HealingStrong's Around the Word

Episode 1 - The Joseph Series: Joseph's Dysfunctional Family (Genesis 37:1-11 NIV)

• HealingStrong • Episode 1

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We have all experienced some family drama at some point and Joseph was no different. The story of Joseph begins with family favoritism, prophetic dreams, and brotherly hatred that sets the stage for one of the Bible's greatest redemption stories.

This quick episode covers:

• Joseph, at age 17, is clearly his father Jacob's favorite son
• Jacob makes Joseph an ornate, colorful robe that becomes a visible symbol of favoritism
• The family dynamics are complicated by Jacob having multiple wives and many sons
• Joseph has prophetic dreams suggesting his family will bow down to him
• When Joseph shares these dreams, his brothers' hatred intensifies
• Joseph appears naive about how his dreams affect his brothers' feelings
• Jacob's favoritism continues a pattern of family dysfunction he experienced in his own childhood

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Suggested Resources:

BIBLE PLAN - Trusting God's Plan in the Waiting: Lessons from the Life of Joseph

PODCAST - Genesis to Revelation Bible Reading

TOOLS - Refresh Your Spirit through God's Word


Speaker 1:

He's got a crazy family Like there's. His dad had several wives and there was like a ton of kids and a lot of chaos going on and Joseph went through a ton of stuff.

Speaker 2:

Well, hello, my name is Cheryl and you're listening to Healing Strong's. Around the Word. We're friends sitting around the table who love the Lord and love digging deep into his word. Each day, I'll read a Bible passage and then we'll chat about what we're learning from it. Today, I'll be reading Genesis, chapter 37, 1 through 11, from the NIV version of the Bible. So join us Around the Word Genesis 37, 1 through 11.

Speaker 2:

Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan. This is the account of Jacob's family line. Joseph, a young man of 17, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them. Now, israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons because he had been born to him in his old age and he made an ornate robe for him. When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him. Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. He said to them listen to this dream I had. We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it. His brothers said to him Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us? And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said. Then he had another dream and he told it to his brothers. Listen, he said I had another dream and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me. When he told his father, as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said what is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you? His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind. So that was our Bible reading for today.

Speaker 2:

Now let's take a listen in on the discussion Susie, angie Maren and myself had around the table and around the word. Well, welcome everybody to Healing Strong's Around the Word. I'm Cheryl and I've got Susie Maren and Angie sitting at the table with me here and we are excited to talk about this guy named Joseph from the Bible. And it's not that guy, joseph, that was married to Mary, and it's in the Christmas story. This is like the guy from back in the Old Testament in the book of Genesis Joseph. His story is crazy, guys. Right, it has all kinds of stuff going on.

Speaker 1:

Oh yeah, he's got a crazy family, like his dad had several wives and there was like a ton of kids and a lot of chaos going on and Joseph went through a ton of stuff.

Speaker 2:

I love that. Angie and Susie, what have you seen in his story? What's a little preview that you've seen in his story?

Speaker 3:

that would be interesting well, I mean, joseph went through so much just getting to the point of uh, where the story really picks up and gets interesting, when his brother sold him into slavery and then told his dad that he was. He was not alive, and so his dad had to live many, many years thinking he had lost his favorite son it's like a drama it it's like watching a drama on television or a movie.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, he ended up being a slave. Yeah, he was in prison. He was accused of rape, yeah all kinds of things. Yeah, I mean it's insane. And then there was favoritism. That happened at the beginning of this too.

Speaker 1:

Jacob, the daddy from the beginning, lets everybody know that Joseph, the first son of his favorite, Rachel, is his favorite by what?

Speaker 3:

the coat. And his coat was a coat of many colors. That was like an identity thing, you know. I mean he's walking around with this coat everywhere, so it's like people see him coming from miles away. It's not just like he has it sitting next to his bed, you know, he's wearing this everywhere. It really became part of his identity, I think.

Speaker 1:

And his dad made it for him. His dad made it for him.

Speaker 2:

Right. If you notice too, in the first few verses Joseph is sent off to go check on a few of the brothers, and it happened to mention that it was the sons of Zilpah and Bilhah. These are the maidservants.

Speaker 3:

They knew their mothers were less loved than Joseph's mother. I'm sure they felt deprived and unloved.

Speaker 2:

This is one big dysfunctional family. I just don't know how four wives and a husband can go well. Well, then he goes and meets the brothers and we see that he has had these dreams. I don't know about you guys, but if I had a dream and it was with people that didn't like me too well and it made me look really good and made them look bad, I don't know, would y'all be going around telling it?

Speaker 3:

I just think Joseph was that kid that just wanted to share everything. I don't think he was trying to be ugly to his brothers, I really think he just wanted to share everything. I don't think he was trying to be ugly to his brothers, I really think he just wanted to share, like everything that happened. Joseph was out there just sharing and you know, as he's sharing, of course it's hurting his brother's feelings. But I kind of see it a little different, I think.

Speaker 1:

Joseph. We never see him as a manipulator. He just takes things as they come and he's always been favored. So he's a happy kid. He's 17 or so and he is just happy and he's had these dreams and he's just sharing it. But we see that he's got some years ahead of him. That won't be so dreamy.

Speaker 2:

Oh, I love learning about Joseph this dreamer, and everything God is going to do in and through him. It's going to be a ride, y'all, so stay tuned and thank you for joining us for Healing Strong's Around the Word podcast. We hope you were encouraged to read and explore God's word. Please take a minute and check out our website, healingstrongorg, where you can find out more about our mission and community groups. Until next time, remember faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.