Thematic Bible
Thematic Bible
Bible stories for children » The boy captive who became prime minister
And Joseph's master took him and put him in prison, in the place where the king's prisoners were kept in chains, and he was there in the prison-house. But the Lord was with Joseph, and was good to him, and made the keeper of the prison his friend. And the keeper of the prison put all the prisoners under Joseph's control, and he was responsible for whatever was done there. read more.
And the keeper of the prison gave no attention to anything which was under his care, because the Lord was with him; and the Lord made everything he did go well.
And the keeper of the prison gave no attention to anything which was under his care, because the Lord was with him; and the Lord made everything he did go well.
And Israel said to Joseph, Are not your brothers with the flock in Shechem? come, I will send you to them. And he said to him, Here am I. And he said to him, Go now, and see if your brothers are well and how the flock is; then come back and give me word. So he sent him out of the valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem. And a man saw him wandering in the country, and said to him, What are you looking for? read more.
And he said, I am looking for my brothers; please give me word of where they are keeping their flock. And the man said, They have gone away from here, for they said in my hearing, Let us go to Dothan. So Joseph went after them and came up with them at Dothan. But they saw him when he was a long way off, and before he came near them they made a secret design against him to put him to death; Saying to one another, See, here comes this dreamer. Let us now put him to death and put his body into one of these holes, and we will say, An evil beast has put him to death: then we will see what becomes of his dreams. But Reuben, hearing these words, got him out of their hands, saying, Let us not take his life. Do not put him to a violent death, but let him be placed in one of the holes; this he said to keep him safe from their hands, with the purpose of taking him back to his father again. So when Joseph came to his brothers, they took off his long coat which he had on; And they took him and put him in the hole: now the hole had no water in it. Then seating themselves, they took their meal: and looking up, they saw a travelling band of Ishmaelites, coming from Gilead on their way to Egypt, with spices and perfumes on their camels. And Judah said to his brothers, What profit is there in putting our brother to death and covering up his blood? Let us give him to these Ishmaelites for a price, and let us not put violent hands on him, for he is our brother, our flesh. And his brothers gave ear to him. And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt. Now when Reuben came back to the hole, Joseph was not there; and giving signs of grief, He went back to his brothers, and said, The child is gone; what am I to do? Then they took Joseph's coat, and put on it some of the blood from a young goat which they had put to death, And they took the coat to their father, and said, We came across this; is it your son's coat or not? And he saw that it was, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast has put him to death; without doubt Joseph has come to a cruel end. Then Jacob, giving signs of grief, put on haircloth, and went on weeping for his son day after day. And all his sons and all his daughters came to give him comfort, but he would not be comforted, saying with weeping, I will go down to the underworld to my son. So great was his father's sorrow for him. And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
And he said, I am looking for my brothers; please give me word of where they are keeping their flock. And the man said, They have gone away from here, for they said in my hearing, Let us go to Dothan. So Joseph went after them and came up with them at Dothan. But they saw him when he was a long way off, and before he came near them they made a secret design against him to put him to death; Saying to one another, See, here comes this dreamer. Let us now put him to death and put his body into one of these holes, and we will say, An evil beast has put him to death: then we will see what becomes of his dreams. But Reuben, hearing these words, got him out of their hands, saying, Let us not take his life. Do not put him to a violent death, but let him be placed in one of the holes; this he said to keep him safe from their hands, with the purpose of taking him back to his father again. So when Joseph came to his brothers, they took off his long coat which he had on; And they took him and put him in the hole: now the hole had no water in it. Then seating themselves, they took their meal: and looking up, they saw a travelling band of Ishmaelites, coming from Gilead on their way to Egypt, with spices and perfumes on their camels. And Judah said to his brothers, What profit is there in putting our brother to death and covering up his blood? Let us give him to these Ishmaelites for a price, and let us not put violent hands on him, for he is our brother, our flesh. And his brothers gave ear to him. And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt. Now when Reuben came back to the hole, Joseph was not there; and giving signs of grief, He went back to his brothers, and said, The child is gone; what am I to do? Then they took Joseph's coat, and put on it some of the blood from a young goat which they had put to death, And they took the coat to their father, and said, We came across this; is it your son's coat or not? And he saw that it was, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast has put him to death; without doubt Joseph has come to a cruel end. Then Jacob, giving signs of grief, put on haircloth, and went on weeping for his son day after day. And all his sons and all his daughters came to give him comfort, but he would not be comforted, saying with weeping, I will go down to the underworld to my son. So great was his father's sorrow for him. And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
Now after two years had gone by, Pharaoh had a dream; and in his dream he was by the side of the Nile; And out of the Nile came seven cows, good-looking and fat, and their food was the river-grass. And after them seven other cows came out of the Nile, poor-looking and thin; and they were by the side of the other cows. read more.
