Genesis 41:38

Summary

Pharaoh addresses his servants, asking whether a man like Joseph can be found — specifically one in whom the spirit of God is present. The question is framed as a rhetorical interrogation expecting the implicit answer that no such man exists elsewhere.

Key words

• va-yo'mer ("and he said", H0559) — narrative vav + qal verb marking the next event in the story sequence: Pharaoh's speech act.
• ha-nimtsa' ("has he been found?", H4672) — interrogative particle ha prefixed to a qal imperfect verb, turning the statement into a yes/no question about possibility or likelihood, not a completed fact.
• ka-zeh ("like this one", H2088) — preposition kha ("like") + demonstrative zeh ("this"), creating a comparative phrase that ties the search directly to Joseph as the standard of comparison.
• ruach ("spirit of", H7307G) — feminine singular noun in construct state, meaning it must be joined to what follows (Elohim) to form "spirit of God" rather than standing as an independent noun.
• Elohim ("God", H0430G) — masculine plural noun (grammatically plural, used here with singular referent), completing the construct phrase ruach Elohim.

What the text says

The sentence opens with the standard narrative construction va-yo'mer Par'oh 'el-'avadav ("and Pharaoh said to his servants"), a formula that simply advances the narrative. The core of the verse is Pharaoh's question, built on the interrogative ha- attached to nimtsa', a qal imperfect verb from the root meaning "to find" (H4672). The imperfect aspect, combined with the interrogative, conveys a search for possibility ("could such a man be found?") rather than a report of a past search.

The phrase ka-zeh 'ish ("like this, a man") inverts the more expected word order (comparative before noun), placing emphasis on the comparison itself — the measure against which any other man would be judged is "this one," referring back to Joseph in the preceding narrative context. The relative clause 'asher ruach Elohim bo ("who — spirit of God in him") uses the relative particle 'asher (H0834A) to attach a descriptive clause to 'ish, and the construct chain ruach Elohim links "spirit" grammatically to "God," with the preposition-plus-suffix bo ("in him", from H9003+H9033) locating this "spirit" as residing within the man rather than being an external attribute.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders the question with πνεῦμα θεοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ ("spirit of God in him"), closely paralleling the Hebrew construct phrase. The Vulgate shifts the sense slightly with spiritu Dei plenus ("filled with the Spirit of God"), introducing the idea of being "full of" the spirit, an addition not present in the Hebrew construct ruach Elohim bo, which states only that the spirit is "in him" without the verb "to fill."