Genesis 37:3
New International Version
Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe for him.

New Living Translation
Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other children because Joseph had been born to him in his old age. So one day Jacob had a special gift made for Joseph—a beautiful robe.

English Standard Version
Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his sons, because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a robe of many colors.

Berean Standard Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph more than his other sons, because Joseph had been born to him in his old age; so he made him a robe of many colors.

King James Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours.

New King James Version
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age. Also he made him a tunic of many colors.

New American Standard Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his other sons, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a multicolored tunic.

NASB 1995
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a varicolored tunic.

NASB 1977
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a varicolored tunic.

Legacy Standard Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a varicolored tunic.

Amplified Bible
Now Israel (Jacob) loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a [distinctive] multicolored tunic.

Christian Standard Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph more than his other sons because Joseph was a son born to him in his old age, and he made a long-sleeved robe for him.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph more than his other sons because Joseph was a son born to him in his old age, and he made a robe of many colors for him.

American Standard Version
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colors.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And Israel had loved Yoseph more than all his sons because he was a son of old age to him, and he made for him a coat of long sleeves.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And Jacob loved Joseph more than all his sons, because he was to him the son of old age; and he made for him a coat of many colours.

Contemporary English Version
Jacob loved Joseph more than he did any of his other sons, because Joseph was born when Jacob was very old. Jacob had even given Joseph a fancy coat

Douay-Rheims Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph above all his sons, because he had him in his old age: and he made him a coat of divers colours.

English Revised Version
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons because Joseph had been born in Israel's old age. So he made Joseph a special robe with long sleeves.

Good News Translation
Jacob loved Joseph more than all his other sons, because he had been born to him when he was old. He made a long robe with full sleeves for him.

International Standard Version
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his brothers, since he was born to him in his old age, so he had made a richly-embroidered tunic for him.

JPS Tanakh 1917
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a coat of many colours.

Literal Standard Version
And Israel has loved Joseph more than any of his sons, for he [is] a son of his old age, and has made for him a long coat;

Majority Standard Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph more than his other sons, because Joseph had been born to him in his old age; so he made him a robe of many colors.

New American Bible
Israel loved Joseph best of all his sons, for he was the child of his old age; and he had made him a long ornamented tunic.

NET Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons because he was a son born to him late in life, and he made a special tunic for him.

New Revised Standard Version
Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he had made him a long robe with sleeves.

New Heart English Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he had been born to him in his old age. And he made a long ornamented robe for him.

Webster's Bible Translation
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colors.

World English Bible
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age, and he made him a tunic of many colors.

Young's Literal Translation
And Israel hath loved Joseph more than any of his sons, for he is a son of his old age, and hath made for him a long coat;

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Joseph's Dreams
2This is the account of Jacob. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he was tending the flock with his brothers, the sons of his father’s wives Bilhah and Zilpah, and he brought their father a bad report about them. 3Now Israel loved Joseph more than his other sons, because Joseph had been born to him in his old age; so he made him a robe of many colors. 4When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.…

Cross References
Genesis 37:23
So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe--the robe of many colors he was wearing--

Genesis 37:31
Then they took Joseph's robe, slaughtered a young goat, and dipped the robe in its blood.

Genesis 37:32
They sent the robe of many colors to their father and said, "We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son's robe or not."

Genesis 44:20
And we answered, 'We have an elderly father and a younger brother, the child of his old age. The boy's brother is dead. He is the only one of his mother's sons left, and his father loves him.'

2 Samuel 13:18
So Amnon's attendant threw her out and bolted the door behind her. Now Tamar was wearing a robe of many colors, because this is what the king's virgin daughters wore.


Treasury of Scripture

Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colors.

loved.

John 3:35
The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.

John 13:22,23
Then the disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom he spake…

son.

Genesis 44:20-30
And we said unto my lord, We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him…

a coat.

Genesis 37:23,32
And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stript Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colours that was on him; …

Judges 5:30
Have they not sped? have they not divided the prey; to every man a damsel or two; to Sisera a prey of divers colours, a prey of divers colours of needlework, of divers colours of needlework on both sides, meet for the necks of them that take the spoil?

2 Samuel 13:18
And she had a garment of divers colours upon her: for with such robes were the king's daughters that were virgins apparelled. Then his servant brought her out, and bolted the door after her.

colours.

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Age Born Children Coat Colors Colours Greater Israel Joseph Loved Ornamented Richly Robe Sleeves Tunic Varicolored Vest
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Age Born Children Coat Colors Colours Greater Israel Joseph Loved Ornamented Richly Robe Sleeves Tunic Varicolored Vest
Genesis 37
1. Joseph is loved by Jacob, but hated by his brothers.
5. His dreams and the interpretation.
12. Jacob sends him to his brothers, who counsel to slay him.
21. At Reuben's desire they cast him into a pit;
25. and afterwards sell him to the Ishmaelites;
29. while Ruben grieves at not finding him.
31. His coat, covered with blood, is sent to Jacob, who mourns him inordinately.
36. Joseph is brought to Egypt and sold to Potiphar.














