SSL 11 - Gen. 45:1-15
Last Week: In Gen. 41:15-40 we covered the story of Joseph being called out of prison before Pharaoh to interpret two dreams and how, after hearing his interpretations and his recommenddations for dealing with the seven years of famine foretold by the dreams, Pharaoh appointed him to a position of power in Egypt second only to Pharaoh himself. We derived four main points of application from this lesson: 1. We should honor God by remembering that He is the true source of all our success. Like Joseph, if any of us are praised for something for which God alone deserves the credit, we should boldly give the honor to God, not ourselves. 2. We should honor God by bearing witness to His sovereignty over all things. Like Joseph, we shouldn't be hesitant to tell lost people that God created everything in the entire universe and exercises sovereign control over all of it. 3. We should always be careful to keep godly character above our ambition. Like Joseph, we should never put our personal agenda above God's agenda. Whether our endeavors are for the church, the home, or the workplace, we should always put God's standards of personal character over our personal ambitions. 4. We should always develop our competence alongside godly character. Joseph was not only a godly man but was very good at what he did. As Christians, we need to develop competence for the job that goes hand-in-hand with our Christian character. We need both. We need to be godly, but we also need to be good in doing what we do.
This Week: In Gen. 45:1-15 we will hear the story about Joseph revealing himself to his brothers. In order to understand the context, we'll need some background from Chapters 42-44. Shortage of food in Canaan forced Jacob to send all of his sons except Benjamin to Egypt to buy grain. When the brothers appeared before Joseph, he recognized them but concealed himself. After accusing them of being spies, he held Simeon hostage and sent the others back to Canaan with the demand that they would return with Benjamin. He told his servants to fill their bags with grain and include the money they had paid. When the brothers discovered this, they were afraid they would be accused of theft. Upon their return, Jacob was against allowing Benjamin to go back to Egypt with them, but as the famine worsened, he reluctantly allowed Benjamin go with them. When the brothers arrived back in Egypt, they were unexpectedly invited to dine at Joseph's house. Taken by surprise, they were worried that this might be a trick to enslave them because of the money they had previously found in their sacks. When they told him about the money and tried to return it to him, Joseph told them that he'd been paid, but that the God of their father put the treasure in their sacks (43:23). When the brothers were ready to return home again, Joseph had the servants fill their sacks with grain and again, put the money they'd paid, and he also had his silver cup put in Benjamin's sack. He then accused the brothers of stealing the cup as a pretext for keeping Benjamin as a slave (44:14). Judah offered to stay in Egypt as a slave in Benjamin's place. It is at this point that today's text begins.
Read Gen. 45:1-3 - I AM JOSEPH! IS MY FATHER STILL ALIVE?
1 Then Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by him, and he cried, "Have everyone go out from me." So there was no man with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. 2 He wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard of it. 3 Then Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?" But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed [terrified] at his presence.
Comment: Verses 1-15 are the key to the wider Joseph story. At this point, Joseph is in a position of total authority, second only to Pharaoh. He enjoys Pharaoh's complete trust and can do whatever he chooses to do with his brothers without due process of law. At a word, he could order them execute-ed, imprisoned, or enslaved, and it would be carried out immediately. But Joseph is subject to God's authority, and his understanding of God's providential purposes will control his actions.
v. 1: "Then Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by him, and he cried, "Have everyone go out from me." So there was no man with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers." - On this occasion, Joseph remained in the room with his brothers, but sends everyone else away so that he can encounter his brothers in private and keep it a family affair.
v. 2: "He wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard of it" - Even though Joseph's servant had vacated the room, they remained nearby in case he might call them back and give them orders. In his two previous encounters with his brothers, when he concealed his identity, he was so overcome with emotion both times, he had to leave the room. But now, he literally explodes with all the tears and sobs he'd been holding back. The brothers must have been thoroughly confused by this outburst, wondering if their host had become unbalanced.
v. 3: "Then Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?" But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed [terrified] at his presence." - At last, Joseph reveals his identity to his brothers. As he has been away for over 20 years, his first concern is for his father, who is possibly dead by now. The brothers, understandably, are stunned into silence. In their wildest imaginations, they would never have guessed their little brother would become governor of all Egypt! Ironically, Joseph's dreams in Gen. 37:5-9, the ones they hated him for, had suddenly become reality.
TRUTH 1: Like Joseph here, it is often the wronged person who must take the initiative towards reconciliation. When someone wrongs you, you have choices to make. Many people in Joseph's situation would remain bitter and antagonistic toward those who wronged them. But you can respond as Joseph did. He made a choice before God to forgive his brothers and trust God to deal with them to right the wrongs. To forgive mean you choose to absorb the pain and loss caused to you by the other person, and they go free, even when they don't deserve it-that's grace.
