Favoritism: Genesis 37:1-4
God loved the whole world enough to die for our sake so that we all can spend eternal life dwelling with Him. It’s not about my greatness. It’s not about what I can do for God. It is about the enormity of His love and His blessing reaching into our life.
Joseph was seventeen when he was sent to Egypt by his brothers. In my mind, I thought he was younger. At seventeen, he was a young man. Joseph was capable of making sound decisions and relating with others in his family on an adult level.
Joseph also suffered the condition of being the favorite. For a good portion of his life, he was the only child Jacob and Rachel conceived together. Even after Benjamin was born, Benjamin would be the baby who reminded Jacob of Rachel’s death. Joseph was the son without emotional blemish from the preferred wife.
Being the favorite brings problems. It can be nice to enjoy special blessings from a parent. It can also be difficult dealing with jealousy and irritation derived from siblings. Favoritism puts a target on one’s back. Joseph was the youngest of the adult children; he would have less experience and wisdom to use to defend himself.
Jacob doesn’t handle this situation particularly well. He gave a multi-colored robe to Joseph. The Bible says Jacob made the coat for Joseph. The presence of multiple colors would illustrate opulence for the dyes needing to be found, processed, or purchased. Jacob’s construction of the coat indicates the care and love he had for Joseph especially.
For full disclosure, the issue isn’t that Jacob showed love to Joseph. Parents should love their children. Parents should demonstrate love, grace, and acceptance to their children. Jacob’s love for Joseph is not the root of the issue.
The problem is favoritism, not love. Assuming Jacob loved all his children, Jacob did show his love for Joseph differently – and in different quantities. This disparity is where the problem resides.
Children don’t need the same gifts. Many gifts that one child would love might not even be wanted by another child. The point isn’t sameness; the point is similarity. When Jacob shows love to Joseph, he needs to also show an appropriate level of love to his other children in some manner his remaining children would appreciate. Because Jacob doesn’t do this, there is an issue.
The great thing about God’s love is that it is massive enough to encompass all. Even still, it can be easy to fall victim to feeling favoritism. It can be easy to feel that God loves other people more because of how they speak, or what they do, or even how much they do. That’s just our humanity talking. God loved the whole world enough to die for our sake so that we all can spend eternal life dwelling with Him.
