Hi Mike,

I was listening to the Revelation series, and I just started on the first part you did on chapter 1, verse 10. What you read in Num 13:31 and 32 reminded me of what Joseph did back in Gen 37:2:

Gen 37:2 These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brothers; and the boy was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives: and Joseph brought to his father their evil ‘report’ [ slander].

It looks to me like Joseph slandered his brothers. I’m not saying that his brothers weren’t doing wrong, but that Joseph probably embellished [ in a negative way] what they were doing. It’s clear that he was Jacob’s favorite [ coat of many colors] and that God had revealed things [ the dreams] to Joseph that he had not revealed to the others. It seems to me that Joseph might have become a little “full of himself” [ ego] because of all that had been given to him. I can’t see that it says he was told to share [ or not share] this information with his family.
His brothers were already jealous of him because they knew their dad favored him. Then, as a seventeen year old kid, he started rubbing it in their faces. It is true that you reap what you sow. Joseph was “conceived in sin” [ dust of the earth] like the rest of us, so he had to go through what we all have to go through.
What I’m saying here, Mike, is I believe that Joseph reaped what he had sown when he was thrown into the pit and then sold into slavery. Then later, his brothers reaped what they had sown [ by doing what they did to Joseph] when they got to Egypt.
I looked up the word, ‘evil report’ on e- Sword. It’s only used ten times. Three of those times is it translated, ‘report’:

dibba h
Total KJV Occurrences: 10
report, 3
Gen 37:2, Num 13:32, Num 14:37
slander, 3
Num 14:36, Psa_31:13, Pro_10:18
infamy, 2
Pro 25:10, Eze 36:3
defaming, 1
Jer 20:10
evil, 1
Num 13:32

According to Strong’s Concordance, the word(s) listed before the colon (:) are, “Then comes the etymology, root meaning and common uses of the word along with any other important related details.” [ page iv under, “Plan of the Hebrew and Aramaic Dictionary” under 4.]
The word is dibbah, H1681 If the above is true, the root meaning is, “ slander”:

H1681
dibba h
dib- baw’
From H1680 (in the sense of furtive motion); slander : – defaming, evil report, infamy, slander.

Here are 2 of the 3 verses [ the other is above, Gen 37:2] in which it’s rendered, ‘report’. The other verse below [Num 14:36] is [ I believe] rendered properly as “slander”:

Num 13:32 And they brought up an ‘evil report’ [ slander] of the land which they had searched to the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eats up the inhabitants of it; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. [Rev 13:4]
Num 14:36 And the men, who Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and caused all the crowd to complain against him, by bringing up a “slander” on the land,
Num 14;37 Even those men who did bring up the evil ‘report’ [ slander] on the land, died by the plague before ‘the LORD’.

I’ve looked up all of the other verses in which this word is used. They all [ I believe] could have been rendered, “slander”.
I have no desire to add to the word. However, I know that we all have to go through God’s wrath, every bit of it. Also, we are all deserving of God’s wrath. Job didn’t think he deserved it, but he did. Isn’t part of that “reaping what you sow’? I believe that Joseph was just reaping what he had sown.
If I’m in error on this, please set me straight. It’s not about me being “right”; it’s about the word being “right/ true” and every man a liar.

Your brother in Christ,
C____

Hi C____,

Thank you for bringing the meaning of the Hebrew word ‘dibbah’ to my attention. I honestly never realized that the meaning of that word is ‘slander’. So thank you for doing that.
But I must point out to you that we are not told that Joseph slandered his brothers.

Joh 1:42 And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.
Act 9:36 Now there was at Joppa a certain disciple named Tabitha, which by interpretation is called Dorcas: this woman was full of good works and almsdeeds which she did.
Act 13:6 And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus:
Act 13:7 Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God.
Act 13:8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith.
Heb 7:1 For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him;
Heb 7:2 To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;

What the scriptures do say, and for this I thank you, is that Joseph brought to his father the evil slandering of his brothers:

Gen 37:2 These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report [ slander].

It was “their evil” which caused them to hate their brother who refused to take part in “their evil slander”. Just as you or I refuse to slander our heavenly Father by telling others that our heavenly Father has every intention of burning people in hell fire for all eternity, Joseph’s brothers were also slandering, and Joseph simply brought “their evil report [ slander]” to His father.
I hope this helps you to see who was doing the slandering, and I want to thank you for helping me to see that it was indeed slander as opposed to selling off their father’s sheep behind his back, as I have always supposed it to be.

Your brother in the Christ,
Mike