Joseph, Son of Israel
(Part 1)

By Beverly Webecke

Illustrated by Jerry Harston

1. 1. Jacob, whose name had been changed to Israel, had twelve sons, but Joseph was his favorite son. Israel gave him a beautiful coat of many colors, which made his brothers jealous and angry. (See Gen. 32:28; Gen. 35:22; Gen. 37:3–4.)

2. 2. Joseph’s dreams also made his brothers angry. He dreamed that he and his brothers were tying sheaves of grain and that his brothers’ sheaves all bowed toward his. (See Gen. 37:5–8.)

3. 3. Another time Joseph dreamed that his brothers were stars and his parents were the sun and the moon and that they all bowed to him. This, too, made the brothers angry. They did not want to serve Joseph. (See Gen. 37:9–11.)

4. 4. One time when the brothers were out feeding the sheep, Israel sent Joseph to see how they were doing. When the brothers saw Joseph, they remembered his dreams, and ten of them planned to kill him. But Reuben persuaded them not to. Instead, they grabbed him, tore off his coat, and threw him into a pit. (See Gen. 37:12–24.)

5. 5. Soon some Ishmaelites were passing by, and the brothers sold Joseph to them. Then the brothers killed a young goat, dipped Joseph’s coat in its blood, and showed the coat to Israel, hoping to convince him that a beast had killed and devoured Joseph. Israel was heartbroken. (See Gen. 37:25–35.)

6. 6. Joseph was carried away by the Ishmaelites into Egypt where he was sold to a man named Potiphar. (See Gen. 37:36.)

   (To be concluded)