Genesis

Joseph, Master of Dreams

Lesson #11 for June 11, 2022

Scriptures: Genesis 37-41:36;Matthew 20:26-27; Acts 7:9.

1. The story of Joseph in Genesis 37-50 is incredible. Even movies and Broadway plays have been made about it. This story occupies more space in the book of Genesis than does any other patriarch except Abraham. Nevertheless, Joseph, the firstborn of Rachel, is only one of the 12 sons born to Jacob. However, he is presented in Genesis as one of the great patriarchs, following Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob himself.
2. We discover two very important truths from this story: (1) God fulfills His promises, and (2) God can work to bring about good in spite of evil. (SeeRomans 8:28.)
3. There can be no question about the fact that God endowed Joseph with the ability to understand, master, and interpret dreams. This not only led to his conflict with other members in the family, especially his brothers, but also led to his rise to power in Egypt.
4. Now we will begin to talk about the lesson for this week, Joseph and his dreams.

Genesis 37:1-9: ¹Jacob continued to live in the land of Canaan, where his father had lived, ²and this is the story of Jacob’s family.

Joseph, a young man of seventeen, took care of the sheep and goats with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s concubines. He brought bad reports to his father about what his brothers were doing.

³ Jacob loved Joseph more than all his other sons, because he had been born to him when he was old. He made a long robe with full sleeves [traditional translations say many colors; footnote robe with full sleeves; or decorated robe.] for him. ⁴When his brothers saw that their father loved Joseph more than he loved them, they hated their brother so much that they would not speak to him in a friendly manner.

⁵ One night Joseph had a dream, and when he told his brothers about it, they hated him even more. ⁶He said, “Listen to the dream I had. ⁷We were all in the field tying up sheaves of wheat, when my sheaf got up and stood up straight. Yours formed a circle round mine and bowed down to it.”

⁸ “Do you think you are going to be a king and rule over us?” his brothers asked. So they hated him even more because of his dreams and because of what he said about them.

⁹ Then Joseph had another dream and said to his brothers, “I had another dream, in which I saw the sun, the moon, and eleven stars bowing down to me.”CAmerican Bible Society. (1992). The Holy Bible: The Good News Translation* (2nd ed.,Genesis 37:1-9). New York: American Bible Society [abbreviated as Good News Bible].^†‡ [Did these dreams come from God?]^‡

5. There is no question about the fact that Joseph was Jacob’s favorite son. He even made him a very special tunic with long sleeves. Note that traditional translations say it was a coat of many colors; however, long sleeves is probably the correct translation. His brothers obviously interpreted this to mean that Joseph was going to be considered preeminently as the firstborn in the family.
6. Why did God give Joseph those dreams? What if Joseph had not had those dreams? Weren’t those dreams the primary reasons the brothers hated him and sold him into slavery in Egypt? What if he had not gone to Egypt? It is hard to understand how this whole sequence could be anything other than God’s direct intervention in the lives of this family of Jacob. When Joseph told his dreams to his family, his brothers mocked him.
7. After the first dream as recorded inGenesis 37:5-6, there came the second as recorded inGenesis 37:9. Ellen White wrote:

Soon, he had another dream, of similar import, which he also related: “Behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.” This dream was interpreted as readily as the first. The father, who was present, spoke reprovingly?“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?” Notwithstanding the apparent severity of his words, Jacob believed that the Lord was revealing the future to Joseph.?Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets* 210.2.^†

8. The story of what happened next is quite familiar. It is hard to believe that the older brothers of Joseph could have hated him so much that they were ready to kill him!

Genesis 37:12-36: ¹² Joseph’s brothers had gone to Shechem to take care of their father’s flock.…

Joseph arrived at Shechem ¹⁵and was wandering about in the country when a man saw him and asked him, “What are you looking for?”

¹⁶ “I am looking for my brothers, who are taking care of their flock,” he answered. “Can you tell me where they are?”

¹⁷ The man said, “They have already left. I heard them say that they were going to Dothan.” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan. [Joseph had walked a long distance!]

¹⁸ They saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted against him and decided to kill him. ¹⁹They said to one another, “Here comes that dreamer. ²⁰Come on now, let’s kill him and throw his body into one of the dry wells. We can say that a wild animal killed him. Then we will see what becomes of his dreams.”

²¹ Reuben heard them and tried to save Joseph. “Let’s not kill him,” he said. ²² “Just throw him into this well in the wilderness, but don’t hurt him.” He said this, planning to save him from them and send him back to his father. ²³When Joseph came up to his brothers, they ripped off his long robe with full sleeves. ²⁴Then they took him and threw him into the well, which was dry.

²⁵ While they were eating, they suddenly saw a group of Ishmaelites travelling from Gilead to Egypt. Their camels were loaded with spices and resins. ²⁶Judah said to his brothers, “What will we gain by killing our brother and covering up the murder? ²⁷Let’s sell him to these Ishmaelites. Then we won’t have to hurt him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood.” His brothers agreed, ²⁸and when some Midianite traders came by, the brothers pulled Joseph out of the well and sold him for twenty pieces of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.

²⁹ When Reuben came back to the well and found that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes in sorrow. ³⁰He returned to his brothers and said, “The boy is not there! What am I going to do?”

³¹ Then they killed a goat and dipped Joseph’s robe in its blood. ³²They took the robe to their father and said, “We found this. Does it belong to your son?”

³³ He recognized it and said, “Yes, it is his! Some wild animal has killed him. My son Joseph has been torn to pieces!” …

³⁶ Meanwhile, in Egypt, the Midianites had sold Joseph to Potiphar, one of the king’s officers, who was the captain of the palace guard.?Good News Bible.*^†‡

9. It is interesting to notice that three of the brothers distinguished themselves from the others in various ways: (1) Reuben suggested they throw Joseph into a pit so that he could come back later and rescue Joseph. (2) Simeon was the one who first suggested that they do something to Joseph, maybe even kill him. (3) Judah was the one who proposed that they sell Joseph to the merchants instead of killing him, or, leaving him to die. Joseph was sold for 20 pieces of silver.

[From the writings of Ellen White=EGW:] Meanwhile, Joseph with his captors was on the way to Egypt. As the caravan journeyed southward toward the borders of Canaan, the boy could discern in the distance the hills among which lay his father’s tents. Bitterly he wept at [the] thought of that loving father in his loneliness and affliction. Again the scene at Dothan came up before him. He saw his angry brothers and felt their fierce glances bent upon him. The stinging, insulting words that had met his agonized entreaties were ringing in his ears. With a trembling heart he looked forward to the future. What a change in situation?from the tenderly cherished son to the despised and helpless slave! Alone and friendless, what would be his lot in the strange land to which he was going? For a time Joseph gave himself up to uncontrolled grief and terror.

But, in the providence of God, even this experience was to be a blessing to him. He had learned in a few hours that which years might not otherwise have taught him. His father, strong and tender as his love had been, had done him wrong by his partiality and indulgence. This unwise preference had angered his brothers and provoked them to the cruel deed that had separated him from his home. Its effects were manifest also in his own character. Faults had been encouraged that were now to be corrected. He was becoming self-sufficient and exacting. Accustomed to the tenderness of his father’s care, he felt that he was unprepared to cope with the difficulties before him, in the bitter, uncared-for life of a stranger and a slave.

Then his thoughts turned to his father’s God. In his childhood he had been taught to love and fear Him. Often in his father’s tent he had listened to the story of the vision that Jacob saw as he fled from his home an exile and a fugitive. He had been told of the Lord’s promises to Jacob, and how they had been fulfilled?how, in the hour of need, the angels of God had come to instruct, comfort, and protect him. And he had learned of the love of God in providing for men a Redeemer. Now all these precious lessons came vividly before him. Joseph believed that the God of his fathers would be his God. He then and there gave himself fully to the Lord, and he prayed that the Keeper of Israel would be with him in the land of his exile.

His soul thrilled with the high resolve to prove himself true to God?under all circumstances to act as became a subject of the King of heaven. He would serve the Lord with undivided heart; he would meet the trials of his lot with fortitude and perform every duty with fidelity. One day’s experience had been the turning point in Joseph’s life. Its terrible calamity had transformed him from a petted child to a man, thoughtful, courageous, and self-possessed.?Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets* 213.1-214.1.^†‡ [Why didn’t Joseph convince the traders to take him to his father to “sell” him?]^‡

10. Are we ever tempted to lose our temper or become so upset by what someone else does that we might want to destroy them in one way or another?
11. Review Genesis 38. Reading superficially, this seems like an interruption to the story of Joseph. But it is an integral part of the overall story to help us to understand something about what was going on in the lives of these brothers. Judah had moved away from his family and lived with a Canaanite family and married Shua’s daughter. Later, he got another Canaanite young woman by the name of Tamar to be the wife of his oldest son, Er. We do not know exactly what happened to Er or Onan, his second son, both of whom died of unexplained causes. The Bible says simply that God killed them. Later, Tamar began to fear that she was going to be left without a husband. So, she pretended to be a prostitute; Judah had intercourse with her, and she became pregnant with twins, one of whom ended up being the ancestor of Jesus. (SeeMatthew 1:2-5.)

[From the SDA Bible Commentary:] Being the fourth son of Leah, Judah was certainly not more than 3 years or so older than Joseph, which would make him about 20 years old at the time Joseph was sold (seech. 37:2 [=Genesis 37:2] and onch. 30:24). Between Joseph’s sale as a slave and Jacob’s migration to Egypt lay 22 years (cf.chs. 41:46; 45:6), so that Judah was about 42 years old when the family moved to Egypt. At that time he not only had the three sons, mentioned in ch. 38, but was apparently a grandfather as well, asch. 46:12 seems to imply. If this be correct, his sons Er, Onan, and Shelah must have been born before Joseph was sold, since they themselves had already reached marriageable ages when the events involving Tamar occurred, and Tamar’s son Pharez had two sons of his own when the family moved to Egypt. These observations oblige us to conclude that some of Jacob’s sons must have married while very young. Judah could not have been more than 14 years old at the birth of his oldest son, Er, nor Er more than 13 at his marriage to Tamar. The birth of Judah’s twin sons by his daughter-in-law Tamar must have taken place within two years after Er’s death. Pharez cannot have been more than 14 years old when Hezron and Hamul were born, apparently also as twins, before the departure from Canaan. Such early marriages are by no means uncommon in certain parts of the Orient even today. In the case of Jacob’s family, they may represent Canaanite influence. The considerations make it virtually certain that Judah was a married man and a father at the time of Joseph’s sale, and that part of the narrative of ch. 38 had already taken place.?Nichol, F. D. (Ed.). (1978). [Comments regardingGenesis 38:1.] The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary,* vol. 1, 434. Review and Herald Publishing Association.^†‡

12. These facts are interesting in light of the fact that Jacob himself did not leave home until he was 70 and did not get married until he was 77! It seems like the Canaanite environment was having a major impact on Jacob’s family. It is likely that all of the brothers except Joseph?who married an Egyptian?married Canaanite women! Or, did they marry descendants of the large number of people that Abraham had “converted”?
13. This is another story in which God, in one way or another, brought good out of evil.
14. Returning to the story of Joseph, we find him a slave in Egypt. During 10 years, he learned the Egyptian language, their customs, and had become an excellent businessman, working under Potiphar. Then, there is the story of Potiphar’s wife trying to seduce Joseph. (Genesis 39)
15. Did Potiphar believe his wife=s story about Joseph? If he had really believed that Joseph had attacked his wife and tried to rape her, what would he have done with Joseph?

Joseph suffered for his integrity, for his tempter revenged herself by accusing him of a foul crime, and causing him to be thrust into prison. Had Potiphar believed his wife=s charge against Joseph, the young Hebrew would have lost his life; but the modesty and uprightness that had uniformly characterized his conduct were proof of his innocence; and yet, to save the reputation of his master=s house, he was abandoned to disgrace and bondage.?Ellen G, White, Patriarchs and Prophets* 218.1.^†

16. Once again, Joseph redeemed himself by his excellent character, his hard work, and his reliability.
17. Genesis 40:1-41:36 recount the stories of Joseph’s rise to power. While caring for Pharaoh’s former butler and baker in prison, God helped Joseph interpret their dreams. His interpretations proved to be correct. Two more years went by and, then, Pharaoh had those incredible dreams recounted in Genesis 41. Suddenly, the butler remembered his own experience while in prison and suggested to Pharaoh that Joseph be called.
18. Once again, we are led to ask some significant questions: Did God send those dreams to the butler and the baker? It sure seems like it. It was interpreting those dreams that led to Joseph being called by Pharaoh. Why do you think it was necessary for Joseph to remain in prison for another two years before God chose to rescue him?
19. What did Joseph learn during his time in Potiphar=s household and in prison that helped to prepare him for his later work as prime minister of Egypt? Besides learning to speak the Egyptian language fluently, he learned the customs and habits of Egyptian royalty. Did Joseph ever become seriously discouraged while in prison?
20. But, despite this change in circumstances, Joseph, once again, assured those around him, including Pharaoh, that it was God that gave him the power to understand dreams. And finally, Pharaoh concluded:

Genesis 41:39-40: ³⁹The king said to Joseph, “God has shown you all this, so it is obvious that you have greater wisdom and insight than anyone else. ⁴⁰I will put you in charge of my country, and all my people will obey your orders. Your authority will be second only to mine. ⁴¹I now appoint you governor over all Egypt.”?Good News Bible.*^† [What did Pharaoh know about YAHWEH?]^‡

21. What an incredible story! If nothing else, the story of Joseph is a story of amazing reversals! Joseph went from being the petted son, to slave, to top manager, to prisoner, to palaceBsaving his Aadopted@ nation and his own family from starvation. What were the background conditions that made it possible for this story to take place? The people who ruled Egypt at that time were the Hyksos, a nomadic Asian people, probably Semites (descendants of Shem while the Egyptians themselves were descendants of Ham) who controlled Egypt from 1720 c. until 1560 b.c. Hyksos comes from the Greek word Hyksos; it is from the Egyptian word hq=s=sw meaning ruler of the lands of the nomads. (See Collin=s English Dictionary, 21^st Century Edition.) They ruled Egypt from a city in the eastern delta of the Nile, not far from Goshen.
22. How much do we know about the background of this story from extra-biblical sources? Why is it that there is no archaeological evidence or any trace of the Israelites to be found in Egypt or the Sinai Peninsula? Actually, in the last few years, an area in the Nile Delta has been excavated that looks like it might be a place where some of the Jews lived. (Search Google or Amazon for “Patterns of Evidence.”) Does that shake your faith if we do not have archaeological evidence? To find evidence of the exodus, should we be looking in the Saudi Arabian peninsula (early Midian) as some scholars now believe?
23. Was God responsible for the famine that occurred in the days of Joseph? Since Egypt is watered primarily by the Nile and since the headwaters of the Nile are in East Africa, was the famine in all of East Africa as well? Would we know anything about the family of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob if they had not become segregated in Egypt, away from the influence of the Egyptians and Canaanites?
24. Was God manipulating conditions on this earth? Or, was He merely able to see into the future and know what was going to happen? How close is the relationship between heaven and this earth? How often are events that take place on this earth affected by the work of angels and even God Himself? Or, even by the Devil?
25. Was God playing favorites?

[EGW:] In early life, just as they were passing from youth to manhood, Joseph and Daniel were separated from their homes and carried as captives to heathen lands. Especially was Joseph subject to the temptations that attend great changes of fortune. In his father’s home a tenderly cherished child; in the house of Potiphar a slave, then a confidant and companion; a man of affairs, educated by study, observation, contact with men; in Pharaoh’s dungeon a prisoner of state, condemned unjustly, without hope of vindication or prospect of release; called at a great crisis to the leadership of the nation—what enabled him to preserve his integrity? ...

A shepherd boy, tending his father’s flocks, Joseph’s pure and simple life had favored the development of both physical and mental power. By communion with God through nature and the study of the great truths handed down as a sacred trust from father to son, he had gained strength of mind and firmness of principle.

In the crisis of his life, when making that terrible journey from his childhood home in Canaan to the bondage which awaited him in Egypt, looking for the last time on the hills that hid the tents of his kindred, Joseph remembered his father’s God. He remembered the lessons of his childhood, and his soul thrilled with the resolve to prove himself true—ever to act as became a subject of the King of heaven.—Ellen G. White, Education* 51.3-52.3.^†‡

26. According to Gary A. Rendsburg (then of Rutgers University) in his book, The Redaction of Genesis, Eisenbrauns, 1986:

The Joseph story builds to a focal point, or pivot point, atGenesis 45:1-3 after which the themes and stories are repeated in reverse order, thus creating the chiastic structure.

InGenesis 45:1-3, Joseph revealed himself to his brothers.

There are six episodes (A, B, C, D, E, F) followed by six parallel episodes (F=, E=, D=, C=, B=, A=) in reverse order.

The result is a neatly constructed palistrophe or symmetrical structure in what is already a well-unified story.

Though not indicated in the chart, each of the matching episodes is linked by a series of key words [in Hebrew] (for example, hesed, Afavor,@ inGenesis 39:21 andGenesis 47:29).

The Joseph Story

A Joseph and his brothers; Jacob and Joseph part (Genesis 37:1-36)

B Interlude: Joseph not present (Genesis 38:1-30)

C Reversal: Joseph Aguilty@; Potiphar=s wife Ainnocent@ (Genesis 39:1-23)

D Joseph: Hero of Egypt (Genesis 40:1-41:57)

E Two trips to Egypt (Genesis 42:1-43:34)

F Final test (Genesis 44:1-34)

Focal point: Joseph revealed himself to his brothers

F= Conclusion of test (Genesis 45:1-28)

E= Two tellings of migration to Egypt (Genesis 46:1-47:12)

D= Joseph: Hero of Egypt (Genesis 47:13-27)

C= Reversal: Ephraim firstborn, Manasseh second-born (Genesis 47:28-48:22)

B= Interlude: Joseph nominally present (Genesis 49:1-28)

A= Joseph and his brothers, Jacob and Joseph part (Genesis 49:29-50:26)^†‡

27. Some have suggested that the life of Joseph was a type of the life of Christ. What parallels do you see? Read the story in Ellen G. White’s, The Spirit of Prophecy, 1, 157-159.

Joseph was arrested and suffered because he was faithful. So was Jesus.

Joseph illustrates Christ. Jesus came to his own, but his own received him not. He was rejected and despised, because his acts were righteous, and his consistent, self-denying life was a continual rebuke upon those who professed piety, but whose lives were corrupt. Joseph=s integrity and virtue were fiercely assailed; and she who would lead him astray [Potiphar’s wife] could not prevail, therefore her hatred was strong against the virtue and integrity which she could not corrupt, and she testified falsely against him. The innocent suffered because of his righteousness. He was cast into prison because of his virtue.?Ellen G. White, The Spirit of Prophecy,* vol. 1, 157.2.^†‡ [How could anyone oppose such beautiful writing?]^‡

Joseph was sold to his enemies by his family. Jesus was betrayed by one of His disciples.

Joseph was sold to his enemies, by his own brethren, for a small sum of money. The Son of God was sold to his bitterest enemies by one of his own disciples.?Ibid.*

Jesus was humble, meek, and refused to use His power to fight His enemies. Joseph humbly served God in whatever place he found himself.

Jesus was meek and holy. His was a life of unexampled self?denial, goodness, and holiness. He was not guilty of any wrong; yet false witnesses were hired to testify against him. He was hated because he had been a faithful reprover of sin and corruption.?Ibid.*

Joseph and Jesus were both stripped of their coats.

Joseph=s brethren stripped him of his coat of many colors. The executioners of Jesus cast lots for his seamless coat.?Ibid.*

Joseph=s brothers wanted to kill him; but, they finally sold him as a slave because they were jealous of him. The Jewish leaders arrested Jesus and arranged for His trial and crucifixion because they were jealous of His miraculous powers and His influence with the people. What did the Pharisees and the Sadducees say to each other about Jesus?

[EGW:] Joseph=s brethren purposed to kill him, but were finally content to sell him as a slave, to prevent his becoming greater than themselves. They thought they had placed him where they would be no more troubled with his dreams, and where there would not be a possibility of their fulfillment. But the very course which they pursued, God overruled to bring about that which they designed never should take placeCthat he should have dominion over them.

The chief priests and elders were jealous of Christ, that he would draw the attention of the people away from themselves, to him. They knew that he was doing greater works than they ever had done, or ever could perform; and they knew that if he was suffered to continue his teachings, he would become higher in authority than they, and might become king of the Jews. They agreed together to prevent this by privately taking him, and hiring witnesses to testify falsely against him, that they might condemn him, and put him to death. They would not accept him as their king, but cried out, Crucify him! crucify him! The Jews thought that by taking the life of Christ, they could prevent his becoming king. But by murdering the Son of God, they were bringing about the very thing they sought to prevent.?Ellen G. White, The Spirit of Prophecy,* vol. 1, 158.1-2.^†‡ [SeeActs 6:7and 15:1.]^‡

Despite the terrible treatment that both Joseph and Jesus received, as a result of their treatment, they rose to take the pre-eminent position that God had planned for them. In neither case did it lessen the guilt of those responsible.

Joseph, by being sold by his brethren into Egypt, became a saviour to his father=s family. Yet this fact did not lessen the guilt of his brethren. The crucifixion of Christ by his enemies, made him the Redeemer of mankind, the Saviour of the fallen race, and ruler over the whole world. The crime of his enemies was just as heinous as though God=s providential hand had not controlled events for his own glory and the good of man.?Ibid.*

Despite everything that Satan could throw at them, neither Joseph nor Jesus could be persuaded to depart in the least manner from his/His walk with God. In the end, both graciously forgave those who had done them wrong.

[EGW:] Joseph walked with God. He would not be persuaded to deviate from the path of righteousness, and transgress God=s law, by any inducements or threats. And when he was imprisoned, and suffered because of his innocence, he meekly bore it without murmuring. His self?control, and patience in adversity, and his unwavering fidelity, are left on record for the benefit of all who should afterward live on the earth. When Joseph=s brethren acknowledged their sin before him, he freely forgave them, and showed by his acts of benevolence and love that he harbored no resentful feelings for their former cruel conduct toward him. The life of Jesus, the Saviour of the world, was a pattern of benevolence, goodness, and holiness. Yet he was despised and insulted, mocked and derided, for no other reason than because of his righteous life, which was a constant rebuke to sin. His enemies would not be satisfied until he was given into their hands, that they might put him to a shameful death. He died for the guilty race; and, while suffering the most cruel torture, meekly forgave his murderers. He rose from the dead, ascended up to his father, and received all power and authority, and returned to the earth again to impart it to his disciples. He gave gifts unto men. And all who have ever come to him repentant, confessing their sins, he has received into his favor, and freely pardoned them. And if they remain true to him, he will exalt them to his throne, and make them his heirs to the inheritance which he has purchased with his own blood.CEllen G. White, The Spirit of Prophecy,* vol. 1, 159.1.^†‡

28. Through all these incredible experiences, Joseph ended up being a blessing to millions of people, and especially the family of Israel. Did God send that famine?
29. It is interesting that several of the most important dreams in this story were repeated in one way or another to the receiver of the dream. Why was that? Was that to separate them from ordinary dreams that people have? Joseph seemed to suggest that the repetition was proof that God was behind those dreams.
30. Considering what was said and recorded in Scripture, it seems that Joseph’s dreams in the early part of the story were the major thing that upset his brothers. Was there more?
31. Was God responsible for the fact that the Midianite caravan passed that spot at exactly that moment when the brothers were considering killing Joseph?
32. It is interesting to consider what we know about the character of Judah in contrast to Joseph. Apparently, Judah was so upset with what his brothers had done and were doing that he moved away and lived with a Canaanite family whose daughter he married. Later, Judah produced those twin sons, not knowing that the “prostitute” was actually Tamar, his daughter-in-law. Tamar ended up being one of the ancestors of Jesus. Joseph, by contrast, refused to even touch Potiphar’s wife!
33. Did God have anything to do with Judah’s experience with Tamar? While we tend to focus on the male lineage in that family, Tamar was a Canaanite brought into the lineage of Jesus Christ. Later in the story, there will be more Canaanite and Moabite “blood” added to the lineage with Rahab and Ruth marrying ancestors of Jesus. What important lessons can we learn from this incredible series of stories?

©2022, Kenneth Hart, MD, MA, MPH. Permission is hereby granted for any noncommercial use of these materials. Free distribution of all or of a portion of this material such as to a Bible study class is encouraged. *Electronic version. ^†Bold type is added. ^‡Text in brackets is added. ^§Italic type is in the source. ^¶Compared with the first source, this source has punctuation and/or capitalization differences only.                                                                                      Info@theox.org

Last Modified: April 13, 2022