And his brethren went to feed their father’s flock in Shechem.
The brethren had gone to Shechem to feed their father's flock, away from home. They had to move from place to place for pasture and were often away from home for months at a time. Their presence near Shechem gave their father reason to fear for their safety because of their earlier cruelty toward its people, especially when he received no word from them. Because they were distant, their father sent Joseph to see whether they were well.
Joseph first searched where his father expected to find them at Shechem, then continued to Dothan when directed there by a man. He willingly undertook the long journey out of love for his brothers and to ease his father's worry and anxiety. His care and obedience were repaid with harm from his brothers. The movement in this verse began the train of events leading to separation from his father, when his brothers' cruelty at Dothan resulted in his capture and removal toward Egypt.
The brethren had gone to Shechem to feed their father's flock, away from home. They had to move from place to place for pasture and were often away from home for months at a time. Their presence near Shechem gave their father reason to fear for their safety because of their earlier cruelty toward its people, especially when he received no word from them. Because they were distant, their father sent Joseph to see whether they were well.
Joseph first searched where his father expected to find them at Shechem, then continued to Dothan when directed there by a man. He willingly undertook the long journey out of love for his brothers and to ease his father's worry and anxiety. His care and obedience were repaid with harm from his brothers. The movement in this verse began the train of events leading to separation from his father, when his brothers' cruelty at Dothan resulted in his capture and removal toward Egypt.