Genesis 37 · Verse 9

Genesis 37:9

And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.

Genesis 37:9, King James Version

Genesis 37:9 in other translations

BSB	Then Joseph had another dream and told it to his brothers. “Look,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”
WEB	He dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brothers, and said, “Behold, I have dreamed yet another dream: and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed down to me.”
ASV	And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed yet a dream; and, behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars made obeisance to me.
YLT	And he dreameth yet another dream, and recounteth it to his brethren, and saith, ‘Lo, I have dreamed a dream again, and lo, the sun and the moon, and eleven stars, are bowing themselves to me.'
DARBY	And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamt another dream, and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed down to me.
BBE	Then he had another dream, and gave his brothers an account of it, saying, I have had another dream: the sun and the moon and eleven stars gave honour to me.
Webster	And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more: and behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.

What does Genesis 37:9 mean?

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 9 He dreamed yet another dream - This is as clear as the preceding. But how could Jacob say, Shall I and thy mother, etc., when Rachel his mother was dead some time before this? Perhaps Jacob might hint, by this explanation, the impossibility of such a dream being fulfilled, because one of the persons who should be a chief actor in it was already dead. But any one wife or concubine of Jacob was quite sufficient to fulfill this part of the dream. It is possible, some think, that Joseph may have had these dreams before his mother Rachel died; but were even this the case, she certainly did not live to fulfill the part which appears to refer to herself. The sun and the moon and the eleven stars - Why eleven stars? Was it merely to signify that his brothers might be represented by stars? Or does he not rather there allude to the Zodiac, his eleven brethren answering to eleven of the celestial signs, and himself to the twelfth? This is certainly not an unnatural thought, as it is very likely that the heavens were thus measured in the days of Joseph; for the zodiacal constellations have been distinguished among the eastern nations from time immemorial. See Clarke at Gen 49:33 (note).

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Genesis 37:5-11

God gave Joseph betimes the prospect of his advancement, to support and comfort him under his long and grievous troubles. Observe, Joseph dreamed of his preferment, but he did not dream of his imprisonment. Thus many young people, when setting out in the world, think of nothing but prosperity and pleasure, and never dream of trouble. His brethren rightly interpreted the dream, though they abhorred the interpretation…

Read the full comment on Genesis 37:5-11 →

Genesis 37:9 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.

וַיַּחֲלֹ֥םvai.ya.cha.Lomand he dreamedH2492

עוֹד֙'OdagainH5750

חֲל֣וֹםcha.Loma dreamH2472

אַחֵ֔ר'a.CheranotherH312

וַיְסַפֵּ֥רvay.sa.Perand he recountedH5608

אֹת֖וֹ'o.To<obj.> itH853

לְאֶחָ֑יוle.'e.Chavto brothers hisH251

וַיֹּ֗אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559

הִנֵּ֨הhi.Nehhere!H2009

חָלַ֤מְתִּֽיcha.Lam.tiI have dreamedH2492

חֲלוֹם֙cha.lOma dreamH2472

ע֔וֹדodagainH5750

וְהִנֵּ֧הve.hi.Nehand there!H2009

הַשֶּׁ֣מֶשׁha.She.meshthe sunH8121

וְהַיָּרֵ֗חַve.hai.ya.Re.achand the moonH3394

וְאַחַ֤דve.'a.Chadand one [plus]H259

עָשָׂר֙'a.SartenH6240

כּֽוֹכָבִ֔יםko.kha.VimstarsH3556

מִֽשְׁתַּחֲוִ֖יםmish.ta.cha.Vim[were] bowing downH7812

לִֽי\׃Lito <the> me

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

Cross references for Genesis 37:9

Acts 7:9-14
And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt: but God was with him, And delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favour and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house. Now there came a dearth over all the land of Egypt and Chanaan, and great affliction: and our fathers found no sustenance. But when Jacob heard that there was corn in Egypt, he sent out our fathers first. …
Genesis 46:29
And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen, and presented himself unto him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while.
Genesis 37:7
For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf.
Daniel 8:10
And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.
Genesis 43:28
And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance.
Genesis 44:14
And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph’s house; for he was yet there: and they fell before him on the ground.
Genesis 41:25
And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do.
Genesis 45:9
Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry not:
Genesis 50:15-21
And when Joseph’s brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him. And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him. And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants. …
Genesis 41:32
And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice; it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.
Genesis 44:19
My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a father, or a brother?
Genesis 47:12
And Joseph nourished his father, and his brethren, and all his father’s household, with bread, according to their families.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

another dream.
7; 41:25,32
the sun.
10; 43:28; 44:14,19; 45:9; 46:29; 47:12; 50:15-21; Ac 7:9-14
stars.
Da 8:10; Php 2:15

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

Context

Genesis 37:8
And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.
Genesis 37:9
And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.
Genesis 37:10
And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?

Read all of Genesis 37

Genesis 37:9 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Y soñó aún otro sueño, y contólo á sus hermanos, diciendo: He aquí que he soñado otro sueño, y he aquí que el sol y la luna y once estrellas se inclinaban á mí.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Et il songea encore un autre songe, et le raconta à ses frères. Et il dit: Voici, j’ai encore songé un songe; et voici, le soleil, et la lune, et onze étoiles, se prosternaient devant moi.
German Elberfelder 1871	Und er hatte noch einen anderen Traum und erzählte ihn seinen Brüdern und sprach: Siehe, noch einen Traum habe ich gehabt, und siehe, die Sonne und der Mond und elf Sterne beugten sich vor mir nieder.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Aliud quoque vidit somnium, quod narrans fratribus, ait: Vidi per somnium, quasi solem, et lunam, et stellas undecim adorare me.