THE STORY OF JOSEPH. EPISODE 2. GENESIS CHAPTER 37: THE FATHER'S FAVORITE-JUST LIKE JESUS

 

Chapter 37: The Father’s Favorite-Just Like Jesus

In this chapter we have:

• Ø  An introduction to Joseph as part of the larger household of Jacob (Israel) and the main occupation of the household which is shepherding
• Ø  The origins of the conflict between Joseph and his brothers; the conduct of Joseph, Jacob’s favoritism, and Joseph’s dreams/destiny.
• Ø  Joseph sold to Ishmaelites who were Midianite traders.
• Ø  Joseph landing into Potiphar’s household as a slave.

We are told that Jacob, Josephs father, lived in Canaan where his father also lived. Let us stop here for a minute and consider this pregnant term “Canaan,” shall we? It is important to note here that the land referred here as Canaan is the area today known as “Palestine” or “Palestinian territory”.

Biblically speaking however, the term Canaan/Canaanites  is associated with the descendants of Noah through his son Ham, who Noah cursed into a life of servitude to his brothers after uncovering his father’s nakedness. Note that on the other hand, Israelites/Hebrews/jews are descended from Noah’s son Shem who identify with their foremost patriarch Abraham.

God would then promise Abraham to give his descendants the land of Canaan and that they would gain that land through conquest against the Canaanites who were sinful and therefore deserving of punishment through banishment and dispossession.

 

 Geographically, Canaan is an ancient term for a region approximating present-day Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, plus adjoining coastal lands and parts of Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan.

So how has the region also come to be known as “Palestine?” The word Palestine derives from Philistia, the name given by Greek writers to the land of the Philistines, who in the 12th century BCE occupied a small pocket of land on the southern coast, between modern Tel Aviv and Gaza. As you can see this is the same territory as described as “Canaan” in the preceding lines. You will remember that as the Israelites settles in the promised land (Canaan) after the over 400 years of bondage in Egypt of  the major source of hostility that they had to deal with were the Philistines. This I would say, is how the two names , Canaan and Palestine become almost synonymous.

The name  Palestine was revived by Romans in 2^nd century AD then carried into Arabic in the Islamic era. After Roman times the name had no official status until after World War I and the end of rule by the Ottoman Empire, when it was adopted for one of the regions mandated to Great Britain.

 This area has been possibly the most contested piece of land in the 20^th and 21^st century. Up to today, the land is in contention between the Jews and the Palestinian Arabs. While I do not intend to get into all the geo-political debates of that issue, it is  worth noting here that there is a historical fact in this verse that is important to this discourse. The fact of the matter is if we were to rely on recorded authentic history, the whole land would be surrendered to the Jews including some of the neighboring sovereign states like Lebanon, Syria and Jordan.

The Jews were there before any of the modern claimants. They were dispersed throughout the world especially to Europe for various reasons but returned miraculously to their ancestral land in 1948 specifically on 14^th May.  The Arab Palestinians only began to claim the land in the early 1900’s. I quote  secular historian website here, “Although the Arabs of Palestine had been creating and developing a Palestinian identity for about 200 years, the idea that Palestinians form a distinct people is relatively recent. The Arabs living in Palestine had never had a separate state. Until the establishment of Israel, the term Palestinian was used by Jews and foreigners to describe the inhabitants of Palestine and had only begun to be used by the Arabs themselves at the turn of the 20th century.”) (https://www.britannica.com/place/Palestine/Palestine-and-the-Palestinians-1948-67)

In modern day politics around the conflict in this region a lot of people who purport to talk about the area are either ignorant of the true history of the area or they just choose to overlook it. Statements like “free Palestine” are testament to this phenomenon because it is used by people who are pro-Palestinian Arabs and against the presence of Jewish state of Israel in the region. If Palestine (aka Canaan land) was to be truly freed, it would revert to the Jewish people who were dispossessed of the land initially by the Assyrians and Babylonians between 8^th and 6^th century b.c., then fell under the Medo-Persian empire, then the Phoenicians and Greek  empire, then roman empire, followed by the Islamic empires of Umayyad and ottoman, then by the British empire mandate in the early 20^th century and finally miraculously recaptured by the jews/ Israelis in May 14^th 1948.

