Corvallis Community Church
4-21-24
  • All Hail The Power Of Jesus' Name (Diadem)
  • The Power Of The Cross
  • All I Have Is Christ

  • Genesis 37:1-11

    Many of us who grew up in the church are familiar with the story of Joseph. We heard it in SS, Bible clubs, VBS—I can still see the colored flannel graphs that were part of my own childhood in church. Moses writes an absolute masterpiece in the final section of Genesis (37-50). It has left an indelible impression on the world and has been the inspiration of countless artists in history. Handle (best known for his oratorio Messiah) completed another one simply entitled Joseph (1743) based on this portion of Genesis.
    The German novelist and Nobel laureate, Thomas Mann published a 3 volume work over period of 16 years “Joseph and His Brothers” covering Gen 37-50, (Young Joseph, Joseph in Egypt, Joseph the Provider).
    Andrew Lloyd Webber produced the contemporary musical “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”. The story of Joseph has been influential in many ways. But it is not just really good literature.
    There are profound theological implications that are set forth in the account of Joseph. In fact, you see God’s hand everywhere. In Joseph’s life, God is working out His will in the everyday events of life. As Paul explains in Eph: God works all things after the counsel of His will (Eph 1:11) He is moving the events that are set forth toward their appointed end.
    Joseph’s own conclusion is this:
    Genesis 45:7–8 NASB95
    7 “God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant in the earth, and to keep you alive by a great deliverance. 8 “Now, therefore, it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh and lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
    God has chosen Joseph to be the one thru whom a nation would be preserved (Joseph’s Calling), which also preserves the line of Messiah to come at a later time. And what we’re going to see is a great deal of human sin, divine revelation and God’s hand combining to bring about God’s purposes for His creation—ultimately preserving the eternal plan of redemption.
    Remember the promise God made to Abram:
    Genesis 15:13–14 NASB95
    13 God said to Abram, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. 14 “But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out with many possessions.
    The story of Joseph will fulfill the Word God spoke to Abram…beginning a prolonged period of slavery for the nation of Israel. The Lord’s purpose for the slavery of the nation was not discipline but would serve to prepare the nation for its future responsibilities and to see to it that He would be glorified thru the nation as He brings out (judging Egyptians) the nation from slavery and fulfills His purpose to bring salvation to all thru Messiah.
    All of this sort of begins with Joseph’s rejection (his brothers). I want to highlight 2 things about this rejection which show how God will use these events to effect the salvation of His people.

