April 28, 2024 - Genesis 37:1-8, 12-28
April 28, 2024
Lessons Learned
Genesis 37:5-8, 18-28
by Wayne Gaeddert
1. Chapter 36 tells the story of Esau settling in the territory of Seir which became known as Edom due to the influence of Esau, who was known as Edom. See Genesis 25:30
2. Esau left the land of his birth without a fight, that left Jacob to live in the land God had promised to his grandfather and father peaceably.
3. Chapter 37 begins the final section of Genesis which focuses on the sons of Jacob but mostly on Joseph.
4. Bilhah’s (Rachels’s servant) sons were Dan and Naphtali (5th and 6th sons of Jacob); Zilpah’s (Leah’s servant) sons were Gad and Asher (7thand 8th sons of Jacob).
5. The text does not tell us if Joseph was tattling on his brothers or if Jacob had sent him on a mission and reported back to his father.
6. Jacob followed the pattern of his father and mother by having a favorite son.
7. The robe Jacob gave to Joseph would be symbolic of the next leader in the family.
8. Picking a favorite among the children leads to problems for everyone.
9. The brothers’ hostility toward Joseph stemmed from:
They saw Joseph as a tattle-tale.
Jacob’s favoritism towards Joseph.
Joseph’s dreams of superiority over them.
10. God used dreams in Genesis as a means of revelation to individuals:
Abimelech Gen 20:3-6 Don’t touch Abram’s wife.
Jacob Gen 28:12 The ladder that reached from earth to heaven.
Jacob Gen 31:10-12 The goats that mated were stripped, spotted, and mottled.
Laban Gen 31:24 Don’t say anything to Jacob…
Joseph Gen 37:8 Brothers’ sheaves bowing to Joseph’s sheaf.
Joseph Gen 37:9 Sun, Moon, and eleven stars bowing down to Joseph.
Cupbearer Gen 40:9-13 The vine that budded.
Baker Gen 40:16-19 cakes baskets on his head eaten by birds.
Pharaoh Gen 41:2-4 Seven attractive cows/seven ugly cows.
Pharaoh Gen 41:5-7 Seven plump ears/ seven thin blighted ears.
11. Joseph’s family was not prepared for the revelation given to Joseph.
12. Unbelievers will do all they can to suppress Truth.
13. Genesis 42:2-221 gives us insight into how Joseph pleaded with his brothers while being stripped of his robe, thrown into the pit, and sold as a slave.
14. Genesis 37:25 displays the callous behavior of the brothers after throwing Joseph into the pit.
15. Twenty shekels of silver was the price for a young slave during this era of time.
16. Jacob’s deception by his sons, using Joseph’s cloak and slaughtered goat, mirrors the way Jacob deceived his own father by using Esau’s cloak and two goat skins. ESV Study Bible note
17. “Vision or revelations from God should not go public or viral until God gives us permission to articulate them.” Dr. Don Laughlin
18. Application:
Harboring bitterness and anger will lead you down the path of sin, before you know it, you will do something you normally would never do.
“Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.” Matthew 7:6 ESV
The brothers had evil in their hearts but God caused good to be the end result.
“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.” Genesis 50:20