Book of Genesis Chapter 37 Commentary by Pastor
Ron Beckham
Audio Bible Study - Genesis 37:1-11
Verses 1-2. "Now Jacob lived in the land where his father had sojourned, in the land of Canaan. These are the records of the generations of Jacob. Joseph, when seventeen years of age, was pasturing the flock with his brothers while he was still a youth, along with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives. And Joseph brought back a bad report about them to their father."
In Chapter 36, the narrative of Genesis was centered on the generations of Esau, Jacob's twin brother, and his neighbors the Horites, but now we are looking once again at Jacob himself and those who came after him. After so many years, Jacob had at last gone home, returning to the place where he grew up. Many people have a memory of a "special place" they think of as "home" and for Jacob, it was the land of Canaan "where his father (Isaac) had sojourned." He was home again, but this time he had a family of his own, though it was a family that, except for Jacob, had no personal memory of "home" in relation to "the land of Canaan."
The focus here is especially on Jacob's eleventh son, Joseph, who was the first son of the now-deceased Rachel, the woman that Jacob loved, and we will see in the next verse that Joseph had a special place in Jacob's heart. Joseph was seventeen years old at this time and worked as a shepherd, helping his older half-brothers, Dan and Napthali, sons of Bilhah, and Gad and Asher, sons of Zilpah, tend the flocks. Joseph knew he had a special position in the heart of his father, he enjoyed being sort of a "Daddy's Assistant," and he told his father when he felt his older brothers had done something he thought was wrong.
Verses 3-4. "Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a varicolored tunic. His brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers; and so they hated him and could not speak to him on friendly terms."
We have seen that Jacob, also known as "Israel," had certain personality characteristics that persisted throughout his life. His mother had encouraged him to become a trickster who would steal his brother's blessing and fool her husband, their father. Jacob seemed to be a mama's boy, but also became an effective herdsman and manager. He met the master trickster in the person of his Uncle Laban, a lasting encounter that probably cured him of deceitfulness, but best of all, Jacob met the Lord and was changed inside for the good.
If you've ever looked around at the people in a religious gathering, you've probably wondered why people are so disturbingly human; even though they have met the Lord, as it was true of Jacob. Unlike his brother, Esau, and his uncle/father-in-law, Laban, Jacob had placed his faith in the Lord, but he was still Jacob. He had been undoubtedly made gentle by his encounters with Almighty God, but there were times he should have been more assertive. And his sons would not have understood it, but Rachel was the love of Jacob's life and she was reflected in their son, Joseph. He should have treated Joseph like the others but he favored the boy, even to the weaving of a "varicolored tunic" only for him. And so Joseph's brothers "hated him" and treated him badly.
Verses 5-7. "Then Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. He said to them, 'Please listen to this dream which I have had; for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and lo, my sheaf rose up and also stood erect; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf.'"
Quite often in Scripture we find that God will speak to us in dreams, through His Word, by someone who might be called a "prophet" because he tells us the words that come from God, through the circumstances of our lives, and more. His ability to speak to us is actually unlimited because, unlike all in humanity, He is infinitely creative. In this instance, as seen in these verses, "Joseph," the next to youngest son of Jacob, "had a dream." Sometimes it's good to share our feelings and experiences with others and sometimes it's best to be quiet. In this instance, Joseph shared something that would have a very negative outcome from a human perspective.
His brothers who had already hated him for a long time, now "hated him even more." They may well have covered their ears or walked away from him, but he pursued them and said, "Please listen to this dream which I have had," and he was speaking quickly before they went further away from him. He said, "...behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and lo, my sheaf rose up and also stood erect; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf." In families everywhere, older siblings don't want to hear words like those from their "kid brother" or "kid sister." If anyone is to do great things, the older kids expect to be the ones who do it.
Verses 8-9. "Then his brothers said to him, 'Are you actually going to reign over us? Or are you really going to rule over us?' So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words. Now he had still another dream, and related it to his brothers, and said, 'Lo, I have had still another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.'"
The dream was a parable, and such things as parables were not only being told and acted out at the time of Jesus, but God has sent them to individuals and groups within humanity since the beginning of time. Joseph's brothers in these cases apparently included the "sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives" (Verse 1). At the time of Verse one Joseph had given a "bad report" about them to their father, and they were no doubt still very angry at him. But to complicate things even further, he now had another dream and told that one to these angry young men, as he did the first dream.
This time he said about it, "the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me." Joseph felt he understood the dream and he was very pleased about it, as reflected by the smug look he must have had on his face at the time he spoke the words to his brothers. We will see in Verse 10 that his family completely understood what the dream meant. The "sun" was their father, Jacob, the "moon" represented their mother, though Joseph's own mother had recently died, and the "eleven stars" were his brothers. These dreams were visions of the future and they would come true, but his siblings only felt contempt for this "dreamer" at the moment.
