The Meaning of Genesis 37:15 Explained

Genesis 37:15

KJV: And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was wandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou?

YLT: And a man findeth him, and lo, he is wandering in the field, and the man asketh him, saying, 'What seekest thou?'

Darby: And a man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the country; and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou?

ASV: And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was wandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And a certain man  found him,  and, behold, [he was] wandering  in the field:  and the man  asked him,  saying,  What seekest  thou? 

What does Genesis 37:15 Mean?

Context Summary

Genesis 37:12-24 - Joseph's Brothers Plot His Death
Throughout Joseph was a very remarkable type of our Lord. There was, first, this mission of the beloved son to inquire after the well-being of his brethren, which reminds us so vividly of the advent of God's Beloved and Only Begotten Son, who brought us the Father's greeting, and came to see and know by personal inquiry how we fared. Dothan was in the northern portion of the land, and the journey must have taken time and strength; but he persisted until he found them, and came where they were. Their plot against their helpless brother was as the plot of Caiaphas and the rest against our Lord. Pilate knew that for envy they had delivered him into his hands. The pit was one of those rock-hewn cisterns that abound in Palestine, and as there was no water in it Joseph's life was not sacrificed; and there he awaited what was a kind of resurrection. The scene at the pit's mouth was recalled by Joseph in Genesis 42:9; and was never forgotten by the others, Genesis 42:21-22. [source]

Chapter Summary: Genesis 37

1  Joseph is loved by Jacob, but hated by his brothers
5  His dreams and the interpretation
12  Jacob sends him to his brothers, who counsel to slay him
21  At Reuben's desire they cast him into a pit;
25  and afterwards sell him to the Ishmaelites;
29  while Ruben grieves at not finding him
31  His coat, covered with blood, is sent to Jacob, who mourns him inordinately
36  Joseph is brought to Egypt and sold to Potiphar

What do the individual words in Genesis 37:15 mean?

And found him a certain man and there he was wandering in the field and asked him the man saying what [are] you seeking
וַיִּמְצָאֵ֣הוּ אִ֔ישׁ וְהִנֵּ֥ה תֹעֶ֖ה בַּשָּׂדֶ֑ה וַיִּשְׁאָלֵ֧הוּ הָאִ֛ישׁ לֵאמֹ֖ר מַה־ ؟ תְּבַקֵּֽשׁ

וַיִּמְצָאֵ֣הוּ  And  found  him 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular, third person masculine singular
Root: מָצָא  
Sense: to find, attain to.
אִ֔ישׁ  a  certain  man 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֱנׄושׁ 
Sense: man, mortal man, person, mankind.
וְהִנֵּ֥ה  and  there  he  was 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Interjection
Root: הִנֵּה  
Sense: behold, lo, see, if.
תֹעֶ֖ה  wandering 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: תָּעָה  
Sense: to err, wander, go astray, stagger.
בַּשָּׂדֶ֑ה  in  the  field 
Parse: Preposition-b, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: שָׂדֶה 
Sense: field, land.
וַיִּשְׁאָלֵ֧הוּ  and  asked  him 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular, third person masculine singular
Root: שָׁאַל 
Sense: to ask, enquire, borrow, beg.
הָאִ֛ישׁ  the  man 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֱנׄושׁ 
Sense: man, mortal man, person, mankind.
לֵאמֹ֖ר  saying 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
מַה־  what  [are] 
Parse: Interrogative
Root: לָמָּה 
Sense: what, how, of what kind.
؟ תְּבַקֵּֽשׁ  you  seeking 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: בָּקַשׁ  
Sense: to seek, require, desire, exact, request.