Genesis 37:1-11

The Seeds of Jealousy

Jealousy yields ugly actions. Joseph' brothers were jealous of him for several reasons. When Joseph was seventeen, the sons of Bilhah, Dan and Naphtali, and Zilpah, Gad and Asher, did something wrong while tending their father's sheep. Joseph told Jacob, thus stirring the hearts of four brothers against him. Joseph was the firstborn son of Rachel, Jacob's favorite wife. He was also the son born to Jacob in his old age. So, Jacob gave him a coat of many colors. His brothers concluded he was loved more than they were. They hated him for it and would not speak to him in a kind way.

Then, Joseph had a dream that made them hate him more. In the dream, all the brothers were working in the field making sheaves of grain. The sheaves of the other brothers bowed down to Joseph's sheave, which stood erect. They naturally concluded he would rule over them. He had another dream in which the sun, moon and eleven stars bowed down to him. When Jacob heard the dream, he asked if it meant he and his wife along with eleven sons would bow down to Joseph. This aroused envy in the brothers. However, Jacob, who knew the significance of certain dreams, kept the matter in his heart (Genesis 37:1-11; Genesis 28:10-22).