Verses 10-11. "He related it to his father and to his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, 'What is this dream that you have had? Shall I and your mother and your brothers actually come to bow ourselves down before you to the ground?' His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind."
When Joseph excitedly revealed this dream to their father, Jacob (also called Israel) and to his brothers, whatever he hoped might happen did not occur. His family was not pleased about the dreams and his brothers, who already hated him and spoke rudely to him (Verse 4). They hated him even more after his first dream (Verse 5) and now their hatred of him increased exponentially.
Jacob's father saw danger for Joseph in the faces of his other sons and "rebuked" him for telling them about the dreams. Proverbs 27:6 teaches us, "Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful." Jacob was being a true "friend" to his son, and note that Jacob, who tended to be quiet at times he should have spoken, now did speak out of concern for his son. Jacob had previously experienced dreams of his own that were visions, as we have seen in the preceding chapters, and he "kept the saying (of Joseph) in mind," because he knew that God will speak to us through dreams.
Father, speak to us. Do it through Your Word and in any other way You want. We are Yours, Lord, and to the extent we are able, we are open to You. Help us to also look to You for wisdom as to what we share, that we might not bring unnecessary offense. Especially help us, Holy Spirit, to love those You place in our lives. Thank You. In Jesus Name. Amen.
Audio Bible Study - Genesis 37:12-24
Verses 12-14. "Then his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock in Shechem. Israel said to Joseph, 'Are not your brothers pasturing the flock in Shechem? Come, and I will send you to them.' And he said to him, 'I will go.' Then he said to him, 'Go now and see about the welfare of your brothers and the welfare of the flock, and bring word back to me.' So he sent him from the valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem."
"Shechem" was about fifty miles or so north of Jacob's (Israel's) encampment in the "valley of Hebron." The city of Bethel was a point between the two locations and a traveler might have stayed overnight there in the midst of the journey. We catch a glimpse of the size of Jacob's holdings in these verses, which stretched out over a considerable part of the land of Canaan. Joseph was still a teenager at the time of these verses and it is interesting how much trust Jacob had in his young sons. Jacob, also known as "Israel," truly did favor Joseph over the others and was using the young man here in a manner that would have caused his brothers to think of him as some kind of spy.
Joseph really was responsive to his father and Jacob should have remembered his own childhood in which his twin brother, Esau, was preferred by their father, Isaac. Jacob would still have felt hurt at what he must have thought of as his father's rejection. But we are often blind in relation to similar hurts in others and Jacob did not seem to fully grasp the danger in this to all of his sons. He already had seen violent tendencies in them and should have been concerned. Instead he just kept on functioning in the role he truly was good at - managing the affairs of a large, effective ranch that stretched over thousands of acres of land.
Verses 15-17. "A man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the field; and the man asked him, 'What are you looking for?' He said, “I am looking for my brothers; please tell me where they are pasturing the flock. Then the man said, 'They have moved from here; for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’ So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan."
We are not told anything of Joseph's journey to the north, which was probably merely a routine trip that he and his brothers often took at the direction of their father. Out of the ordinary was that his brothers were not where he expected them to be. Joseph seemed to be wandering around, looking for something, and a man who is not identified asked, "What are you looking for?" The unnamed man of these verses was probably just someone who resided in the area but there are angels in our midst, as glimpsed in Hebrews 13:1 and other places. This may have been one of them for Joseph had a date with the destiny which was God's will for his life.
"Dothan" was further north from Shechem, a place west of the Jordan River, and about halfway between the Dead Sea and what was later to be called the Sea of Galilee. Dothan, by the way, would be the place where one of the greatest miracles in the life of Elisha the prophet would occur (2 Kings 6:13-18). Joseph wanted to please his father and apparently set out immediately to the north in order to obey Jacob's command that he learn what his brothers were up to and to bring word back to his father. He now saw these brothers in the distance and made his way toward them.
Verses 18-20. "When they saw him from a distance and before he came close to them, they plotted against him to put him to death. They said to one another, 'Here comes this dreamer! Now then, come and let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; and we will say, ‘A wild beast devoured him.’ Then let us see what will become of his dreams!'”
The other sons of Jacob (Israel) deeply and truly hated their younger brother, Joseph, and must have talked often about him in a derogatory manner. The words, "this dreamer," as seen in Verse 19, literally meant "this lord of dreams" and they certainly did not want the younger man to rule over them in any way. Their intent at the time of these verses was murderous - they wanted to kill him - immediately. Their plan was simple. First they would kill him, second they would throw him into one of the pits common to the region, and then they would tell others, especially their father, that Joseph had been eaten by wild animals. They thought that his dreams and his ambitions would stop with his death. This is sibling rivalry carried to a considerable degree and it is a reminder of the relationship of the first two brothers in history which ended in the murder of one of them (Genesis 4:8). We can look in history and see that there are great problems in the hearts and intentions of those in humanity.
