We jump ahead about a year from the close of chapter 42.
Joseph’s been in Egypt for over 20 years.
He was 17 when his brothers sold him into slavery (Genesis 37:2).
For 13 long, hard, years, as a slave and as a prisoner, Joseph honored God.
At age 30 God promoted him from the prison to the
palace, 2nd in command over all of Egypt. (Gen. 41:46).
Now, Joseph’s around 39. Egypt has gone through 7
years of prosperity, and now they’re in the 2nd year of the 7 years
of famine.
It was happening just as spoken by the Lord through
Joseph when he interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams.
Over 20 years Joseph’s father Jacob thought his son
was dead.
Over 20 years Joseph’s brothers lived with the lie
about what they had done.
It’s been about a year since the brothers showed up at
Joseph’s door bowed down, begging for bread. Well, all the brothers but one, the
youngest, Benjamin, (about 29) Joseph’s only full-blooded brother.
Joseph knew them, but they did not recognize him. (Maybe
it was due to the Egyptian garb, the guy-liner, and he used an interpreter, or
perhaps their guilty conscience clouded the obvious).
Joseph accused them of being spies.
Nevertheless, he sent them back home loaded with
grain, and all the money they paid secretly stuffed back in their sack.
Well, sent them all, but one.
Joseph, the second youngest, held Simeon, the second
oldest, as ransom until they returned, with the youngest, Benjamin.
This was to test and prove that their
words were true, that Benjamin was alive and well.
As Ronald Reagan would say: Trust but verify.
Now the famine was severe
in the land. 2 And
it came to pass, when they had eaten up the grain which they had brought from
Egypt, that their father said to them, “Go back, buy us a little food.”
Famine, nothing coming in, nothing growing up. They had grain, but no rain. So, the seed was used for feed.
They ate it
instead of planting it.
Do you know what that’s like? Living off
savings with nothing coming in can cause a pile to dwindle quickly.
The Dead Sea is dead because it consumes
everything, gives nothing.
Famine is like that.
Spiritual famine comes like that.
The Word of God preached week after week. It
goes in, never out. Bibles sit, in every corner, dusty, unopened.
Some famines are man-made. Most are the
result of the curse. A few are sent by God.
Like this one. God warned of it through a
couple dreams. He used Joseph to interpret the dreams and prepare the nation.
He’s using His Word and the ever-increasing
signs of the times, to declare His glory and send His warning, to prepare all
nations for the soon coming 7 years of famine, tribulation, soon to hit this
planet.
Israel had no idea that the very grain that
kept them alive was by the hand of his son, that he thought was long sense dead.
None of them would’ve guessed that the very
famine they thought might kill them, was used by God to direct their divine
destiny. We’ll talk more about that later.
All they knew for sure was that the cupboards
were getting bare, so, it was time to go, to the only food warehouse in the world still open—Egypt.
3 But Judah spoke to him, saying, “The
man solemnly warned us, saying, ‘You shall not see my face unless your brother
is with you.’ 4 If you send our brother with us, we will go down and buy you
food. 5 But if you will not send him, we will not go down; for the man said to
us, ‘You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you.’”
Notice, Judah spoke this time.
They must’ve stuck a sock in Ruben's mouth for his
hair-brain idea last time. (Genesis 42:37).
Judah made it crystal clear. There’s only one way to see the
man and survive the famine: Benjamin must go.
Benjamin means, son of my right hand.
Friends, there is only One Way to see The
Man, and survive the famine of this life: The Son, seated at
right hand of the Father.
6 And Israel said, “Why did
you deal so wrongfully with me as to tell the man whether
you had still another brother?”
7 But they said, “The man
asked us pointedly about ourselves and our family, saying, ‘Is your father
still alive? Have you another brother?’ And we told him
according to these words. Could we possibly have known that he would say,
‘Bring your brother down’?”
Notice, Joseph’s questions reflect his love
and are clues for his family as to his true identity.
8 Then Judah said to Israel his father,
“Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go, that we may live and not die,
both we and you and also our little ones. 9 I myself will be surety for him;
from my hand you shall require him. If I do not bring him back to you and set
him before you, then let me bear the blame forever. 10 For if we had not
lingered, surely by now we would have returned this second time.”
Remember, Ruben, the first born, had offered to sacrifice
his two sons if he didn't bring Benjamin back. Genesis 42:37.
Judah offered himself. I will be surety, guarantee,
let me bear the blame, the burden, forever.
Judah didn’t offer death like Ruben, he offered life, his
life, forever.
Firstborn Religious Ruben, a shadow of the Law, with its
sacrifices and offerings that’d never take away sin or give Life.
Judah, from whom came the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Jesus
Christ, our Savior and Lord, who offered Himself as the sacrifice, the surety,
the guarantee, the burden bearer to carry our blame and sin and shame, forever.
