Genesis 37

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:5

And Joseph dreamed a dream (in which, though, as the sequel shows, intended as a Divine communication, there was nothing to distinguish it from an ordinary product of the mind), and he told it to his brethren :—not in pride, since there is no reason to suppose that Joseph as yet understood the celestial origin of his dream but in the simplicity of his heart (Kalisch, Murphy), though in doing so he was also guided, unconsciously it may be, but still really, by an overruling providence, who... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:6

And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed. Though Joseph did not certainly know that his dream was supernatural, he may have thought that it was, the more so as dreams were in those times commonly regarded as mediums of Divine communication; and in this case it was clearly his duty to impart it to the household, and all the more that the subject of it seemed to be for them a matter of peculiar importance. In the absence of information to the contrary, we are... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:7

For (literally, and ) , behold, we were binding sheaves —literally, binding things bound, i.e. sheaves, alumim, from alam , to bind; the order of the words and the participial form of the verb indicating that the speaker describes the vision as it appeared to his mind— in the field ,—literally, in the middle of the field ; from which it would appear that Jacob was not a mere nomad, but carried on agricultural operations like his father Isaac ( Genesis 26:12 )— and, lo ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:8

Esau separates from Jacob. I. GOD REQUIRES ENTIRE DEVOTEDNESS AND FAITH . Edom is allied to the true kingdom, but is not one with it . We may keep in mind the relationship between the descendants of the two brothers, that we may learn the more clearly to distinguish the true heirs of the blessing. II. THE TRUE BELIEVERS SET APART BY SPECIAL GRACE . The rest of the Book of Genesis follows the course of the one family in whose midst the ark of the covenant, ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:8

And his brethren (who had no difficulty in interpreting the symbol's significance) said to him (with mingled indignation and contempt), Shalt thou indeed reign over us ?—literally, reigning, wilt thou reign? i.e. wilt thou actually reign over us? the emphasis resting on the action of the verb— or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? The form of expression is the same as that of the preceding clause. And they hated him yet the more (literally and they added again to hate him )... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:9

And he dreamed yet another dream ,—the doubling of the dream was designed to indicate its certainty (cf. Genesis 41:32 )— and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more ; and, behold, the sun ( הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ , the minister, from Chaldee root שְׁמַשׁ , the pael of which occurs in Daniel 7:10 ) and the moon — הַיּרֵחַ , probably, if the word be not a primitive, the circuit-maker, from the unused root יָרַח , = אָרַח , to go about (Furst); or the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:10

And he told it to his father, and to his brethren —whom it manifestly concerned, as, for the like reason, he had reported the first dream only to his brethren. That he does not tell it to his mother may be an indication that Rachel was by this time dead. And his father rebuked him ,—either to avoid irritating his brethren (Calvin), or to repress an appearance of pride in Joseph (Lange, Murphy, Inglis), or to express his own surprise (Candlish) or irritation (Keil), or sense of the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:11

And his brethren envied him . The verb קָנָא (unused in Kal), to become red in the face, seems to indicate that the hatred of Joseph's brethren revealed itself in scowling looks. But his father observed the saying— literally, kept the word, διετήρησε τὸ ῥῆμα ( LXX .). Cf. Daniel 7:28 ; Luke 2:51 . HOMILETICS read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:12

And his brethren went to feed their father's flock in Shechem — i.e. the modern Nablous, in the plain of Muknah, which belonged to Jacob partly by purchase and partly by conquest ( vide Genesis 33:19 ; Genesis 34:27 ). Shechem was at a considerable distance from the vale of Hebron, where the patriarchal family at this time resided. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:12-25

Joseph among his brethren at Dothan. I. THE FRIENDLY MISSION . 1. Its local destination . This was Shechem, at a distance of sixty miles from Hebron, where Jacob had previously resided for a number of years and acquired a small estate ( Genesis 33:18 , Genesis 33:19 ), where Jacob's sons had committed, a few years before, the terrible atrocity which made the name of Israel stink throughout the land ( Genesis 34:26-30 ); and where now Joseph's brethren were shepherding... read more

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:5

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:6

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:7

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:8

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:8

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:9

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:10

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:11

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:12

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 37:12-25

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