Read Gen. 45:4-8 - GOD SENT ME TO PRESERVE LIFE
4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, "Please come closer to me." And they came closer. And he said, "I am your brother Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. 5 Now do not be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. 6 For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are still five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. 7 God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant in the earth, and to keep you alive by a great deliverance. 8 Now, therefore, it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh and lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
v. 4: "Then Joseph said to his brothers, "Please come closer to me." And they came closer. And he said, "I am your brother Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt." - While Joseph affirms his "brother" connection with them, he makes it perfectly clear that he hasn't forgotten their treachery in selling him into slavery which brought him to Egypt. These words must have hit them like a thunderclap.
v. 5: "Now do not be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life." - In this dramatic announcement, Joseph assures his brothers he won't hold them accountable for their previous actions. Still getting over their shock, the brother's first reaction to this statement may have been disbelief; that he was playing a mean joke on them. Then Joseph goes on to explain to them that God had a broader purpose in their thoughtless and cruel act. While God didn't cause them to sin in the first instance, He simply turned the effects of their sin from bad to good, a moment of pure grace. The term "to preserve life" will be further clarified in v. 7.
v. 6: "For the famine has beenin the land these two years, and there are still five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting." - This means that seven years have elapsed since Pharaoh appointed Joseph governor, which puts him at age 39-22 years after being sold as a slave.
v.7: "God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant in the earth, and to keep you alive by a great deliverance." - The Bible uses the term "remnant" in three senses: (1) a historical remnant refers to the survivors of a catastrophe; (2) a faithful remnant includes those who survived the wilderness wanderings to enter the Promised Land as reported in Joshua and the Jews who returned from Babylonian Captivity reported in Nehemiah and Ezra; and (3) an eschatological remnant refers to those saved during the end times who become recipients of the everlasting kingdom. Joseph's brothers, who had not been faithful to God, constituted a historical remnant. Although they had not been destroyed, they had escaped a great threat to their existence-the famine-and would form the remnant that would grow into a nation-the 12 tribes.
v. 8: "Now, therefore, it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh and lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt. - For the third time, Jacob emphasizes that it was not them who sent him to Egypt, but God (vv. 5 and 7); and Joseph also gives God all the credit for his rise to power. The term "father to Pharaoh" signified a title of honor given to a high official (scholars note it was an Egyptian word having no literal translation).
TRUTH 2: Like Joseph, we should learn to relate God to every event in our life, whether it is good or bad. Joseph had some very bad things happen to him-sold into slavery, thrown into prison-along with some very good things-Potiphar's chief steward, governor of Egypt. Joseph related all of these events to God, both the good and the bad. To do this, you must look past what seem to be the primary causes-the people-and look to God, who is really primary because He is sovereign, in control of every event, and behind each, He has a purpose. This is really a matter of the heart, where you trust that God is good and is always in control. The only other option is to view life as a matter of chance, fate, luck, or whatever. As Christians, we need to move past this way of thinking.
Read Gen. 45:9-15 - JOSEPH PROVIDES FOR HIS FATHER AND BROTHERS
9 Hurry and go up to my father, and say to him, 'Thus says your son Joseph, "God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay.10 You shall live in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children's children and your flocks and your herds and all that you have. 11 There I will also provide for you, for there are still five years of famine to come, and you and your household and all that you have would be impoverished."' 12 Behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see, that it is my mouth which is speaking to you. 13 Now you must tell my father of all my splendor in Egypt, and all that you have seen; and you must hurry and bring my father down here." 14 Then he fell on his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck. 15 He kissed all his brothers and wept on them, and afterward his brothers talked with him.
9: "Hurry and go up to my father, and say to him, 'Thus says your son Joseph, "God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay." - Notice that Joseph, accustomed to giving orders, doesn't invite but commands them to come to Egypt, but gives it with a feeling of welcome.
v. 10-11: "You shall live in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children's children and your flocks and your herds and all that you have.11 There I will also provide for you, for there are still five years of famine to come, and you and your household and all that you have would be impoverished."' - The exact location of Goshen is uncertain today but is thought to have been in the Nile Delta near where it empties into the Mediterranean Sea, a very fertile area enriched by silt deposits-prime land. Although Goshen was normally fertile, Joseph gives them the assurance that he will provide for them because he knew the land would not produce enough to enable them to survive the five years of famine remaining.
v. 12: "Behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see, that it is my mouth which is speaking to you." - Joseph is no longer using an interpreter but speaking to them in Hebrew, so that they might recognize his voice. He would have been much changed and attired like a ruler, but by his voice and mannerisms, they would know that this is indeed their long lost brother, Joseph.
v. 13: "Now you must tell my father of all my splendor in Egypt, and all that you have seen; and you must hurry and bring my father down here."- Joseph opened his speech with concern for his father and now closes with it. Rather than boasting, he wants his father to know of his success so he will not be indecisive about coming to Egypt.
vv. 14-15: "Then he fell on his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck. 15 He kissed all his brothers and wept on them, and afterward his brothers talked with him." - As the only two sons of Rachel, Joseph and Benjamin were most beloved by Jacob. As Benjamin had had no mother since birth, he and Joseph had probably been very close. v. 15 depicts the ultimate proof of reconciliation-Joseph goes from being in command of them to removing all of the barriers between them with genuine love, affection, and interaction.
TRUTH 3: Joseph shows us that the key to reconciliation is your attitude and the key to your attitude is your willingness to submit yourself to the sovereign God. The truly remarkable thing about Joseph's life was not his brilliance or his administrative genius. It was his attitude in response to the gross injustice of the terrible wrongs committed against him. And the reason for this attitude was his relationship to the sovereign God. Joseph trusted and depended upon God completely.
Gen. 50 - POSTSCRIPT: When Jacob dies and is buried (50:1-14), the brother's fears that Joseph will seek revenge against them for selling him into slavery return. When they begged him for forgiveness, Joseph said this to them:
But Joseph said to them, "Do not be afraid, for am I in God's place? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. So therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones." So he comforted them and spoke kindly to them. Gen. 50:19-21.
