And Pharaoh answered: the king’s reply is in the second person, as though it were spoken directly to Joseph. Revised English Bible makes the answer less direct by saying “Pharaoh’s reply was:….” Some other translations say “the king sent word back, like this:….”

Go up … as he made you swear: many translations keep the second person as in Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation. It may, however, be desirable to adjust the wording to agree with the indirectness in which Joseph’s request was made. This is done, for example, by Bible en français courant, which says “Pharaoh allowed Joseph to go and bury his father and thus to keep his promise.” Translators may find this a helpful model.

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .