“Genesis 37:25-28”

Monday, March 16, 2020

“Then they sat down to eat a meal. And as they raised their eyes and looked, behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing aromatic gum and balm and myrrh, on their way to bring them down to Egypt. Judah said to his brothers, 'What profit is it for us to kill our brother and cover up his blood? Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.' And his brothers listened to him. Then some Midianite traders passed by, so they pulled him up and lifted Joseph out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. Thus they brought Joseph into Egypt.”

---End of Scripture verses---

“Then they sat down to eat a meal.” (verse 25) Nothing works up an appetite quite like brutalizing your younger brother and plotting out the best way to kill him! The author, no doubt, includes this mundane detail to emphasize just how distantly their calloused hearts had detached from the ordinary love and empathy for the pain of another blessed soul. With heartless disinterest in their brother's cries for help and mercy they sat down over a nice meal to further discuss their options.

“And as they raised their eyes and looked, behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead...” (verse 25) They lifted their eyes long enough from their bread to behold a caravan of traders approaching them from a distance. It was as if fate had stepped in and solved their dilemma for them. In actuality it was the providence of God preparing deliverance for His righteous servant Joseph from the evil hands of his blood-thirsty brothers.

“A caravan of Ishmaelites...” (verse 25) The wandering traders are again so described in verse 27, and it is apparently they who buy Joseph, take him down to Egypt (v. 28) and sell him to Potiphar (39:1). However, Midianite traders are mentioned in verse 28, and these (or 'Medanites') are also said to be responsible for selling Joseph to Potiphar (v. 36). The discrepancy in names has been variously explained... Rashi...postulates that Joseph was traded several times... Ibn Ezra identifies the Ishmaelites with Midianites on the basis of Judges 8:24, which relates that Midianites possessed golden earrings 'because they were Ishmaelites.' This passage suggests that the term “Ishmaelite' was used as an epithet for 'nomadic traders' rather than in an ethnic sense. 'Midianite,' on the other hand, indicates a specific ethnic affiliation.” (Nahum Sarna)

“What profit is it for us to kill our brother and cover up his blood?” (verse 26) Judah is the first to recognize the opportunity to make a “profit” off of keeping their brother alive, or at least he is the first to vocalize it. “Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” (verse 27) “Judah...now assumes leadership, a role he is later to take once again in the protection of Benjamin. The text leaves unclear whether Judah's suggestion is a desperate compromise to save Joseph's life, or whether his 'What do we gain?' is an expression of sordid hostility. At any rate, this narrative reflects the history of the Israelite tribes. Reuben's authority is on the decline while Judah rises to prominence. In consonance with this is Jacob's acceptance of a proposal by Judah (43:11-14) after having previously rejected the same advice from Reuben (42:37f).” (Nahum Sarna)

“Then some Midianite traders passed by, so they pulled him up and lifted Joseph out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver...” (verse 28) The original intent of Joseph's brothers was to kill him to put an end to his dreams and the prospect of the dreaded fulfillment of them. Here they have settled upon the compromise of selling him instead of murdering him, and in their minds this fate would accomplish the same result. So often men with evil intentions set out to thwart the plans of God, and while within the confines of their own twisted minds they have achieved their desired ends, in actuality they have only set the indomitable purposes of the Lord into motion.

“Thus they brought Joseph into Egypt.” (verse 28) Where, in the course of time, the Lord would bring to fruition the vivid imagery of Joseph's brothers bowing down to him in his dreams (verses 7-10), and ultimately fulfill God's foreordained prophecies to Abraham that his descendants would be “strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years” (Genesis 15:13). “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there without watering the earth and making it bear and sprout, and furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; so will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)

Please read Genesis 37:29-36 for tomorrow.

Have a blessed day!

-Louie Taylor

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