《舊約》中，牧首雅各與其妻拉結之子。約瑟最得父親寵愛，他獲贈一件耀眼的“綵衣”（coat of many colors，原字面意義爲“長袖外衣”〔coat with flowing sleeves〕），令兄長們十分嫉妒。兄長們將約瑟賣往埃及當奴隸，但跟雅各說約瑟遭野獸所害。在埃及，由於解夢的能力，以及取得穀物補給讓埃及度過饑荒，約瑟受到了法老賞識且擔任高官。當饑荒迫使雅各派遣兒子們到埃及購買穀物，家族與約瑟和解，並定居埃及。約瑟的故事，記載於〈創世記〉第37～50章，描寫了以色列民族的留存，開啓以色列人在埃及的歷史，〈出埃及記〉繼續了這段歷史。 In the Old Testament, the son of the patriarch Jacob and his wife, Rachel. He was favored by his father, and his brothers became bitterly jealous when he was given a resplendent “coat of many colors” (literally, coat with flowing sleeves). They sold him into slavery in Egypt, telling Jacob he had been killed by a wild beast. In Egypt Joseph gained favor with the pharaoh and rose to high office, owing to his ability to interpret dreams, and his acquisition of grain supplies enabled Egypt to withstand a famine. When famine forced Jacob to send his sons to Egypt to buy grain, the family was reconciled with Joseph and settled there. The story of Joseph, told in Genesis 37-50, depicts the preservation of Israel and begins the history of the Israelites in Egypt that is continued in Exodus.
