August 11, 1999

FAMILY BIBLE SERIES:
Favoritism in families can
have disastrous results
___ Genesis 37:1-35
___By Susan Pigott
___Logsdon School of Theology, Abilene
___Nothing breeds resentment more than favoritism within a family. Somehow siblings always think their parents love the others more than them, even if no favoritism actually exists. But if the favoritism is overt, it can have disastrous consequences, as it did for Jacob's family.
___ Dangerous favoritism (Genesis 37:3-4). Jacob favored his son Joseph over all the others because Joseph was the firstborn by Rachel, Jacob's beloved wife. Unfortunately, Jacob displayed his favoritism openly, even bestowing on Joseph a special cloak (v. 3). In addition, Joseph was not required to shepherd the flocks with his brothers, but served as his father's overseer, a position unlikely for one so young (vv. 13-14). Joseph made matters worse by bringing bad reports about his brothers to Jacob (v. 2) and recounting dreams which envisioned his supremacy over his brothers and even his parents (vv. 5-11).
___ Deadly conspiracy (Genesis 37:17b-22). The brothers' jealousy erupted into murderous rage, and they decided to eliminate the youngest for daring to vaunt himself over them. However, the oldest brother, Reuben, intervened, convincing the others to throw Joseph into a pit rather than kill him. Reuben secretly planned to rescue Joseph, probably not out of compassion but in an effort to win his father's favor.
___ Devastating deal (Genesis 37:23-28). The brothers sat down to enjoy their meal while Joseph languished in the pit. Judah cleverly reasoned that there was no profit in killing Joseph, but selling him as a slave would have a double advantage: They would oust the favored child and become richer. When Reuben discovered what the brothers had done, he was concerned, not for Joseph's safety, but that his father would hold him responsible. So the brothers conspired together, slathered Joseph's cloak with goat blood and sent it to their father. Jacob concluded from the evidence that his favored son was dead.
___In this story, everyone erred and no one won. Jacob should not have favored Joseph so overtly (even if he did love him most). Joseph should not have "rubbed it in" by playing up to Jacob's favoritism and boasting about his dreams (even if they did eventually come true). And, of course, the brothers should not have mistreated their brother (even if they had been treated unfairly). As a result, Jacob lost the son he loved most because he loved him most. The brothers thought eliminating Joseph would restore equilibrium to their family. Instead, they discovered that even in Joseph's "death" their father still loved him most (v. 35). Joseph was dethroned from his position as favored son to the lowest strata of society: slavery.
___Favoritism does not just happen in families. We tend to favor people who are like us, whether in race, social status, income level, theology, education, political persuasion or values. But as people of God, we are commanded to love our neighbors and show partiality to no one (James 2:1-9), even if this forces us beyond our "comfort zones" and requires us to invest our lives in others who cannot or will not return the favor.

---

Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!