Genesis 41:8

NET Bible® (New English Translation)

In the morning he was troubled, so he called for all the diviner-priests of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

וַיְהִ֤י בַבֹּ֙קֶר֙ וַתִּפָּ֣עֶם רוּח֔וֹ וַיִּשְׁלַ֗ח וַיִּקְרָ֛א אֶת־כָּל־חַרְטֻמֵּ֥י מִצְרַ֖יִם וְאֶת־כָּל־חֲכָמֶ֑יהָ וַיְסַפֵּ֨ר פַּרְעֹ֤ה לָהֶם֙ אֶת־חֲלֹמ֔וֹ וְאֵין־פּוֹתֵ֥ר אוֹתָ֖ם לְפַרְעֹֽה

Transliteration

And wa-yĕhî in the morning ba-bōqer and wa-tippāʿem his spirit rûḥô, and wa-yishlaḥ and wa-yiqrāʾ ʾet all kol-ḥarṭummê miṣrayim and wĕ-ʾet all kol-ḥăkāmeyhā; and wa-yĕsappēr parʿōh to them lāhem ʾet his dream ḥălōmô, and there was no wĕ-ʾên interpreter pôtēr them ʾôtām for lĕ-parʿōh

Grammar Details

• *wa-yĕhî*: waw-consecutive + qal imperfect 3ms - and it happened
• *ba-bōqer*: preposition + definite article + noun masculine singular - in the morning
• *wa-tippāʿem*: waw-consecutive + niphal imperfect 3fs - and was troubled/disturbed
• *rûḥô*: noun feminine singular + 3ms suffix - his spirit
• *wa-yishlaḥ*: waw-consecutive + qal imperfect 3ms - and he sent
• *wa-yiqrāʾ*: waw-consecutive + qal imperfect 3ms - and he called
• *ʾet*: direct object marker
• *kol-ḥarṭummê*: noun masculine plural construct - all magicians of
• *miṣrayim*: proper noun - Egypt
• *wĕ-ʾet*: waw-conjunction + direct object marker - and
• *kol-ḥăkāmeyhā*: noun masculine plural + 3fs suffix - all its wise men
• *wa-yĕsappēr*: waw-consecutive + piel imperfect 3ms - and he told
• *parʿōh*: proper noun - Pharaoh
• *lāhem*: preposition + 3mp suffix - to them
• *ḥălōmô*: noun masculine singular + 3ms suffix - his dream
• *wĕ-ʾên*: waw-conjunction + particle of negation - and there was no
• *pôtēr*: qal participle masculine singular - interpreting/interpreter
• *ʾôtām*: direct object marker + 3mp suffix - them
• *lĕ-parʿōh*: preposition + proper noun - for Pharaoh

Word Meanings

• *tippāʿem rûḥô*: his spirit was troubled/he was deeply disturbed/his mind was agitated
• *ḥarṭummê*: magicians/soothsayers/sacred scribes
• *ḥăkāmeyhā*: its wise men/sages/counselors
• *yĕsappēr*: told/related/recounted
• *pôtēr*: interpreter/one who could interpret

