Genesis 37 - Prayer Tents



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Genesis 37
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Joseph’s Dreams

37So Jacob settled again in the land of Canaan, where his father had lived as a foreigner.H3290H3427H776H1H4033H776H3667 2This is the account of Jacob and his family. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he often tended his father's flocks. He worked for his half brothers, the sons of his father's wives Bilhah and Zilpah. But Joseph reported to his father some of the bad things his brothers were doing.H8435H3290H3130H6240H7651H8141H1121H7462H6629H251H5288H1121H1090H1121H2153H1H802H3130H935H1H7451H1681 3Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other children because Joseph had been born to him in his old age. So one day Jacob had a special gift made for Joseph—a beautiful robe.H3478H157H3130H1121H1121H2208H6213H3801H6446 4But his brothers hated Joseph because their father loved him more than the rest of them. They couldn't say a kind word to him.H251H7200H1H157H251H8130H3201H1696H7965 5One night Joseph had a dream, and when he told his brothers about it, they hated him more than ever.H3130H2492H2472H5046H251H8130H3254 6"Listen to this dream," he said.H559H8085H2472H2492 7"We were out in the field, tying up bundles of grain. Suddenly my bundle stood up, and your bundles all gathered around and bowed low before mine!"H481H8432H485H7704H485H6965H5324H485H5437H7812H485 8His brothers responded, "So you think you will be our king, do you? Do you actually think you will reign over us?" And they hated him all the more because of his dreams and the way he talked about them.H251H559H4427H4427H4910H4910H8130H3254H2472H1697 9Soon Joseph had another dream, and again he told his brothers about it. "Listen, I have had another dream," he said. "The sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed low before me!"H2492H312H2472H5608H251H559H2492H2472H8121H3394H6240H259H3556H7812 10This time he told the dream to his father as well as to his brothers, but his father scolded him. "What kind of dream is that?" he asked. "Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow to the ground before you?"H5608H1H251H1H1605H559H2472H2492H517H251H935H935H7812H776 11But while his brothers were jealous of Joseph, his father wondered what the dreams meant.H251H7065H1H8104H1697 12Soon after this, Joseph's brothers went to pasture their father's flocks at Shechem.H251H3212H7462H1H6629H7927 13When they had been gone for some time, Jacob said to Joseph, "Your brothers are pasturing the sheep at Shechem. Get ready, and I will send you to them." "I'm ready to go," Joseph replied.H3478H559H3130H251H7462H7927H3212H7971H559 14"Go and see how your brothers and the flocks are getting along," Jacob said. "Then come back and bring me a report." So Jacob sent him on his way, and Joseph traveled to Shechem from their home in the valley of Hebron.H559H3212H7200H7965H251H7965H6629H7725H1697H7725H7971H6010H2275H935H7927 15When he arrived there, a man from the area noticed him wandering around the countryside. "What are you looking for?" he asked.H376H4672H8582H7704H376H7592H559H1245 16"I'm looking for my brothers," Joseph replied. "Do you know where they are pasturing their sheep?"H559H1245H251H5046H375H7462 17"Yes," the man told him. "They have moved on from here, but I heard them say, 'Let's go on to Dothan.'" So Joseph followed his brothers to Dothan and found them there.H376H559H5265H2088H8085H559H3212H1886H3130H3212H310H251H4672H1886

Joseph Sold into Slavery

18When Joseph's brothers saw him coming, they recognized him in the distance. As he approached, they made plans to kill him.H7200H7350H7126H5230H4191 19"Here comes the dreamer!" they said.H559H376H251H1976H1167H2472H935 20"Come on, let's kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns. We can tell our father, 'A wild animal has eaten him.' Then we'll see what becomes of his dreams!"H3212H2026H7993H259H953H559H7451H2416H398H7200H2472 21But when Reuben heard of their scheme, he came to Joseph's rescue. "Let's not kill him," he said.H7205H8085H5337H3027H559H5221H5315 22"Why should we shed any blood? Let's just throw him into this empty cistern here in the wilderness. Then he'll die without our laying a hand on him." Reuben was secretly planning to rescue Joseph and return him to his father.H7205H559H8210H1818H7993H953H4057H7971H3027H5337H3027H7725H1H7725 23So when Joseph arrived, his brothers ripped off the beautiful robe he was wearing.H3130H935H251H6584H853H3130H854H3801H3801H6446 24Then they grabbed him and threw him into the cistern. Now the cistern was empty; there was no water in it.H3947H7993H953H953H7386H4325 25Then, just as they were sitting down to eat, they looked up and saw a caravan of camels in the distance coming toward them. It was a group of Ishmaelite traders taking a load of gum, balm, and aromatic resin from Gilead down to Egypt.H3427H398H3899H5375H5869H7200H736H3459H935H1568H1581H5375H5219H6875H3910H1980H3381H4714 26Judah said to his brothers, "What will we gain by killing our brother? We'd have to cover up the crime.H3063H559H251H1215H2026H251H3680H1818 27Instead of hurting him, let's sell him to those Ishmaelite traders. After all, he is our brother—our own flesh and blood!" And his brothers agreed.H3212H4376H3459H3027H251H1320H251H8085 28So when the Ishmaelites, who were Midianite traders, came by, Joseph's brothers pulled him out of the cistern and sold him to them for twenty pieces of silver. And the traders took him to Egypt.H5674H4084H582H5503H4900H5927H3130H953H4376H3130H3459H6242H3701H935H3130H4714 29Some time later, Reuben returned to get Joseph out of the cistern. When he discovered that Joseph was missing, he tore his clothes in grief.H7205H7725H953H3130H953H7167H899 30Then he went back to his brothers and lamented, "The boy is gone! What will I do now?"H7725H251H559H3206H575H935 31Then the brothers killed a young goat and dipped Joseph's robe in its blood.H3947H3130H3801H7819H8163H5795H2881H3801H1818 32They sent the beautiful robe to their father with this message: "Look at what we found. Doesn't this robe belong to your son?"H7971H3801H6446H935H1H559H4672H5234H1121H3801 33Their father recognized it immediately. "Yes," he said, "it is my son's robe. A wild animal must have eaten him. Joseph has clearly been torn to pieces!"H5234H559H1121H3801H7451H2416H398H3130H2963H2963 34Then Jacob tore his clothes and dressed himself in burlap. He mourned deeply for his son for a long time.H3290H7167H8071H7760H8242H4975H56H1121H7227H3117 35His family all tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. "I will go to my grave mourning for my son," he would say, and then he would weep.H1121H1323H6965H5162H3985H5162H559H3381H7585H1121H57H1H1058 36Meanwhile, the Midianite traders arrived in Egypt, where they sold Joseph to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Potiphar was captain of the palace guard.H4092H4376H4714H6318H5631H6547H8269H2876


New Living Translation (NLT). Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. More details.
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