And the seven thin cows made a meal of the seven fat cows. Then Pharaoh came out of his sleep. But he went to sleep again and had a second dream, in which he saw seven heads of grain, full and good, all on one stem. And after them came up seven other heads, thin and wasted by the east wind. And the seven thin heads made a meal of the good heads. And when Pharaoh was awake he saw it was a dream. And in the morning his spirit was troubled; and he sent for all the wise men of Egypt and all the holy men, and put his dream before them, but no one was able to give him the sense of it. Then the chief wine-servant said to Pharaoh, The memory of my sin comes back to me now; Pharaoh had been angry with his servants, and had put me in prison in the house of the captain of the army, together with the chief bread-maker; And we had a dream on the same night, the two of us, and the dreams had a special sense. And there was with us a young Hebrew, the captain's servant, and when we put our dreams before him, he gave us the sense of them. And it came about as he said: I was put back in my place, and the bread-maker was put to death by hanging. Then Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and they took him quickly out of prison; and when his hair had been cut and his dress changed, he came before Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I have had a dream, and no one is able to give me the sense of it; now it has come to my ears that you are able to give the sense of a dream when it is put before you. Then Joseph said, Without God there will be no answer of peace for Pharaoh. Then Pharaoh said, In my dream I was by the side of the Nile: And out of the Nile came seven cows, fat and good-looking, and their food was the river-grass; Then after them came seven other cows, very thin and poor-looking, worse than any I ever saw in the land of Egypt; And the thin cows made a meal of the seven fat cows who came up first; And even with the fat cows inside them they seemed as bad as before. And so I came out of my sleep. And again in a dream I saw seven heads of grain, full and good, coming up on one stem: And then I saw seven other heads, dry, thin, and wasted by the east wind, coming up after them: And the seven thin heads made a meal of the seven good heads; and I put this dream before the wise men, but not one of them was able to give me the sense of it. Then Joseph said, These two dreams have the same sense: God has made clear to Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven fat cows are seven years, and the seven good heads of grain are seven years: the two have the same sense. The seven thin and poor-looking cows who came up after them are seven years; and the seven heads of grain, dry and wasted by the east wind, are seven years when there will be no food. As I said to Pharaoh before, God has made clear to him what he is about to do. Seven years are coming in which there will be great wealth of grain in Egypt; And after that will come seven years when there will not be enough food; and the memory of the good years will go from men's minds; and the land will be made waste by the bad years; And men will have no memory of the good time because of the need which will come after, for it will be very bitter. And this dream came to Pharaoh twice, because this thing is certain, and God will quickly make it come about. And now let Pharaoh make search for a man of wisdom and good sense, and put him in authority over the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh do this, and let him put overseers over the land of Egypt to put in store a fifth part of the produce of the land in the good years. And let them get together all the food in those good years and make a store of grain under Pharaoh's control for the use of the towns, and let them keep it. And let that food be kept in store for the land till the seven bad years which are to come in Egypt; so that the land may not come to destruction through need of food. And this seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his servants. Then Pharaoh said to his servants, Where may we get such a man as this, a man in whom is the spirit of God? And Pharaoh said to Joseph, Seeing that God has made all this clear to you, there is no other man of such wisdom and good sense as you: You, then, are to be over my house, and all my people will be ruled by your word: only as king will I be greater than you. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, See, I have put you over all the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand and put it on Joseph's hand, and he had him clothed with the best linen, and put a chain of gold round his neck; And he made him take his seat in the second of his carriages; and they went before him crying, Make way! So he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, I am Pharaoh; and without your order no man may do anything in all the land of Egypt.