    1. The Source of Joseph’s Rejection

    1-4
    ch 37 begins with a note about Jacob. Genesis— 4 events; 4 people
    TOLEDOT
    This is the final toledot of Genesis (divisions of the book)—vs 2
    Immediately Moses launches into the subject of Joseph (since he will be the major subject from here to the end). At this point, he is 17 yrs old. We are told that he was shepherding alongside some of the sons of his father. These are the sons of the handmaidens Bilhah and Zilpah: Dan & Naphtali, Gad & Asher. Now, Joseph is the 2nd youngest child of Jacob (Benjamin is youngest). These women were less-loved (possibly even more so than Leah) and it would have been reasonable that Jacob shows less affection to these than even the sons of Leah. They had little regard for Joseph (which comes out next) but especially in light of what happened.
    Joseph brought a “bad report” about his brothers to his father. Now, he doesn’t appear in the most favorable light in this instance. Was he a spoiled little brat? A pesky tattletale? I’m sure his brothers thought so. We don’t know what was “bad” about the report. I don’t think he was lying, exaggerating (some suggest this). The closest parallel to this phrase is what happened when the spies came back from the Promise Land and gave a “bad report” about the land to Israel (Num 13:32; 14:36-37). The spies misrepresented what they saw and the same might be what happened in Joseph’s case, he misrepresented and so maligned his brothers to their father.
    This did nothing to improve his relationship with his brothers which was already strained b/c of vs 3. We saw the problems with favoritism in the case of Esau & Jacob—this brings devastation in the home and hostility b/t siblings. That was the case here. Israel loved Joseph more…son of his old age—referring to Jacob’s older age (90s) when Joseph is born.
    The symbol of that love/favoritism—varicolored tunic. This was a distinctive tunic, coat, long robe and traditionally our translations hold that it was colorful: varicolored, ornate, many colors. That’s not the best translation of this term which is used only one other place in 2 Sam 13:18-19. That is the account of Tamar (daughter of David) who had been raped by her brother Amnon (David’s 1st born).
    2 Samuel 13:18–19 NASB95
    18 Now she had on a long-sleeved garment; for in this manner the virgin daughters of the king dressed themselves in robes. Then his attendant took her out and locked the door behind her. 19 Tamar put ashes on her head and tore her long-sleeved garment which was on her; and she put her hand on her head and went away, crying aloud as she went.
    This is the same phrase used of the garment Joseph was given by his father—a display of his high affection and preference of Joseph over his brothers. It may well have been ornate but the emphasis is on the fact that it went to the wrists. This type of robe conferred a special position, status on Jospeh (perhaps a position of authority, overseeing the business of shepherding the sheep). This was the rich garment of a ruler not of a well-dressed shepherd.
    The brothers knew what the robe signified—their father loved Joseph more. They knew this was preferential favor and Moses tells us that “they hated him…not speak”. That term “hate” carries the idea of detesting or despising and that the hated person has become the enemy. Imagine that—brothers have become enemies…primarily b/c of Jacob’s sin of preferring one son over the others. Jacob probably didn’t purposefully love one over the others but b/c Joseph was the son of the wife he truly loved (loved more) he may not have been able to help his feelings. Nevertheless, it created a great deal of friction in the home. Our homes should avoid favoritism at all cost. Jacob’s brought long lasting hurt on his other children that they would take out on the favored one. He is actually the source of Joseph’s rejection.

    2. The Sealing of Joseph’s Rejection

    5-11
    “then Joseph had a dream” Theologically speaking, dreams and visions are related but different ways God revealed His purposes to humans. Visions (lit means to see with the eyes) would happen when a person was fully awake. It might be compared to watching a movie play out. Gen 15 1
    Genesis 15:1 NASB95
    1 After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you; Your reward shall be very great.”
    Dreams on the other hand happened when the person was sleeping. Jacob had a dream while sleeping of that stairway on which angels of God were descending and ascending (28:12). Here, Joseph fell asleep and he had a dream. I mention this b/c dreams were one of the many ways God revealed His ways to mankind (Heb 1:1). Jospeh’s dream (2 of them) were just that. God was revealing to Joseph his plans for the individual and for the nation. God is not specifically mentioned as the giver of the dream but the hand of God can hardly be mistaken as this introduces the narrative that will see God preserving many peoples thru Joseph in Egypt.
    Joseph tells the dream to his brothers and they hated him even more. Now, why would Joseph do that? What was his motivation. The text doesn’t tell us so we can only speculate. Was the young brother boasting and intentionally provoking his brothers by telling them about the dream? Sometimes that’s what younger siblings do. And we generally suffer the consequences (speaking from experience). Self-promotion is never appropriate and Joseph may have been guilty of this. On the other hand, Joseph may have just been insensitive and not really aware of how his brothers truly looked at him.
    The result is an envious response from his brothers. you’ve probably never heard of “Fasciculus Morum” (fash-ee-coolus) Latin “a bundle of morals). It was a handbook for preachers written very early in the 14th century by an English Franciscan friar. The author describes envy as “the most precious daughter of the devil because it follows his footsteps by hindering good and promoting evil.”
    Joseph’s brothers were envious by the dream he told them. And Joseph may have antagonized them too.
    There were 2 dreams but they both had they same point: to show the saving climax of the Joseph narrative when he would become ruler in Egypt and his brothers bow down to him (42:6).

    The Harvest Dream

    5-8
    The 1st dream is real straight forward. The brothers would have been very familiar with the pastoral scene “binding sheaves in the field.” Earlier, Isaac sowed in the field and reaped a hundred-fold harvest (26:12). This was common even of shepherds. Joseph explains how his sheaf rose up which would come to symbolize his rise to power in Egypt in the following chapters. He also related how his brother’s sheaves bowed down to his. Though the dream is not interpreted or analyzed it is immediately apparent to the brothers what it meant—vs 8. and look at this “they hated him even more…” Hatred is escalating. The brothers are on a slippery slope of conflict (Peacemaker ministries) where their hatred for Joseph will take them to a point of murderous intent. And I think later in this chapter, God actually retrains that murderous intent and preserves Jospeh’s life in view of his brothers’ intentions.

