“Chapter 1: Genesis 3723 And [it] was when Yosef (Joseph) came to his brothers, and [they] stripped Yosef (Joseph) [of] his tunic – the striped tunic – that [was] upon him. 24 And [they] took him, and [they] cast him to the ground-pit, and the ground-pit [was] empty – there [was] not within it water.”

“Chapter 1: Genesis 3725 And [they] sat to eat bread, and [they] lifted [up] their eyes, and [they] saw, and behold: A caravan of Ishmaelites [was] coming from Gil’ad and their camels bearing spices, and balsam, and myrrh going to bring down to Mitzraim (Egypt). 26 And Yehudah (Judah) said to his brothers, “What gain [is there] that [we] will kill our brother and [by our] covering [up] his blood? 27 Come, and [let’s] sell him to the Ishmaelites, and our hand [let] not be [up]on him because [he is] our brother – our flesh [and blood] he [is].” And [they] heard – his brothers – [and heeded].”

“Chapter 1: Genesis 3728 And [they] passed – Midianite people (merchants) – and [they] pulled, and [they] raised Yosef (Joseph) from the ground-pit, and [they] sold Yosef (Joseph) to the Ishmaelites for twenty [pieces of] silver, and [they] brought Yosef (Joseph) to Mitzraim (Egypt). 29 And [he] returned – Reuven (Reuben) – to the ground-pit, and behold: There [was] no Yosef (Joseph) in the ground-pit, and [he] tore his clothes.30 And [he] returned to his brothers, and [he] said, “The child [is] not there! And I – where do I go?!” 31 And [they] took the tunic of Yosef (Joseph), and [they] slaughtered a hairy-goat, and [they] dipped the tunic in the blood.”

“Chapter 8: Genesis 45 1 And Yosef (Joseph) could not control himself for all the posted-persons upon him, and [he] called [out], “Remove every man from upon me!” And a man did not stand with him in the confessing of Yosef (Joseph) to his brothers. 2 And [he] gave his voice in crying, and [they] heard – [all of] Mitzraim (Egypt) – and the house of Pharaoh heard. 3 And Yosef (Joseph) said to his brothers, “I [am] Yosef! Does my father still live?!” And his brothers could not answer him because [they] were terrified from his face.”

“Chapter 1: Genesis 371 And Ya’akov (Jacob) sat in the land of the residence of his father in the land of K’na’an (Canaan). 2 These are the [descendents in the] genealogy of Ya’akov (Jacob): Yosef (Joseph) [was] seventeen years old, [he] would shepherd with his brothers among the flock [of animals], and he [was merely] a youth with the sons of Bilhah and with the sons of Zilpah (the women of his father), and Yosef (Joseph) brought their slander – [it was] evil – to their father”

“Chapter 1: Genesis 373 And Israel loved Yosef (Joseph) [most] from all his sons because a son of his old-age he [was] to him, and [he] made for him a striped tunic. 4 And [they] saw – his brothers – that their father loved him [most] from all his brothers, and [they] hated him, and [they] could not speak [of] him for peace.”

“Chapter 1: Genesis 379 And [he] dreamt again – a different dream – and [he] told it to his brothers, and [he] said, “Behold: [I] dreamt a dream again, and behold: The Sun and the Moon, and eleven stars [were] prostrating [themselves] to me. 10 And [he] told [the dream] to his father and to his brothers, and [he] rebuked him – his father – and [he] said to him, “What [is] this dream that [you] dreamt? Will [we most assuredly] come – I, and your mother, and your brothers – to prostrate [ourselves] to you to the ground?” 11 And [they were] jealous of him – his brothers – and his father guarded the matter [in his heart].”

“Chapter 1: Genesis 375 And Yosef (Joseph) dreamt a dream, and [he] said [the dream] to his brothers, and [they] increased more [to] hate him. 6 And [he] said to them, “Hear, please, this dream that [I] dreamt. 7 And behold: We [were] binding sheaves in the field, and behold: My sheaf arose and also [was] positioned, and behold: Your sheaves surrounded [mine] and prostrated [themselves] to my sheaf.”8 And [they] said to him – his brothers – “Will [you most assuredly] reign over us? Will [you] rule over us?” And [they] increased more [to] hate him over his dreams and over his words.”

“What’s the truth? The truth is what people WANT. Liars are basically idealists, liars are saints and prophets. Jesus was a liar.”

“Half of the time I think I know what I’m doing. The other half of the time I’m doubting that I really knew what I was doing the first half of the time. So that leaves me turning to God all of the time.”

“To think that God pens history solely as a retelling of ‘what was’ is to miss the extraordinary fact that history is God’s initiation to ‘what can be.’ And Christmas is one of the greatest moments in history which renders it one of the greatest invitations of our life.”

“God will always want me more than I will want Him. And it seems quite reasonable to me that the greatest way that I can expend my life is to work on closing that gap.”

“I suppose that Christmas seems vexingly improbable in my mind because God did something for all of mankind that I’m too selfish to do even for myself. But isn’t that the exact reason why we need Christmas?”

“I don’t know what’s worse; being afraid to live or being afraid to die. Yet, the thing about Christmas is that it eliminates both.”

“We are deathly afraid of attempting great things, yet on the other hand we are also deathly afraid of missing great things. But the larger question in all of this might be, “Why is it that great things matter to us in the first place?” They matter because God made us for great things.”