Old Testament · Law

Genesis 37:20

Joseph Sold

“Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits. We can say that a vicious animal has devoured him. Then we shall see what becomes of his dreams!” Genesis 37:20 · Berean Standard Bible

What It Means

Genesis 37:20, in plain English

One of the brothers (Judah, though we learn that later) suggests they kill Joseph, throw him in a pit, and lie to their father about it, claiming an animal killed him—and then they'll see if his dreams come true.

Why it's here

The brothers are now actively plotting not just murder, but deception. They'll kill Joseph and construct a lie to tell Jacob. The cruelty is compounded—not only will they take Joseph's life, they'll break their father's heart with a false story. And that final sentence—'Then we shall see what becomes of his dreams'—shows they think they can kill God's purposes by killing Joseph.

Who's speaking

One of Joseph's brothers (likely Judah, based on later context)

Where it sits in the story

This is the absolute nadir—the moment when human hatred seems to triumph, when God's promise seems about to be destroyed. But this is exactly where God's redemptive work often begins: in the darkest human choices, God is still moving toward restoration.

A Closer Look

The scholar's commentary

The brothers propose murdering Joseph, disposing of his body in a pit, and falsely claiming a wild animal killed him—a calculated plan to both eliminate their rival and destroy the evidence of their crime.

Language and setting

Their proposed action escalates from murderous impulse to detailed conspiracy. The phrase 'Let us kill him' (lechah hargahu) employs the cohortative form, suggesting collective decision-making and shared responsibility. The disposal in a pit (behachad ham-borot) removes the body from view while the false narrative (vayomer... af'ah akalhuthu) provides a fabricated explanation that implicates divine punishment (raah) rather than fraternal violence. Crucially, the brothers frame their plan in theological language: 'Then we shall see what becomes of his dreams' (venischmeroth mah-yihyu chalomav)—they believe that by destroying the dreamer, they can nullify the dreams themselves. This reveals their fundamental misunderstanding of the dreams' source and authority; they do not recognize these as expressions of divine will but as Joseph's personal pretensions. The plot echoes Cain's murder of Abel and anticipates later biblical fratricide; it represents the family's capacity to commit violence against its own when status hierarchies are threatened.

Voice

The brothers, articulating their murderous plan to one another.

Significance

The brothers' conspiracy to kill Joseph and suppress his dreams represents the narrative's fullest articulation of human opposition to the divinely intended narrative; paradoxically, their violence becomes the catalyst for precisely the scenario the dreams have foretold—Joseph's elevation and their dependence upon him.

In context

Genesis 37:18–22

18Now Joseph’s brothers saw him in the distance, and before he arrived, they plotted to kill him.

19“Here comes that dreamer!” they said to one another.

20“Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits. We can say that a vicious animal has devoured him. Then we shall see what becomes of his dreams!”

21When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue Joseph from their hands. “Let us not take his life,” he said.

22“Do not shed his blood. Throw him into this pit in the wilderness, but do not lay a hand on him.” Reuben said this so that he could rescue Joseph from their hands and return him to his father.

Read all of Genesis 37 — A father's favorite son, a coat of many colors, and brothers consumed by jealousy. What they meant for evil, God will use for something unimaginable.

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