Genesis 37 · Verse 19

Genesis 37:19

And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh.
Genesis 37:19, King James Version

Genesis 37:19 in other translations

BSB“Here comes that dreamer!” they said to one another.
WEBThey said to one another, “Behold, this dreamer comes.
ASVAnd they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh.
YLTAnd they say one unto another, ‘Lo, this man of the dreams cometh;
DARBYAnd they said one to another, Behold, there comes that dreamer!
BBESaying to one another, See, here comes this dreamer.
WebsterAnd they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer is coming.

What does Genesis 37:19 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
19. Behold, this dreamer cometh--literally, "master of dreams"--a bitterly ironical sneer. Dreams being considered suggestions from above, to make false pretensions to having received one was detested as a species of blasphemy, and in this light Joseph was regarded by his brethren as an artful pretender. They already began to form a plot for Joseph's assassination, from which he was rescued only by the address of Reuben, who suggested that he should rather be cast into one of the wells, which are, and probably were, completely dried up in summer.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 19 Behold, this dreamer cometh - בעל החלמות baal hachalomoth, this master of dreams, this master dreamer. A form of speech which conveys great contempt.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Genesis 37:12-22

How readily does Joseph wait his father's orders! Those children who are best beloved by their parents, should be the most ready to obey them. See how deliberate Joseph's brethren were against him. They thought to slay him from malice aforethought, and in cold blood. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer, 1Jo 3:15. The sons of Jacob hated their brother because their father loved him. New occasions, as his…

Read the full comment on Genesis 37:12-22 →

Genesis 37:19 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיֹּאמְר֖וּvai.yo.me.Ruand they saidH559
אִ֣ישׁ'isheachH376
אֶל\־'el-toH413
אָחִ֑יו'a.Chivbrother hisH251
הִנֵּ֗הhi.Nehthere!H2009
בַּ֛עַלBa.'al[the] master ofH1167
הַחֲלֹמ֥וֹתha.cha.lo.Mot<the> dreamsH2472
הַלָּזֶ֖הha.la.ZehthisH1976
בָּֽא\׃Ba'[is] comingH935

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Genesis 37:19

  • Genesis 28:12

    And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.

  • Genesis 37:5

    And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more.

  • Genesis 49:23

    The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him:

  • Genesis 37:11

    And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Behold.Simulated Irony: Where the words in question are used by man either in dissimulation or hypocrisy. For other instances of this figure see 2 Sa 6:20; Ps 22:8; Isa 5:19; Mt 22:16; 27:29; 27:40, 42, 43; Mk 15:29.
dreamer. Heb. master of dreams.
5,11; 28:12; 49:23; *marg:

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Genesis 37:18

    And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him.

  • Genesis 37:19

    And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh.

  • Genesis 37:20

    Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams.

Read all of Genesis 37

Genesis 37:19 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y dijeron el uno al otro: He aquí viene el soñador;
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et ils se dirent l’un à l’autre: Le voici, il vient, ce maître songeur!
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und sie sprachen einer zum anderen: Siehe, da kommt jener Träumer!
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		et mutuo loquebantur: Ecce somniator venit: