Genesis 37:9-11 records Joseph's second dream. This dream predicts the same as the first, that Joseph will one day stand in authority over his family. He dreams that the sun, moon, and eleven stars bow to him. This represents his father, mother, and brothers. Even Jacob is annoyed by this dream, and rebukes Joseph. He challenges his son, asking him if he thinks that his family will one day bow to him. The other brothers' jealousy grows, though Jacob privately ponders the dream.
In Genesis 37:9-11, Joseph has another dream, which is not well-received by either his brothers or his father. After the first dream that already disturbed his brothers, Genesis 37:9-11 recounts the second and final dream that Joseph relays to his family, Now he had still another dream, and related it to his brothers, and said, "Lo, I have had still another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me" (v 9).
This shifts the imagery from harvested sheaves to celestial bodies. In ancient symbolism, sun and moon typically symbolized a father and mother, while stars symbolize descendants (Genesis 15:5). The vision therefore pictures every branch of the covenant family acknowledging Joseph's authority. That no interpretation was needed, and all had the same interpretation shows the clarity of shared knowledge of these symbols.
The celestial nature of the image echoes the celestial promise of the Lord to Abram in Genesis 15:5. There, Abram is reassured by the Lord when he is taken outside to gaze up at the stars. The Lord promises, "Now look to the heavens and count the stars, if you are able to count them…So shall your descendants be." We would assume that the promises of God to Abram are known to his great-grandchildren. As a result, the brothers could see, in the image of the stars of the heavens bowing downtoJoseph, the elevation of Joseph over the promised uncountable inheritance of Abraham.
While Joseph does become preeminent over his brothers by being exalted to the leadership of Egypt, the ultimate fulfillment of the passage is likely seen in two places. First, in the Samaria-based kingship of the Kingdom of Israel. In prophetic literature, Ephraim, the second son of Joseph, is a poetic name for the house of Israel (Ezekiel 37:19,Isaiah 28:1,Jeremiah 31:9,Hosea 5:3). This is because the tribe of Ephraim was dominant in Israel as was the tribe of Judah in the southern kingdom of Judah.
Further, to the extent Joseph is viewed as a type of Messiah, the exalted kingship of Christ is the ultimate fulfillment of the celestial dream. In Revelation 22:16, Jesus declares that he is the "root and descendant of David, the bright morning star." Christ, in Revelation 2:28, promises to the persevering faithful, a reward of "the morning star." Ultimately, the faithful, presented in Revelation as morning stars, will bowbefore the ultimate morning star.
Further, Revelation 12 also uses the imagery of the sun and the moon andstars (v 9) to describe what some people call "the woman of the apocalypse." This "woman" is commonly thought to represent the nation of Israel from whom the Messiah would be born. But it can also be linked to Jesus' mother Mary who literally gave birth to Him. But in the case of Revelation 12:1-2, there are twelve stars instead of the eleven in Joseph's dream. This is because Joseph is among the twelve stars crowning the woman's head, while in this story Joseph was the one being bowed down to and thus only elevenstars are mentioned here.
The repetition of the dream, and its pairing with the earlier field dream echoes a later instance in Genesis where doubled dreams confirm God's irrevocable intent (Genesis 41:32). Jacob hears the report and, for the first time, rebukes his son, "Shall I and your mother and your brothers actually come to bow ourselves down before you to the ground?" (v 10).
The patriarch recognizes that such a reversal upends traditional customs: preeminence for younger sons was unusual enough; the thought of Joseph ruling over Jacob was enough to bring forth Jacob's rebuke. Whatever future honor Jacob may have signaled with the gift of the tunic to Joseph, we can infer from the rebuke, it did not include ruling over himself. It is possible that Joseph's ruling over the brothers may not have been intended either; Jacob had both the birthright and the blessing in preference to his brother, Esau (Genesis 25:29-34, 27:35-36), but is never shown to rule over Esau.
Unlike Joseph's brothers, Jacob, possibly as a result of his prior divine visions or his affection for Joseph, is shown to keep an open mind; the text notes that his father kept the saying in mind (v 11). This passage is reminiscent of how Mary pondered Jesus’s childhood prophecies in her heart (Luke 2:19). Another possibility could be that because Joseph's mother was deceased at this time, perhaps Jacob was confused about how his deceased mother would bowdown to Joseph.
By contrast, his brothers were jealous of him (v 11). The Hebrew verb translated as jealous portrays a smoldering zeal bent on stripping Joseph of honor. Their jealousy will soon license betrayal. Still, God uses even this corrosive envy to transport Joseph toward the very throne his dreams foretell, foreshadowing the greater Son whose exaltation followed rejection and the cross (Philippians 2:6-11).
Ultimately, the brothers' rejection and hatred of Joseph foreshadow the rejection and hatred Jesus would later experience from His own people. Joseph's brother Judah is depicted as a ringleader in the betraying of Joseph and of his selling to the Ishmaelites (Genesis 37:26-27).
This also has a parallel in the New Testament. Judas (the Greek form of the name Judah) was one of the twelve disciples. Like Jacob's son Judah, Judas would be a ringleader in the betrayal and death of Jesus. Jesus' twelve disciples mirror Jacob's twelve sons who became the fathers of the twelve tribes of Israel.
Jesus told the twelve that they would each rule over one of the twelve tribes in the Messianic Era (Matthew 19:28,Luke 22:30). Further, in Revelation 21, each of the twelve gates of the New Jerusalem are inscribed with names of each of the tribes and on the foundation of the walls are inscribed the names of the twelve apostles (Revelation 21:12, 14).
This was all part of God's redemptive plan. Just as Joseph would be placed into a pit (for three days, according to Jewish tradition), likewise Jesus, after He was betrayed by Judas, would be placed in a grave for three days. Next, just as Joseph was sold to the Gentiles who would eventually accept him as ruler of Egypt (Genesis 41:39-41), after Jesus rose from the grave He would be accepted by Gentiles who through faith in Him would be grafted into God's covenant family (Romans 11:24,Ephesians 2:11-13). Additionally, Joseph and Jesus were both sold or betrayed for silver, Joseph for twenty shekels, and Jesus for thirty (Genesis 37:28,Matthew 26:15).
New Testament believers are called to follow Jesus's example, who endured hostility and rejection due to the "joy" that was set before Him, which was to ascend to the Father’s right hand (Hebrews 12:2).
Genesis 37:9-11
9 Now he had still another dream, and related it to his brothers, and said, “Lo, I have had still another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”
10 He related it to his father and to his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have had? Shall I and your mother and your brothers actually come to bow ourselves down before you to the ground?”
11 His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind.
Set to dark mode
Genesis 37:9-11 meaning
In Genesis 37:9-11, Joseph has another dream, which is not well-received by either his brothers or his father. After the first dream that already disturbed his brothers, Genesis 37:9-11 recounts the second and final dream that Joseph relays to his family, Now he had still another dream, and related it to his brothers, and said, "Lo, I have had still another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me" (v 9).
This shifts the imagery from harvested sheaves to celestial bodies. In ancient symbolism, sun and moon typically symbolized a father and mother, while stars symbolize descendants (Genesis 15:5). The vision therefore pictures every branch of the covenant family acknowledging Joseph's authority. That no interpretation was needed, and all had the same interpretation shows the clarity of shared knowledge of these symbols.
The celestial nature of the image echoes the celestial promise of the Lord to Abram in Genesis 15:5. There, Abram is reassured by the Lord when he is taken outside to gaze up at the stars. The Lord promises, "Now look to the heavens and count the stars, if you are able to count them…So shall your descendants be." We would assume that the promises of God to Abram are known to his great-grandchildren. As a result, the brothers could see, in the image of the stars of the heavens bowing down to Joseph, the elevation of Joseph over the promised uncountable inheritance of Abraham.
While Joseph does become preeminent over his brothers by being exalted to the leadership of Egypt, the ultimate fulfillment of the passage is likely seen in two places. First, in the Samaria-based kingship of the Kingdom of Israel. In prophetic literature, Ephraim, the second son of Joseph, is a poetic name for the house of Israel (Ezekiel 37:19, Isaiah 28:1, Jeremiah 31:9, Hosea 5:3). This is because the tribe of Ephraim was dominant in Israel as was the tribe of Judah in the southern kingdom of Judah.
