Middle Eastern Lenses: Part 1

Welcome And Season Focus

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Welcome to the Rabbi Way, where we don't just read scripture, we posture our hearts like the disciples to sit at the feet of Rabbi Jesus. Through this podcast, we will be stepping back in time and rediscovering the stories we thought we already knew. As we learn together, we will begin to see the details we missed, the stories we've forgotten, and the thread that ties the entire Bible together. I'm Vic Harmon, and on this season, we're diving deep into the story of Joseph and his multicolored coat, exploring the history, culture, and geography that surrounds his story. Our exploration will be slow, yes, but intentional. As we learn about Joseph and his life, we will begin to understand him better, see his purpose in the biblical narrative, and how his story still impacts us today. So, grab your Bible, your curiosity, and maybe some sandals, and get ready to learn with us, the Rabbi Wei.

Shifting To A Middle Eastern Lens

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Today's episode is one of my personal favorites because it's based on the work of Christy McClellan, who uses the Middle Eastern lens perspective to help thousands of Christians read the Bible the way it was originally meant to be read, as a Middle Eastern text, not as a Western one. When we shift our lens from a Western thinking to a Middle Eastern thought, the story of Joseph explodes with new meaning. Christy McClellan often says the Bible was written for us, but not to us. It was written to a Middle Eastern people. So today we're going to put on the lens of a Middle Easterner and read the story in the mindset of the original audience. Layers like honor and shame, tribal identity, favoritism, and the meaning of Joseph's coat. But today I want us to take a step deeper and look at the story through what Chrissy McClellan calls the Middle Eastern lens.

Function Over Form: Joseph’s Coat

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The first Middle Eastern lens we want to look at is function over form. This is one of the biggest shifts Western readers have to make when reading scripture. In the West, we are trained to ask the question, what does this object look like? We want details, we want measurements, we want color palettes and textures. So when we come to Genesis 37 and read about Joseph's coat, we immediately ask, what did it look like? Was it multicolored? Was it long-sleeved? Did it have embroidery? Was it decorated in some other special way? But as a Middle Eastern reader, ask a very different question. Instead of asking, what does it look like? They ask, how is this object functioning in the story? That shift in perspective changes everything. To a Middle Eastern reader, the coat is not primarily about fashion, it's about authority. Yes, the coat communicates Jacob's favoritism, but more than that, it functions as a public declaration that Joseph is being elevated above his brothers. In the ancient world, clothing often symbolizes status, role, and inheritance. This coat signals that Joseph is being treated as the heir, the one who will carry the family authority forward. In other words, the coat functions as Joseph's claim to the birthright, even though he is not the firstborn son. So when the brothers see the coat, they don't just see favoritism, they see a threat, they see a loss of honor, they see their future slipping away. As we begin to see the function of the coat, the brothers' anger suddenly makes more sense.

Cistern As Grave And Death Motif

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But the coat is not the only object functioning symbolically in the story. There is also a cistern, a caravan, and a goat that also hold meaning. As we discussed in previous episodes, the cisterns and Dothan were bottle-shaped pits designed to collect rainwater. They were deep, dark, and nearly impossible for a person to climb out of by themselves. But again, the question is not what does the cistern look like. The question is what does it do in the story? Functionally, the cistern acts as a grave. It communicates death by throwing Joseph into the cistern. The brothers are symbolically killing him. His life as a son of Jacob's household is over. His place in the family is gone. Brotherhood is broken, and identity is stripped away. To a Middle Eastern reader, Joseph is as good as dead. This is not just a physical pit. It is the death of Joseph's former life.

Caravan Timing And Divine Orchestration

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Then we encounter the caravan. From a Western perspective, the caravan seems like a convenient plot device. Oh look, here comes a group of traders at the perfect right moment. But to a Middle Eastern reader, there is nothing random about this. Dothan sits along the major international trade route. Caravans pass through regularly. So the caravan itself isn't surprising, but the timing is everything. A Middle Eastern sees this timing as divine orchestration. God is the one who moved the brothers to Dothan. God is the one who sent Joseph to find them. God is the one who brought the caravan toward Egypt at the exact moment the brothers were deciding Joseph's fate. To a Middle Eastern reader, this text's a screaming destiny. God's plan is unfolding even in the midst of human sin. What the brothers intended for harm, God was already re redirecting toward his greater purposes.

