“Now when they saw him afar off, even before he came near them, they conspired against him to kill him. Then they said to one another, “Look, this dreamer is coming! Come therefore, let us now kill him and cast him into some pit; and we shall say, ‘Some wild beast has devoured him.’ Then we shall see what will become of his dreams.” (vv.18-20)
Jacob’s favoritism of Joseph was plain to everyone, including Joseph himself. As an outward display of his favor, he gave Joseph a tunic of many colors. This signified a position of favor, princely standing, and birthright. It was a dramatic way of saying he was the son to receive the birthright. This favoritism of Joseph was an obvious source of conflict in the family. The brothers naturally hated him, because the father favored him and because Joseph also reported their behavior to their father.
To top it off, Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. At best, Joseph showed a great lack of tact in doing so. Surely he knew how much his brothers hated to hear this dream (the bowing of the sheaves), which set him above his brothers. Therefore, Joseph’s brothers mocked him as the dreamer. In a sense, Joseph brought this upon himself by the foolish way he spoke of his God-given dreams before his brothers.
So now the stage is set and we can just picture the brothers dreading Joseph’s arrival here. He was coming to inspect their work, and he would not hesitate to report to their father whatever they did wrong. So they began to conspire against him to kill him. They could have conspired to mock him, or tease or bully him a little bit; but no they conspired to kill him. Their plan was so serious that they plotted the excuse they would make to their father; Some wild beast has devoured him, knowing well how it would devastate Jacob. This sin was in their heart long before it was ever acted out. (And that is usually the case with all sin, it begins in the heart and must be dealt with on a heart level. The goal is not only to change our behavior, but to let God change our heart as well. Transformation always works from the inside out.)
In our text Joseph’s brothers are trying to destroy his God-given dreams by destroying him, "Then we shall see what will become of his dreams.” Of course no person can kill God-given dreams, or His will for our lives. He has a plan and a dream for each of us, and no one can thwart His plan despite their best efforts.
The Truth: “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)
