Good weekend to you my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends,
How can you discern if a person is telling you the truth? And are you able to tell if you are hearing the whole truth, the whole story, or just select portions intended to lead you to specific conclusions which shape your attitudes or actions? That was the challenge facing Joseph when, as Prime Minister of Egypt responsible for Famine management, Joseph was one day, suddenly, unexpectedly confronted with his brothers who had come to Egypt to buy food for their starving families! Remember we looked at that first encounter yesterday, found in Genesis 42.
Joseph, of course, had the advantage. He recognized his deceitful brothers, but they didn’t recognize Joseph. He was a mature man now, not a teenager. He was dressed in Egyptian royalty clothing, speaking the Egyptian language to his attendants and obviously a man with great authority, therefore these brothers assumed he was an Egyptian official who probably did not want to sell valuable Egyptian grain to these foreigners.
Joseph remembered these brothers had hated him so much they had thrown him into a pit and then sold him as a slave to a traveling caravan. (Gen. 37:28) But that was 22 years in the past. Had they changed? Were they different men now? Could they be trusted? Did they have a higher standard of morals and ethics? So, Joseph questioned them sternly, through an interpreter. (Gen. 42:6-15)
I’m sure their response to Joseph stirred up deep emotions: “We were 12 brothers, the sons of one man, who lives in the land of Canaan. The youngest is now with our father and one is no more.” (Gen. 42:13) Can you imagine what Joseph felt in that moment? Joseph’s Holy Spirit anointed wisdom led him to place a serious condition upon their receiving any grain in Egypt: “You are spies! And this is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here.” (Gen.42:15)
Eventually Joseph gave them the option to leave one brother in prison in Egypt while the others returned home with food for their families, but he warned them not to come back again seeking more food in Egypt without their youngest brother accompanying them. (Gen. 42:18-20) Interestingly as Joseph gave them this option he framed it with these words: “I fear God, if you are honest men, let one of your brothers stay here while the rest of you take grain back for your starving families…” (Gen. 42:18,19)
We don’t know what word Joseph used to describe “God”, nor if his brothers would have equated that with the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but it was a powerful statement indicating that Joseph’s ethics of governance were rooted in a deep respect for God. Now think about that a moment. In your city, wherever you live in the world, how many government leaders local, regional or national, do you believe are fulfilling their official roles with a ‘fear of God’? What difference would it make if they did? Did you also notice Joseph made it clear he was testing their integrity, ‘if you are honest men…”
Stunned and fearful the brothers began discussing among themselves what they were experiencing in the presence of this stern Egyptian official. They spoke, of course, in their own language, totally unaware that official understood every word they spoke! Overcome with emotion, Joseph had to step away for a moment to compose himself as he listened, but the brothers assumed he was busy and uninterested in their talk, which they were confident was not understood by him. (Gen. 42:22-24)
Upon his return Joseph pointed to one brother, Simeon, instructing his attendants to take him by force as the one who would be kept in prison awaiting the return of the other brothers. Can we imagine how that frightened the brothers and was a flashback to 22 years before when they had bound young Joseph, sold him as a slave, and watched him dragged away toward Egypt?
Then, speaking Egyptian, Joseph instructed the workers to fill these visitors’ sacks with grain but NOT take their money, instead put the money back in their sacks with the grain, but do so unseen by the brothers. Joseph abruptly waved his hand dismissing the brothers and went on tending to other transactions as Simeon was dragged off to prison.
The brothers headed out of town as quickly as possible. When they stopped for the night, one of them opened his sack to get some grain for his donkey and found his pouch of silver, which he had paid for grain, was in his sack! Their reaction is very interesting to me: “Their hearts sank and they turned to each other trembling and said, ‘what is this that God has done to us?” (Gen. 42:28)
I’m sure we’ve all heard the adage “be sure your sins will find you out”, and I wonder how that has been your experience in life; and how you’ve tried to explain it to your children and grandchildren? How often do you and I recognize God’s direct involvement in the very practical things happening in our lives, as they men were seeing it? Pause… when is the last time that happened to you?
Upon arrival back in Canaan, of course the brothers had quite a story to tell Jacob, and Simeon’s glaring absence needed explanation. Jacob was angry. ‘You have deprived me of my children. Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more and now you want to take Benjamin. Everything is against me!” (Gen. 42:35,36) Despite the assurances of his elder sons, Jacob was resolute.
Old Jacob would not allow his youngest Benjamin, the only remaining son of his beloved Rachel, to be taken down to Egypt. The discussion was over. Jacob was angry and grieving. But Jacob also knew the grain they had brought back would only last so long.
Let’s pause right here. I invite you to put yourself in the sandals of each person in this story… Jacob; the 9 brothers who had returned without Simeon; Benjamin the youngest; Simeon in prison in Egypt; and Joseph, Prime Minister of Egypt very busy with famine relief. As days turned to weeks, what do you think each of them was thinking about this apparent no-win situation?
Of course, from our vantage point, almost 4000 years later, we want to cry out to all of them, “TRUST GOD”! But in that moment, none of them knows the much bigger plan God is working here. It’s a powerful lesson for us isn’t it my friends, as we try to trust God in times when things are so uncertain, maybe even fearful?
Again, I urge you to consider the additional study notes below. Invite the Holy Spirit to lead you into deeper reflection about your life journey, especially if you’re in a time desperately needing guidance from God.
I found a new worship song that seems perfectly for this moment as we pray about how God might be working in the very complex situations in our lives today, and I’ll meet you here tomorrow, to see what God did next in Genesis 43.
Today’s Scripture: Genesis 42.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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