Verses 21-22. "But Reuben heard this and rescued him out of their hands and said, 'Let us not take his life.' Reuben further said to them, 'Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but do not lay hands on him' — that he might rescue him out of their hands, to restore him to his father.
Reuben was the oldest son of Jacob and Leah, who was Jacob's first wife. His age and position in the family would have caused the other sons to listen to him, even though they were hot with the anger directed at Joseph, the next to youngest. Reuben had recently offended his father, Jacob, through a carnal act with Bilhah, Jacob's concubine (Genesis 35:22). His father did not forgive him for what he had done, as seen in Jacob's somewhat negative "blessing" of his oldest son in Genesis 49:3-4. Jacob's words in Genesis 49 effectively disqualified Reuben from his "office" as eldest son.
However, in this instance, Reuben acted in a manner that saved the life of Joseph, his brother. This was a harsh time in a callous part of the world, and Reuben's act of talking his other brothers into only throwing Joseph into a pit was a relative kindness. His intention was shown here, "that he might rescue (Joseph) out of their hands, to restore him to his father." He wanted to save Joseph's life, and note that there is a curious mixture of good and bad in all who are part of the human race.
Verses 23-24. "So it came about, when Joseph reached his brothers, that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the varicolored tunic that was on him; and they took him and threw him into the pit. Now the pit was empty, without any water in it."
Reuben had just enough authority over his younger brothers to talk them out of immediately killing Joseph, their next-to-youngest brother. They tore off the "varicolored tunic" that they hated so much because their father had made it for Joseph, but not for them. No doubt Joseph was screaming in terror because he had been powerless and shocked as his brothers grabbed him and threw him into one of the many pits in the region. Those pits were often used as cisterns after the rains, but right now this one was dry, and it would have hurt a lot as he bumped down to its bottom.
His cries would have continued and his brothers sadly would have smiled as they listened to the helpless sounds from this younger brother they hated so much. His special coat had been stripped from him, he had no water to drink, no food to eat, and no real hope that he would get out of it alive. To compound the problem for him, he could hear the laughter of his brothers and made out some of their words as they discussed what they were going to do to him. It didn't sound good at all.
Father, this was a family created out of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to become a nation designed to glorify Your Name. We see, dear God, that even the best in humanity can go terribly wrong, and in these sons of Jacob we see our own need of the Lord Jesus, who died to save us from our sins. Help us and heal us, Lord. We place our trust in You. In Jesus Name. Amen.
Audio Bible Study - Genesis 37:25-36
Verses 25-27. "Then they sat down to eat a meal. And as they raised their eyes and looked, behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing aromatic gum and balm and myrrh, on their way to bring them down to Egypt. Judah said to his brothers, 'What profit is it for us to kill our brother and cover up his blood? Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.' And his brothers listened to him."
These sons of Jacob had done it! They had hated their younger brother, Joseph, for a long, long time, and now they grabbed him, tore the multicolored coat they disliked so much right off his back and threw him into one of the open pits that were common in the area. And by the way, aren't God's choices interesting? This was the family that was to become God's chosen people, His holy nation, Israel. And yet here they were, with murderous thoughts, intending to kill one of their own. But considering that "ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23), who ELSE would God have chosen? They may have been the best that humanity had to offer, then and now, which is a sad message about us all.
They were calmly eating a meal, probably smiling while their brother continued to whimper and yell "Help me" from the bottom of the pit they had thrown him into. God's providence for Joseph was that two things now happened: First "a caravan of Ishmaelites" came near and second, right at that moment, Judah listened to the touch of God and his heart softened toward Joseph. He offered this alternative: "Let's not kill him, let's sell him! He is our 'brother' after all!" And they listened to Judah because it was God's intent that Joseph's life was to be spared. He would live to do the will of God.
28. "Then some Midianite traders passed by, so they pulled him up and lifted Joseph out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. Thus they brought Joseph into Egypt."
The "Midianites" were descendants of Abraham through a lady named "Keturah," the woman Abraham married after the death of his first wife, Sarah (Genesis 25:1-2). The "Ishmaelites" descended from Abraham's first son who was named "Ishmael" (Genesis 16). It might seem like it was all "family" here, but it was not. The reality was that these descendants of Abraham had merely gathered together in the interest of profit. Slavery was sadly common in that region and in all parts of the world and Joseph would be re-sold by the Ishmaelites to the Egyptians at a considerable profit for them.
