37:1,2
The focus now shifts primarily to Joseph, though Jacob always remains in the picture. Jacob lived in the land of Canaan, where he was supposed to be. In many ways Jacob was not such a pleasant person, and Joseph is in some ways not much better! He was the first of two sons that Jacob had with Rachel, Benjamin being the other, and these two were his favourites. Joseph was a bit of a snitch, although given the record of the other brothers, he may well have been justified.
37:3,4
“Israel loved Joseph more ..” It is interesting that the name changes from Jacob to Israel. Joseph was Israel’s favourite, and this would cause trouble. It says here that this is because he was the son of his old age, but the fact that his mother was Rachel must surely have been significant as well. All the other sons, apart from Benjamin, were born of liaisons that were more or less forced on Jacob. They were not of his choosing. Jacob made the famous robe of many colours for Joseph. This made Jacob’s favouritism all the more obvious, and nurtured the other brothers' hatred for Joseph.
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