Genesis 47 — Hebrew and Greek compared
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Same 13 Similar 8 Different 4 Divergent 4 Disparate 2
Disparate in this chapter: 47:21, 47:31
Each verse is rendered independently from the Hebrew (Rabbinic reading tradition) and from the Greek (Saints reading tradition). The badge classifies the relationship between the two readings; the note beneath records the source document’s comparison and attributed interpretation. Each column retains its own verse references where numbering differs.
Israel Settles in Egypt
47:1 Similar
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:1 Joseph came and told Pharaoh, “My father and brothers, their flocks and herds, and everything they have, have come from Canaan. They are in the land of Goshen.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:1 Joseph came and told Pharaoh, “My father and brothers, their livestock and oxen, and everything they have, have come from Canaan. They are in the land of Gesem.”
The animal expressions differ in specificity; Goshen/Gesem is the corresponding place name [G47].
47:2 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:2 And among his brothers he took five men and presented them before Pharaoh.
Greek · Saints priority
47:2 And among his brothers he took five men and presented them before Pharaoh.
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:3 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:3 And Pharaoh said to Joseph’s brothers, “What is your work?” And they replied to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds of sheep, both we and our fathers.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:3 And Pharaoh said to Joseph’s brothers, “What is your work?” And they replied to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds of sheep, both we and our fathers.”
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:4 Different
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:4 They said to Pharaoh, “We have come to live as foreigners in the land. There is no pasture for your servants’ flocks, because the famine in Canaan is severe. Please let your servants live in Goshen.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:4 They said to Pharaoh, “We have come to live as foreigners in the land. There is no pasture for your servants’ livestock, because the famine in Canaan is severe. Now we, your servants, will live in Gesem.”
Hebrew makes a request; Greek states the intended settlement. V1’s additional Greek material is placed in verse 5 following the consulted source’s numbering [G47].
47:5 Divergent
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:5 Then Pharaoh spoke to Joseph, saying, “Your father and your brothers have come to join you.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:5 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Let them live in Gesem. If you know of capable men among them, put them in charge of my livestock.” Jacob and his sons came to Joseph in Egypt, and Pharaoh king of Egypt heard of it. Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Your father and brothers have come to you.”
Greek includes an earlier grant of settlement, the livestock appointment, and a renewed arrival notice. These clauses are preserved once, here, rather than duplicated across verses 4–6 [G47].
47:6 Divergent
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:6 “The land of Egypt is before you. Settle your father and brothers in the best of the land; let them live in Goshen. If you know of capable men among them, put them in charge of my livestock.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:6 “The land of Egypt is before you. Settle your father and brothers in the best of the land.”
The Greek settlement and livestock clauses appear in verse 5; its present verse is shorter [G47].
47:7 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:7 Then Joseph brought in his father Jacob and presented him before Pharaoh; and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.
Greek · Saints priority
47:7 Then Joseph brought in his father Jacob and presented him before Pharaoh; and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:8 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:8 And Pharaoh asked Jacob, “How many are the years of the days of your life?”
Greek · Saints priority
47:8 And Pharaoh asked Jacob, “How many are the years of the days of your life?”
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:9 Similar
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:9 Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The years of my sojourning are one hundred thirty. Few and difficult have been the years of my life, and they have not reached the years of my fathers’ lives in their sojourning.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:9 Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The years of my sojourning are one hundred thirty. Few and difficult have been the years of my life, and they have not reached the years of my fathers’ lives in their sojourning.”
The days-of-the-years idiom is smoothed. Difficult renders the description of hardship, without implying moral evil in every day.
47:10 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from his presence.
Greek · Saints priority
47:10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from his presence.
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:11 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:11 So Joseph settled his father and his brothers, and granted them a holding in the land of Egypt, in the best part of the land, in the land of Rameses, just as Pharaoh had commanded.
Greek · Saints priority
47:11 So Joseph settled his father and his brothers, and granted them a holding in the land of Egypt, in the best part of the land, in the land of Rameses, just as Pharaoh had commanded.
