The Sons of the Covenant Jacob had 12 sons who would share the role of God's covenant people. However, what we read about these men is a mix of violence, immorality, jealousy and deceit. The family of Jacob had a lot of problems. You might then wonder… how does our record of their exploits offer any kind of guidance or spiritual instruction? **************************************** Subscribe on Youtube: use the top left icon on the video! ****************************************You can apply that same questioning approach to most scripture. God's word is not an exposition of exemplary behavior from great men and women put on display for us to emulate. Instead, the record we have of men and women in the bible is of people with problems... BUT people who work through their problems with God's helping guidance... so that they might achieve something greater than their appointed days in the flesh. We are going to examine the lives of the sons of Jacob as they work through all that violence, jealously, and deceit to arrive at reconciliation… making peace with one another... reconciliation is not only pleasing to God... but essential to eternal happiness. You will not enter into eternal life if you do not take to roll of peacemaker and learn to resolve differences. **************************************** Get a FREE bible study guide: Transforming Your Life: The Process of Conversion *************************************Jacob's SonsJacob had been tricked into marrying Leah. He then worked out a deal to also marry his true love, Rachel. Jacob was off to a bad start that would cause a lot of hard feelings among his sons. Leah was fruitful and gave birth to Reuben, then Simeon, then Levi, then Judah. After many years wait Rachel gave birth to Joseph and Benjamin. Genesis 37:1-4 the source of trouble is Jacob's flagrant favoritism for the children of Rachel over the children of Leah and the concubines. Joseph makes things worse by acting as a tattle tale on the other brothers. Then Joseph has a dream in which all the others bow down to him. The brothers are angry. Even Jacob is a bit put out by it. The brothers devise a plot to murder Joseph. They grab Jacob in the open field and are working on their alibis when Judah gets the brainwave to sell the boy so they make a profit on their efforts. Joseph is sold to slave traders who take him off to Egypt. The brothers go home and tell Jacob that Joseph was torn apart by wild animals. Joseph Goes To Egypt (Genesis 37-41)Joseph is a household slave to Potiphar (the captain of the guard who was also in charge of the prison). Potiphar's wife starts making sexual advances towards Joseph. Joseph refuses and she accuses him of attempted rape. Normally a rapist would have been executed but Potiphar may have suspected his wife's honesty. However he has to do something… so he puts Joseph in the prison and uses him as a sort of prisoner administrator.  Joseph remains close to God and eventually his reputation as a dream interpreter lands him an interview with the Pharaoh. The Pharaoh is so impressed he makes Joseph his second in command over Egypt. Judah in Canaan (Genesis 38)Judah separates from the family. He marries a Canaanite woman and has three sons. He gets a woman named Tamar as a wife for the eldest son. That son dies. He demands the second son take Tamar and raise up children for the dead son's inheritance. The second son refuses. The second son dies. Judah tells Tamar to wait until the third son is old enough to take her. Tamar realizes Judah is going to go back on his promise. So, she dresses up as a prostitute with a veil, entices Judah into sex, and finally conceives twins who will carry on the line of Judah.Question: Why put in all this salacious material about Judah? Answer: it shows us that Judah had gone off the rails with regard to the family, and the covenant. It also sets us up for Judah's later transformation into a man God can work with... a man willing to