Hebrews 10:5-7; Psalm 40:6-8.
“Sacrifice and offering You did not desire,
But a body You have prepared for Me.
6 In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin
You had no pleasure.
7 Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come—
In the volume of the book it is written of Me—
To do Your will, O God.’ ”
Isaiah 53:4-6
Surely He has borne our griefs
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But He was wounded for our
transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one, to his own way;
And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
11 And their father Israel
said to them, “If it must be so, then do this: Take some of the best
fruits of the land in your vessels and carry down a present for the man—a
little balm and a little honey, spices and myrrh, pistachio nuts and
almonds.
These gifts were what they had available in their land of Canaan, but
not so much available in Egypt.
Proverbs 18:16, your gift will make room for you.
Prov. 21:14, a gift pacifies anger.
Jacob knew the power of presents
from experience with Esau.
12 Take double money in
your hand, and take back in your hand the money that was returned
in the mouth of your sacks; perhaps it was an oversight.
Jacob passes the integrity test.
Take double the money; to buy new grain, and return the original
money, in case it was a mistake.
(NOTE: The quoted translation is New King James Version. This and the
King James Version, may seem to imply they are to take triple the money.
However, the original Hebrew text clearly implies taking double the
money.)
13 Take your brother also, and
arise, go back to the man.
If only he knew the man, was his boy.
14 And may
God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may release your
other brother and Benjamin. If I am bereaved, I am bereaved!”
Jacob commits to the hard truth of what must be done. And
come what may, submits to the hand of the Almighty.
If I am bereaved, I am bereaved. Like in Esther 4:16,
if I perish, I perish.
Whatever happens, happens. Lord, I’m trusting you,
stepping out of this boat and onto the water. If I sink, I sink.
God Almighty will show more than mercy but bless them
above and beyond their wildest dreams, by fulfilling the dreams He told them through
Joseph when he was young.
15 So the men took that present and
Benjamin, and they took double money in their hand, and arose and went down to
Egypt; and they stood before Joseph. 16 When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he
said to the steward of his house, “Take these men to my home, and slaughter an
animal and make ready; for these men will dine with me at noon.”
Picture the scene when Joseph sees his brothers, especially his younger
brother Benjamin.
His eyes get wide, he gets a lump in his throat, his heart skips a beat,
he bites his tongue to keep from shouting, “Benny!” He must stay his feet from
running to him and hugging him and putting a robe on his back and a ring on his
finger.
But like the prodigal son’s father (Luke 15:23) he can’t help but tell
his steward to take my brothers—I mean, these men, to my house and kill
that fatted calf so we can do lunch at noon.
17 Then the man did as Joseph ordered, and the man
brought the men into Joseph’s house.
18 Now the men were afraid because they were
brought into Joseph’s house; and they said, “It is because of the money, which
was returned in our sacks the first time, that we are brought in, so that he
may make a case against us and seize us, to take us as slaves with our
donkeys.”
19 When they drew near to the steward of Joseph’s
house, they talked with him at the door of the house, 20 and said, “O sir, we
indeed came down the first time to buy food; 21 but it happened, when we came
to the encampment, that we opened our sacks, and there, each man’s money was in
the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight; so we have brought it back in
our hand. 22 And we have brought down other money in our hands to buy food. We
do not know who put our money in our sacks.”
Well done boys. They passed the honesty test. Rather than
pocketing the extra money they came clean, spilled the beans about the extra
money.
What would’ve happened if they tried to keep the money?
Would what they feared have come upon them?
Thankfully they did the right thing.
Remember, when something like that happens, it’s a test.
Pass the test.
It’s just a penny.
Doesn’t matter. It’s the principle. Do the right thing. Pass
the test.
Yeah, but, it’s the IRS, it’s not cheating if it’s—
Doesn’t matter. It’s the principle. Do the right thing.
Pass the test.
Passing tests leads to promotion. Flunking tests lead to
one more trip around the wilderness mountain.
23 But he said, “Peace be with
you, do not be afraid. Your God and the God of your father
has given you treasure in your sacks; I had your money.” Then he
brought Simeon out to them.
This Egyptian is talking like a Hebrew, or an angel. “Peace be with
you, do not be afraid.”
Joseph must’ve told him stories about Abraham, Isaac and his father
Jacob and their encounters with His God.
He used their name, the Hebrew name for God, Elohim. And he gave Him
credit for the money in their sacks.
I had your money.
Yeah, you had it, until you stuck it back in their sacks.
Have you ever done that? We got your money, you paid us. We’re just not
going to cash the check.
Notice they told them the story at the door of the house (verse
19).
Then, he brought Simeon out to them.
Apparently, Simeon was in the house, not a dungeon.
Imagine the steward calls over his shoulder, “Hey Sim—you’ve got company”
Sim walks up, a bucket of popcorn in one hand, a TV remote in the other.
