Genesis 37—38: Pride and Prejudice

Warming Up to God

How have you seen the harmful effects of "playing favorites" in your family?

• My brother and sister might say that I was the favorite...but I always thought that they treated us fairly. But my brother was pretty bitter that my parents were more lenient with me than they were with him. Bitterness. Resentment.

Discovering the Word

Describe the family relationships at the outset of the story (37:1-4).

• Joseph was a "tattle tail".
• Jacob loved Joseph best, and Joseph's brothers hated him for it. In fact, nothing they ever said to him was nice.

We have already seen in the examples of Abimelech, Jacob and Laban that dreams are a medium through which God reveals his will. This time, however, the communication is not through words. How are the symbols in Joseph's two dreams interpreted by his family (37:5-11)?

• They think that Joseph is boasting his superiority over them. His brothers are jealous of him.

What are the varied reactions of Joseph's brothers when they see him approaching (37:12-22)?

• Most of them have great hatred for Joseph. But Ruben, likely out of fear for his father's reaction, does not hate Joseph so much to want to kill him.

What motive do you see in the way the brothers report the news of Joseph's disappearance to their father (37:29-35)?

• Well, it appears that they don't have the gall to take it to Joseph themselves. They are trying to cover their guilt.

In spite of having three sons, how does Judah find his lineage to be in jeopardy (38:1-11)?

• He thinks, for superstitious reasons, that his son will die with Tamar as the other sons did. I can see why he fears it, but Judah fears the wrong things. The evil of his sons is what did their undoing.

What strategy does Tamar work out to establish her status as matriarch of Judah's line (38:12-30)?

• Tamar was supposed to be given Judah's last son to make babies with, but Judah withheld him from her.
• She went to a place where she could observe them and kept her face hidden. it doesn't appear that she planned it. Judah assumed that she was a prostitute and she went along with it. Either way, she did get pregnant, which is a little incredible to me, since there are only a few days a month that a woman can even get pregnant.
• When she was brought out for her indecency, she told everyone that Judah impregnated her and presented her evidence. 

Applying the Word

Jacob's favoritism, Joseph's arrogance and the brothers' envy contribute to this tragedy of rivalry and hatred. To what extent are you involved in a family situation, either your own or that of a friend, with some of these elements?

• Envy can do terrible things to relationships. I had a friend that had a miscarriage. It was emotionally crushing for her and very hard to work through. I had one kid and one on the way and I think it was too much for her. We haven't spoke much since.
• I get into funks where I am comparing myself to other moms at church, it never goes well. Usually I think, "I'm not like that and nobody likes me." It's not exactly the "church experience" that one expects.

Perez (38:29) is listed in the genealogies of David (Ru 4:18-22) and Joseph, the husband of Mary (Mt 1:3). How can this fact help us to appreciate God's grace?

• God works through broken people.