If it is true that Hadad was no more than seven or eight years old when he arrived in Egypt, either he was married very young or considerable time elapsed between the events described in verse 18 and verse 19.
Found great favor in the sight of is literally “found great favor in the eyes of.” This is a common Hebrew idiom, meaning “to be considered or treated with kindness by someone.” This may be translated actively by saying something like “The king liked Hadad” (New Century Version) or “Pharaoh grew very fond of Hadad” (New Living Translation).
He gave him in marriage the sister of his own wife: Hadad married the sister of Pharaoh’s wife, that is, the “sister-in-law” (Good News Translation, La Bible du Semeur, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente) of Pharaoh. Revised Standard Version says the sister of his own wife, which may suggest that this was the queen’s only sister. The Hebrew allows also for the translation “a sister of…” (New International Version, Revised English Bible). Nothing further is known about the queen’s family, but if translators must choose, it may be better to assume that she had other sisters as well.
Tahpenes is usually taken as a proper name. Some interpreters, however, understand it to be a transcription of the Egyptian title meaning “the wife of the king” or “the Great Lady.” The following rendering in New Jerusalem Bible, Bible en français courant and Osty-Trinquet is misleading: “the Great Lady Tahpenes.” The footnote in New Jerusalem Bible here indicates that Tahpenes “is not a proper name but an Egyptian title.” The translation in New Jerusalem Bible, Bible en français courant and Osty-Trinquet, though, will suggest that Tahpenes is in fact a proper name.
The queen: This is not the usual Hebrew noun for queen. In 2 Kgs 10.13; Jer 13.18 and 29.2 it refers to the queen mother and not the wife of the king. Here, however, it refers to the king’s wife.
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .