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The Bible records a lot of envy run amuck. Cain murders Abel. Saul hurls spears at David. Joab murders Abner. And then there's today's passage, in which sibling competitiveness turns first to resentment, then to hatred. See why getting envy on a leash before it gets out of hand is an urgent requirement for the believer.

Genesis 37:2-24

1. What actions triggered the jealousy Joseph's ten older brothers harbored against him? (vv. 2-5)
2. Does the brothers' reaction seem out of proportion to the provocation? Is this usually true of envy?
3. Who was ultimately to blame for the brothers' hatred? Did they eventually recognize this? (See Genesis 42:21; 50:15)
4. How can you keep envy from getting a destructive toe-hold in your life?

Ask God to help you appreciate the gifts He has distributed to other believers, and content with those He's assigned to you.

Genesis 37:2-24

(2) This is the history of Jacob's family. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he often tended his father's flocks with his half brothers, the sons of his father's wives Bilhah and Zilpah. But Joseph reported to his father some of the bad things his brothers were doing. (3) Now Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other children because Joseph had been born to him in his old age. So one day he gave Joseph a special gift—a beautiful robe. (4) But his brothers hated Joseph because of their father's partiality. They couldn't say a kind word to him.

(5) One night Joseph had a dream and promptly reported the details to his brothers, causing them to hate him even more. (6) "Listen to this dream," he announced. 7"We were out in the field tying up bundles of grain. My bundle stood up, and then your bundles all gathered around and bowed low before it!" (8) "So you are going to be our king, are you?" his brothers taunted. And they hated him all the more for his dream and what he had said.

(9) Then Joseph had another dream and told his brothers about it. "Listen to this dream," he said. "The sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed low before me!" (10) This time he told his father as well as his brothers, and his father rebuked him. "What do you mean?" his father asked. "Will your mother, your brothers, and I actually come and bow before you?" (11) But while his brothers were jealous of Joseph, his father gave it some thought and wondered what it all meant.

(12) Soon after this, Joseph's brothers went to pasture their father's flocks at Shechem. (13) When they had been gone for some time, Jacob said to Joseph, "Your brothers are over at Shechem with the flocks. I'm going to send you to them." "I'm ready to go," Joseph replied. (14) "Go and see how your brothers and the flocks are getting along," Jacob said. "Then come back and bring me word." So Jacob sent him on his way, and Joseph traveled to Shechem from his home in the valley of Hebron.

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Prayer for the Week

Sovereign Lord, keep me from envying the accomplishments of others. Instead, make me grateful for and content with the gifts You've entrusted to me.

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