Genesis 37 -- Joseph's family sins against him

Family dynamics, don't you just love them?  As far back as biblical times, we humans dealt with family dysfunction.  The story in Genesis 37 is a classic tale of a seemingly favored son who has eleven brothers who are not so favored.  Add to this scenario the fact that this privileged prodigy is the youngest son and the pot of sibling stew is ready to boil over. 

As you would expect, the older brothers resent the youngster's ability to tattle to father, get them in trouble, and return wearing a bright shinny new coat made especially for him.  We read in Genesis 37:4 "When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him."

We can sense that something big is going to happen soon, and we aren't kept waiting.  As the story unfolds, the older brothers manage to get rid of their troublesome brother.  As with our life, there is much more to this story.  God is so in control of this situation.  His hand is all over this family and this nation. 

God is using Joseph for the fulfillment of His plan.  He is doing the same with us, it is just very difficult to see the big picture when we are in the midst of the pain of living in a dysfunctional sinful world.  When we continue to read this fascinating story we will see just how big God's plan was and is today.

Read the text in Genesis 37 at Biblegateway here.

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