Genesis 37
I. The Thread of Cruelty.
A. His brothers hated him. v3-11
When Joseph's brothers saw that their father loved Joseph more
than he loved any of them…
And expressed his favoritism openly by making the lad a coat of
many colors…
"They hated Joseph, and could not speak peaceably unto him".
When Joseph told them of his two dreams foretelling his dominion
over them, his brothers "hated him yet the more".
The brothers envied him and planned evil against him. This must be
avoided at all cost.
A. By not playing favoritism.
Common sense tells us that this is wrong.
Jacob should have known this; he had been the favorite of his own
mother.
The result was the deception of Isaac and the alienation of his brother
Esau.
I. The Thread of Cruelty.
The brothers envied him and planned evil against him.
This must be avoided at all cost.
A. By not playing favoritism.
B. By avoiding covetousness.
The Latin word for envy is 'invidia' which means to stare
into.
Joseph's brothers had spent too much time focusing upon
his favorite status.
This led to his brother's coveting his position and
relationship to their father. (Luke 12:15) And he said unto
them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's
life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which
he possesseth.
I. The Thread of Cruelty.
The brothers envied him and planned evil against him.
This must be avoided at all cost.
A. By not playing favoritism.
B. By avoiding covetousness.
C. By accepting God's sovereignty over our lives.
Note: John 21:18-23
It is God who decides what happens in our lives.
He may choose one path for me, and a different path for
you -- accept it and avoid becoming envious.
Note the example of John the Baptist. Cf John 3:25-30
I. The Thread of Cruelty.
The brothers envied him and planned evil against him.
This must be avoided at all cost.
A. By not playing favoritism.
B. By avoiding covetousness.
C. By accepting God's sovereignty over our lives.
D. By love.
One final thought on how to avoid envy.
Love one another. Simple isn't it?
But if we will love them, we will not envy them. (1 Cor 13:4)
Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not;
charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, (Rom 13:10)
Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the
fulfilling of the law.
I. The Thread of Cruelty.
A. His brothers hated him. v3-11
B. His brothers plotted against him. v12-22
One day when the 10 brothers had been gone several days tending
their flocks, father Jacob sent Joseph to see how they were doing.
It was a three-day journey from Hebron to Shechem, some 50 miles to
the north.
When Joseph arrived in Shechem he learned that his brothers had
moved to Dothan, 12 miles beyond.
The brothers, spotting him afar off, -conspired against him to kill him.
They coldly discussed how they would dispose of the evidence by
throwing him into a pit and contriving a story to tell their father.
But his oldest brother Reuben, intending to later rescue Joseph,
suggested they put him in a pit or dry well. God raises an individual
to protect his children as in the case of Joseph, Reuben was there
with a mind of making sure Joseph is not killed.
I. The Thread of Cruelty.
A. His brothers hated him. v3-11
B. His brothers plotted against him. v12-22
C. The brothers take action. v23-28
When Joseph reached his brothers they seized him, stripped
him of his special coat, and shoved him into a pit.
For some reason, Reuben was absent at this time and the rest of
the brothers sat down to eat, ignoring the cries of Joseph. How
can Joseph be protected then?
God always has a plan. A caravan of Ishmaelites, carrying spices
to Egypt, gave Judah the idea of selling Joseph to the
merchants.
"What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood?"
he asked.
The brothers agreed, bargaining with the merchants for the
price of 20 pieces of silver.
He was sold for 20 pieces of Silver. A type of Christ who was sold
for 30 pieces of silver.
I. The Thread of Cruelty.
A. His brothers hated him. v3-11
B. His brothers plotted against him. v12-22
C. The brothers take action. v23-28
D. Jacob was heartbroken. v29-35
When Reuben discovered he was so upset that he began tearing
at his clothes.
But he wasn't ready to tell the truth to his father.
Now they all went with the original plan to explain the Joseph's
disappearance.
They killed a goat, dipped Joseph's special coat in its blood,
then brought it to their father, saying, "This have we -found:
know now whether it be thy son's coat or no?"
Recognizing the coat, Jacob was deceived by them into thinking
that Joseph had fallen victim to a wild beast.
He is totally heartbroken, and refuses to be comforted.
I. The Thread of Cruelty.
A. His brothers hated him. v3-11
B. His brothers plotted against him. v12-22
C. The brothers take action. v23-28
D. Jacob was heartbroken. v29-35
E. A dark thread, but the Master Weaver is at work in all of
their lives.
Who kept the brothers from killing Joseph?
Who sent the caravan along just then?
What kept Reuben from returning in time to rescue his brother and
restore him to his father?
The brothers thought they were making Joseph's dream of
domination forever impossible.
Instead, their very act of selling him into slavery was the first step
toward Joseph's exaltation and the ultimate fulfillment of his
dreams.
In fact, years later when Joseph revealed his identity to his terrified
brothers, he told them that God had overruled their wickedness.
