Genesis 36-37
We have now moved our focus to the next generation – specifically Jacob’s twelve sons or the twelve tribes of Israel.
{Spoiler alert: Joseph is about to have a no good, very bad day.}
Joseph:
• tattled on his brothers (v 2)
• was the favorite of his father (v 3)
• hated by his brothers (v 4)
• dreamed that he would rule over his brothers and that even his father would bow before him (v 5-11)
Joseph’s brothers saw him from afar and decided to kill him (v 17).
👉 Compare this to Esau’s response to seeing Jacob from afar in Genesis 33:4.
Reuben, the eldest brother, convinced them to throw Joseph in a pit instead (v 22).
Sadly, without Reuben’s knowledge, Judah convinced the brothers to sell Joseph to Midianites passing by (v 26-28).
Reuben was distraught (v 29-30) but not nearly as distraught as their father, Jacob (v 34-35).
The Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh (v 36).
Things look bad for Joseph. But God was already working…
