Joseph Sold by His Brothers (Genesis 37:12-36)

Joseph is now the official heir in the family of Jacob. He has no idea for how long he will be the heir. There is no evidence that his father is about to die and in any case he has been told that his father would yet bow to him. All Joseph has to go on is the dreams that he received from God which told him that a day would come when his family members would bow to him. Joseph would have no idea how that would happen, and things were about to happen that would test in Joseph’s mind whether God could keep his promise.

 

The dedication of Joseph

We are not told how much time has passed between the previous recorded incident in the life of Joseph and the decision here of Jacob to send Joseph to see his brothers. The mission itself is probably similar to what Jacob had asked Joseph to do when he had sent him to the sons of the concubines in the previous incident. We may want to ask why Joseph was not away with his brothers. Probably, the reason is connected to the position he had in his father’s house, that he was there to do whatever his father requested, and to look after any issues that arose. 

 

The response of Joseph was an immediate yes. Maybe he thought it would be straightforward to fulfil, but that is not the main point. Rather the main point is his willingness to be a good servant of his father. It is obvious that Jacob trusted Joseph, that he knew that his son would bring back an accurate report. So, despite the fact that Joseph had received two dreams that indicated he would yet be prominent, he knew that moment had not yet arrived. He realised that he had to live as he should in the present, even although God had informed him of his future. The lesson for us is that we should wait for God to open the next door in his plan for our lives.

 

As we can see in the incident, the request of Jacob turns out not to be straightforward for Joseph. When he reaches Shechem, he discovers that there is no sign of his brothers. He now faces a dilemma. Is God indicating that Joseph should return to his father or is the Lord saying that he should persist in his task of finding his brothers? He could have taken the easy option, but think of the consequences if he had done so. If he had gone home to his father, Joseph would not have been sold by the Midianites. That might sound good, but if he had not been sold by them, Joseph would never have become the provider of food for the entire world. It is not always right to take the easy option.

 

So what did Joseph do? He waited until he received further information, which he received from an unnamed man he encountered as he was walking around. I wonder what Joseph was doing while he was walking around. Knowing his character, it is safe for us to assume that he was praying. Sometimes we have to pray with our eyes open, because if Joseph had done otherwise he would have seen nothing. The point about praying with our eyes open is that we need to be alert for divine answers. So while the text does not say that Joseph was praying, we can see a picture that indicates the likelihood that he was.

 

An obvious lesson from this is that we should not always expect events in life to go smoothly. Joseph seems to be doing something that he has already done without any problems happening. Yet when he sets out on this activity, he cannot complete it without having to take more time. But neither does he know initially if he should complete it. Things like that happen with us and they are reminders that we are not in control. We have to wait for God to reveal in some way what the next stage will be. Dedication by itself does not guarantee a straight path. Things can happen that will disrupt our best laid plans.

 

Anyway, God solved the problem of what Joseph should do by arranging for a person to come along who knew about the brothers. It is interesting that it is the stranger who initiated the conversation. Of course, the conversation may have involved a lot more interaction than what is recorded. Yet the man knew that Joseph was seeking something, he knew who Joseph’s brothers were, and he had been close enough to them to know what they were saying to one another. Whoever he was, he was the exact guide that Joseph needed. This is a reminder, is it not, that God can sent help from surprising sources. 

 

The decision of the brothers

When the brothers saw Joseph coming towards them, they expressed their contempt and hatred for him. They could have wondered how he knew where they were, but they did not. Instead, they made a plan for getting rid of him. Two of them were of a different mind about letting him die.

 

The two men who spoke are interesting because we should ask why God arranged for them to be the ones who spoke. After all, their contribution is part of his providence for them. They are likely to have been the ones who could challenge Joseph for his role as the heir of Jacob. Reuben is seen to be a person lacking in courage. He knew what he should do, but he did not want to rescue Joseph in a public way. His lack of courage and conviction showed that he was not competent to be the heir, even although he was the oldest son of Leah. And so it turned out.

 

Judah is different from Reuben because, unlike Reuben, Judah has an important role to play. He is going to be the ancestor of Jesus, but at this time he is an ungodly man. The prospect of money interests him, and in the next chapter we see that he is an immoral man. But if we read his story we will see that good signs appear later. The point I am making here is which person’s providence should we consider because the fact is that God was working at numerous levels. Joseph although it seemed unlikely was on the way up. Reuben was on the way down. Judah was on the way to be the ancestor of the tribe that would remain loyal to God much longer than did the tribes who followed the descendants of Joseph. It was not only the lives of individuals that were being affected here. Generations far down the line would become what they were because of the actions taken by this family gathering at Dothan. Numerous people in the surrounding countries would yet benefit from the fact that Joseph went to Egypt and was there when the famine came. Surely, our response must be to bow down before the wisdom of God.

