Lesson 10 - Elementary

Memory Verse

"Love your enemies"   (Matthew 5:44).

Notes

Jacob's Sons

Jacob had twelve sons, and Joseph was the name of the one next to the youngest. Joseph's father was now an old and he loved his young son very much. Because his father gave Joseph a coat of many beautiful colours, the brothers thought their father loved Joseph more than he loved them. Perhaps he was a better boy than they were. The brothers were jealous of Joseph and hated him very much, which was a wicked thing for them to do. Brothers should love one another.

Joseph's Dream

Perhaps it was because God wanted to encourage Joseph in the years to come, when he would be in great trouble, that He gave Joseph some strange dreams. He dreamed that when the brothers were in the field harvesting grain, his brothers' grain would bend before Joseph's grain. And he dreamed, too, that the sun and moon and stars bowed to him. When Joseph told his brothers his dreams, they hated him still more. They understood the dreams meant that they, the older brothers, would bow down before their little bother. Even Joseph's father did not seem to understand that the dreams were given by God.

The Cruel Brothers

Jacob had cattle that the brothers took care of in a pasture some distance from home. One day Joseph's father told him to go and see how his brothers were. Joseph went to find them, but they had moved farther away, perhaps to find better pastures for the cattle. Joseph went on until he found them; and, no doubt, was very glad to see them. But they were not glad to see Joseph, and began to plan how they would get rid of him. One of the brothers said that it was not right to kill him and throw him into the pit, but that they could put him in there alive. That would mean that he would starve to death unless someone saw him and took him out of the pit. Perhaps that brother intended to get him out of the pit.

After they had put him into the dry well they sat down to eat, but their food could not have tasted very good after the cruel thing they had done to their little brother. Then one of them said that it would be better to sell him to some traders who were passing by at that time. So they lifted him out of the well and sold him to the traders for about N6.50. We can imagine how he must have begged them not to be so cruel to him, but their hearts were full of hatred and jealousy and they listened to what Satan told them to do.

The Sad Father

The brothers dipped the beautiful coat in the blood of an animal and told their father that perhaps a wild animal had killed Joseph. He was very sad and wept for his boy. He believed that he was dead; but God had some work for Joseph to do and He had protected him. God has some work for all to do when they are saved; and God knows who will do it, and who will be saved.

"One little sin brings many more,

It pushes through the half-closed door

Of careless minds and hearts;

Then a host of other sins come too,

They find the door and they scramble through,

And the trouble quickly starts.”

Questions

1. Why was Joseph hated by his brothers? [GEN:37:4-5], [GEN:37:8].

2. What name did they call Joseph? [GEN:37:19].

3. What lie did the boys tell to their father? [GEN:37:32].

4. How do we know that Joseph's brothers were not saved?

• They hated, verse 4.

• They planned to kill Joseph, verse 18.

• They were deceitful, verse 31.

• They envied, verse 11.

• They sold him, verse 28.

• They lied, verse 32.