Genesis 37:13

And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock in Shechem? come, and I will send thee unto them. And he said to him, Here am I.

Israel said ... Do not thy brethren ... Anxious to learn how his sons were doing, Jacob despatched Joseph to their distant encampment; and the youth, accepting the mission with alacrity, left the vale of Hebron (Genesis 35:27), sought them at Shechem, heard of them from a man in "the field" - the wide and richly-cultivated plain of Esdraelon-and found that they had left the neighbourhood of Shechem for Dothan, probably being compelled to leave the place by the detestation in which their name was held.