Genesis 37:22
And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again. And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again.
The verse belongs to the Dothan episode, when the brothers' cruel actions separated Joseph from his home and father. At that moment the brothers were planning to kill him, and Reuben intervened to save him from that intent. He urged them not to kill Joseph, to shed no blood, and to lay no hand upon him in violence, but to throw him alive into a pit in the wilderness.
Reuben's proposal was a stratagem to get Joseph out of his brothers' hands, so that he could later rescue him privately from the pit and return him to their father. He intended to come back alone, lift Joseph out, and bring him safely back to his father. He left the others because he feared his own feelings would betray his plan to rescue Joseph if he remained with them.
Instead of being killed, Joseph was thrown into the pit and then sold into slavery. The brothers acted to keep Joseph from gaining power over them, but God overruled their act and Joseph became a savior to his family. This foreshadows how Christ's enemies tried to keep Him from authority and put Him to death, yet their crime made Him the Redeemer of mankind, showing that God's providence can bring good from evil without lessening guilt. Joseph's experience likewise shows that one who is virtuous may be maligned, persecuted and treated like a criminal and suffer for doing right, yet God can give great victories.