Joseph Forgave His Brothers

Genesis 37:1-4, 23-28; 42:1-3; 45:1-15; 50:15-21

Joseph lived with his father Jacob and his brothers in Canaan. God chose Joseph to do a very important job. But Joseph and his family did not know it.


Joseph’s brothers were angry with Joseph. They hurt Joseph and sent him away.


Joseph was away from his family for a long time. Now he lived in Egypt and worked for Pharoah, the king of Egypt.


Joseph had a very important job. He made sure that plenty of grain was stored and ready for the people in Egypt.


 Joseph knew a famine was coming. When the famine came, the crops would dry up and no one could get food. The people would need the grain that Joseph was storing.


Then the famine came to Egypt.


The famine also came to the Canaan. And Jacob learned there was grain stored in Egypt. Jacob sent Joseph’s brothers to Egypt to get some of the grain.


Joseph learned that his brothers had come to Egypt. Joseph called the brothers to his house.


The brothers did not know the man that called them was their brother Joseph, whom they had hurt and sent away.


But Joseph came to his brothers and cried.


“I am your brother,” Joseph said. “Don’t be worried. God sent me here to do an important job. When you sent me away, you did not know this would happen, but God did.”


The brothers were surprised. They thought Joseph would be angry with them.


“Now hurry home to our father Jacob and tell him this news. I want all of you to return and live nearby in Egypt. I will take care of you and your children,” Joseph said.


Then Joseph kissed his brothers and cried. Joseph loved his family and was kind to his brothers.

David and Joseph both chose to forgive persons who had wronged them. Help your child learn that God wants people to do what is right and forgive others.

Bible Paraphrase: Do not hurt others even when they hurt you. (Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. --Romans 12:17 NIV)

Text Truth: God wants people to do what is right.


Activities You Can Do at Home

Taste a Waffle

You'll Need: Bible, toaster, frozen whole-grain waffles, paper towels 

  • Toast a waffle, and when it has cooled, offer it to your child. Thank God for providing food for us. 
  • Mention the grain used to make the waffles. Comment that Joseph’s brothers went to Egypt to get grain.
  • Show your child the story pictures and summarize the Bible story.
  • Remark: “God wants people to do what is right. Joseph chose to forgive his brothers rather than be unkind. We learn in the Book of 1 Samuel that David was kind to King Saul, too.” 


Weigh Grain

 You'll Need: Bible, various grains (oats, barley, rice), scale, plastic bowls, spoons, parchment or waxed paper, paper and pencil 

  • Lay a sheet of paper on the scale and guide your child to pour a spoon of grain on the paper. Mention how much the grain weighs. Write the number on a piece of paper. 
  • Have your child weigh a different grain and record the results.
  • Relate the grains to the Bible story. Tell your child about Joseph’s brothers going to get grain in Egypt. 
  • Remark: “The Bible tells us to do what is right. Joseph did what was right when he was kind to his brothers and helped them.” 


Spell Bible Words

You'll Need: Bible, butcher paper, letter stamps, washable ink pad, washable markers, colored dot stickers

  • On a large paper, write several words such as Bible, God, right, love, be kind. 
  • Invite your child to use letter stamps to spell one or two of the words.
  • While your child stamps letters and decorates their papers, open the Bible to Romans 12:17 and read it aloud.
  • Lead the children to repeat the verse. 
  • Help your child find the Books of 1 Samuel, Genesis, and Romans. 
  • Remark that at each place in the Bible, we learn that God wants people to do what is right. 

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Story illustrations are the copyright of Sweet Publishing and licensed by FreeBibleimages (http://freebibleimages.org) for free download under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike 3.0 unported licence. 
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