And the seven thin cows made a meal of the seven fat cows. Then Pharaoh came out of his sleep. But he went to sleep again and had a second dream, in which he saw seven heads of grain, full and good, all on one stem. And after them came up seven other heads, thin and wasted by the east wind. And the seven thin heads made a meal of the good heads. And when Pharaoh was awake he saw it was a dream. And in the morning his spirit was troubled; and he sent for all the wise men of Egypt and all the holy men, and put his dream before them, but no one was able to give him the sense of it. Then the chief wine-servant said to Pharaoh, The memory of my sin comes back to me now; Pharaoh had been angry with his servants, and had put me in prison in the house of the captain of the army, together with the chief bread-maker; And we had a dream on the same night, the two of us, and the dreams had a special sense. And there was with us a young Hebrew, the captain's servant, and when we put our dreams before him, he gave us the sense of them. And it came about as he said: I was put back in my place, and the bread-maker was put to death by hanging. Then Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and they took him quickly out of prison; and when his hair had been cut and his dress changed, he came before Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I have had a dream, and no one is able to give me the sense of it; now it has come to my ears that you are able to give the sense of a dream when it is put before you. Then Joseph said, Without God there will be no answer of peace for Pharaoh. Then Pharaoh said, In my dream I was by the side of the Nile: And out of the Nile came seven cows, fat and good-looking, and their food was the river-grass; Then after them came seven other cows, very thin and poor-looking, worse than any I ever saw in the land of Egypt; And the thin cows made a meal of the seven fat cows who came up first; And even with the fat cows inside them they seemed as bad as before. And so I came out of my sleep. And again in a dream I saw seven heads of grain, full and good, coming up on one stem: And then I saw seven other heads, dry, thin, and wasted by the east wind, coming up after them: And the seven thin heads made a meal of the seven good heads; and I put this dream before the wise men, but not one of them was able to give me the sense of it. Then Joseph said, These two dreams have the same sense: God has made clear to Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven fat cows are seven years, and the seven good heads of grain are seven years: the two have the same sense. The seven thin and poor-looking cows who came up after them are seven years; and the seven heads of grain, dry and wasted by the east wind, are seven years when there will be no food. As I said to Pharaoh before, God has made clear to him what he is about to do. Seven years are coming in which there will be great wealth of grain in Egypt; And after that will come seven years when there will not be enough food; and the memory of the good years will go from men's minds; and the land will be made waste by the bad years; And men will have no memory of the good time because of the need which will come after, for it will be very bitter. And this dream came to Pharaoh twice, because this thing is certain, and God will quickly make it come about. And now let Pharaoh make search for a man of wisdom and good sense, and put him in authority over the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh do this, and let him put overseers over the land of Egypt to put in store a fifth part of the produce of the land in the good years. And let them get together all the food in those good years and make a store of grain under Pharaoh's control for the use of the towns, and let them keep it. And let that food be kept in store for the land till the seven bad years which are to come in Egypt; so that the land may not come to destruction through need of food. And this seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his servants. Then Pharaoh said to his servants, Where may we get such a man as this, a man in whom is the spirit of God? And Pharaoh said to Joseph, Seeing that God has made all this clear to you, there is no other man of such wisdom and good sense as you: You, then, are to be over my house, and all my people will be ruled by your word: only as king will I be greater than you. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, See, I have put you over all the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand and put it on Joseph's hand, and he had him clothed with the best linen, and put a chain of gold round his neck; And he made him take his seat in the second of his carriages; and they went before him crying, Make way! So he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, I am Pharaoh; and without your order no man may do anything in all the land of Egypt.
Captain » Of the guard
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
Now in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, in the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the armed men, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem;
Commerce » Articles of » Slaves
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt.
If a man takes by force one of his countrymen, the children of Israel, using him as his property or getting a price for him, that thief is to be put to death: so you are to put away evil from among you.
Egypt » Exports of
Then seating themselves, they took their meal: and looking up, they saw a travelling band of Ishmaelites, coming from Gilead on their way to Egypt, with spices and perfumes on their camels.
My bed is covered with cushions of needlework, with coloured cloths of the cotton thread of Egypt;
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
And Solomon's horses came from Egypt and from Kue; the king's traders got them at a price from Kue. A war-carriage might be got from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty; they got them at the same rate for all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.
The best linen with needlework from Egypt was your sail, stretched out to be a flag for you; blue and purple from the sea-lands of Elishah gave you shade.
