The accounts of Yosef’s “coat of many colors” or “Technicolor Dreamcoat” and his standing strong amid adversity and oppression in Mitzraim are popular among children and adults. But a scandalous aside in this week’s Torah portion, וישב Vayeshev (“he settled,” Gen. 37:1–40:23), involving his brother Yehudah may not reach many children’s ears. Yet both Yosef and Yehudah provide important “calling cards” for Mashiakh Yeshua (Christ Jesus).
In the Torah reading וַיֵּשֶׁב Vayeshev (Genesis 37–40), the salacious downward spiral of Yehudah (Judah) is sharply contrasted with the upward rise of Yosef (Joseph). That’s despite Yosef’s brothers’ having betrayed him.
The parallel passage to Vayeshev (Amos 2:6–3:8) reveals how morality can go down a slippery slope to depravity if nothing stops it. Yosef was a living prophecy of the ultimate Favored Son of Israel — Messiah Yeshua (Christ Jesus) — Who would be rejected but effectively stop the moral slide of the nation and the world.
The account of Yosef seems larger than life as it is: His coat of many colors. His dreams of greatness over his older brothers and even his parents. His being sold by those brothers into slavery in Mitsraim, then rising from prison to vice president of the mighty ancient empire that built the pyramids. But that’s for a later discussion. This time, Hallel Fellowship teacher Daniel explores a messianic play in the Torah reading Vayeshev, which means “he settled” and covers Genesis 37-40. Yosef was playing the role of Mashiakh consistently through his life. His father, Ya’akov, played God the Father. Older brother Yehudah played the leadership of the people of Yisrael, and brother Ruben also has a prophetic role. There are also two different “harlots” in this story. One is righteous — Tamar — and one is evil — Potiphar’s wife. Through it all, we see that God is the one in control of all things, not Yehudah. Mashiakh hadn’t yet become flesh, yet we read all about Him in Yosef’s life.