05 March 2021, Friday FIRST READING "Here is the expert in dreams coming!" Let's go, let's kill him ” Reading from the book of Genesis (37, 3-4. 12-13a. 17b-28)

05 March 2021, Friday 

FIRST READING 

"Here is the expert in dreams coming!" Let's go, let's kill him ” 

Reading from the book of Genesis (37, 3-4. 12-13a. 17b-28) 

Israel, that is, Jacob, loved Joseph more than all his other children, because he was the son of his old age, and he made him a tunic of great price. Seeing that he preferred Joseph to them, his other sons began to hate him, and they could no longer speak to him without hostility.

Joseph's brothers had gone to Shechem to graze their father's flock. Israel said to Joseph, “Do not your brothers keep the flock in Shechem? Go find them from me! Joseph found them at Dotane. They saw him from afar and, before he got near them, they plotted to kill him. They said to each other: "Here is the expert in dreams coming!" Now's the time, let's go, kill him, and throw him in one of these cisterns. We will say that a ferocious beast devoured him, and we will see what his dreams meant! But Roubene heard them, and wanted to save him from their hands. He said to them, “Let’s not touch his life. "And he added:" Do not shed his blood: throw it into this cistern in the desert, but do not lay your hand on it. He wanted to save him from their hands and bring him back to his father.

As soon as Joseph had rejoined his brothers, they stripped him of his tunic, the tunic of great price which he wore, they seized him and threw him in the cistern, which was empty and without water. They then sat down to eat. Looking up, they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were laden with spices, balm and myrrh which they were going to deliver to Egypt. Then Judah said to his brothers: "What profit would we have in killing our brother and hiding his death? Rather, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and do not lay hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh. His brothers listened to him. Some Midianite merchants passing by took Joseph out of the cistern, and sold him for twenty pieces of silver to the Ishmaelites, and they brought him to Egypt. 

The Word of the Lord.

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