    The Celestial Dream

    9-11
    This is a much more grandiose dream in that the celestial bodies are bowing down to Joseph—sun, moon and 11 stars. Just a couple of details about this dream. Jacob understands the sun and the moon to refer to himself and Rachel. Though Rachel’s death is recorded in ch 35, the presence of 11 stars shows that even Benjamin (the youngest) is included. There is some difficulty with this—how could Rachel bow down after she has died? There is no mention of the literal fulfillment of Jacob bowing to Joseph but his brothers certainly will. The main message (though I think it is probable that Jacob too bowed down to Joseph in Egypt…this 2nd dream was fundamentally a message that he would rule over his family members.
    Not only did Joseph tell his brothers, but b/c he probably believed the sun and moon referred to his parents, he told this dream to his father and he is sharply rebuked for doing this. But his father did not hate his son as the other sons did. We are told he kept this dream in mind. There was something about the uniqueness of these dreams that made him reflect on God’s promises and how they might find fulfillment thru his son. There’s a parallel in Mary when the shepherds were in the field and had the angelic messenger tell them about the birth of the Savior they quickly came into Bethlehem to see if it were so. They found the child just as the angel announced and they began to tell everyone about the encounter. They were all in wonder about it:
    Luke 2:19 NASB95
    19 But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart.
    I think this is how Jacob must have felt. A sense of bewilderedness but also wonder. The brothers are unconvinced and their hatred for Joseph continues to enflame.
    What can we take away from the opening story of the life of Joseph?
    We can read as a masterful piece of literature involving a father who dotes on his son, a child who is a pesky tattletale and some jealous brothers who object to bowing and serving their younger brother. But Scripture is much more than just a book of really good literature. Scripture is the unfolding of God’s revelation—His purpose for the created universe, especially the apex of that creation—humankind. It is the story of God’s plan to redeem man who wilfully disobeyed and there are many twists and turns in how He brings that plan to fulfillment.
    We can read this account and take in the profound lessons of theology that part of the narrative. Now, God is not named in ch 37. He is not said to be the source of the dream, He is not included as far as the relationships are concerned on only mention in connection with the name “Israel.” But His hand is prominent. In every scene thru ch 50 we will see God’s hand of providence, acting, ruling, even over-ruling the sinful decisions that people will make (what is meant for evil—God means for good—Rom 8:28)—all to raise up a hero, to save a family and to create a nation that will bring blessing to every family of the earth. In essence, this story is about the covenant-keeping God who always keeps His promises. There is great comfort in the narrative of Joseph for the believer today: God is still the promise-keeping God. I trust this will minister to you in your times of need.
    There’s one final way to look at the story of Joseph who in many ways is one of the richest illustrations of JC in the OT. In this way he pre-figures what is to come in LJC. Just as Joseph was loved by his father and obedient to the will of his father (37:13), Jesus was also loved by the Father and perfectly obedient to His Father’s will. Joseph was hated and rejected by his brothers, sold as a slave, Jesus too would be hated and rejected by His own, falsely accused and unjustly punished. Joseph was elevated to a powerful throne, saving his family from death—where Jesus also ascends to the highest place of preeminence at the right hand of the Father in heaven—having eternally saved His people from the just condemnation our sin deserves.
    Be encouraged as you walk thru life—the hand of God is directing you and sustains your very soul—always working good in your life.
    Psalm 119:68 NASB95
    68 You are good and do good; Teach me Your statutes.
    ​

      • Genesis 45:7–8NASB95

      • Genesis 15:13–14NASB95

      • 2 Samuel 13:18–19NASB95

      • Genesis 15:1NASB95

      • Luke 2:19NASB95

  • Jesus Name Above All Names
Corvallis Community Church
ccc@corvalliscommunitychurch.org
406-961-3443
http://www.corvalliscommunitychurch.org
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