(Gen 45:8a) So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God:
II. The Thread of Slander
A. Sold as a slave. 37:36; 39:1-6
Joseph was carried by the Midianites down to Egypt to be
sold as a slave.
Not a very bright future for such a young man 17 years of
age; but remember that God is still at work.
Pharoah's captain of the guard, Potiphar purchased
Joseph.
Was it chance that deposited Joseph in an upper class
home with close links to Pharaoh?
Was it chance that gave Joseph favor in the sight of his
master so that Potiphar made him overseer of his
household affairs?
Absolutely not…the Lord was with him!
II. The Thread of Slander
A. Sold as a slave. 37:36; 39:1-6
B. His character tested. v6b-20
Joseph's handsome appearance did not go unnoticed by
Potiphar's wife.
She repeatedly tried to seduce him, and one day, she
grabbed him, but when he fled away she kept his coat.
She held onto the garment and used it as "evidence" of
attempted rape by her husband's most trusted slave.
Note this was the second time Joseph's coat was used to
deceive others about him.
Potiphar angrily ordered Joseph placed in the king's
prison.
II. The Thread of Slander
A. Sold as a slave. 37:36; 39:1-6
B. His character tested. v6b-20
C. Another dark thread.
Maybe Mrs. Potiphar thought she had gotten rid of Joseph
when he was thrown into prison.
But in reality, her frame-up only moved Joseph closer to
being advanced to the second-in-command of Egypt.
I am sure that Joseph must have thought that the slander
was certainly another mistake by God.
But God makes no mistakes!
Not in Joseph's life, and not in ours.
III. The Thread of Ingratitude
But the Lord was with Joseph. v21-23
Even in the Egyptian prison, God allowed him to prosper.
Eventually the warden placed everything under Joseph's
jurisdiction.
The butler and the baker. 40:1-23
Two of Pharaoh's servants were imprisoned and placed under
Joseph's charge.
They each had troubling dreams, which Joseph interpreted
accurately for them.
Joseph asked the butler to put in a good word to Pharaoh on his
return to the palace.
But he was forgotten, initially.
Although Joseph wanted out of prison right then, God knew the
timing wasn't right yet.
It would be two more years before God would refresh the butler's
memory.
III. The Thread of Ingratitude
Joseph fulfills God's purpose.
Pharaoh dreams and none can interpret.
The butler remembers and speaks to him of Joseph.
The rest, as they say is history.
Joseph is promoted to the second-in-command over
all of Egypt.
Years later God uses Joseph to preserve Israel through
the famine, and to allow them to grow from a family of
70 to a multitude of nearly 2 million when they would
leave.
Illustration …
The lone survivor of a shipwreck found himself on an
uninhabited island. After a while he managed to build a
hut where he placed some food he had gathered. Every
day he scanned the horizon for any passing ship. One
day he spotted a boat. He waved frantically. But the
ship disappeared over the horizon. Sadly he returned to
his hut, only to find it in flames. But the next day a ship
arrived - it was the same one that had passed the day
before. The captain explained, "We saw your smoke
signal."
What may seem like an accident unplanned by man may
turn out to be an incident planned by God in His great
design. A disappointment may really be His
appointment.
Conclusion
(Gen 50:20)
But as for you, ye thought evil against me;
but God meant it unto good,
to bring to pass, as it is this day,
to save much people alive.
Acceptance of God’s Plan
A. God is sovereign.
(1 Cor 6:20) For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God
in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
What does that mean to us?
It should mean that we understand that He can do anything He
chooses to do with us…
We are a purchased possession, and have no right to question
Him.
This is not resignation…or giving up; this is accepting that God
has a plan for my life and He would never allow anything in
my life that is not for His good.
Many folks misunderstand Romans 8:28
(Rom 8:28) And we know that all things work together for good
to them that love God, to them who are the called according
to his purpose.
Acceptance of God’s Plan
A. God is sovereign.
B. God has a purpose for us.
Life is not just a collection of unrelated events.
Sometimes we think that our lives are like the pinball that
bounces from one bumper to the other until it drops out
of play.
But God has assured us that He has a purpose for each of
us.
That purpose is good, because God is good.
Joseph came to accept the God was in charge in his life,
and when we do the same it will make all the difference
in the world!
Acceptance of God’s Plan
A. God is sovereign.
B. God has a purpose for us.
C. Reject the sin of bitterness toward God.
Someone has said that trials will either make us better or make us
bitter.
Again the difference is our view of God.
God is a good God…He is righteous…He is not arbitrary…He is not the
author of confusion.
He warns us of allowing bitterness to enter into our lives in the wake
of adversity.
(Eph 4:31-32) Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and
evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: {32} And be ye
kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as
God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
(Heb 12:14-15) Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which
no man shall see the Lord: {15} Looking diligently lest any man fail of
the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you,
and thereby many be defiled;