Matthew Henry

These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the Israelites: Bela son of Beor reigned in Edom; the name of his city…

“Little more is recorded than their names, because the history of those that were out of the church (though perhaps it might have been serviceable in politics) would have been of little use in divinity.”

These are the names of Esau’s chiefs, according to their families and regions, by their names: Chiefs Timna, Alvah, Jetheth,

“Note, When power is abused, it is just with God to weaken it, by turning it into divers channels. For the transgression of a land, many are the princes thereof. Sin brought Edom from kings to dukes, from crowns to coronets.”

Magdiel, and Iram. These were the chiefs of Edom, according to their settlements in the land they possessed. Esau was the father of the Edomites.

“While the Israelites dwelt in the house of bondage, and their Canaan was only the land of promise, the Edomites dwelt in their own habitations, and Seir was in their possession.”

“Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits. We can say that a vicious animal has devoured him.

“This shows what it was that fretted and enraged them. They could not endure to think of doing homage to him; this was what they were plotting to prevent by the murder of him.”

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.”

“They pretended they had found it in the fields, and Jacob himself must be scornfully asked, Is this thy son's coat?”

Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard.

“Jacob was lamenting the loss of his life; had he known all he would have lamented, though not so passionately, the loss of liberty.”

But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the LORD; so the LORD put him to death.

“This was so much the worse because the Messiah was to descend from Judah, and, had he not been guilty of this wickedness, he might have had the honour of being one of his ancestors.”

she removed her widow’s garments, covered her face with a veil to disguise herself, and sat at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the way to Timnah.

“And, if this was indeed her desire, it had its success; she is one of the four women particularly named in the genealogy of Christ, Matt. i.”

About three months later, Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has prostituted herself, and now she is pregnant.” “Bring her out!” Judah replied. “Let her be burned to death!”

“Note, it is a common thing for men to be severe against those very sins in others in which yet they allow themselves; and so, in judging others, they condemn themselves, Rom. ii.”

As she was being brought out, Tamar sent a message to her father-in-law: “I am pregnant by the man to whom these items belong.” And she added, “Please examine them.

“Some of the Jewish writers observe that as Judah had said to his father, See, is this thy son's coat? ( ch. xxxvii. 32 ) so it was now said to him, "See, are these thy signet and bracelets?"”

Meanwhile, Joseph had been taken down to Egypt, where an Egyptian named Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken…

“The Jews have a proverb, "If the world did not know the worth of good men, they would hedge them about with pearls."”

Although Potiphar’s wife spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be near her.

“The temptation he was assaulted with was very strong. Never was a more violent onset made upon the fort of chastity than this recorded here. (1.)”

she called her household servants. “Look,” she said, “this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us.

“Observe, When she speaks of her husband, she does not call him her husband, or her lord, but only he; for she had forgotten the covenant of her God, that was between them.”

the LORD was with him and extended kindness to him, granting him favor in the eyes of the prison warden.

“And herein Joseph was a type of Christ, "who took upon him the form of a servant," and yet then did that which made it evident that "God was with him," who was tempted by Satan, but overcame the temptation, who was falsely accused and…”

And the warden put all the prisoners under Joseph’s care, so that he was responsible for all that was done in the prison.

“Note, Wisdom and virtue will shine in the narrowest spheres. A good man will do good wherever he is, and will be a blessing even in bonds and banishment; for the Spirit of the Lord is not bound nor banished, witness St. Paul, Phil. i.”

Some time later, the king’s cupbearer and baker offended their master, the king of Egypt.

“The world stands for the sake of the church, and is governed for its good. Two of the great officers of Pharaoh's court, having offended the king, are committed to prison. Note, High places are slippery places; nothing more uncertain than the favour of princes.”

“We both had dreams,” they replied, “but there is no one to interpret them.” Then Joseph said to them, “Don’t interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.”

“Joseph premises a caveat against his own praise, and is careful to transmit the glory to God, as Daniel, ch. ii.”

The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot all about him.

“Joseph's fellow-sufferers were like the two thieves that were crucified with Christ--the one saved, the other condemned. (It is Dr. Lightfoot's remark, from Mr. Broughton.)”

So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, who was quickly brought out of the dungeon. After he had shaved and changed his clothes, he went in before Pharaoh.

“It is done with all possible expedition, and Joseph is brought in, perhaps almost as much surprised as Peter was, Acts xii. So suddenly is his captivity brought back that he is as one that dreams, Ps. cxxvi.”

Moreover, because the dream was given to Pharaoh in two versions, the matter has been decreed by God, and He will carry it out shortly.

“Thus God has often shown the immutability of his counsel by two immutable things, Heb. vi. The covenant is sealed with two sacraments; and in the one of them there are both bread and wine, wherein the dream is one, and yet it is doubled…”

Before the years of famine arrived, two sons were born to Joseph by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On.

“It had been the land of his affliction, and in some sense it was still so, for it was not Canaan, the land of promise. His distance from his father was still his affliction.”

the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. And although there was famine in every country, there was food throughout the land of Egypt.

“It is here said that in the land of Egypt there was bread, meaning probably, not only that which Joseph had bought up for the king, but that which private persons, by his example, and upon the public notice of this prediction, as well as…”

When extreme hunger came to all the land of Egypt and the people cried out to Pharaoh for food, he told all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph and do whatever…

“The people in distress cried to Pharaoh, as that woman to the king of Israel ( 2 Kings vi. 26 ), Help, my lord, O king: he sent them to his treasurer, Go to Joseph.”

When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why are you staring at one another?”

“The famine was grievous in the land of Canaan. It is observable that all the three patriarchs, to whom Canaan was the land of promise, met with famine in that land, which was not only to try their faith, whether they could trust God though…”

Then they said to one another, “Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw his anguish when he pleaded with us, but we would not listen.

“They talked the matter over in the Hebrew tongue, not suspecting that Joseph, whom they took for a native of Egypt, understood them, much less that he was the person they spoke of.”