Genesis 37
1 Jacob lived in the land of his father’s travels, in the land of Canaan.
Now Jacob was living in the land where his father had made a place for himself, in the land of Canaan.
2 This is the history of the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brothers. He was a boy with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives. Joseph brought an evil report of them to their father.
These are the generations of Jacob: Joseph, a boy seventeen years old, was looking after the flock, together with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's wives; and Joseph gave their father a bad account of them.
3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age, and he made him a tunic of many colors.
Now the love which Israel had for Joseph was greater than his love for all his other children, because he got him when he was an old man: and he had a long coat made for him.
4 His brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, and they hated him, and couldn’t speak peaceably to him.
And because his brothers saw that Joseph was dearer to his father than all the others, they were full of hate for him, and would not say a kind word to him.
5 Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it to his brothers, and they hated him all the more.
Now Joseph had a dream, and he gave his brothers an account of it, which made their hate greater than ever.
6 He said to them, “Please hear this dream which I have dreamed:
And he said to them, Let me give you the story of my dream.
7 for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and behold, your sheaves came around, and bowed down to my sheaf.”
We were in the field, getting the grain stems together, and my grain kept upright, and yours came round and went down on the earth before mine.
8 His brothers asked him, “Will you indeed reign over us? Will you indeed have dominion over us?” They hated him all the more for his dreams and for his words.
And his brothers said to him, Are you to be our king? will you have authority over us? And because of his dream and his words, their hate for him became greater than ever.
9 He dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brothers, and said, “Behold, I have dreamed yet another dream: and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed down to me.”
Then he had another dream, and gave his brothers an account of it, saying, I have had another dream: the sun and the moon and eleven stars gave honour to me.
10 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? Will I and your mother and your brothers indeed come to bow ourselves down to the earth before you?”
And he gave word of it to his father and his brothers; but his father protesting said, What sort of a dream is this? am I and your mother and your brothers to go down on our faces to the earth before you?
11 His brothers envied him, but his father kept this saying in mind.
And his brothers were full of envy; but his father kept his words in mind.
12 His brothers went to feed their father’s flock in Shechem.
Now his brothers went to keep watch over their father's flock in Shechem.
13 Israel said to Joseph, “Aren’t your brothers feeding the flock in Shechem? Come, and I will send you to them.” He said to him, “Here I am.”
And Israel said to Joseph, Are not your brothers with the flock in Shechem? come, I will send you to them. And he said to him, Here am I.
14 He said to him, “Go now, see whether it is well with your brothers, and well with the flock; and bring me word again.” So he sent him out of the valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.
And he said to him, Go now, and see if your brothers are well and how the flock is; then come back and give me word. So he sent him out of the valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.
15 A certain man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the field. The man asked him, “What are you looking for?”
And a man saw him wandering in the country, and said to him, What are you looking for?
16 He said, “I am looking for my brothers. Tell me, please, where they are feeding the flock.”
And he said, I am looking for my brothers; please give me word of where they are keeping their flock.
17 The man said, “They have left here, for I heard them say, ‘Let’s go to Dothan.’” Joseph went after his brothers, and found them in Dothan.
And the man said, They have gone away from here, for they said in my hearing, Let us go to Dothan. So Joseph went after them and came up with them at Dothan.
18 They saw him afar off, and before he came near to them, they conspired against him to kill him.
But they saw him when he was a long way off, and before he came near them they made a secret design against him to put him to death;
19 They said to one another, “Behold, this dreamer comes.
Saying to one another, See, here comes this dreamer.
20 Come now therefore, and let’s kill him, and cast him into one of the pits, and we will say, ‘An evil animal has devoured him.’ We will see what will become of his dreams.”
Let us now put him to death and put his body into one of these holes, and we will say, An evil beast has put him to death: then we will see what becomes of his dreams.
21 Reuben heard it, and delivered him out of their hand, and said, “Let’s not take his life.”
But Reuben, hearing these words, got him out of their hands, saying, Let us not take his life.
22 Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but lay no hand on him”—that he might deliver him out of their hand, to restore him to his father.
Do not put him to a violent death, but let him be placed in one of the holes; this he said to keep him safe from their hands, with the purpose of taking him back to his father again.
23 When Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the tunic of many colors that was on him;
So when Joseph came to his brothers, they took off his long coat which he had on;
24 and they took him, and threw him into the pit. The pit was empty. There was no water in it.
And they took him and put him in the hole: now the hole had no water in it.
25 They sat down to eat bread, and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing spices and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt.
Then seating themselves, they took their meal: and looking up, they saw a travelling band of Ishmaelites, coming from Gilead on their way to Egypt, with spices and perfumes on their camels.
26 Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood?
And Judah said to his brothers, What profit is there in putting our brother to death and covering up his blood?
27 Come, and let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites, and not let our hand be on him; for he is our brother, our flesh.” His brothers listened to him.
Let us give him to these Ishmaelites for a price, and let us not put violent hands on him, for he is our brother, our flesh. And his brothers gave ear to him.
28 Midianites who were merchants passed by, and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. The merchants brought Joseph into Egypt.
And some traders from Midian went by; so pulling Joseph up out of the hole, they gave him to the Ishmaelites for twenty bits of silver, and they took him to Egypt.
29 Reuben returned to the pit, and saw that Joseph wasn’t in the pit; and he tore his clothes.
Now when Reuben came back to the hole, Joseph was not there; and giving signs of grief,
30 He returned to his brothers, and said, “The child is no more; and I, where will I go?”
He went back to his brothers, and said, The child is gone; what am I to do?
31 They took Joseph’s tunic, and killed a male goat, and dipped the tunic in the blood.
Then they took Joseph's coat, and put on it some of the blood from a young goat which they had put to death,
32 They took the tunic of many colors, and they brought it to their father, and said, “We have found this. Examine it, now, and see if it is your son’s tunic or not.”
And they took the coat to their father, and said, We came across this; is it your son's coat or not?
33 He recognized it, and said, “It is my son’s tunic. An evil animal has devoured him. Joseph is without doubt torn in pieces.”
And he saw that it was, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast has put him to death; without doubt Joseph has come to a cruel end.
34 Jacob tore his clothes, and put sackcloth on his waist, and mourned for his son many days.
Then Jacob, giving signs of grief, put on haircloth, and went on weeping for his son day after day.
35 All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. He said, “For I will go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” His father wept for him. (Sheol h7585)
And all his sons and all his daughters came to give him comfort, but he would not be comforted, saying with weeping, I will go down to the underworld to my son. So great was his father's sorrow for him. (Sheol h7585)
36 The Midianites sold him into Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh’s, the captain of the guard.
And in Egypt the men of Midian gave him for a price to Potiphar, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house.
