Genesis 43:19
in Genesis 43So they approached Joseph’s steward and spoke to him at the entrance to the house.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And they came near to the steward of Joseph’s house, and they spake unto him at the door of the house,
KJV
And they came near to the steward of Joseph’s house, and they communed with him at the door of the house,
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This verse in Genesis 43
Commentary
5 notes on this verseAnd they began to desire to plead their case to the man who was steward of the house at the door of the house. They still hesitate to enter in and prefer to be justified from their works, for they desire to prove a case rather than to receive grace, and so they are refuted at the gates. But the one who awaits the fruit of the Virgin's womb and the inheritance of the Lord is dealing in the goods of the Son and is not ashamed at the gate.
This site's exposition
the brothers were frightened
on Genesis 43:18-20
An invitation to dinner reads to them as arrest. They name the silver in their bags as the reason they were brought to Joseph's house. Adam Clarke's line is that a guilty conscience needs no accuser, and Ambrose of Milan noticed they plead at the entrance before anyone accuses them.
This site's exposition
spoke to him at the entrance to the house
They stop at the entrance and speak to the steward before going into Joseph's house, afraid of being taken as slaves. At Dothan these men plotted against a brother in secret. Here they explain the silver in their sacks before anyone asks.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
Then the [brothers] approached Joseph's steward and said to him, "When we returned the first time we opened our sacks, and behold, there was each one's money in the opening of his sack.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And they came near to the steward of Joseph's house,.... The same person before called the ruler of his house, under whose direction they were; just before they came to the house, as it seems by what follows, they made up to him as having something to say to him: and they communed with him at the door of the house; before they went into it, being uneasy and eager to know what should be the meaning of their being brought thither, which was unusual.
The words behind it
11 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַֽיִּגְּשׁוּ֙ | vaiyigeshu | and they approached | H5066 → | 125 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | <to> | H413 → | 5510 times |
| הָאִ֔ישׁ | haish | the man | H376 → | 1663 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֖ר | ʾasher | who | H834 → | 5497 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | [was] over | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| בֵּ֣ית | beit | [the] household of | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| יוֹסֵ֑ף | yosef | Joseph | H3130 → | 213 times |
| וַיְדַבְּר֥וּ | vaydaberu | and they spoke | H1696 → | 1141 times |
| אֵלָ֖יו | ʾelav | to him | H413 → | 5510 times |
| פֶּ֥תַח | petach | [the] entrance of | H6607 → | 164 times |
| הַבָּֽיִת׃ | habayit | the house | H1004 → | 2046 times |
וַֽיִּגְּשׁוּ֙and they approached
vaiyigeshuH5066 →125 times
אֶל־<to>
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
הָאִ֔ישׁthe man
haishH376 →1663 times
אֲשֶׁ֖רwho
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
עַל־[was] over
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
בֵּ֣ית[the] household of
beitH1004 →2046 times
יוֹסֵ֑ףJoseph
yosefH3130 →213 times
וַיְדַבְּר֥וּand they spoke
vaydaberuH1696 →1141 times
אֵלָ֖יוto him
ʾelavH413 →5510 times
פֶּ֥תַח[the] entrance of
petachH6607 →164 times
הַבָּֽיִת׃the house
habayitH1004 →2046 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
Where this verse is studied
About Genesis
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Ambrose of Milan, On Joseph the Patriarch; Ephrem the Syrian, COMMENTARY ON GENESIS 37:5; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).