The story of Joseph has bearing on this history because it is in this story that we see the Jews/ the children of Jacob(Israelites) leave the land of Canaan for the very first time in history under the influence of a global catastrophe of famine in search for survival down to the food-rich super power empire of Egypt. When Joseph dies at the end of our story, the Jews would return to their ancestral land of Canaan and begin their unending conflict with the occupants and neighboring nations. It is therefore no doubt that the bible mentions this important detail in the story.

We are told in verse 2, the following key things about Joseph when  we meet him properly for the very first time: his age, his vocation, his colleagues at work and his attitude towards work. Joseph is in his late teenage and already about his father’s business of tending the flock. What a good start. We can say for sure that great sons are always in the father’s business. Jesus when he was at the age of twelve  responded to his parents when they were troubled looking for Him: And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” (Luke 2:49 NKJV). Joseph is a role model for every young person. The pre-occupation of every one of them should be about the business of our heavenly father. And that should apply to people of all ages. Jesus was also asked by the crowds at some point on what doing the “works” of God would comprise and the bible says,  Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” (John 6:29, ESV).

Our ultimate endeavor should be as Jesus urged us: to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all the other things shall be added unto us. (Matthew 6:33) Problem is, we are busy seeking everything else first and the kingdom last. There is great reward when such is our greatest pursuit in life. This is what the psalmist says: The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. (Psalm 34:10 ESV). And what does this “seek the lord’ mean? Charles Spurgeon comments, “Why, he is seeking the Lord. Ask him what is his one want, and he will say, 'Christ is all my desire: I rise early in the morning, and the first thought I have is, 'O that I knew where I might find him?' …. He turns the pages of Scripture, not as he would a book of philosophy, from curiosity, or for mere instruction, but to seek the Lord….  he seeks him that he may put a crown on his head; he is not seeking him for mercy, but to give him praise.” 

Such a seeking son will definitely become the fathers favorite, even as Joseph in our story is. Such a son will also receive an ornate coat, a beautiful coat of many colors; he will be clothed with the robe of Gods righteousness even as Joseph was clothed with that gorgeous coat. Such a son will sing: I am overwhelmed with joy in the Lord my God! For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness. I am like a bridegroom dressed for his wedding or a bride with her jewels. (Isaiah 61:10, NLT)

Another thing we see about Joseph in this verse is his attitude towards work. Joseph is a man of excellence. He doesn’t entertain mediocrity or laziness at work and we’re going to see more of this in the ensuing chapters. But here we see him report his brothers to his father apparently of their bad conduct while at work. Some people have wrongly criticized Joseph because of this incident claiming that he did wrong to not mind his own business and possibly heightening the hatred from his brothers. Others, such as in today’s social media, would coin a phrase and say Joseph had a “monitoring spirit.” Far from it, Joseph, being much younger that his brothers, was not in a position to rebuke them and could only remedy their  bad behavior at work  by reporting  them to their father, all in pursuit for excellence. For my friends who are school captains and prefects this should encourage you to report bad behavior among your fellow students if the goal is to pursue excellence.

Such kind of character  by Joseph attracts favor from the father. The next verse states that Jacob loved Joseph more than all of his other sons. Although the verse also states that  the reason is because Joseph was born to him in old age, it would seem that Josephs good conduct had a role in it otherwise that crown would have been awarded to Benjamin his brother who was the youngest of them all.  We can however also say that Joseph conduct is highly likely  influenced by his own awareness of the father’s love for him. The same way for us as believers; we serve God better when we understand His love for us. That is the driving power behind our service and dedication to his work; the understanding that he so much loved us that he gave up his only son for us. 

The kind of favor that Jacob bestowed on Joseph caused his brothers to hate him and to be unkind to him. We could say here that parents need to be careful not to show unhealthy favoritism for one child over another as this can cause strife in the family unit. We can however also see in this story that for every blessing there is a battle to be fought. Joseph will fight unimaginable battles to reach his God ordained mission, and we too as believers must be ready not just for the blessings but the battles too. 