The Goat As Substitute And Signal

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Which brings us to the goat. At first glance, the goat seems like a minor detail, an unfortunate animal caught in a family lie. But again we ask, what is the goat doing in the story? Functionally, the goat becomes a substitute. Joseph is supposed to be dead. The brothers wanted to kill him. But instead of Joseph's blood, the brothers bring the blood of a goat. This is not accidental. Throughout scripture, goats and blood are often associated with covering sin, deception, and act of substitutions. The goat's blood allows the brothers to present a false death to their father while avoiding the guilt of actually killing Joseph. The goat dies in Joseph's place. The goat functions as a visual lie, but also as a theological whisper. Whether the brothers realized it or not, this moment echoes a pattern that will repeat throughout the biblical story. Innocent blood spilled to cover guilt, a substitute standing in for the condemned, death being declared even when a person is still alive.

Trading Western Answers For Deeper Questions

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Now that we know to look for the function of the object in the narrative, let's talk about questions to ask about this text. In the West, when we read scripture, we are trained almost instinctively to look for resolution. We ask questions like, what does this mean? What should I do? How does this apply to my life right now? And those are not bad questions. They're just Western ones. In the ancient Near Eastern world, readers approached scripture very differently. Instead of rushing toward answers, they were comfortable sitting inside tension and mystery. They weren't looking for quick application, they were looking for meaning and purpose. So instead of asking, how does this apply to me? they ask, why would God do that? If we read Genesis 37 through Western eyes, God can feel strangely absent. In this passage, God never speaks. There is no angel, no dream interpretation, no miracle, no burning bush, no voice of heaven. And to a Western reader, we often respond to the story saying, Where is God in all of this? But a Middle Eastern reader would never ask that question. Because a Middle Eastern reader always assumes God is already present. They assume God is already active. Silence does not mean absence, it means hidden sovereignty. So instead of asking, where is God? They ask, why would God do that? Why would he orchestrate the story in this way? So let's take a minute and sit inside the questions the original audience would have asked about this passage. Number one, why would God give Joseph dreams that provoke his brothers? God is revealing Joseph's calling before Joseph understands what it will

Six Why-God Questions Explored

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cost him. The dreams are not given to comfort Joseph, they are given to mark him. In the Middle Eastern worldview, calling often comes before character formation. And the gap between the two is where suffering lives. God shows Joseph the end of the story before Joseph is ready for the journey. Number two, why would God send Joseph to find his brothers miles away from home? Because God is not sending Joseph to his brothers. He's guiding Joseph to the place where his transformation will begin. Joseph does not wander into Dotham by accident. This is the moment where childhood ends and his calling begins. In Middle Eastern thought, geography is never random. God moves his people into places that shape them. Number three, why would God allow the brothers' jealousy to escalate into violence? God doesn't prevent human sin, but he weaves it into his redemptive purposes. The brothers are fully responsible for their actions. But God is already working through what they mean for harm. In the Middle Eastern view, redemption does not erase the sin, it overcomes it. Number four, why would God time the arrival of the caravan at the exact moment Joseph is in the pit? Because in the Middle Eastern mind, timing is never coincidence. It is choreography. A caravan is not late, it's not early, it arrives exactly the moment it needs to. Ancient readers did not think, wow, what great luck. They thought God is moving. Number five, why would God send Joseph to Egypt of all places? Much like the caravan, Egypt is not random. Egypt is the only nation in the ancient world with the agricultural infrastructure to survive a multi-year famine. God is not just preparing to save Joseph, He's preparing to save the nations. Joseph's suffering is already being positioned as provision. Number six, why would God allow Joseph to be rejected by the people who should have loved him most? Because sometimes the very people who push you away are the ones God uses to push you into your calling. Middle Eastern faith understands that rejection is often the doorway into transformation. What feels like abandonment is sometimes divine redirection. When we ask the Middle Eastern question, why would God do that? Joseph's story moves from a random tragedy to intentional design. God is not absent in Genesis 37. He is operating in quiet sovereignty. The original audience is not asking why would God allow Joseph to suffer. They're asking, what is God preparing Joseph for? Middle Eastern faith assumes purpose before explanation.

Purpose Before Explanation

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Now, there are a few more Middle Eastern lens questions that I want to go through with you. But this episode is also getting a little long. So we're gonna pause here and then I will post another episode shortly that we can continue on in this discussion because there is so much more to the Middle Eastern lens. But until next time, remember every story in the Bible is intentional. Every detail is significant, every person is critical. This is the greatest story ever told. And if we take the time to slow down and pay attention, we will experience God like never before. See you next time. Thank you for listening to The Rabbi Way. This episode was written and produced by me, Vic Harman. Music is historic cinematic adventure by Dimitri Taras. If you enjoyed this episode, please like, subscribe, and review the show. It really does help us out. For more details about the show, be sure to follow us on all social media at

Closing And Next Steps

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TheRabbiWay. You can email us questions to the Rabbiway at gmail.com. See you next time. Bye.