Now Jacob lived in the land where his father had lived as a foreigner, in the land of Canaan.
These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being 17 years old, was feeding the flock with his brothers. He was a young man working together with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives; and Joseph brought an evil report of them to their father.
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age, and he made him a decorated tunic.
But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him.
And Joseph dreamed a dream and he told it to his brothers, and they hated him even more.
And he said to them, “Please listen to this dream that I have dreamed,
for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright. And behold, your sheaves came around and bowed down to my sheaf.”
And his brothers said to him, “Will you reign, yes, reign as king over us? Or will you rule, yes, rule us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.
Then he dreamed yet another dream and told it to his brothers and said, “Behold, I have dreamed another dream. And behold, the sun, and the moon, and 11 stars were bowing down to me.”
When he told it to his father and to his brothers, his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have dreamed? Will we come, yes, come, I and your mother and your brothers, and bow down to the ground before you ?”
His brothers envied him, but his father kept the matter in mind.
Joseph Sold by His Brothers
Now his brothers went to feed their father’s flock in Shechem.
And Israel said to Joseph, “Aren’t your brothers pasturing the flock at Shechem? Come, and I will send you to them.” And he said to him, “Here I am.”
And he said to him, “Go now, see whether it is well with your brothers and well with the flock, and bring back word to me.” So he sent him out of the valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.
And a certain man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the countryside. And the man asked him, saying, “What are you looking for?”
And he said, “I am looking for my brothers. Please tell me where they are pasturing the flock.”
And the man said, “They have left here, for I heard them say, ‘Let’s go to Dothan.’” And Joseph went after his brothers and found them in Dothan.
When they saw him from a distance and before he came close to them they conspired against him to kill him.
They said one to another, “Look! This master of dreams is coming.
So now, come, and let’s kill him and throw him into one of the cisterns, and we will say a wild animal has devoured him. Then we will see what will become of his dreams.”
And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands and said, “Let’s not take his life.”
And Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood! Throw him into this cistern that is in the wilderness, but do not lay your hands on him”—so that he could deliver him out of their hand to restore him to his father.
So it was that when Joseph came to his brothers that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the ornamented tunic that he had on,
and they took him and threw him into the cistern. Now the cistern was empty—no water was in it.
Then they sat down to eat bread, and they lifted up their eyes and looked and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels carrying spices and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt.
Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and cover up his blood?
Come, and let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites, and not let our hand be upon him, for he is our brother, our flesh.” And his brothers listened to him.
And some Midianite men who were merchants passed by, and the brothers pulled him up and drew Joseph out of the cistern, and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for 20 pieces of silver, and they brought Joseph to Egypt.
And Reuben returned to the cistern and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit, so he tore his clothes.
and he returned to his brothers and said, “The child is no more! And I, where am I to go?”
So they took Joseph’s tunic and slaughtered a he-goat and dipped the coat in the blood.
Then they took the ornamented tunic and they brought it to their father and said, “We have found this. Examine it now, whether it is your son’s tunic or not.”
And he recognized it and said, “It is my son’s tunic. A wild animal has devoured him. Joseph is torn; torn to pieces.”
Jacob tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his waist and mourned for his son many days.
All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. He said, “No. I will go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” And his father wept for him.
Meanwhile, the Midianites sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh’s, the captain of the guard.