THE PRODIGAL SON

 

Genesis 37: 1-11

1  And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan.  ²  These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father�s wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report.  ³  Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours. ⁴  And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him. ⁵  And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more.  ⁶  And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed:  ⁷  For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf.  ⁸  And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.  ⁹  And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.  ¹⁰  And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?  ¹¹  And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.

Genesis 39:4-20

4  And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand.  ⁵  And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian�s house for Joseph�s sake; and the blessing of the LORD was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field.  ⁶  And he left all that he had in Joseph�s hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured. ⁷  And it came to pass after these things, that his master�s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me.  ⁸  But he refused, and said unto his master�s wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand;  ⁹  There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?  ¹⁰  And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day by day, that he hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, or to be with her.  ¹¹  And it came to pass about this time, that Joseph went into the house to do his business; and there was none of the men of the house there within.  ¹²  And she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out. ¹³  And it came to pass, when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand, and was fled forth,  ¹⁴  That she called unto the men of her house, and spake unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice:  ¹⁵  And it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and got him out.  ¹⁶  And she laid up his garment by her, until his lord came home.  ¹⁷  And she spake unto him according to these words, saying, The Hebrew servant, which thou hast brought unto us, came in unto me to mock me:  ¹⁸  And it came to pass, as I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled out. ¹⁹  And it came to pass, when his master heard the words of his wife, which she spake unto him, saying, After this manner did thy servant to me; that his wrath was kindled.  ²⁰  And Joseph�s master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king�s prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison.

Genesis 48

Read the complete chapter.

1  And it came to pass after these things, that one told Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick: and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.  ²  And one told Jacob, and said, Behold, thy son Joseph cometh unto thee: and Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed.  ³  And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,  ⁴  And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.  ⁵  And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine.  ⁶  And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance.  ⁷  And as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died by me in the land of Canaan in the way, when yet there was but a little way to come unto Ephrath: and I buried her there in the way of Ephrath; the same is Bethlehem. ⁸  And Israel beheld Joseph�s sons, and said, Who are these?  ⁹  And Joseph said unto his father, They are my sons, whom God hath given me in this place. And he said, Bring them, I pray thee, unto me, and I will bless them.  ¹⁰  Now the eyes of Israel were dim for age, so that he could not see. And he brought them near unto him; and he kissed them, and embraced them.  ¹¹  And Israel said unto Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, God hath shewed me also thy seed.  ¹²  And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.  ¹³  And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel�s left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel�s right hand, and brought them near unto him.  ¹⁴  And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim�s head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh�s head, guiding his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the firstborn.  ¹⁵  And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day,  ¹⁶  The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow  into a multitude in the midst of the earth.  ¹⁷  And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his father�s hand, to remove it from Ephraim�s head unto Manasseh�s head.  ¹⁸  And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head.  ¹⁹  And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude  of nations.  ²⁰  And he blessed them that day, saying, In thee shall Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before Manasseh.  ²¹  And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers.  ²²  Moreover I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow. 

Genesis 49:22-26

22  Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches  run over the wall: ²³  The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him , and hated him:  ²⁴  But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel:)  ²⁵  Even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb:  ²⁶  The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren. 

Deuteronomy 33:13-17

13  And of Joseph he said, Blessed of the LORD be his land, for the precious things of heaven, for the dew, and for the deep that coucheth beneath,  ¹⁴  And for the precious fruits brought forth by the sun, and for the precious things put forth by the moon,  ¹⁵  And for the chief things of the ancient mountains, and for the precious things of the lasting hills,  ¹⁶  And for the precious things of the earth and fulness thereof, and for the good will of him that dwelt in the bush: let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the top of the head of him that was separated from his brethren.  ¹⁷  His glory is like the firstling of his bullock, and his horns are like the horns of unicorns: with them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth: and they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh.

1Chronicles 5:1-2

1  Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel, (for he was the firstborn; but, forasmuch as he defiled his father�s bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph the son of Israel: and the genealogy is not to be reckoned after the birthright.  ²  For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler; but the birthright was Joseph�s)

(To inherit the greatest material wealth above all of Israel.)

 

 

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