He drops the popcorn, “Hey guys! C’mon in. Sorry Stew, I’ll clean that
up.”
He hugs his bros.
Stew says, “Sure you will” and starts cleaning up sloppy Sim’s mess.
24 So the man brought the men into Joseph’s house
and gave them water, and they washed their feet; and he gave their donkeys
feed. 25 Then they made the present ready for Joseph’s coming at noon, for they
heard that they would eat bread there.
So, they prepared to meet the man by preparing
the present.
Remember dad told them to bring some fruits, balm, honey,
spices, myrrh, pistachio, almonds.
We are to be preparing to meet The Man, like a
bride prepares to meet her Groom.
26 And when Joseph came home,
they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house,
and bowed down before him to the earth.
Dreams coming true. Genesis 37:7-11.
Surely Joseph remembered the dreams of the sheaves bowing to his, and
the sun, moon, and stars bowing to too.
But he didn’t lord it over them. Instead, he remained humble.
27 Then he asked them
about their well-being, and said, “Is your father well, the old
man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?”
Joesph's humble, caring, heart shows.
He asks about their well-being, and about dad,
"the old man."
28 And they answered, “Your
servant our father is in good health; he is still
alive.” And they bowed their heads down and prostrated themselves.
29 Then he lifted his eyes and
saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and said, “Is this
your younger brother of whom you spoke to me?” And he said, “God be
gracious to you, my son.”
The last time Joseph saw him, Benjamin he was
only about 7. Now, he’s around 29.
Nevertheless, Joseph knew exactly who he was.
It doesn’t say, but listen real close, and we
can probably hear the quiver in Joseph’s voice, and see the tears in his eyes as he
whispers, “God be gracious to you, my son.”
30 Now his heart yearned for his brother; so
Joseph made haste and sought somewhere to weep. And he went into his chamber
and wept there.
The KJV puts it like this: “And Joseph made haste; for his bowels
did yearn upon his brother: and he sought where to weep; and he entered
into his chamber, and wept there.”
Try that next time you see someone you haven’t seen in a while. “I’m
so happy to see you my bowels did move—” on second thought, scratch that.
31 Then he washed his face and
came out; and he restrained himself, and said, “Serve the bread.”
Washed his face, because the guy-liner was running?
32 So they set him a place by
himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by
themselves; because the Egyptians could not eat food with the Hebrews, for
that is an abomination to the Egyptians.
Three separate tables. Joseph. The brothers. The Egyptians.
Segregation.
This is important.
None of them would’ve guessed that the very
famine they thought might kill them, was used by God to direct their Divine
destiny (See, I told you we’d talk it later).
The Egyptians thought they were superior from all other races. Thus, they
segregated more than any other people on the planet.
God used this nation Egypt, to build His new nation, Israel, from
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
You see, Egypt became the incubator for isolating Israel to grow up and grow strong without intermarrying and assimilating with other nations.
SIDENOTE: At this dinner, Joseph and crew were seated at three tables and Joseph served his brothers. At the Last Supper, Jesus and His brothers (disciples), were seated at a three sectioned table called a triclinium, and He served His brothers.
33 And they sat before him,
the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to
his youth; and the men looked in astonishment at one another.
That had to freak them out a bit. How’d he
know?
Joseph seemed to be laying out one clue after
another, trying to reveal his identity. The way he asked about their well-being,
their other brother, their father, the way he returned their money, the way he seated
them, showing them, he knows them.
Like how the Lord leaves His fingerprint with every sunrise and sunset, His Love that fills us, His wisdom that guides us, His Word being fulfilled right before our very eyes. His comfort, His healing, His joy, His peace that passes understanding.
All clues to show us how much He loves us, how well He knows us.
34 Then he took servings to
them from before him, but Benjamin’s serving was five times as much as any
of theirs. So they drank and were merry with him.
It was customary for the guest of honor to
receive more than the others.
Five times more was reserved for
nobility and royalty.
Jesus at the last supper, honored His
disciples, served them, even washed their feet.
So, they ate with him and drank with him and
were merry with him. All together like one big, noisy, messy, happy family.
Joseph planned and prepared and provided and
made it all happen.
Like Jesus has planned and prepared and
provided for us to sit with Him at the Great Marriage Supper of the Lamb.
Are you ready?
Let’s pray.
Lord Jesus, we look forward to Your soon to
come reunion. The one You planned and prepared and provided for all of us to attend.
We pray we, and all those You’ve given us,
are ready.
If not, help us Lord, here and now, to get
ready, to prepare our hearts to meet You face to face.
Help us recognize the daily clues You give us,
as to Your True Identity. So we know You when we see You, and will hear You
say, “Well done.”
We love You, forever.
Amen.
Prayer
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