Genesis 37:1

After having seen the descendants of Esau listed in Genesis chapter 36, the Holy Spirit turns our attention back to the lineage of Jesus Christ through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The story of Jacob and his descendents continues in Genesis chapter 37 with Joseph being seventeen years old. The Bible says in Genesis 37:1-4, “And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan. These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report. Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours. And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him.”

There was trouble in Jacob’s household: trouble among his sons. The eleven brothers were jealous of Joseph. The jealousy was somewhat Jacob’s fault. He evidently treated Joseph as a favorite son, and this contributed to the others being jealous. Of course, the jealousy from his brothers got even worse when Jacob gave a coat of many colors to Joseph. It is very difficult to be a parent in any age. So many things can go wrong. Unlike Jacob, even if a parent did everything right, the child still might choose wrong over what is right. Many tears have been shed by many parents whose children chose wrong. When children are young they may sometimes step on your feet, but when they are older, they may step on your heart. In this sinful world where every human being has a sinful nature, no parent knows ahead of time which way his or her child will choose to go. The Lord has given everyone free will. No parent has total control over which way his or her children will go from a spiritual or moral standpoint. The choice of doing right or wrong is always ultimately with the child as he or she grows older. The writer of the book of Proverbs understood this by the Holy Spirit and wrote in Proverbs 1:7-10, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck. My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.”

The Bible says in Genesis 37:5-8, “And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.” One thing that we notice about Joseph is that God gave him a significant gift. It is obvious that God revealed some details of the future to Joseph in dreams, and that God gave Joseph the ability to interpret those dreams. We will see that this gift proves to be very important later in the life of Joseph when he is in Egypt. It says in Ephesians 4:8 that when Jesus ascended into heaven, He “gave gifts unto men.” Everyone was born for a purpose in the great plan of God for the world. Follow Jesus, and you will be gifted for the tasks that He will bring your way. You will be able to do things that no one else will be able to do. Your path through this world is a unique path: given to you by the Almighty for a reason. Your gifts, however humble they may be, were given to you so that you could fulfill the unique calling that is yours and yours alone for serving your Savior.

Joseph dreamed dreams, and his dreams were about the future. And Joseph understood those details about the future because of the gift that God gave him. God reveals Himself and some details of the future to man in every age, and even today God reveals in His written word part of the future to His servants. It says in Hebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” God knows all things. He knows the end from the beginning. In reading God’s Word, it is evident that God likes sharing some knowledge of the future with His servants. For example, we have been told that Jesus will return to the earth some day in the future, and when He returns, He will rule the earth with a rod of iron. It says in Revelation 19:11-16, “And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”

The Bible says in Genesis 37:5-36, “And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying. And his brethren went to feed their father's flock in Shechem. And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock in Shechem? come, and I will send thee unto them. And he said to him, Here am I. And he said to him, Go, I pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brethren, and well with the flocks; and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he came to Shechem. And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was wandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou? And he said, I seek my brethren: tell me, I pray thee, where they feed their flocks. And the man said, They are departed hence; for I heard them say, Let us go to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren, and found them in Dothan. And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him. And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh. Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams. And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him. And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again. And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stript Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colours that was on him; And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it. And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a company of Ishmeelites came from Gilead with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt. And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood? Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content. Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt. And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes. And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, whither shall I go? And they took Joseph's coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood; And they sent the coat of many colours, and they brought it to their father; and said, This have we found: know now whether it be thy son's coat or no. And he knew it, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces. And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days. And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him. And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's, and captain of the guard.”

Joseph saw in a dream that one day he would have dominion over his brothers. This was going to happen because it was God’s will. In every walk of life God chooses which person is in authority and which persons are not in authority. To resist this truth is to rebel against God. It says in Romans 13:1-7, “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing. Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour.”

God made it clear that He was going to put Joseph into a position of authority over his brothers. But that would not be for many years. First, there would be a time of suffering for Joseph. Before Joseph was raised to a place of authority, he was cast down to the lowest estate of a human being on this earth. Joseph was sold into slavery and then cast into prison. The Bible says in James 4:10, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” The life of Joseph proves this verse to be true. Joseph humbled himself even when he was unjustifiably cast into prison. We will see later that Joseph became free from prison by putting into practice the gift that God had given to him: the ability to interpret and to understand dreams that God had given. Those who do not submit themselves to authority will bring great sorrow upon themselves and will be resisting God’s will for them. Of course, the greatest authority is Christ. Some people will never be saved because they will not surrender to the authority of Jesus Christ. But those who do not surrender to the authority of Jesus in this life will bow down to Jesus Christ at the judgment. The Bible says in Philippians 2:10-11, “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

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