Joseph will have two dreams that will only serve to escalate the hatred of his brothers and even the rebuke of his dad. There so much hate in this chapter that the word hatred is repeated over and over again. As believers and as we journey through our salvation life, we must be ready to endure hatred from even our closest kin. Jesus warned his disciples that the world would hate them just as it hated Him:  “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. ¹⁹ If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15:18-19, ESV). Matthew Henry comments,  “It is common for those that are beloved of God to be hated by the world; whom Heaven blesses, hell curses. To those to whom God speaks comfortably wicked men will not speak peaceably.”

The bible also says in this text in the gospel of John that Jesus was hated for no reason just as prophesied in the Old Testament (verse 25). It also says in verse 21 that those that hated Jesus did so for they did not know He who sent Him. This seems like the same case for Joseph; his brothers did not really have a good reason to hate on him, it was not his fault that the father favored him. Also, they hated him because they did not understand God’s plan to save them through Joseph as hinted in the dreams. Again, we see here Joseph painting the picture of the coming messiah for the children of Israel.

There is also something important to be said about Joseph’s dreams. Why was it important for God to show these dreams to him especially. One of the main reasons would be that the dreams would be the source of Joseph’s comfort and courage to face all the trials and tribulations that he would encounter along the way to his God-ordained destiny. When Joseph understood the assignment ahead of him and what would become of his destiny, he was able to persevere every trouble that life threw at him, from the hatred and jealousy, to being thrown into the pit by his own brothers, to being sold to merchants then to Egypt, to being throw into prison. Like Jesus, Joseph had a hint of the joy set before him. Now, while Joseph was given the dreams to encourage him, Christians have the written Word of God assuring us of the joy before us when we persevere to the end. The apostle Paul writes: But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him” (2 Corinthians 2:9, ESV)

While Joseph’s brothers were jealous of him, but “his father kept the matter in mind,” the bible says. Another place in scripture that has a similar statement is about Jesus and his mother in Luke chapter 2 verses 19 and 51. Both Mary and Jacob did not understand the things that were happening around their sons but their reaction was right; they just kept these things in mind. So also for us; at times we get a sign from God that is not fully clear. It is good to not disregard and forget about it because it does not make sense now but rather keep it at heart, keep praying about it until in the fulness of time God brings it to pass.

Next, we see Jacob sending Joseph after his brothers on what seems to be routine duty; to bring a report about them as well as the flock. But this is the final time that this duty will be performed by Joseph to his father. What Jacob does not know is that this is the last time he will see his favorite son in a long time. He thinks he is sending to  merely  watch his brothers but in God’s plan he is sending on a mission that will make him the savior of them all.

Joseph was expecting his brothers to be grazing in Shechem but on arriving there he was told they had moved further from there. Instead of him returning home and say that he couldn’t find them, he went out his way to find them and he did find them. This is literally an example of “going an extra mile” to get things done. Joseph was such an industrious and diligent young man and despite him being his father’s favorite, he is very hardworking. Every young person should emulate him. The world today has become so competitive and only the ones who are ready to go that extra mile will find success in life.

When Josephs brothers saw him from afar off, they plotted how they would terminate him for good, to never see him again and therefore end the nuisance he was to them. Matttew henry comments, Joseph was here a type of Christ. Though he was the beloved Son of his Father, and hated by a wicked world, yet the Father sent him out of his bosom to visit us in great humility and love. He came from heaven to earth, to seek and save us; yet then malicious plots were laid against him. He came to his own, and his own not only received him not, but consulted against him: This is the heir, come let us kill him; Crucify him, crucify him. This he submitted to, in pursuance of his design to redeem and save us.

