Chapter 37 begins with a claim that Israel (Jacob) loved Joseph more than his other children. Hence, he made him a coat of many colors; but was this an act demonstrating his greater love for his precocious son? Though laboring to produce an intricate coat can certainly be an indication of this, we can’t say for sure. Nor can we claim that Joseph’s siblings solely hated him because he received this coat. They also hated him because he told them about a dream he had. His siblings don’t appear to be too bright, and as we shall see, they’re very vindictive.

Nevertheless, let’s take a look at Joseph’s dreams. First, he dreams that he and his brothers and sisters (brethren) were binding sheaves in the field. His brethren’s sheaves bowed down to Joseph’s sheaf. The brethren interpret this as a sign that they may be ‘ruled’ by Joseph (verse 8). As a result, they hated him more.

Two thoughts come to mind:

1. Joseph’s siblings were dream interpreters before Joseph became one. This skill appears to run in the family. They’re not necessarily too good at it, yet this may have inspired Joseph to enter into this profession. How many people enter a field because of the inadequacy (read: opportunities) that exists in that field? That’s an indication the field may be ripe for further development.
2. Joseph’s own creative dreams might become the inspiration for his future entrance into the dream interpretation field. These dreams can be added to his resume of dream experience that will provide the foundation for his abilities in this field.

Let’s continue with the next dream. Joseph explains to them that he dreamed the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed down to him. Like the first dream, there is a sense that Joseph is prophesizing at some level. The casual observer to this story, however, might claim he is a false messiah, or that it represents some type of reverse Paganism (notice that the sun & stars are doing the bowing to the devotee, and not the other way around!). To validate or invalidate any of these speculations will require further reading in this story.

When he describes the dream to his father, Jacob scolds him. Jacob astutely realizes that the eleven stars represent Joseph’s siblings, and the sun and moon his parents. In verse 11, it mentions that his brethren “envied him”, but that dad kept the saying in his mind. Boy howdy!

Does this imply that Jacob (Israel) recognizes his son’s talents, but his siblings are just too blind or stupid to recognize them? That’s a possibility. It’s also possible that Joseph is pulling a fast one over them, merely toying with their feeble minds. If so, the siblings get the “last laugh” because they took his coat, threw him into a pit, sold him into slavery, and pretended that he was slayed by a beast (they dipped his coat in blood and showed it to Joseph. When this happened, Joseph basically replied, “Yup, must have been slayed by a beast”.)

Well, Joseph was brought into the land of Egypt by the Ishmaelites who purchased him. This brings us to Chapter 39. At the beginning of this chapter, it describes how Joseph was brought into the house of his master, but also how God was with Joseph. Does this imply that God implicitly favored this relationship? Not necessarily. Alternatively it could indicate that it was part of God’s larger plan to develop Joseph’s character, a prerequisite for becoming the future leader of the Jewish people. At the same time, God blesses Joseph, thus giving him assistance and protection.

We witness Joseph’s strong moral fiber when he refuses to succumb to temptation. His Egyptian master’s wife taunts him to make love to her, but Joseph refuses to perform any act that will be a “sin against God”. Yet even after she falsely accuses him of rape, and gets thrown into prison, Joseph harbors no vengeance or animosity. Such is the character of Joseph. This forms the perfect segue into the next phase of the story: Joseph, the dream interpreter.