Genesis chapters 35-37

God's message to me: When God appoints you the leader, don't expect everybody to like it. Jealousy is a lot more likely.

Reuben sinned, not only against God but against Isaac when he slept with is step-mother Bilhah. Notice there is no retribution from Isaac despite the fact that the next verse says he learned of it. Later Reuben is the one who protects Joseph. Forgiveness is a powerful thing.

Reuben's loyalty to his father and desire to do write after being forgiven for such a wrong is powerful. Reuben knew the price he could have paid. His brothers slaughtered every man in an entire city for such sin with their sister and he had joined the rest of his brothers in plundering that city for the same sin. Make no mistake, Reuben knew to be thankful he was still breathing.

Promises: God fulfills his promises completely. Jacob and Esau remained friendly after Jacob returned. They buried their father together and when their family ranches became to prosperous to share the same land it was Esau who sent in search of other pastures. As with Ishmael, Esau was the father of nations and the Edomites are his descendants. The Ishmaelites are the children of Ishmael. Many became traders roaming throughout the land and living among their brothers in the prosperity of trade. They were nations and tribes of their own and their trade served the needs of their brothers in Israel and Edom.

Commands: I see no direct command here. Doing the right thing is God's desire for us. Reuben got a bad start but he sought to do the right thing. He kept his brothers from killing Joseph and intended to sneak him out of the pit and back to his father when the rest weren't looking. His actions saved Joseph's life and, when he learned that Joseph was gone, he tore his clothes in anguish and mourning for what had been done.

Going along with his brothers would have been easy but Reuben didn't do it. He preferred to take his chances at becoming Joseph's servant to doing the wrong thing. Remember, in all you do, there are only two opinions that count. Everyone else is transient, family can ignore you or even die. Friends can dump you and even spouses occasionally leave. The rest of the world just does not matter. Every morning you have to look yourself in the mirror and be satisfied that you are honorable. Every moment of every day you know that God is with you and will judge your actions. Your's and God's are the only opinions of value.

Timeless Principles: Doing the right thing is not always popular and being God's chosen is not the path to popularity either. Reuben wasn't even consulted on selling Joseph. He had pushed to spare his life in the first place. They weren't interested in his sparing the runt again.

Joseph was chosen to lead. Like his Father and Grandfather he was the youngest and tradition said the firstborn was the heir apparent and the others would serve the oldest. It's telling to note that Reuben was the oldest. Despite Joseph's dreams that said his right would go to the baby in the family, Reuben was still willing to do what was right.

Christ told his Apostles something they should have known from this history. "The last shall be first and the first shall be last."

How can I apply what I've learned: Always seek to do the right thing. Going along with the crowd is easy and safe but going along with God is the key to prosperity. Regardless of the life you lead it is easier to live with yourself if you are doing what's right.

More to learn for in-depth study:

Quick facts:

Rachael died in childbirth when Joseph was born.

The brothers had plenty of reason to hate Joseph. At 17 he tattled on brothers to his father. It was bad enough to get in the historical record. His dad doted on him and even gave him a coat of many colors. Keep in mind that color dyes weren't cheap and multi colored clothing would have been the height of luxury. Just think of how you felt about the "cool kids" in school who always got the latest fashions while you were wearing hand me downs or K-Mart specials.

2 Dreams portrayed Joseph ruling over his brothers and parents. The boys binding sheafs of wheat in the field only to have Joseph's stand tall while the others bowed down to it. The dream of the sun, moon and 11 stars bowing down to Joseph. As the baby of the family and an annoying tattle tale, none of the brothers would have been keen on the idea of being ruled by their baby brother.

Finally, we get to see that Ishmael's children were fulfilling God's promise to become a nation. They were now known as the Ishmaelites and they were traders in the land with their trade routes and caravans serving the needs of their brothers Israel and Edom. While slavery was certainly not the trade most of us would want to be in, The primary business seemed to be trade goods. The bible names camels, spices, lotions and perfume as trade goods they were hauling.