Translations
Modern
“What is your occupation?” Pharaoh asked Joseph’s brothers. “Your servants are shepherds,” they replied, “both we and our fathers.”
Traditional
And Pharaoh said unto his brethren, What is your occupation? And they said unto Pharaoh, Thy servants are shepherds, both we, and also our fathers.
Literal
And Pharaoh said to his brothers, “What are your works?” And they said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds of sheep, both we and also our fathers.”
Latin
…quos ille interrogavit: Quid habetis operis? Responderunt: Pastores ovium sumus servi tui, et nos et patres nostri.
Original
Hebrew
English
“What is your occupation?” Pharaoh asked Joseph’s brothers. “Your servants are shepherds,” they replied, “both we and our fathers.”
Notes
Pharaoh responded as Joseph hoped by giving Jacob’s family the best part of the land; he even gave some of the brothers oversight of his own livestock (47:6).
This section marks a transition as the family moved from Canaan to Goshen, where they would live for the next 400years.
Theme notes and profiles
People
Pharaoh: Egyptian ruler during Joseph's time
Glossary
Agriculture Book of Exodus Famine Genesis, Book of Goshen Jacob Patriarchs, Period of the
Topics
Egypt: Israel in Jacob Presented to Pharaoh Jacob: Pharaoh Receives Him, and is Blessed by Jacob Joseph: Son of Jacob: Reveals Himself to his Brothers