GenesisChapter 37
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1Jacob lived in the land of Canaan. It was the land where his father had lived. 2This is the story of Jacob's family. Joseph was seventeen years old. He was taking care of the flock with his brothers. They were the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's wives. Joseph brought their father a bad report about them. 3Israel loved Joseph more than his other sons. That was because Joseph was born to him when he was old. So he made Joseph a robe of many colors. 4Joseph's brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them. So they hated Joseph. They could not say one kind word to him. 5Then Joseph had a dream. He told it to his brothers, and they hated him even more. 6He said to them, "Listen to this dream I had. 7We were tying up bundles of grain in the field. All at once my bundle rose up and stood up straight. Then your bundles gathered around mine and bowed down to it." 8His brothers said, "Do you plan to be king over us? Will you really rule over us?" So they hated him even more because of his dream and what he said. 9Then Joseph had another dream. He told it to his brothers too. "Listen," he said, "I had another dream. This time the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me." 10He told his father and his brothers. But his father scolded him. He said, "What kind of dream is this? Will your mother and your brothers and I really come and bow down to the ground in front of you?" 11His brothers were jealous of him. But his father kept thinking about what Joseph had said. 12Some time later, Joseph's brothers went to feed their father's flocks near Shechem. 13Israel said to Joseph, "Your brothers are feeding the flocks at Shechem, aren't they? Get ready. I'm sending you to them." "I'm ready," Joseph answered. 14Then Israel told him, "Go now and see how your brothers and the flocks are doing. Then come back and tell me." So he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron. Joseph came to Shechem. 15There a man found him wandering around in the field. The man asked, "What are you looking for?" 16"I'm looking for my brothers," Joseph answered. "Can you please tell me where they are feeding their flocks?" 17"They've moved on from here," the man said. "I heard them say, 'Let's go to Dothan.'" So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan. 18Joseph's brothers saw him far away. Before he reached them, they made a plan to kill him. 19"Here comes that dreamer!" they said to each other. 20"Come on, let's kill him. Let's throw him into one of these pits. We can say a wild animal ate him. Then we'll see what happens to his dreams!" 21Reuben heard this. He tried to save Joseph from them. "Let's not kill him," he said. 22"Don't spill his blood. Throw him into this pit here in the wilderness. But don't lay a hand on him." Reuben said this so he could save Joseph from them. He wanted to take him back to his father. 23So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped off his robe, the robe of many colors he was wearing. 24Then they took him and threw him into the pit. The pit was empty. There was no water in it. 25Then they sat down to eat a meal. They looked up and saw a group of Ishmaelites traveling from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with spices, balm, and myrrh. They were on their way down to Egypt. 26Then Judah said to his brothers, "What will we gain if we kill our brother and hide his blood? 27Come on, let's sell him to the Ishmaelites. Let's not lay a hand on him. After all, he's our brother, our own flesh and blood." And his brothers agreed. 28So when the Midianite traders came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the pit. They sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. And the Ishmaelites took him to Egypt.a 29Later Reuben came back to the pit. He saw that Joseph was not there. So he tore his clothes. 30He went back to his brothers and said, "The boy is gone! What am I going to do?" 31Then they took Joseph's robe. They killed a young goat and dipped the robe in its blood. 32They sent the robe of many colors to their father. They said, "We found this. Look at it. Is it your son's robe or not?" 33His father knew it right away. He said, "It's my son's robe! A wild animal has eaten him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces!" 34Then Jacob tore his clothes. He put sackcloth around his waist. He mourned for his son for many days. 35All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him. But he would not be comforted. "No," he said. "I will go down to the grave still mourning for my son." So his father cried for him.b 36Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar. He was an officer of Pharaoh and the captain of the guard.