Father." (John xv. 24.) And not only had the Jews hated Jesus, but they hated Him without a cause. Speaking of their hatred, the Lord said—"This cometh to pass, that the Word might be fulfilled, they hated Me without a cause." (25.)
While the brethren of Joseph represented the Jewish people in general, they represented the rulers among the Jews in particular; for the twelve sons of Jacob represented the same as the twelve apostles—the leaders and teachers of the people. Hence the sons of Jacob are spoken of as feeding their father's flock; and you know that in the divine Word the Lord's people are often called His sheep and His flock, and their ministers and teachers are called shepherds; and among us it is common to call ministers pastors, that is, shepherds.
When Joseph was sent by his father to see his brethren, they had gone to feed their father's flock in Shechem. And when Jacob sent his son away he said to him—"Go, I pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brethren, and with the flocks." And so Joseph went with a message of peace, on an errand of love