Referenced Verses

• Dan 4:7 : 7 When the magicians, astrologers, wise men, and diviners entered, I recounted the dream for them. But they were unable to make known its interpretation to me.
• Exod 7:11 : 11 Then Pharaoh also summoned wise men and sorcerers, and the magicians of Egypt by their secret arts did the same thing.
• Exod 7:22 : 22 But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts, and so Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, and he refused to listen to Moses and Aaron– just as the LORD had predicted.
• Dan 1:20 : 20 In every matter of wisdom and insight the king asked them about, he found them to be ten times better than any of the magicians and astrologers that were in his entire empire.
• Isa 29:14 : 14 Therefore I will again do an amazing thing for these people– an absolutely extraordinary deed. Wise men will have nothing to say, the sages will have no explanations.”
• Matt 2:1 : 1 The Visit of the Wise Men After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, in the time of King Herod, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem
• Dan 4:19 : 19 Daniel Interprets Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream Then Daniel(whose name is also Belteshazzar) was upset for a brief time; his thoughts were alarming him. The king said,“Belteshazzar, don’t let the dream and its interpretation alarm you.” But Belteshazzar replied,“Sir, if only the dream were for your enemies and its interpretation applied to your adversaries!
• Dan 4:5 : 5 I saw a dream that frightened me badly. The things I imagined while lying on my bed– these visions of my mind– were terrifying me.
• Isa 8:19 : 19 Darkness Turns to Light as an Ideal King Arrives They will say to you,“Seek oracles at the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, from the magicians who chirp and mutter incantations. Should people not seek oracles from their gods, by asking the dead about the destiny of the living?”
• Lev 19:31 : 31 Do not turn to the spirits of the dead and do not seek familiar spirits to become unclean by them. I am the LORD your God.
• Lev 20:6 : 6 Prohibition against Spiritists and Mediums“‘The person who turns to the spirits of the dead and familiar spirits to commit prostitution by going after them, I will set my face against that person and cut him off from the midst of his people.
• Deut 18:9-9 : 9 Provision for Prophetism When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, you must not learn the abhorrent practices of those nations. 10 There must never be found among you anyone who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, anyone who practices divination, an omen reader, a soothsayer, a sorcerer, 11 one who casts spells, one who conjures up spirits, a practitioner of the occult, or a necromancer. 12 Whoever does these things is abhorrent to the LORD and because of these detestable things the LORD your God is about to drive them out from before you. 13 You must be blameless before the LORD your God. 14 Those nations that you are about to dispossess listen to omen readers and diviners, but the LORD your God has not given you permission to do such things.
• Job 5:12-13 : 12 He frustrates the plans of the crafty so that their hands cannot accomplish what they had planned! 13 He catches the wise in their own craftiness, and the counsel of the cunning is brought to a quick end.
• Ps 25:14 : 14 The LORD’s loyal followers receive his guidance, and he reveals his covenantal demands to them.
• Exod 8:7 : 7 The magicians did the same with their secret arts and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt too.
• Exod 8:18-19 : 18 When the magicians attempted to bring forth gnats by their secret arts, they could not. So there were gnats on people and on animals. 19 The magicians said to Pharaoh,“It is the finger of God!” But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, and he did not listen to them, just as the LORD had predicted.
• Exod 9:11 : 11 The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for boils were on the magicians and on all the Egyptians.
• Isa 19:3 : 3 The Egyptians will panic, and I will confuse their strategy. They will seek guidance from the idols and from the spirits of the dead, from the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, and from the magicians.
• Isa 19:11-13 : 11 The officials of Zoan are nothing but fools; Pharaoh’s wise advisers give stupid advice. How dare you say to Pharaoh,“I am one of the sages, one well-versed in the writings of the ancient kings?” 12 But where, oh where, are your wise men? Let them tell you, let them find out what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies has planned for Egypt. 13 The officials of Zoan are fools, the officials of Memphis are misled; the rulers of her tribes lead Egypt astray.
• Gen 40:6 : 6 When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they were looking depressed.
• Gen 40:8 : 8 They told him,“We both had dreams, but there is no one to interpret them.” Joseph responded,“Don’t interpretations belong to God? Tell them to me.”
• Isa 47:12-13 : 12 Persist in trusting your amulets and your many incantations, which you have faithfully recited since your youth! Maybe you will be successful– maybe you will scare away disaster. 13 You are tired out from listening to so much advice. Let them take their stand– the ones who see omens in the sky, who gaze at the stars, who make monthly predictions– let them rescue you from the disaster that is about to overtake you!
• Dan 2:1-9 : 1 Nebuchadnezzar Has a Disturbing Dream In the second year of his reign Nebuchadnezzar had many dreams. His mind was disturbed and he suffered from insomnia. 2 The king issued an order to summon the magicians, astrologers, sorcerers, and wise men in order to explain his dreams to him. So they came and awaited the king’s instructions. 3 The king told them,“I have had a dream, and I am anxious to understand the dream.” 4 The wise men replied to the king:[What follows is in Aramaic]“O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will disclose its interpretation.” 5 The king replied to the wise men,“My decision is firm. If you do not inform me of both the dream and its interpretation, you will be dismembered and your homes reduced to rubble! 6 But if you can disclose the dream and its interpretation, you will receive from me gifts, a reward, and considerable honor. So disclose to me the dream and its interpretation!” 7 They again replied,“Let the king inform us of the dream; then we will disclose its interpretation.” 8 The king replied,“I know for sure that you are attempting to gain time, because you see that my decision is firm. 9 If you don’t inform me of the dream, there is only one thing that is going to happen to you. For you have agreed among yourselves to report to me something false and deceitful until such time as things might change. So tell me the dream, and I will have confidence that you can disclose its interpretation.” 10 The wise men replied to the king,“There is no man on earth who is able to disclose the king’s secret, for no king, regardless of his position and power, has ever requested such a thing from any magician, astrologer, or wise man. 11 What the king is asking is too difficult, and no one exists who can disclose it to the king, except for the gods– but they don’t live among mortals!”
• Dan 2:27-28 : 27 Daniel replied to the king,“The mystery that the king is asking about is such that no wise men, astrologers, magicians, or diviners can possibly disclose it to the king. 28 However, there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in the times to come. The dream and the visions you had while lying on your bed are as follows.
• Dan 5:6-8 : 6 Then all the color drained from the king’s face and he became alarmed. The joints of his hips gave way, and his knees began knocking together. 7 The king called out loudly to summon the astrologers, wise men, and diviners. The king proclaimed to the wise men of Babylon that anyone who could read this inscription and disclose its interpretation would be clothed in purple and have a golden collar placed on his neck and be third ruler in the kingdom. 8 So all the king’s wise men came in, but they were unable to read the writing or to make known its interpretation to the king.
• Dan 5:11 : 11 There is a man in your kingdom who has within him a spirit of the holy gods. In the days of your father, he proved to have insight, discernment, and wisdom like that of the gods. King Nebuchadnezzar your father appointed him chief of the magicians, astrologers, wise men, and diviners.
• Dan 7:28 : 28 “This is the conclusion of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts troubled me greatly, and the color drained from my face. But I kept the matter to myself.”
• Dan 8:27 : 27 I, Daniel, was exhausted and sick for days. Then I got up and again carried out the king’s business. But I was astonished at the vision, and there was no one to explain it.
• Hab 3:16 : 16 Habakkuk Declares His Confidence I listened and my stomach churned; the sound made my lips quiver. My frame went limp, as if my bones were decaying, and I shook as I tried to walk. I long for the day of distress to come upon the people who attack us.
• Acts 7:22 : 22 So Moses was trained in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in his words and deeds.
• Acts 17:18 : 18 Also some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were conversing with him, and some were asking,“What does this foolish babbler want to say?” Others said,“He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods.”(They said this because he was proclaiming the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.)
• 1 Cor 1:19 : 19 For it is written,“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will thwart the cleverness of the intelligent.”
• 1 Cor 3:18-20 : 18 Guard against self-deception, each of you. If someone among you thinks he is wise in this age, let him become foolish so that he can become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this age is foolishness with God. As it is written,“He catches the wise in their craftiness.” 20 And again,“The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.”