(Genesis) Genesis 37:13-19

And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock, and sheikim come, and I will send thee unto them. And he said unto him, Here am I. Joseph said, Yes, I'll go. He's very obedient to his father, you notice.

And he said to him, Go, I pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brethren, and well with the flocks, and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he came to sheikim. You see, all the way from Hebron up to sheikim.

And a certain man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the field. When he got up at sheikim, he began to look around everywhere. That's rugged terrain up there, by the way.

And this boy, Joseph, he couldn't find him. The man asked him, saying, What seekest thou? I think the man said, Well, you passed my tent here half a dozen times. Who are you looking for? And he said, I seek my brethren.

Tell me, I pray thee, where they feed their flocks. And the man said, They are departed hence, for I heard them say, Let us go to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren and found them in Dothan.

Now Dothan is a long ways north of sheikim, by the way. Dothan is right near the valley of Ezdraelon. This is where they had gone.

And so Joseph went up there, and he found them. And when they saw him, how far off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him. Now they certainly hated him.

And they say, Now we're going to get rid of him. After all, they are probably a hundred miles from home. And they say, We're going to get rid of him now.

And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh. Well, here comes the dreamer. And we're going to see about those dreams whether they'll come to pass or not.

We're going to leave off our story at that particular place. But let me begin even here to call your attention to the comparison of this boy to the Lord Jesus. The analogy, you just can't miss it.

To begin with, the birth of this boy Joseph, you see, was practically miraculous. In fact, it was miraculous in his case. And the Lord Jesus is virgin-born.

His is miraculous. Joseph was loved by his father. The Lord Jesus was loved by his father.

He said, This is my beloved son. And Joseph had the coat of many colors that set him apart. And Christ was separate from sinners.

Joseph announced he was to rule over his brethren. The Lord Jesus presented himself as the Messiah. And you remember, they ridiculed him.

In fact, that was put in ridicule on his cross. Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. Notice the analogy.

And Joseph was sent to his brethren, and Jesus came to his brethren. First to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Joseph was hated by his brethren without a cause.

The Lord Jesus was hated by his brethren without a cause. Tremendous parallel, you see, friends. We'll follow that on down as we follow the story now of Joseph.