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:12 Different
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:12 Joseph provided bread for his father, his brothers, and all his father’s household, according to the number of their little ones.
Greek · Saints priority
47:12 Joseph allotted grain to his father, his brothers, and all his father’s household, measured for each person.
Hebrew refers to the little ones in its provision formula; Greek expressly distributes per person [G47].
Joseph’s Saving Grace
47:13 Similar
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:13 There was no bread in all the land, for the famine was very severe. Egypt and Canaan languished because of the famine.
Greek · Saints priority
47:13 There was no grain in all the land, for the famine was very severe. Egypt and Canaan languished because of the famine.
The consulted Greek has grain, correcting V1’s bread at this verse [G47].
47:14 Divergent
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:14 And Joseph gathered up all the silver that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan in exchange for the grain they bought; and Joseph brought the silver into Pharaoh’s house.
Greek · Saints priority
47:14 Joseph collected all the silver found in Egypt and Canaan for the grain they bought, and he allotted grain to them. Joseph brought all the silver into Pharaoh’s house.
Greek adds the explicit grain allotment [G47].
47:15 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:15 And when all the silver was spent out of the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph, saying, “Give us bread! Why should we die right before your eyes? For our silver is completely gone.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:15 And when all the silver was spent out of the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph, saying, “Give us bread! Why should we die right before your eyes? For our silver is completely gone.”
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:16 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:16 Then Joseph said, “Bring your livestock, and I will give you bread in exchange for your livestock, if your silver is gone.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:16 Then Joseph said, “Bring your livestock, and I will give you bread in exchange for your livestock, if your silver is gone.”
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:17 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:17 So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for their horses, their sheep, their oxen, and their donkeys; thus he nourished them with bread in exchange for all their livestock during that year.
Greek · Saints priority
47:17 So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for their horses, their sheep, their oxen, and their donkeys; thus he nourished them with bread in exchange for all their livestock during that year.
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:18 Different
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:18 When that year ended, they came to him the next year and said, “We will not hide from my lord that our silver is spent and our livestock belongs to my lord. Nothing remains before my lord except our bodies and our land.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:18 When that year ended, they came to him the next year and said, “Do not let us be wiped out before our lord. Our silver is spent, and our possessions and livestock have gone to you, our lord. Nothing remains before my lord except our own bodies and our land.”
Hebrew says we will not hide; the consulted Greek pleads against destruction and lists possessions as well as livestock [G47].
47:19 Similar
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:19 “Why should we die before your eyes, we and our land? Buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be slaves to Pharaoh. Give us seed, so we may live and not die and the land may not become desolate.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:19 “So that we do not die before you and the land become desolate, buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be slaves to Pharaoh. Give seed so we may sow and live and not die, and the land will not become desolate.”
Rahlfs–Hanhart includes both live and the final negative: the land will not become desolate. The earlier draft’s false contradiction is removed; Greek also explicitly mentions sowing. [G47]
47:20 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:20 Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh. The Egyptians sold their fields because the famine bore heavily upon them, and the land became Pharaoh’s.
Greek · Saints priority
47:20 Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh. The Egyptians sold their land to Pharaoh because the famine bore heavily upon them, and the land became Pharaoh’s.
The sale and severe famine are preserved; V1’s absolute mastery is an unnecessary intensification.
47:21 Disparate
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:21 As for the people, he moved them into the cities, from one end of Egypt’s territory to the other.
Greek · Saints priority
47:21 As for the people, he enslaved them for him, from one end of Egypt’s territory to the other.
Hebrew records relocation to cities; Greek explicitly records enslavement to Pharaoh. This changes the stated legal action, even though verses 19 and 23 also describe acquisition of people in both texts. [G47]
47:22 Similar
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:22 Only the priests’ land he did not buy, for Pharaoh provided the priests an allowance. They lived on the allowance Pharaoh gave them, so they did not sell their land.