Further, to the extent Joseph is viewed as a type of Messiah, the exalted kingship of Christ is the ultimate fulfillment of the celestial dream. In Revelation 22:16, Jesus declares that he is the "root and descendant of David, the bright morning star." Christ, in Revelation 2:28, promises to the persevering faithful, a reward of "the morning star." Ultimately, the faithful, presented in Revelation as morning stars, will bow before the ultimate morning star.
Further, Revelation 12 also uses the imagery of the sun and the moon and stars (v 9) to describe what some people call "the woman of the apocalypse." This "woman" is commonly thought to represent the nation of Israel from whom the Messiah would be born. But it can also be linked to Jesus' mother Mary who literally gave birth to Him. But in the case of Revelation 12:1-2, there are twelve stars instead of the eleven in Joseph's dream. This is because Joseph is among the twelve stars crowning the woman's head, while in this story Joseph was the one being bowed down to and thus only eleven stars are mentioned here.
Click here to read our commentary on Revelation 12:1-2.
The repetition of the dream, and its pairing with the earlier field dream echoes a later instance in Genesis where doubled dreams confirm God's irrevocable intent (Genesis 41:32). Jacob hears the report and, for the first time, rebukes his son, "Shall I and your mother and your brothers actually come to bow ourselves down before you to the ground?" (v 10).
The patriarch recognizes that such a reversal upends traditional customs: preeminence for younger sons was unusual enough; the thought of Joseph ruling over Jacob was enough to bring forth Jacob's rebuke. Whatever future honor Jacob may have signaled with the gift of the tunic to Joseph, we can infer from the rebuke, it did not include ruling over himself. It is possible that Joseph's ruling over the brothers may not have been intended either; Jacob had both the birthright and the blessing in preference to his brother, Esau (Genesis 25:29-34, 27:35-36), but is never shown to rule over Esau.
Unlike Joseph's brothers, Jacob, possibly as a result of his prior divine visions or his affection for Joseph, is shown to keep an open mind; the text notes that his father kept the saying in mind (v 11). This passage is reminiscent of how Mary pondered Jesus’s childhood prophecies in her heart (Luke 2:19). Another possibility could be that because Joseph's mother was deceased at this time, perhaps Jacob was confused about how his deceased mother would bow down to Joseph.
By contrast, his brothers were jealous of him (v 11). The Hebrew verb translated as jealous portrays a smoldering zeal bent on stripping Joseph of honor. Their jealousy will soon license betrayal. Still, God uses even this corrosive envy to transport Joseph toward the very throne his dreams foretell, foreshadowing the greater Son whose exaltation followed rejection and the cross (Philippians 2:6-11).
Ultimately, the brothers' rejection and hatred of Joseph foreshadow the rejection and hatred Jesus would later experience from His own people. Joseph's brother Judah is depicted as a ringleader in the betraying of Joseph and of his selling to the Ishmaelites (Genesis 37:26-27).
This also has a parallel in the New Testament. Judas (the Greek form of the name Judah) was one of the twelve disciples. Like Jacob's son Judah, Judas would be a ringleader in the betrayal and death of Jesus. Jesus' twelve disciples mirror Jacob's twelve sons who became the fathers of the twelve tribes of Israel.
Jesus told the twelve that they would each rule over one of the twelve tribes in the Messianic Era (Matthew 19:28, Luke 22:30). Further, in Revelation 21, each of the twelve gates of the New Jerusalem are inscribed with names of each of the tribes and on the foundation of the walls are inscribed the names of the twelve apostles (Revelation 21:12, 14).
This was all part of God's redemptive plan. Just as Joseph would be placed into a pit (for three days, according to Jewish tradition), likewise Jesus, after He was betrayed by Judas, would be placed in a grave for three days. Next, just as Joseph was sold to the Gentiles who would eventually accept him as ruler of Egypt (Genesis 41:39-41), after Jesus rose from the grave He would be accepted by Gentiles who through faith in Him would be grafted into God's covenant family (Romans 11:24, Ephesians 2:11-13). Additionally, Joseph and Jesus were both sold or betrayed for silver, Joseph for twenty shekels, and Jesus for thirty (Genesis 37:28, Matthew 26:15).
New Testament believers are called to follow Jesus's example, who endured hostility and rejection due to the "joy" that was set before Him, which was to ascend to the Father’s right hand (Hebrews 12:2).