 

What about all the brothers? They hated Joseph and their hatred was revealed in them being heartless. They treated him with contempt when they removed the special coat that Jacob had given him. They acted callously when they threw him into a pit with no water. Their meal probably included items that Joseph had brought to them from the family home, but they shared none of it with him. In the end, they sold him to the Midianites for twenty shekels, which if it was divided equally would have given them two shekels each.

 

Who were the Midianites? They were Ishmaelites, descended from Abraham. In other words, they were related to the sons of Jacob. If they were roughly the same age, the Ishmaelites and the sons of Jacob were three generations away from Abraham.  What about the promises of divine blessing to the world that Abraham received? Here, his seed is combining to fight against God. Is God in charge of providence, or does providence even exist? We would not be surprised if onlookers asked those questions. Yet he is, but totally unseen. 

 

Explanation for Jacob

The brothers took the robe of the heir and after killing a goat put its blood onto the robe. They gave the bloodstained robe to Jacob along with a convincing account that was only a collection of lies. They imagined that their actions and explanations had removed the influence of Joseph and that they would never be troubled by them again. Little did they realise how God often works in providence. Their actions would yet re-appear in a location that they could not have imagined – a palace in Egypt.

 

Poor Jacob. He had deceived many, and now he was feeling the pain of deception. The deception by his sons took away his hope from him. Joseph, the godly son, was dead. What had happened to the God of the promises? Had he turned against Jacob? We know that the Lord had not turned against him, but Jacob did not know that. God can take his people into a situation where everything seems over. All seemed very final to Jacob on that sad day. If we had been able to quote Romans 8:28 to Jacob, what would he have said in reply? Was God able to work all things for good concerning those who love him?

 

Faith has its challenges, but what can we say when they come from within the kingdom rather than from outside it. The actors in this story belonged to the only visible community of God that existed in the world. And they were behaving in a manner that was totally inconsistent with it. What hope could there possible be? The answer is given in the final verse of the chapter: ‘Meanwhile the Midianites had sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard.’ This statement reveals that God was at work, placing Joseph in a particular place, the next stage in his remarkable journey.

 

Application

The first application is to think about the folly of trying to frustrate God’s intentions. We see this in the actions of the brothers. Instead of trying to be reconciled with Joseph they deepened their opposition to him. They were ignoring the message that God had conveyed to them through Joseph. Maybe they imagined that the message was unpalatable in its demands. How could it be a blessing for them to acknowledge the superiority of Joseph? The only way to find out was to accept the message. Something similar to this occurs with regard to the gospel. Often, the response is, ‘Who is Jesus that we should submit to him? What good will that response bring to me?’ As in the case of Joseph and his brothers, we find the blessings of Jesus when we submit to him. Accepting him as Lord is like going through a door into a room full of plenty, with sufficient grace for everyone. Through him, we find forgiveness of our sins and the promise of heaven at the end of life. We should not be like the brothers who resisted the word of God. Unlike their situation, where the exaltation of Joseph was years into the future, Jesus is exalted now in order to give forgiveness. 

 

A second application is that we should recognise that God works at different levels in his providence. The fact is, every person we have ever met was at that moment in the grip of divine providence. It is impossible to be out of it. His providence arranged for Joseph to be sent by Jacob, it arranged for the brothers to move to Dothan, it arranged for a man to turn up and guide Joseph, it arranged that a pit would be close by without any water, it arranged for a group of Midianites to pass by while the brothers were having their meal, it arranged for Joseph to be purchased by Potiphar, and it arranged for Jacob to have bitter tears of sorrow. The items in that list include only some of the things included in God’s providence. It is good for us to sit down often and think of all the things that happen to us, because whatever else may be said about them, they are all part of his providence. Where each of is at this moment is part of his providence. We cannot escape from it. Even if we conclude that we don’t like the idea, all that means is that our current decision to think in that way is part of his providence. God is not responsible for the choices we make, but all of them are in his providence. It would be good to spend some time this afternoon sitting down and thinking about where we are. The best way to do it is with a pen and paper, and you will be amazed at what you will find.

 

A third application is that sometimes trials can get worse before things get better. It was bad enough for Joseph to be hated, and then to be threatened, and then to be dumped in a pit, and then to be sold to strangers, and then to be purchased by a powerful Egyptian. How could God use all those events to bring about his plans? He did.