Genesis 37:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: He said to them, “Hear this dream that I have dreamed:

NIV: He said to them, 'Listen to this dream I had:

NASB: He said to them, 'Please listen to this dream which I have had;

CSB: He said to them, "Listen to this dream I had:

NLT: Listen to this dream,' he said.

KJV: And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed:

NKJV: So he said to them, “Please hear this dream which I have dreamed:

Prophetic dreams are often powerful experiences (Genesis 20:3; 1 Kings 3:5; Daniel 4:5). The prophecy is real: many years later, Joseph's brothers would be entirely at his mercy (Genesis 42:6).

We're not sure if Joseph was aware of how much his ten half-brothers hated him (Genesis 37:2–4). Perhaps he thought telling them his dream (Genesis 37:5) would cause them to respect him more. Or he was responding to their hate by telling them that one day he would have the upper hand over them. In either case, he demanded their attention and told them the dream (Genesis 37:7).

Genesis 37:1–11 describes Jacob's love and favor for one of his sons, Joseph. The most obvious sign of this extreme partiality is an extravagant robe given to Joseph by his father. Jacob seems to have forgotten the damage done by his parents' own favoritism (Genesis 25:27–28). He ignores or fails to recognize the jealous hatred brewing among his other sons. The situation festers until the brothers can't say a kind word to Joseph. After Joseph reports two prophetic dreams which suggest he will one day rule over them all, they become even more jealous and enraged.

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 5/7/2024 4:57:22 PM