BIAY Day 15 - Sibling Rivalry
Genesis 37-39, Psalm 13
Welcome to the Bible in a Year for 2025. Intro to this series and resource links available here, plus here’s how I’m approaching this year.
Scriptures for Today:
Reflection:
Today, we begin the final section of Genesis, the Joseph narrative. He is the fourth generation and the person whose story drives the larger story forward through the end of the book. And yet again we find unhealthy family dynamics with Jacob/Israel (those names will be used interchangeably to refer to him, including in other books of the Old Testament like the Psalms).
Here are some things I notice in these chapters.
Dreamer - Jacob playing favorites only makes the brothers’ relationship worse. Add to that Joseph’s dreams that depict him in a superior position to them and they are done with him. It’s expected that Joseph would be rebuked by his father and resented by his brothers, but I find this comment interesting: “His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind.” (Genesis 37:11) For some reason, Jacob, a man familiar with the power of dreams, made a mental note of this episode.
Sibling rivalry - The brothers then plot to get rid of Joseph. They have murderous plans but two brothers intervene, Rueben and Judah. In each case, they seem to recognize the prevailing sentiment of the group, so they propose alternatives that might be agreeable while not outright contradicting the group. Because Reuben and Judah are singled out, I’m interested to see how their stories will play out over the remaining chapters of Genesis.
Shady character - Genesis 38 is an interlude—a side story about Judah. It seems strange to implicate Judah by revealing what an unjust jerk he was. First, he refused to allow his youngest son to take Tamar as a wife, which would have the practical effect of keeping her connected to family/tribal life and provide her with the opportunity to bear a son, an important thing in a patriarchal culture. Second, his hypocracy was displayed in castigating her for being outed as a prostitute when he himself had done the deed. Remarkably—and I love this in the story, with the truth revealed, Judah gives Tamar credit: “Judah recognized them and said, ‘She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.’ And he did not sleep with her again.” (Genesis 38:26) It is important to note a reference to Matthew 1:3, in which Tamar is the first of several women named in the genealogy of Jesus, thus calling attention to them and their stories.
Stand-up guy - Back to Joseph, who is now in Egypt as a servant (slave?) in the house of one of Pharaoh’s officers, Potiphar. Apparently, Joseph is quite the catch and attracts the attention of Potiphar’s wife. But he remains faithful to his God and his earthly master, refusing sex with her. Caught in a compromising situation, he is wrongly imprisoned. Joseph shows himself to be trustworthy (faithfully and effectively administering Potiphar’s household) and a man of integrity as well. What a contrast with Judah’s story!
How long? - Psalm 13 is a permission-giving psalm. Opening with the desperate plea, “How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?” allows us to express exasperation even while we are confident that God will work it out (verse 3).
Questions:
Have you ever—like Tamar—had to advocate for yourself to get justice in some matter?
When have you been challenged to live with integrity (or witnessed someone do so) like Joseph?
What else might the Holy Spirit be speaking with you about in the text today?
Prayer: Lord, grant me your Spirit of truth, that I may live uprightly and honor you. Amen.
“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:23)
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