Genesis 37:30 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and returned to his brothers and said, “The boy is gone, and I, where shall I go?”

NIV: He went back to his brothers and said, 'The boy isn't there! Where can I turn now?'

NASB: He returned to his brothers and said, 'The boy is not there; as for me, where am I to go?'

CSB: He went back to his brothers and said, "The boy is gone! What am I going to do? "

NLT: Then he went back to his brothers and lamented, 'The boy is gone! What will I do now?'

KJV: And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, whither shall I go?

NKJV: And he returned to his brothers and said, “The lad is no more; and I, where shall I go?”

With Joseph temporarily safe in the pit (Genesis 37:22–24), Reuben was away from his murderous brothers long enough for them to sell Joseph as a slave to passing traders (Genesis 37:25–28). When Reuben returns and finds the pit empty, he tears his clothes in grief (Genesis 37:29). Now he expresses his dismay, saying "where shall I go?" How can he return to his father and tell him that his beloved Joseph, the firstborn son of his beloved late wife Rachel, is gone?

Reuben is heartbroken, but this grief might be somewhat selfish. It's entirely possible Reuben was hoping to restore his ruined reputation (Genesis 35:22) by rescuing his father's favorite son. We're not told if any of the other brothers felt badly. Prior history suggests they do not (Genesis 37:3–4).

Genesis 37:12–36 describes how Joseph's wildly resentful brothers finally get rid of him. They hate Joseph for being Jacob's favorite (Genesis 37:3) and for his grandiose dreams (Genesis 37:5, 9). When Joseph arrives alone at the camp of his brothers, very far from home, they have an opportunity. Only Reuben's intervention keeps them from killing Joseph outright. Instead, while Reuben is absent, the brothers sell Joseph to passing slave traders and later convince their father he has been killed by a wild animal. Joseph becomes a slave in an Egyptian home. Genesis 39 will return to Joseph's story.

Joseph, 17, is deeply loved by his father Jacob and deeply resented by his ten older brothers thanks to Jacob's favoritism. Jacob gives Joseph a princely robe, and Joseph reports dreams that predict his family will one day bow before him. When alone with Joseph in the wilderness, the brothers decide to kill him. Reuben stops them, suggesting they throw him alive into a pit, instead. While Reuben is gone, however, the brothers sell Joseph to slave-traders, later convincing their father Joseph has been killed by a wild animal. Joseph is placed in the home of an Egyptian nobleman.

Following the death of Isaac and the story of Esau's people, Genesis begins a section called the "generations of Jacob." The story will focus primarily on Jacob's son Joseph. Joseph is deeply hated by his brothers. While alone with him in the wilderness, they sell him to slave-traders, who take Joseph to Egypt. Chapter 38 details some of the scandals which happened while Joseph was gone. Genesis 39 will resume a focus on Joseph's experiences.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.

Accessed 5/5/2024 3:14:03 PM