CLARITY EDITION · OLD TESTAMENT
Genesis 37
Chapter 37 of 50
Chapter Overview
What happens in Genesis 37
The story shifts to Joseph, Jacob's favorite son by Rachel. Jacob gives Joseph a special colorful coat, making his brothers jealous. Joseph has two dreams suggesting his family will one day bow down to him. His brothers' hatred grows until they sell him to traders heading to Egypt, then tell their father he was killed by a wild animal.
Scripture
Genesis 37
Joseph's Dreams
Study note
Joseph is seventeen years old and tends the flocks with his brothers. He brings a bad report about his brothers to their father. Jacob loves Joseph more than any of his other sons because Joseph was born to him in his old age. He makes Joseph a richly decorated robe, which makes the brothers hate Joseph. Then Joseph has two dreams: in the first, his brothers' sheaves of grain bow down to his sheaf; in the second, the sun, moon, and eleven stars bow down to him. Even Jacob rebukes Joseph for this, but he keeps the matter in mind. The brothers' jealousy deepens.
1 Jacob stayed in Canaan, the same land where his father had lived. And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan.
2 Here is the story of Jacob's family. Joseph was seventeen years old and worked as a shepherd alongside his brothers — specifically the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's other wives. Joseph told his father about the bad things his brothers were doing. 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.
3 Israel loved Joseph more than all his other sons because Joseph had been born when Israel was already old. He made Joseph a beautiful, colorful robe. 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.
4 When the brothers noticed that their father loved Joseph more than any of them, they grew to hate him. They couldn't say a single nice thing to him. 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.
5 On top of that, Joseph had a dream and made the mistake of telling his brothers about it. That made them hate him even more. And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more.
6 He told them, "Listen to this dream I had!" And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed:
7 "We were all out in the field tying up bundles of grain. Suddenly my bundle stood straight up, and all of your bundles gathered around and bowed down to mine!" 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.
8 His brothers snapped at him, "Oh truly? You think you're going to be our king? You think you're going to rule over us?" And they hated him even more because of his dreams and his big talk. 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.
9 Then Joseph had another dream and told his brothers: "I had one more dream. This time the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were all bowing down to me." 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.
10 When he shared this dream with his father and brothers, his father scolded him: "What kind of dream is that? Are your mother, your brothers, and I all going to come bow face-first to the ground in front of you?" 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?
11 His brothers seethed with jealousy. But his father tucked that dream away and kept thinking about it. And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.
Joseph Is Sold into Slavery
Study note
Jacob sends Joseph to check on his brothers, who are grazing flocks near Shechem. When the brothers see him coming in the distance, they plot to kill him. Reuben, the oldest, convinces them to throw Joseph into a dry cistern instead, planning to rescue him later. When Joseph arrives, they strip his special robe and throw him into the pit. As they sit down to eat, they see a caravan of Ishmaelite traders heading to Egypt. Judah suggests selling Joseph rather than killing him, since he is their brother. They sell Joseph for twenty pieces of silver.
12 One day the brothers went out to graze their father's flocks near Shechem. And his brethren went to feed their father's flock in Shechem.
13 Israel said to Joseph, "Your brothers are out grazing near Shechem. I'd like you to go check on them." Joseph said, "Sure, I'll go." 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.
14 Israel told him, "Go see how your brothers and the flocks are doing, and bring me back a report." He sent Joseph off from the valley near Hebron. When Joseph reached Shechem, 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.
15 a man found him wandering around in the fields and asked, "What are you looking for?" And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was wandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou?
16 Joseph answered, "I'm trying to find my brothers. Do you know where they're grazing their flocks?" And he said, I seek my brethren: tell me, I pray thee, where they feed their flocks.
17 The man said, "They already moved on. I heard them say, 'Let's head to Dothan.'" So Joseph went after them and found them near Dothan. 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.
18 His brothers spotted him coming from far off. Before he reached them, they started scheming to kill him. And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him.
19 "Oh look, here comes the big dreamer!" they said to each other. And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh.
20 "Let's kill him and dump his body in one of these dry wells. We'll tell Dad a wild animal got him. Then we'll see what happens to all those fancy dreams." 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.
21 But Reuben spoke up and tried to save Joseph. "Let's not kill him," he said. And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him.
22 "Don't spill any blood. Throw him in this empty well out here in the wilderness, but don't hurt him." Reuben's secret plan was to come back later, rescue Joseph, and bring him home to their father. 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.
23 The moment Joseph walked up to them, the brothers grabbed him and ripped off the beautiful robe he was wearing. 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;
24 Then they threw him down into the well. It was dry — no water in it. And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it.
25 They sat down to eat lunch. While they were eating, they noticed a caravan of Ishmaelite traders coming from the direction of Gilead. The camels were loaded up with spices, balm, and myrrh, all headed for Egypt. 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.
26 Judah said to his brothers, "What do we gain by killing our brother and trying to hide it?" And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood?
27 "Let's sell him to these Ishmaelite traders instead. That way we don't have to lay a hand on him. He is our brother, after all — our own flesh and blood." The brothers agreed. 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.
28 When the Midianite merchants passed by, the brothers hauled Joseph up out of the well and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. The traders took Joseph with them to Egypt. 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.
Jacob Mourns for Joseph
Study note
When Reuben returns to the cistern and finds Joseph gone, he tears his clothes in grief. The brothers slaughter a goat and dip Joseph's robe in the blood. They take it to their father and let him draw his own conclusion. Jacob recognizes the robe and believes a wild animal has killed Joseph. He mourns deeply and refuses to be comforted, saying he will mourn until he joins his son in the grave. Meanwhile, the traders sell Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh who is captain of the guard.
29 When Reuben came back to the well and found Joseph gone, he was devastated. He ripped his clothes in grief. And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes.
30 He ran to his brothers and cried, "The boy is gone! What am I going to do now?" And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, whither shall I go?
31 The brothers took Joseph's robe, killed a goat, and soaked the robe in the goat's blood. And they took Joseph's coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood;
32 They brought the blood-stained robe to their father and said, "We found this. Take a look — is this your son's robe?" 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.
33 Jacob recognized it immediately and cried out, "That's my son's robe! A vicious animal must have ripped him apart! Joseph has been torn to pieces!" 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.
34 Jacob ripped his own clothes, dressed in rough mourning cloth, and grieved for his son for a very long time. And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days.
35 All of Jacob's sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. He said, "I will mourn for my son until the day I die." And his father wept and wept over Joseph. 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.
36 Meanwhile, down in Egypt, the Midianite traders sold Joseph to a man named Potiphar. Potiphar was one of Pharaoh's officials — the captain in charge of the royal guard. And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's, and captain of the guard.
Key Themes
Themes in Genesis 37
Joseph's dreamsFavoritism and its consequencesJealousy among brothersBetrayal and sufferingGod's hidden plan
Prophetic Connections
How this chapter points to Christ
Genesis 37:28 Matthew 26:15
Joseph was sold by his brothers for twenty pieces of silver, foreshadowing Judas betraying Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. In both cases, the price of betrayal was paid for the one God had chosen to save His people.
Apply This Today
Living Genesis 37
Joseph's brothers hated Him for His dreams, but those dreams were from God. When others reject or resent the gifts God has placed in you, do not lose heart. God's purposes for your life cannot be canceled by human opposition.
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