Egypt » Imports of
Then seating themselves, they took their meal: and looking up, they saw a travelling band of Ishmaelites, coming from Gilead on their way to Egypt, with spices and perfumes on their camels.
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
Egyptians » Slaves bought by
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
Ishmaelites » Called midianites
Then Gideon said to them, I have a request to make to you; let every man give me the ear-rings he has taken. (For they had gold ear-rings, because they were Ishmaelites.)
The weight of the gold ear-rings which he got from them was one thousand, seven hundred shekels of gold; in addition to the moon-ornaments and jewels and the purple robes which were on the kings of Midian, and the chains on their camels' necks.
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt.
Ishmaelites » Merchants of, buy joseph
Now Joseph was taken down to Egypt; and Potiphar the Egyptian, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house, got him for a price from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.
Then seating themselves, they took their meal: and looking up, they saw a travelling band of Ishmaelites, coming from Gilead on their way to Egypt, with spices and perfumes on their camels. And Judah said to his brothers, What profit is there in putting our brother to death and covering up his blood? Let us give him to these Ishmaelites for a price, and let us not put violent hands on him, for he is our brother, our flesh. And his brothers gave ear to him. read more.
And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt. Now when Reuben came back to the hole, Joseph was not there; and giving signs of grief, He went back to his brothers, and said, The child is gone; what am I to do? Then they took Joseph's coat, and put on it some of the blood from a young goat which they had put to death, And they took the coat to their father, and said, We came across this; is it your son's coat or not? And he saw that it was, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast has put him to death; without doubt Joseph has come to a cruel end. Then Jacob, giving signs of grief, put on haircloth, and went on weeping for his son day after day. And all his sons and all his daughters came to give him comfort, but he would not be comforted, saying with weeping, I will go down to the underworld to my son. So great was his father's sorrow for him. And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt. Now when Reuben came back to the hole, Joseph was not there; and giving signs of grief, He went back to his brothers, and said, The child is gone; what am I to do? Then they took Joseph's coat, and put on it some of the blood from a young goat which they had put to death, And they took the coat to their father, and said, We came across this; is it your son's coat or not? And he saw that it was, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast has put him to death; without doubt Joseph has come to a cruel end. Then Jacob, giving signs of grief, put on haircloth, and went on weeping for his son day after day. And all his sons and all his daughters came to give him comfort, but he would not be comforted, saying with weeping, I will go down to the underworld to my son. So great was his father's sorrow for him. And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
Joseph » Son of jacob » Is bought by potiphar, an officer (lxx has "eunuch") of pharaoh
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
Midianites » Engaged in commerce
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt.
Midianites » Buy joseph and sell him to potiphar
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt.
Potiphar » Joseph's master
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
Now Joseph was taken down to Egypt; and Potiphar the Egyptian, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house, got him for a price from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.
Servant » Bond » Bought and sold
And sweet-smelling plants, and perfumes, and wine, and oil, and well crushed grain, and cattle and sheep; and horses and carriages and servants; and souls of men.
Javan, Tubal, and Meshech were your traders; they gave living men and brass vessels for your goods.
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
And the children of Judah and the children of Jerusalem you have given for a price to the sons of the Greeks, to send them far away from their land:
And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt.
Getting the poor for silver, and him who is in need for the price of two shoes, and taking a price for the waste parts of the grain.
He who comes to birth in your house and he who is made yours for a price, all are to undergo circumcision; so that my agreement may be marked in your flesh, an agreement for all time.
And all the men of his house, those whose birth had taken place in the house and those whom he had got for money from men of other lands, underwent circumcision with him.
Then she gave him the same story, saying, The Hebrew servant whom you have taken into our house came in to make sport of me;
And the Lord will take you back to Egypt again in ships, by the way of which I said to you, You will never see it again: there you will be offering yourselves as men-servants and women-servants to your haters for a price, and no man will take you.
Servant » Instances of » Joseph
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
And Judah said to his brothers, What profit is there in putting our brother to death and covering up his blood? Let us give him to these Ishmaelites for a price, and let us not put violent hands on him, for he is our brother, our flesh. And his brothers gave ear to him. And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt.
Servants » Slaves or bond » By purchase
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
And all the men of his house, those whose birth had taken place in the house and those whom he had got for money from men of other lands, underwent circumcision with him.