably foreshewed the famine, which would bring his brethren to adore him in Egypt. (Menochius)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 7-9. Sheaves… stars — “The two dreams very obviously…
7-9. Sheaves… stars — “The two dreams very obviously shadow forth Joseph as having kingly authority over his father, mother, and brethren. The scene of the first is laid in the wheat field, where he and his brethren are symbolized by the sheaves. But to repeat and solemnly deepen the impression, the scene of the second is laid in heaven, and now not only his brethren, but his father and mother, (Leah probably, since Rachel was dead,) under heavenly symbols bow down, not to his star, but to him.
How powerfully must this dream have returned to the minds of them all, when, more than twenty years after, the venerable patriarch and his eleven sons did obeisance to the prince of Egypt, who said to them, ‘I am Joseph.’” — Newhall. On the import of double dreams, see note on chap.
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41:32.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 7. sheaves] Joseph’s dream presupposes that the patriarch was…
7. sheaves] Joseph’s dream presupposes that the patriarch was leading a settled and agricultural life (cf. Gen_26:12). In Gen_46:31-34 Jacob and his family are shepherds and herdsmen, but the fact that the failure of crops compels them to seek for corn in Egypt, Gen_42:1, shews that they were partly dependent upon local crops. Cf. Gen_12:10, Gen_36:1.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (7) Stood upright.—Heb., took its station. It is the…
(7) Stood upright.—Heb., took its station. It is the verb used in Gen_24:13, where see Note. It implies that the sheaf took the position of chief. We gather from this dream that Jacob practised agriculture, not occasionally, as had been the case with Isaac (Gen_26:12), but regularly, as seems to have been usual also at Haran (Gen_30:14).
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain For (literally, and), behold, we were binding sheaves literally,…
For (literally, and), behold, we were binding sheaves literally, binding things bound, i.e. sheaves, alumim, from alam, to bind; the order of the words and the participial form of the verb indicating that the speaker describes the vision as it appeared to his mind (vide Ewald, "Hebrews Synt.," 342)in the field, literally, in the middle of the field; from which it would appear that Jacob was not a mere nomad, but carried on agricultural operations like his father Isaac (Gen_26:12) and, lo, hNhe, as repeated in his narration, shows that he had a presentiment of something great" (Lange) my sheaf arose, and also stood upright (literally, stood, i.e. placed itself upright, and remained so); and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisancei.e. bowed themselves down cf. Gen_23:7, Abraham bowing to the Hethites) to my sheaf. The fulfillment of this dream occurred in Egypt. (Gen_42:6 Gen_43:26 Gen_44:14)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 General Information:
General Information:
Joseph tells his brothers about his dream.
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Behold
The word "behold" here alerts us to pay attention to the surprising information that follows.
we were
The word "we" refers to Joseph and includes all of his brothers. (See: Inclusive "We")
tying bundles of grain
When grain is reaped it is tied into bundles and stacked until it is time to separate the grain from the straw.
behold
Here the word "behold" here shows that Joseph was surprised by what he saw.
my bundle rose and stood upright ... your bundles came around and bowed down
Here the bundles of grain are standing and kneeling as if they were people. These bundle represent Joseph and his brothers. (See: Personification)
Will you really reign over us? Will you actually rule over us?
Both of these phrases mean basically the same thing. Joseph's brothers are using questions to mock Joseph. They can be written as statements. AT: "You will never be our king, and we will never bow down to you!" (See: Parallelism and Rhetorical Question)
reign over us
The word "us" refers to Joseph's brothers but not Joseph. (See: Exclusive and Inclusive "We")
for his dreams and for his words
"because of his dreams and what he said"
translationWords
grain
bow
reign
dream
word
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 37:7 The bundles of grain hint at how Joseph’s…
37:7 The bundles of grain hint at how Joseph’s authority over his family would be achieved (see 42:1-3).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.