Genesis 40:14-16

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Genesis 40:14 tn Heb “but you have remembered me with you.” The perfect verbal form may be used rhetorically here to emphasize Joseph’s desire to be remembered. He speaks of the action as already being accomplished in order to make it clear that he expects it to be done. The form can be translated as volitional, expressing a plea or a request.
2. Genesis 40:14 tn This perfect verbal form with the prefixed conjunction (and the two that immediately follow) carry the same force as the preceding perfect.
3. Genesis 40:14 tn Heb “deal with me [in] kindness.”
4. Genesis 40:14 tn The verb זָכַר (zakhar) in the Hiphil stem means “to cause to remember, to make mention, to boast.” The implication is that Joseph would be pleased for them to tell his story and give him the credit due him so that Pharaoh would release him. Since Pharaoh had never met Joseph, the simple translation of “cause him to remember me” would mean little.
5. Genesis 40:14 tn Heb “house.” The word “prison” has been substituted in the translation for clarity.
6. Genesis 40:15 tn The verb גָּנַב (ganav) means “to steal,” but in the Piel/Pual stem “to steal away.” The idea of “kidnap” would be closer to the sense, meaning he was stolen and carried off. The preceding infinitive absolute underscores the point Joseph is making.
7. Genesis 40:16 tn Heb “that [the] interpretation [was] good.” The words “the first dream” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
8. Genesis 40:16 tn Or “three wicker baskets.” The meaning of the Hebrew noun חֹרִי (khori, “white bread, cake”) is uncertain; some have suggested the meaning “wicker” instead. Comparison with texts from Ebla suggests the meaning “pastries made with white flour” (M. Dahood, “Eblaite ḫa-rí and Genesis 40, 16 ḥōrî,” BN 13 [1980]: 14-16).