It Started With Love, Actually: Genesis 37:12-24

Small sins left unchecked always lead to larger sins that are harder to manage.  Modern culture is rife with examples.  How many times do participants in road rage claim the whole incident started because someone cut them off in traffic?  We often hear of violence in schools, and extreme violence is typically begun by name-calling and bullying.  I’m not trying to excuse poor driving or bullying, but today’s culture is masterful at spinning smaller sinful events to the point of being out of control.

This passage starts with another example of Jacob’s favoritism.  Jacob’s sons take the herds out while Joseph stays behind with his father.  Jospeh stays in the comfort of the tents resting on mattresses while his siblings are in the hot sun, walking with animals, and resting on the ground.

Jacob sends Joseph to his brothers.  They’ve been away from the tents for long enough to have moved on from their original destination.  Instead of being in the valley of Hebron, they are at Dothan.  Joseph catches up to them.

The brothers turn on Joseph.  Rather than greet him, they see an opportunity to be done with him.  They plan his death.

This is either an indication of the depravity among the sons of Jacob or evidence of how differently Jacob treated Joseph.  We do know Simeon and Levi were willing to kill based on their actions at Shechem; the sons of Jacob had some deep character flaws.  Yet, there are no other indications of violence within the family; this event may reflect more on the divide between Rachel’s offspring and the rest of the sons.

Jospeh would have died if it wasn’t for Reuben.  Reuben isn’t free from sin – having tried to usurp Jacob’s power – but his character flaws are not with murder.  Reuben did not participate in the massacre at Shechem and he actively argues to spare Joseph’s life.  Reuben is interested in power, but he isn’t willing to kill to get his way.

Rueben wins the day, no doubt aided by God’s Spirit.  Reuben convinces them to not kill Joseph but rather to take his robe and throw him in a pit. They still need to figure out what to do next, but at least they haven’t harmed Joseph.

Consider the position the sons of Jacob are now in.  They’ve attacked their brother.  They’ve stripped him of the signs of his father’s love.  They’ve tossed him in a dry well in the heat of the day.  Things are definitely spiraling.  If Joseph ever gets home, they don’t have much defense from Jacob’s anger.

Their sinfulness has bound them.  They are accountable for their own decisions, but their actions were encouraged by Joseph’s pride.   Jospeh’s pride was fueled by Jacob’s favoritism.  Once more we have a great example of how seemingly harmless sin spirals out of control until it becomes larger than life.  Small sins left unchecked always lead to larger sins that are harder to manage.