Verses 1-4 - In Joseph's history we see something of Christ, who was first humble and then exalted. It also shows the lot of Christians, who must throug many tribulations enter into the kingdom. It is a history that has non like it, for displaying the various workings of the human mind, bot good and bad, and the singular providence of God in making use of the for fulfilling his purposes. Though Joseph was his father's darling yet he was not bred up in idleness. Those do not truly love their children, who do not use them to business, and labour, and hardships The fondling of children is with good reason called the spoiling of them. Those who are trained up to do nothing, are likely to be good for nothing. But Jacob made known his love, by dressing Joseph finer tha the rest of his children. It is wrong for parents to make a differenc between one child and another, unless there is great cause for it, by the children's dutifulness, or undutifulness. When parents make difference, children soon notice it, and it leads to quarrels in families. Jacob's sons did that, when they were from under his eye which they durst not have done at home with him; but Joseph gave his father an account of their illconduct, that he might restrain them Not as a tale-bearer, to sow discord, but as a faithfulbrother.
