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¹ Ya`akov lived in the land of his father's travels, in the land of Kana`an. ² This is the history of the generations of Ya`akov. Yosef, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brothers. He was a boy with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's wives. Yosef brought an evil report of them to their father. ³ Now Yisra'el loved Yosef more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age, and he made him a coat of many colors. ⁴ His brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, and they hated him, and couldn't speak peaceably to him.

⁵ Yosef dreamed a dream, and he told it to his brothers, and they hated him all the more. ⁶ He said to them, "Please hear this dream which I have dreamed: ⁷ for, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and behold, your sheaves came around, and bowed down to my sheaf." ⁸ His brothers said to him, "Will you indeed reign over us? Or will you indeed have dominion over us?" They hated him all the more for his dreams and for his words. ⁹ 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." ¹⁰ He told it to his father and to his brothers. His father rebuked him, and said to him, "What is this dream that you have dreamed? Will I and your mother and your brothers indeed come to bow ourselves down to you to the eretz?" ¹¹ His brothers envied him; but his father kept this saying in mind.

¹² His brothers went to feed their father's flock in Shekhem. ¹³ Yisra'el said to Yosef, "Aren't your brothers feeding the flock in Shekhem? Come, and I will send you to them." He said to him, "Here I am." ¹⁴ He said to him, "Go now, see whether it is well with your brothers, and well with the flock; and bring me word again." So he sent him out of the valley of Hevron, and he came to Shekhem. ¹⁵ A certain man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying, "What are you looking for?" ¹⁶ He said, "I am looking for my brothers. Tell me, please, where they are feeding the flock." ¹⁷ The man said, "They have left here, for I heard them say, 'Let us go to Dotan.'" Yosef went after his brothers, and found them in Dotan. ¹⁸ They saw him afar off, and before he came near to them, they conspired against him to kill him. ¹⁹ They said one to another, "Behold, this dreamer comes. ²⁰ Come now therefore, and let's kill him, and cast him into one of the pits, and we will say, 'An evil animal has devoured him.' We will see what will become of his dreams." ²¹ Re'uven heard it, and delivered him out of their hand, and said, "Let's not take his life." ²² Re'uven said to them, "Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but lay no hand on him" - that he might deliver him out of their hand, to restore him to his father.

²³ It happened, when Yosef came to his brothers, that they stripped Yosef of his coat, the coat of many colors that was on him; ²⁴ and they took him, and threw him into the pit. The pit was empty. There was no water in it. ²⁵ They sat down to eat bread, and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and saw a caravan of Yishme`elim was coming from Gil`ad, with their camels bearing spices and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Mitzrayim. ²⁶ Yehudah said to his brothers, "What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? ²⁷ Come, and let's sell him to the Yishme`elim, and not let our hand be on him; for he is our brother, our flesh." His brothers listened to him. <sup>28</sup> Midyanim who were merchants passed by, and they drew and lifted up Yosef out of the pit, and sold Yosef to the Yishme`elim for twenty pieces of silver. They brought Yosef into Mitzrayim. ²⁹ Re'uven returned to the pit; and saw that Yosef wasn't in the pit; and he tore his clothes. ³⁰ He returned to his brothers, and said, "The child is no more; and I, where will I go?"

³¹ They took Yosef's coat, and killed a male goat, and dipped the coat in the blood. ³² They took the coat of many colors, and they brought it to their father, and said, "We have found this. Examine it, now, whether it is your son's coat or not." ³³ He recognized it, and said, "It is my son's coat. An evil animal has devoured him. Yosef is without doubt torn in pieces." ³⁴ Ya`akov tore his clothes, and put sackcloth on his loins, and mourned for his son many days. <sup>35</sup> All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted. He said, "For I will go down to She'ol to my son mourning." His father wept for him. <sup>36</sup> The Midyanim sold him into Mitzrayim to Potifar, an officer of Par`oh's, the captain of the guard.