Faith First Media

The following is an excerpt from the book Does the Bible Have Contradictions? by Matthew Elton, copyright 2009 Matthew Elton.

Did the Ishmaelites bring Joseph to Egypt (Genesis 37:28), or was it the Midianites (Genesis 37:36), or was it Joseph's brothers (Genesis 45:4)?

Genesis 37:28 tells us that the traveling merchants were made up of both Ishmaelites and Midianites. These merchants were the ones that brought Joseph to Egypt. Genesis 45:4 never says that Joseph’s brothers brought Joseph into Egypt. Rather, it says that they sold him into slavery in Egypt, and they did, by selling him to the merchants which then sold him to Potiphar in Egypt.