The price obtained by Joseph's brothers was "twenty shekels of silver." Since Joseph's life can be seen as and likely was intended to be an analogy, a parable of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, about eighteen hundred years in the future from that moment, we are reminded of the "thirty pieces of silver" Judas received when he sold-out the Lord Jesus. With 1,800 years of inflation factored in, the two amounts would be roughly the same. It's very interesting, by the way, to watch the methods of God in bringing about His will. As we will see, Joseph went to Egypt for Godly purposes, and Joseph would now become a slave in order for God's ultimate will to be done. Our disasters may well be His opportunity for great good.
Verses 29-30. "Now Reuben returned to the pit, and behold, Joseph was not in the pit; so he tore his garments. He returned to his brothers and said, 'The boy is not there; as for me, where am I to go?'"
"Reuben" was the oldest of Jacob's sons. He was the one in Verses 21-22, who initially saved the life of Joseph when His other brothers would have killed him immediately. Actually, it was God acting through Reuben who did the saving, but then just like now, people often act in a positive manner without seeing why they do the good thing that is done. God is continually introducing mercy into this world and we do not thank Him as we should because we lack understanding.
Reuben now tore his outer clothing, probably along a seam, which was a common gesture of mourning in that culture. He expressed his grief, which was partly about Joseph, but it was really about himself, which is part of the grieving process for most. His cry was "Where am I to go?" Common words in today's culture include, "What can I do?" As the oldest son, Reuben was responsible for his brothers and worst of all, Joseph was their father, Jacob's favorite! He felt he could not go home - would he now be thrown out and have to become a homeless vagabond, wandering far from the safety of his father's encampment?
Verses 31-33. "So they took Joseph’s tunic, and slaughtered a male goat and dipped the tunic in the blood; and they sent the varicolored tunic and brought it to their father and said, 'We found this; please 'examine it to see whether it is your son’s tunic or not.' Then he examined it and said, 'It is my son’s tunic. A wild beast has devoured him; Joseph has surely been torn to pieces!'"
The brothers talked about what they would do. Everyone in their extended family would recognize that the multi-colored tunic hand-crafted by Jacob was the one that belonged to Joseph, and now they would lie about it to cover up what they had done. That's unfortunately common, isn't it? We do something wrong and then do something worse to hide what happened. A pregnancy occurs and then to cover up adultery, the unborn child is killed. It's an interesting look at humanity. Centuries ago, during the time of the Roman Empire and at other points in history, unwanted babies were taken out into the wilderness and "exposed" by the side of the road. The parents who left them did not see what happened to the child and could carry within themselves the vague hope that their child was taken in by a good family.
A similar idea would be acted out in later centuries by a descendant of Judah who was to become King David. In 2 Samuel 11 we see that David committed the sin of adultery and he tried to cover it up by having the woman's husband killed on the battlefield. One sin to cover another. But God sees and He will reveal the hidden sin. Joseph's brothers felt "no one will ever know" as they splattered goat's blood on Joseph's coat. But here we are, thousands of years later, reading about it in God's Book in vivid detail. It's bad enough when we do something wrong - We should not compound the problem by doing something worse. Yes, people might find out, but what we need to do is go to God with our sin. His way, His solution is better than ours.
Verses 34-36. "So Jacob tore his clothes, and put sackcloth on his loins and mourned for his son many days. Then all his sons and all his daughters arose to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. And he said, 'Surely I will go down to Sheol in mourning for my son.' So his father wept for him. Meanwhile, the Midianites sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, Pharaoh’s officer, the captain of the bodyguard."
Days would have passed as Jacob's sons slowly made their way from northern Canaan to their father's location in the south. After they arrived and told their story, Jacob went into mourning over the apparent death of his son, Joseph. Not only was Joseph his favorite because he was the son of Jacob's beloved wife, Rachel, but also God's promise was involved. Jacob's sons were to inherit the land of Canaan (Genesis 28:13-14) and now one of them was dead! Did he misunderstand the promise of God? Sin damages our lives in many subtle ways. Lies and other sins are like cancers that will adversely affect the faith of those around us.
Jacob grieved his loss. He tore his clothing as his son, Reuben, had done. He wore uncomfortable clothing, "sackcloth," and refused to be comforted by anyone, including his beloved children. Note here in this verse, by the way, that Jacob had previously unmentioned "daughters," in addition to his daughter, Dinah, named earlier. His sons would now be having second thoughts about what they had done. They thought, as many do, that Jacob would soon "get over it" but he did not. They could have given him some comfort for they knew that Joseph was likely alive, but they were afraid of the consequences and kept quiet. And we can note that Joseph was alive, for we catch a glimpse of him as he is being sold by the Midianites to "Potiphar, Pharoah's officer, the captain of the (Egyptian) bodyguard." Joseph was sold casually, like a loaf of bread in a market.
Father, help us to live lives that are clean in Your sight. But when we do something that is wrong, help us to be men and women of honesty who come clean about what we have done. And especially help us to confess our sins to You, knowing that only You can make things right. In Jesus Name. Amen.
