Genesis: AUTHORITY
A Story Of God: Genesis 37:1-11
Pastor John Weathersby
Sunday October 22, 2023
Notes, not at Transcript:
In this story of Joseph, which is really a story of God’s sovereignty, we’ll be with him from Genesis 37 through Genesis chapter 50. Moses wrote, by God’s will, for 13 chapters on Joseph’s life. Coming into those 13 chapters, we must remember what God has said and done up to this point.
- Genesis 12:1-3, God called faithful Abraham to go to a Land God would provide, to make him a great nation, bless him and those who are friendly toward him, but curse those who dishonor Abraham – in Abraham, “all the families of the earth,” shall be blessed. Why? Because this is how God brings the Messiah for the forgiveness of sin.
- Genesis 15:12-17 Abraham (now Abram) “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete”.
Genesis 15:10–17 (ESV)
12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him.
13 Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years.
14 But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions.
15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age.
16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”
17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.
The offspring of the Patriarchs of the faith, through whom the Messiah will come, will live as Sojourners and be servants for 400 years.
How will God accomplish this specific thing? We read all about it in the following 13 chapters in the end we’ll be encouraged through this story knowing that God is the same today, that Romans 12:2 is empowered as we understand God’s sovereignty in these passages:
Romans 12:2 (ESV)
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
With that mid, let us see a story about God that empowers our understanding of sovereignty and pushes on our ability to trust God in all things, even unseen things, by faith.
Genesis 37:1–11 (ESV)
Joseph’s Dreams
1 Jacob lived in the land of his father’s sojournings, in the land of Canaan.
First, out of the gate, Moses reiterates Jacob’s living “in the land of his father’s sojournings” in Canaan. Why? By God’s sovereign Grace, Esau willingly (compelled by God’s will) chose to go to another land leaving this one, that God prophecies, to Jacob in Genesis 28. God’s promises are sure, and he forth tells what will happen as Sovereign God, not foretelling what may occur like the palm reader on Jonestown by the old Friendly’s, Old Crave.
2 These are the generations of Jacob.
Joseph, being seventeen years old, was pasturing the flock with his brothers. He was a boy with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives. And Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father.
3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his sons, because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a robe of many colors.
4 But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him.
When Moses says, “these are the generations of Jacob,” we expect to see a list of children born, grand, and great-grandchildren. Like we did in Genesis 36 last week with Esau, which felt really long – here we see a 13-chapter treatment of the generations of Joseph beginning now with how God fulfilled Genesis 12, 15, and 28 through him and those around Him because this is a story about God cast onto Joseph.
We see that Joseph is with the Sons of Bilha and Zilpah. These are taken as Jacob’s wives, not daughters of Laban, but handmaidens, as we read previously. Their sons then are Dan and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher. Joseph brings a report about the boys to his dad. What was that report? We don’t and cannot know. Any guesses stretch too far beyond Scripture – God, through Moses, didn’t see fit to record that.
Jacob had Joseph at 90 years old. Not only was Joseph treated perhaps as the Baby, but he was born to an OLD MAN, yet Joseph was his SECOND youngest son. In verse 3/4, we see the coat his father made for him. Amazingly, Jacob picks a favorite. Jacob’s dad had a favorite, too (him), and his mother a favorite (Esau). We see how that went, but here we are still picking favorites – again, this is God’s sovereign hand impacting the will of men.
What was this coat, again – no one is entirely sure, but it was a representation of favoritism and more sting to the wound felt by the brothers. Friction was building, and it works to fulfill the will of God, as we’ll see. In fact, we see toward the end of verse 4 that his brothers “hated him and could not speak peacefully to him.” This is more than sibling rivalry or picking on a younger brother; this is hatred. In the future, Jesus, talking about sin, would say
Matthew 5:21–22 (ESV)
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’
22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.
Reiterated in 1 John 4:17-21,
1 John 4:17-21 (ESV)
17 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.
18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
19 We love because he first loved us.
20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.
21 And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.
These brothers take a sinful position in reaction to Joseph. What spawns it Joseph’s dreams (given to him by God) and Joseph’s favor from his father (inspired by God).
Let’s see his dream:
5 Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they hated him even more.
6 He said to them, “Hear this dream that I have dreamed:
7 Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and stood upright. And behold, your sheaves gathered around it and bowed down to my sheaf.”
8 His brothers said to him, “Are you indeed to reign over us? Or are you indeed to rule over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.
Does he understand the dream? Not sure. I tell people my dreams all the time. If you know me, you know they’re a melatonin-fueled field of chaos. Moses is giving us a feel for how things are going in the home. Remember verse 4 before reading verse 5:
4 But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him.
When verse 4 ends, his father gives a visual picture of Joseph, the favored one, the likely recipient of the bulk inheritance, and certainly treated well in the home. Joseph brings reports about them and tells his dad that they hate him and cannot even speak peacefully to him. Moses picks up in the next verse so that we’d KNOW that the anger and the tension are rising: now Joseph had a dream. It’s almost too much, almost too perfect, almost too tempting for the brothers to act in their sin. His dream is pretty transparent imagery that he’d rule over the brothers.
Let’s follow into now a SECOND DREAM.
9 Then he dreamed another dream and told it to his brothers and said, “Behold, I have dreamed another dream. Behold, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”
10 But when he told it to his father and to his brothers, his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall I and your mother and your brothers indeed come to bow ourselves to the ground before you?”
11 And his brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind.
Even now, his father is “rebuking him,” this is getting to be too much, Joseph. The brother’s were jealous of him, heaping that upon the hatred and inability even to have a peaceful conversation, as we see in verse 4. The tempo is high in the Patriarch’s home, and things are reaching a boiling point. The brothers are hate-filled and jealous.
Proverbs 10:12 (ESV)
12 Hatred stirs up strife,
but love covers all offenses.
James 3:16–17 (ESV)
16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.
17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.
The brothers were swallowed up in their feelings, and by grace, God will use that to bring about his will. And his will his what?
To bring a line through the patriarchs preserved through them, fulfilling Genesis 3:15. We chose to title the study of the Book of Genesis as “Authority.” Because that is what we see. God’s authority over everything. His sovereign command, His will, and through it, His righteousness. God is acting on and through fallen, sinful creation to bring about His Will.
Genesis 3:15 (ESV)
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring;he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
Romans 12:2 (ESV)
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what the will of God is, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
We see that in Joseph! God’s will is perfect and good. All this brings about His Will and Word, validating His Sovereignty (recorded so that we may know it – what grace). Sure, this is a story about Joseph, but it’s a story of God. I pray we see it and we’re encouraged by God’s good grace and can begin to discern the will of God, knowing that aligning to His will opens us up to all that it is good, acceptable, and perfect.
Joseph is a story about God a story about God that empowers our understanding of sovereignty and pushes on our ability to trust God in all things, even unseen things, by faith.
Pray, Observe, Apply.
