Genesis 37:3-23

3Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his other sons, because he was 1the son of his old age; and he made him a 23multicolored tunic. 4And his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers; and so they 4hated him and could not speak to him 5on friendly terms.

5Then Joseph 67had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. 6He said to them, “Please listen to this dream which I have 8had; 7for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf stood up and also remained standing; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and 9bowed down to my sheaf.” 8Then his brothers said to him, “10Are you actually going to reign over us? Or are you really going to rule over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.

9Then he 11had yet another dream, and informed his brothers of it, and said, “Behold, I have 12had yet another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” 10He also told it to his father as well as to his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have 13had? Am I and your mother and 14your brothers actually going to come to bow down to the ground before you?” 11And 15his brothers were jealous of him, but his father 16kept the matter in mind.

12Then his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock in Shechem. 13And Israel said to Joseph, “Are your brothers not pasturing the flock in 17Shechem? Come, and I will send you to them.” And he said to him, “18I will go.” 14Then he said to him, “Go now and see about the welfare of your brothers and the welfare of the flock, and bring word back to me.” So he sent him from the Valley of 19Hebron, and he came to Shechem.

15A man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the field; and the man asked him, “20What are you looking for?” 16He said, “I am looking for my brothers; please tell me where they are pasturing the flock.” 17Then the man said, “They have moved from here; for I heard them say, ‘Let’s go to 21Dothan.’” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan.

1822When they saw him from a distance, and before he came closer to them, they 23plotted against him to put him to death. 19They said to one another, “24Here comes this dreamer! 20Now then, come and let’s kill him, and throw him into one of the pits; and 25we will say, ‘A vicious animal devoured him.’ Then we will see what will become of his dreams!” 21But 26Reuben heard this and rescued him out of their hands 27by saying, “Let’s not 28take his life.” 22Then Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but do not lay a hand on him”--so that later he might rescue him out of their hands, to return him to his father. 23So it came about, when Joseph 29reached his brothers, that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the 30multicolored tunic that was on him;