But God has his plans and none of his plans can be thwarted, the bible says. (Job 42:2). Verse 21 makes it clear that it is his dreams that they are after and up against. And young people must understand that it is their God ordained dreams and future that the enemy is up against. The enemy will do anything to steal, to kill and destroy it (John 10:10a)

God worked through Reuben, the first born among the brothers, to have a little bit of change of plan, where instead of Joseph being thrown down into the pit dead, he would be thrown alive. Reuben wanted to come rescue his brother later. It seems Reuben would exit the stage possibly excusing himself not to witness the evil that was about to happen to his brother. We know this because we later see him come look for his brother unaware of yet another turn of events.

 When Joseph came to them, they stripped him of his ornate robe, and threw him into the dry pit. They began to feast having accomplished their mission. But then came the caravan of Ishmaelites from Gilead. Judah dissuaded the brothers from killing their own brother and instead sell them to the Midianite merchants, and they agreed.

According to an encyclopedia of the bible this incident is the earliest Biblical incident involving Israelites and Arabs. The Arabs took him to Egypt and sold him there (Genesis 37:25-28; 39:1). These merchants are called Ishmaelites, which is a general name for Arabs, and they also are called Midianites (37:28), their specific Arab tribe (cf. Judg 6:1; 8:24). (https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/encyclopedia-of-the-bible/Arabian-Arabians-Arabs)

So, Joseph, for 20 pieces of silver is traded as a commodity by his brothers, taken to Egypt and sold as a slave. This should remind of another Son that was traded for a few pieces of silver by one of his close confidants. This is the Son of God who was betrayed by his friend judas for thirty pieces of silver. 20 or 30 pieces of silver was little money by all standards. In fact it was the price of a slave  in both incidences and it also goes to show how the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.

Reuben comes later to check and rescue his brother but he is nowhere to be found. His brothers kept the story a secret and did not disclose to Reuben. They instead crafted a cover up to deceive their elderly father in believing that his favorite son had been devoured by an animal. But we know that the animal in question here is his own sons and Joseph’s own brothers. This a classic case of love that has grown cold! This whole incidence sounds to me as what the bible says about the last days. Jesus said this about the last days: And then many will fall away^[a] and betray one another and hate one another. ¹¹ And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. ¹² And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. (Matthew 24:10-12, ESV) The apostle Paul explains:  But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. ² For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, ³ heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, ⁴ treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. (2 Timothy 3:1-4, ESV)

One more thing to be said about the ensuing cover-up by the brothers for their sin. They went out of their way to provide some impeccable proof to their father that Joseph is dead and that a ferocious animal was to blame. This should remind us of one Adam, through whom the bible says sin entered the world. When he sinned, instead of seeking forgiveness  in repentance, he sought to cleverly cover it up. It seems as human beings and his descendants, we will have heavily embraced this character. An example is when people engage in sexual immorality and an “unwanted” pregnancy ensues. What is the first remedy that comes to mind to cover it up? Procure and abortion! But just like Josephs brothers our sins will always find us out, as Moses warned some of  the children of Israel in Numbers 32:23. The only way to escape sin’s consequences is to be forgiven of your sin by faith in the death and resurrection of Christ.

The chapter closes with total sadness and grief upon Jacob because he thinks his favorite son is dead and gone. He refuses to be comforted, he will never see his son again, the sons have managed to deceive him that Joseph is no more. But God is at work, Jacob will see his son again, and not just that, his weeping will soon be turned into tears of joy. In fact, it is for the good of the household of Jacob that Joseph is not with them anymore, for Joseph being in Egypt will save them in due course.

 And so also with us, because we don’t see God’s entire plot and play, we cry and mourn yet when God reveals what his bigger plan is, we look back rejoicing and praising God, seeing that it was all for his glory and for our good. It is like when Lazarus died even after Jesus had been informed about his illness and yet did not go to heal him immediately. The story is recorded in John chapter 11. In verse 4 Jesus says “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” In verse 15 Jesus says “and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe…” you see, for his glory and for our sake! All things indeed worketh together for good unto us that love God and are the called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

The first destination of Joseph is in Egypt in the house of Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard. To his family, the story is over but with God the beautiful story just began! Praise the LORD, glory be unto his Holy Name.