Greek · Saints priority
47:22 Only the priests’ land he did not buy, for Pharaoh provided the priests an allowance. They lived on the allowance Pharaoh gave them, so they did not sell their land.
The provision terms correspond. V1’s statutory gift adds an unnecessary legal characterization [G47].
47:23 Similar
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:23 Joseph said to the people, “I have bought you and your land today for Pharaoh. Here is seed for you; sow the land.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:23 Joseph said to all the Egyptians, “I have bought you and your land today for Pharaoh. Take seed and sow the land.”
Greek expressly names all the Egyptians; the acquisition of people is stated plainly [G47].
47:24 Divergent
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:24 “At harvest, give Pharaoh a fifth. The other four parts will be yours for seed, for your food, for those in your households, and for your little ones’ food.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:24 “And it shall be, that from its harvests you shall give a fifth part to Pharaoh, but the other four-fifths shall be your own—as seed for the field, as food for yourselves, and for everyone inside your households.”
Greek lacks the separate final little-ones clause, while including all the households [G47].
47:25 Different
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:25 They said, “You have saved our lives. May we find favor before my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s slaves.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:25 They said, “You have saved us. We have found favor before our lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s slaves.”
The consulted Greek states that favor has been found. V1’s gladly is removed; enslavement is not softened [G47].
47:26 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:26 Joseph established this rule concerning Egypt’s land, remaining to this day: Pharaoh receives a fifth. Only the priests’ land did not become Pharaoh’s.
Greek · Saints priority
47:26 Joseph established this rule concerning Egypt’s land, remaining to this day: Pharaoh receives a fifth. Only the priests’ land did not become Pharaoh’s.
To this day is the narrator’s temporal expression; it is not a claim about current Egyptian law.
Israel’s Final Request
47:27 Similar
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:27 Israel lived in Egypt, in Goshen. They acquired holdings there, became fruitful, and multiplied greatly.
Greek · Saints priority
47:27 Israel lived in Egypt, in Gesem. They inherited holdings there, increased, and multiplied greatly.
Greek includes increased and multiplied, corresponding to Hebrew’s fruitful and multiplied. The earlier draft’s omitted growth clause is restored. [G47]
47:28 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:28 Jacob lived in Egypt seventeen years. The years of Jacob’s life totaled one hundred forty-seven.
Greek · Saints priority
47:28 Jacob lived in Egypt seventeen years. The years of Jacob’s life totaled one hundred forty-seven.
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:29 Similar
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:29 When Israel’s time to die drew near, he called Joseph his son and said, “If I have found favor in your sight, please put your hand under my thigh and deal with me in kindness and faithfulness. Please do not bury me in Egypt.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:29 When Israel’s days to die drew near, he called Joseph his son and said, “If I have found favor before you, put your hand under my thigh and deal with me in mercy and truth: do not bury me in Egypt.”
Kindness/faithfulness and mercy/truth correspond in the requested oath [G47].
47:30 Same
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:30 “But I will sleep with my fathers, and you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their tomb.” And Joseph replied, “I will do according to your word.”
Greek · Saints priority
47:30 “But I will sleep with my fathers, and you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their tomb.” And Joseph replied, “I will do according to your word.”
The corresponding meaning and content agree.
47:31 Disparate
Hebrew · Rabbinic priority
47:31 He said, “Swear to me.” He swore to him, and Israel bowed at the head of the bed.
Greek · Saints priority
47:31 He said, “Swear to me.” He swore to him, and Israel bowed in worship upon the top of his staff.
Bed/staff reflects different readings of the unpointed consonants mṭh. The central physical image in this act of homage changes and is preserved in each column [G47]. Saints reception: Hebrews 11:21 uses the staff wording when describing Jacob’s faith and blessing of Joseph’s sons. Its quotation of the bowing clause brings this scene into relation with chapter 48 [S47].
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Saints Translation · Companion comparison edition · working draft awaiting specialist review.