Genesis 37 · Verse 21

Genesis 37:21

And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him.
Genesis 37:21, King James Version

Genesis 37:21 in other translations

BSBWhen Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue Joseph from their hands. “Let us not take his life,” he said.
WEBReuben heard it, and delivered him out of their hand, and said, “Let’s not take his life.”
ASVAnd Reuben heard it, and delivered him out of their hand, and said, Let us not take his life.
YLTAnd Reuben heareth, and delivereth him out of their hand, and saith, ‘Let us not smite the life;'
DARBYAnd Reuben heard it, and delivered him out of their hand, and said, Let us not take his life.
BBEBut Reuben, hearing these words, got him out of their hands, saying, Let us not take his life.
WebsterAnd Reuben heard it, and he delivered him from their hands: and said, Let us not kill him.

What does Genesis 37:21 mean?

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 21 Reuben heard it - Though Reuben appears to have been a transgressor of no ordinary magnitude, if we take Gen 35:22 according to the letter, yet his bosom was not the habitation of cruelly. He determined, if possible, to save his brother from death, and deliver him safely to his father, with whose fondness for him he was sufficiently acquainted. Josephus, in his usual way, puts a long flourishing speech in the mouth of Reuben on the occasion, spoken in order to dissuade his brethren from their barbarous purpose; but as it is totally unfounded, it is worthy of no regard.

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 37:21 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.

וַיִּשְׁמַ֣עvai.yish.Ma'and he heardH8085
רְאוּבֵ֔ןre.'u.VenReubenH7205
וַיַּצִּלֵ֖הוּvai.ya.tzi.Le.huand he rescued himH5337
מִיָּדָ֑םmi.ya.Damfrom hand theirH3027
וַיֹּ֕אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
לֹ֥אlo'notH3808
נַכֶּ֖נּוּna.Ke.nulet us strike himH5221
נָֽפֶשׁ\׃Na.feshlifeH5315

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

Cross references for Genesis 37:21

  • Genesis 42:22

    And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required.

  • Joshua 10:28

    And that day Joshua took Makkedah, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king thereof he utterly destroyed, them, and all the souls that were therein; he let none remain: and he did to the king of Makkedah as he did unto the king of Jericho.

  • Genesis 35:22

    And it came to pass, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine: and Israel heard it. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve:

  • Matthew 10:28

    And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

  • Genesis 9:5

    And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man’s brother will I require the life of man.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reuben heard.
35:22; 42:22
not kill him. Heb. {nephesh.}
Jos 10:28; Ge 9:5; Mt 10:28

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

Context

  • 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.

  • Genesis 37:21

    And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him.

  • Genesis 37:22

    And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again.

Read all of Genesis 37

Genesis 37:21 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y como Rubén oyó esto, librólo de sus manos, y dijo: No lo matemos.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et Ruben entendit cela, et le délivra de leurs mains; et il dit: Ne le frappons pas à mort.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und Ruben hörte es und errettete ihn aus ihrer Hand und sprach: Laßt uns ihn nicht totschlagen!
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Audiens autem hoc Ruben, nitebatur liberare eum de manibus eorum, et dicebat: