Good evening, and welcome to EBible Fellowship’s Bible study in the book of Genesis.  Tonight is study #6 in Genesis 37, and we will read Genesis 37:3-4:

Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours. And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him.

I will stop reading there.  In our last study, we were looking at the word “coat,” and we found that it is used 29 times in the Old Testament.  It is used eight times in Genesis 37 concerning Joseph’s coat, and it is used 21 times in other places, including 14 times in relationship to the priesthood.  For example, it says in Exodus 28:39-41:

And thou shalt embroider the coat of fine linen, and thou shalt make the mitre of fine linen, and thou shalt make the girdle of needlework. And for Aaron's sons thou shalt make coats, and thou shalt make for them girdles, and bonnets shalt thou make for them, for glory and for beauty. And thou shalt put them upon Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office.

The coats were part of the priestly attire, and we understand that the priests, like Aaron the high priest who went about the ministry of offering sacrifices would identify with Christ.  But on another level, they would identify with the elect people of God.  It says in Exodus 40:12-15:

And thou shalt bring Aaron and his sons unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and wash them with water. And thou shalt put upon Aaron the holy garments, and anoint him, and sanctify him; that he may minister unto me in the priest's office. And thou shalt bring his sons, and clothe them with coats: And thou shalt anoint them, as thou didst anoint their father, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office: for their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations.

Here, the picture becomes clear that the anointing of the priests pointed to an everlasting priesthood.  But of course that could never be the case with an earthly ministry, nor for a number of the earthly priests.  And I say “number” because, for the most part, they were unsaved men, but here and there some would have been true children of God that the Lord had saved.  So when that individual would minister in the earthly priesthood, he would also be ministering in God’s eternal priesthood.  That is what we are told in 1Peter 2:5:

Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

This is speaking of everyone the Lord saved and had mercy upon in giving them the gift of everlasting life.  And we could say He commissioned them as priests to offer up spiritual sacrifices, so it is a spiritual priesthood that offer up spiritual sacrifices in service to Christ, and in performance of their ministry to the Lord Jesus Christ.  Those who are part of that priesthood have been saved, and are children of God, so that is why Joseph (with this coat) as the favorite beloved son of his Father Israel is a picture of Christ, in the first instance, but he is also a picture of the true child of God. 

And Joseph dwelt among his brethren, and his brethren noticed the favor toward him that they did not have from their father, and it made them angry.  It made them jealous, envious, and angry against their brother Joseph, and we will see shortly just how angry they were, as they were angry enough to want to kill him, and to sell him as a slave.  It was really a horrible thing that they did.

Again, this coat this Joseph wore is as though it is the covering of Christ’s righteousness.  Spiritually, for the people of God, we have that robe of Christ’s righteousness.  We have that beautiful garment of the Lord Jesus Christ’s righteousness bestowed upon us in salvation.  He saved us by washing away our sins and covering us with His righteousness.  We are not righteous in God’s sight because of any righteousness in us, even after salvation.  All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.  It is the pure righteousness of Christ that covers us, and the Bible says, “…by the obedience of one many shall be made righteous.”  That is the only way we can stand before God.

Let us go back to Genesis 37:3:

… and he made him a coat of many colours.

So the coat that identifies with priestly garments is said to be made of many colours.  The word “colours” is only found five times in the Old Testament.  Three times it is found here in Genesis 37, and twice it is found in another account in 2Samuel 13 concerning a daughter of King David named Tamar.  Tamar was a beautiful young woman who was one of the king’s daughters.  She was Absalom’s sister.  She had another brother Amnon who “loved” her, and was vexed by her.  It says in 2Samuel 13:1-2:

And it came to pass after this, that Absalom the son of David had a fair sister, whose name was Tamar; and Amnon the son of David loved her. And Amnon was so vexed, that he fell sick for his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin; and Amnon thought it hard for him to do any thing to her.

By the way, the name Tamar means “palm tree.”  Ironically, Amnon’s name means to be “faithful” to “believe,” and in this account we will see that he was anything but faithful, and his conduct was certainly not a believer’s conduct.  He strongly desired his sister, and he had a very deceitful friend who counseled him to pretend he was sick, and to ask his father David to have her minister to him in his illness.  David approved, and Tamar went into his chamber, and once she was in his chamber, he forced her, and raped her.  Then he told her to get out, and she pleaded that he not do this because that was worse than the thing he had just done to her, but he did not want to see her any longer, and the account says that he then hated her with the same intensity that he had “loved” her.  He commanded his servants to put her out, and to bolt the door.  Then it says in 2Samuel 13:17-19:

Then he called his servant that ministered unto him, and said, Put now this woman out from me, and bolt the door after her. And she had a garment of divers colours upon her: for with such robes were the king's daughters that were virgins apparelled. Then his servant brought her out, and bolted the door after her. And Tamar put ashes on her head, and rent her garment of divers colours that was on her, and laid her hand on her head, and went on crying.

By the way, the word “garment” in verses 18 and 19 is the same word that is translated as “coat” in the account of Joseph, which had to do with the priesthood.  So there is no question that God is linking Joseph’s coat of many colours to Tamar’s garment of divers (many) colours.  And we wonder, “Why is God making this link?”  Keep in mind that “divers colours” is only found five times, and three times it is in Genesis 37, and twice it is here in 2Samuel 13:18-19.  So that is a link, as well as the word “coat.”  So what is the identification between the two accounts?  What ties them together?

We know that Tamar was the daughter of the king, and all the king’s daughters who were virgins were apparelled in such clothing, so it would apply not to just Tamar but to all the king’s daughters.  We can see the spiritual picture.  King David is a great type of Christ, and his daughters are a picture of the children of God, or the daughter of Zion, or a daughter of Jerusalem.  All who become saved, both male and female, are as daughters of the King, the Lord Jesus Christ, and all such are clothed with a garment of “many colours” to signify their virginity.  And what does “virginity” signify in the Bible?  It represents purity and holiness, and that brings us back to the fact that it is a “coat” of many colours.  And the priests were to wear the coat when they performed their ministry.  And all who become saved are part of the spiritual priesthood, and we are clothed with holy garments, the garment of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

But in Tamar’s case, she was put out after being defiled by her brother Amnon.  And the door was bolted.  Again, it says in 2Samuel 13:19:

And Tamar put ashes on her head, and rent her garment of divers colours that was on her, and laid her hand on her head, and went on crying.

The renting of the garment signifies that she is no longer a virgin, which also has spiritual meaning because as far as God’s elect people are concerned, we remain spiritually holy, righteous, and pure in the eyes of God for evermore, once we become saved.  There is no removing of that garment of righteousness.  There is no possible defilement of that garment of righteousness.  That does not mean we do not sin after we are saved because we are still in our sinful bodies of flesh, and if we sin, that sin is a dirty and ugly as any other sin, but that sin was also paid for by the Lord Jesus Christ.  So that means that our “garment” is spotless, and it cannot be defiled ever again, and this is the pure and fine white linen that is called “the righteousness of saints,” and it is mentioned in the book of Revelation a few times.  It is a glorious and wonderful thing that if we are truly saved by being born again by the work of God (and not by our own works), then we have been clothed in this kind of “garment,” and we will wear this “garment” forever into eternity future.  It can never be taken from us, and we cannot be “made dirty” through sin in thought, word, or deed.

And that leads us to wonder: “What about Tamar and her garment?”  And what about Joseph because he had his coat taken from him?  His brethren dipped his garment in blood, and they took it to their father, and they said, “This have we found: know now whether it be thy son's coat or no.”  So we have to consider these things.  Lord willing, we will do that as we go on with this study.  We will look into these things to see if we can understand the spiritual picture God is drawing for us.