(3) He was the son of his old age.--Jacob was ninety-one when Joseph was born; but at Benjamin's birth he was eight or nine years older; and according to the common belief that Jacob was only twenty years in Padan-aram, the four sons of the handmaids must have been about Joseph's age, and Leah's last two sons even younger. But the epithet is intelligible if Jacob had waited twenty-seven years after his marriage with Rachel, before Joseph was born. There would then be a considerable interval between him and the other sons; and though Rachel had a second son some years afterwards, yet Joseph would continue to be the son long looked for, whose birth had given him so great happiness; whereas his joy at Benjamin's coming was bought at the terrible price of the mother's death.

A coat of many colours.--Two explanations are given of this phrase; the first, that it was a long garment with sleeves or fringes; the other, that it was composed of patchwork of various colours. The latter is the more probable interpretation; for from the tomb at Beni-Hassan we learn that such dresses were worn in Palestine, as a train of captive Jebusites is represented upon it clad in rich robes, the patterns of which seem to have been produced by sewing together small pieces of different colours. So also in India beautiful dresses are made by sewing together strips of crimson, purple, and other colours. (Roberts' Oriental Illustrations, p. 43.) Some have thought that Jacob by this dress marked out Joseph as the future head of the family, in the place of Reuben, supposing it to indicate the priestly office borne by the firstborn; but this is doubtful, and it was Judah to whom Jacob gave the right of primogeniture.

Verse 3. - Now (literally, and) Israel loved Joseph more than all his children (literally, sons), because he was the son of his old age - literally, a son of old age (was) he to him; not a son possessing the wisdom of advanced years (Onkelos), but a son born in his old age (Rosenmüller, Keil, Kalisch, et alii), which was literally true of Joseph, since he was born in his father's ninety-first year. Yet as Joseph was only a year or two younger than the children of Bilhah and Zilpah, and as Benjamin was still later born than he, the application of this epithet to Joseph has been explained on the ground that Benjamin was at this time little more than a child (Keil), and had not much come into notice (Murphy), or perhaps was not born when this portion of the narrative was originally written ('Speaker's Commentary); or that Joseph had obtained the name before Benjamin's birth, and that it had clung to him after that event (Inglis). Josephus ('Ant.,' 2:02, 1) gives another reason for Jacob's partiality which is not inconsistent with the statement in the text, viz., the beauty of his person and the virtue of his mind, διὰ τε τὴν τοῦ σώματος εὐγένειαν καὶ διά ψυχῆς ἀρετής. And he made him a coat of many colors - literally, a coat (kithoneth, from kathan, to cover; vide Genesis 3:21) of ends (Keil, Lange), i.e. a tunic reaching to the ancles, and with sleeves reaching to the wrists, and commonly worn by boys and girls of the upper ranks (Josephus, 'Ant.,' 7:08, 9; 2 Samuel 13:18), or a coat of pieces (Kalisch, T. Lewis, Wordsworth); hence a variegated garment, χιτὼν ποικίλος (LXX.), tunica polymita (Vulgate), a coat of many colors (Murphy, 'Speaker's Commentary'). "Such garments are represented on some of the monuments of Egypt. At Beni-Hassan, for example, there is a magnificent excavation forming the tomb of Pihrai, a military officer of Osirtasen I., in which a train of foreign captives appears, who are supposed to be Jebusites, an inscription over one person in the group reading, "The Chief of the Land of the Jebusites. 'The whole of the captives are clad in parti-colored garments, and the tunic of this individual in particular may be called "a coat of many colors" (Thornlcy Smith, 'Joseph and his Times,' p. 12). It has been supposed that Jacob's object in conferring this distinction on Joseph was to mark him out as the heir to whom the forfeited birthright of Reuben (1 Chronicles 5:1) was to be transferred (Kurtz, Lange, Gerlach, Bush, Wordsworth, 'Speaker's Commentary,' etc.); but the historian only mentions it as a token of affection, such as was customary in those times for princes to bestow upon their subjects, and parents on their children (vide Thornley Smith, 'Joseph and his Times,' p. 11). Roberts says the same thing is still done among the Hindoos, crimson, purple, and other colors being often tastefully sewed together for beautiful or favored children (vide 'Oriental Illustrations,' p. 43).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Now Israel
וְיִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל (wə·yiś·rā·’êl)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3478: Israel -- 'God strives', another name of Jacob and his desc

loved
אָהַ֤ב (’ā·haḇ)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 157: To have affection f

Joseph
יוֹסֵף֙ (yō·w·sêp̄)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3130: Joseph -- 'he increases', a son of Jacob, also the name of several Israelites

more than
מִכָּל־ (mik·kāl)
Preposition-m | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

his other sons,
בָּנָ֔יו (bā·nāw)
Noun - masculine plural construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 1121: A son

because
כִּֽי־ (kî-)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

Joseph
ה֖וּא (hū)
Pronoun - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1931: He, self, the same, this, that, as, are

had been born to him
בֶן־ (ḇen-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 1121: A son

in his old age;
זְקֻנִ֥ים (zə·qu·nîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 2208: Old age

so he made
וְעָ֥שָׂה (wə·‘ā·śāh)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6213: To do, make

him
ל֖וֹ (lōw)
Preposition | third person masculine singular
Strong's Hebrew

a robe
כְּתֹ֥נֶת (kə·ṯō·neṯ)
Noun - feminine singular construct
Strong's 3801: A shirt

of many colors.
פַּסִּֽים׃ (pas·sîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 6446: Flat (of the hand or foot)


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OT Law: Genesis 37:3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all (Gen. Ge Gn)
Genesis 37:2
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