Targum Jonathan - Genesis 37 - Vayeshev

Hoofdstuk 37

1 And Jakob dwelt in peace in the land of the sojourning of his fathers, in the land of Kenaan.
2 These are the generations of Jakob. Joseph was a son of seventeen years. He had come forth from the school, and was a youth brought up with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpha his fathers wives. And Joseph brought their evil report; for he had seen them eat the flesh that had been torn by wild beasts, the ears and the tails; and he came and told it to his father.
3 And Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons, because the likeness of Joseph resembled his own, and he made him a figured robe.
4 And his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, and they cherished enmity against him, and were unwilling to speak peacefully with him.
5 And Joseph dreamed a dream, and declared it to his brethren, and they added yet to keep enmity against him.
6 And he said to them, Hear now this dream which I have dreamed.
7 Behold, we were binding sheaves in the midst of the field, and lo, my sheaf arose, and stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves surrounded and bowed to my sheaf.
8 And his brothers said to him, Art thou thinking to reign over us, or dost thou expect to have rule over us? And they added yet to keep enmity against him, for his dream and for his words.
9 And he dreamed again another dream, and told it to his brothers, and said, Behold, I have dreamed yet a dream, and lo, the sun, and the moon, and eleven stars, bowed to me.
10 And he related it to his father and to his brethren: but his father rebuked him, and said to him, What dream is this that thou hast dreamed? Shall I, and thy mother, and thy brethren, really come and bow before thee to the ground?
11 And his brothers envied him; yet his father kept the saying in his heart.
12 And his brothers went to feed their father's flock in Shekem.
13 And it was at the time of days that Israel said to Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed in Shekem? But I am afraid lest the Hivaee come and smite them, because they smote Hamor and Shekem and the inhabitants of the city. Come now; and I will send thee to them And he said, Behold me.
14 And he said, Go, see the welfare of Your brethren, and the welfare of the flock, and return me word to the deep Counsel. But he sent him according to the deep counsel which was spoken to Abraham in Hebron; for on that day began the cativity of Mizraim. And Joseph arose, and came to Shekem.
15 And Gabriel in the likeness of a man found him wandering field. And the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou?
16 And he said, I seek my brothers; show me, pray, where they feed.
17 And the man said, They have journeyed hence: for I heard beyond the Veil, that behold from today would begin the servitude to the Mizraee; and it was said to them in prophecy, Hivaee would seek to set battle in array against them. Therefore said they, we will go unto Dothan.
18 And Joseph went after his brothers, and found them in Dothan. And they saw him from afar, before he had come nigh to them, and plotted against him to kill him.
19 And Shimeon and Levi, who were brothers in counsel, said each man to his brother, Behold, this master of dreams cometh.
20 And now come let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits and say that an evil beast hath devoured him; and we shall see what will be the interpretation of his dreams.
21 And Reuben heard, and delivered him from their hands, and said, We will not kill him nor become guilty of his blood.
22 And Reuben said, Let us not shed innocent blood. Throw him into this pit in the wilderness, but the hand of the slayer stretch not forth against him; because he would deliver him from their hand, and restore him to his father.
23 And when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his garment, the figured garment that was on him,
24 and took and threw him into the pit; but the pit was empty, no water was therein, but serpents and scorpions were in it.
25 And they sat around to eat bread. And they lifted up their eyes, and looked, and behold a band of Arabians were coming from Gilead with their camels, carrying wax, resin, balsam and stacte, proceeding to go into Mizraim.
26 And Jehuda said to his brethren, What profit of mammon should we have if we killed our brother, and covered his blood?
27 Come, let us sell him to the Arabians, and our hands shall not be upon him to kill him; for our brother is our own flesh. And his brethren agreed.
28 And the Midianite men, masters of business, passed by; and they drew and brought up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Arabians for twenty mahin of silver; and they bought sandals of them. And they brought Joseph to Mizraim.
29 And Reuben returned to the pit; for he had not been with them to assist when they sold him, because he had sat fasting on account that he had confounded the couch of his father; and he had gone and sat among the hills, that he might return to the pit and bring him up for his father, if haply he might avert his anger. But when he had returned, and looked, and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit, he rent his clothes,
30 and returned to his brethren, and said, The youth is not; and I,whither shall I go, and how shall I see the look of my father's face?
31 But they took the garment of Joseph, and killed a kid of the goats, because his blood is like the blood of a man, and they dabbled the garment in the blood.
32 And they sent it by the hand of the sons of Zilpha and of the sons of Bilhah the figured garment; and they brought it to their father, and said, This have we found; know now, whether it be thy son's garment, or not.
33 And he recognised it and said, It is my son's garment: a beast of the wilderness hath not devoured him, neither hath he been slain by the hand of man; but I see by the Holy Spirit, that an evil woman standeth against him.
34 And Jakob rent his clothes, and wrapped sackcloth on his loins, and mourned for his son many days.
35 And all his sons and all the men of his house arose and went to console him; but he refused to receive consolation, and said, For I will go down to my son mourning to the house of the grave. And Izhak his father also wept for him.
36 But the Midianites sold him in Mizraim to Potiphar a captain of Pharoh, a captain of the guards.