The eleventh son of Jacob and firstborn of Rachel, one of the most beloved figures in the Old Testament. Sold into slavery by his jealous brothers at age 17, Joseph endured false imprisonment in Egypt before God elevated him to become Pharaoh’s second-in-command. His ability to interpret dreams saved Egypt and the surrounding nations from famine. When his brothers came seeking food, Joseph’s tearful reunion with them and his declaration—‘you intended to harm me, but God intended it for good’—is one of the Bible’s most powerful stories of forgiveness and providence.
As for you, what you intended against me for evil, God intended for good, in order to accomplish a day like this—to preserve the lives of many people.Genesis 50:20 · Berean Standard Bible
Then God remembered Rachel. He listened to her and opened her womb, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. “God has taken away my shame,” she said. She named him Joseph, and said, “May the LORD add to me another son.”
Children born in rivalry and heartbreak. But these names — Reuben, Judah, Joseph — will become the twelve tribes of a nation.
Now Jacob lived in the land where his father had resided, the land of Canaan. This is the account of Jacob. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he was tending the flock with his brothers, the sons of his father’s wives Bilhah and Zilpah, and he brought their father a bad report about them. Now Israel loved Joseph more than his other sons, because Joseph had been born to him in his old age; so he made him a robe of many colors. When Joseph’s brothers saw…
A father's favorite son, a coat of many colors, and brothers consumed by jealousy. What they meant for evil, God will use for something unimaginable.
Joseph doesn't appear in the direct line from Adam to Jesus, but stands one step from it through Jacob, who does. See the whole line.
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