From a Slave to one who Saves (Gen. 41-46)

"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."  (James 1:2-4, ESV)

Do you remember this verse?  Those of you who were present for our first "read through the Bible" discussion during the Bible class hour may recall that I had you write this down in your notes and recommended you commit it to memory.  You may be more familiar with the NIV translation, which is why I chose this version to make you really pause and consider the words and their meaning. 

Read that verse again, with Joseph and all he has been through in mind.  I'm serious, read it again with Joseph in mind.

Now read it again and consider all the other patriarchs:  Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Do you see the truth of those words played out in their lives?  I sure do!  God and time are incredible teachers--the best.  God and lessons learned over time turned Jacob from a deceitful younger brother into a humble leader of God's chosen people.  God and time turned Joseph from a spoiled-rotten, bragging dreamer into a wise man of God ready to save the lives of many people.

I want to share with you what I have learned from Joseph's life:

1. Genesis 41:1 tells us how long Joseph was in jail after interpreting the cupbearer and baker's dreams.  He had asked the cupbearer to remember him and tell Pharoah about him, but the cupbearer forgot.  How long was Joseph in jail after that incident?
2. What does the cupbearer say to Pharoah when no one can interpret his dreams?  (Gen. 41:9)  Ouch.  I hate to be reminded of my shortcomings.
3. Things move pretty fast at this point, because Pharoah wants some answers.  What does Joseph say to Pharoah when he finally appears before him?  (Gen. 41:16)  That's called wisdom, my friend.  That's giving glory where glory is due.
4. Pharoah recognizes the wisdom of God in Joseph.  What does he say and do in Gen. 41:39-40?

Here is where I want you to pause and consider something. 

• Read Gen. 41:36.  How old was Joseph at this point?
• Go back to Gen. 37:2.  How old was Joseph when he was tending the flocks with his brothers and they sold him into slavery?
• Math quiz:  how many years was Joseph in slavery and jail in Egypt?  

Stop and think about that.  Really let that sink into your head.  Joseph was in slavery and jail for 13 years.  13 years!  What have you done with your life for the last 13 years that you would have missed if you had been in slavery and jail that whole time?  Crazy thought, isn't it?

Here's the clencher.  We don't read one single hint that Joseph was bitter or sat around pouting, complaining about the evil his brothers had done to him and how unjust his circusmstances were.  What did Joseph do, not having any idea how long he would be in slavery or jail?  What did he do when another year went by and it must have seemed even more hopeless?  What did he do when the cupbearer forgot to mention him to Pharoah? 

Joseph gave everyone his best.  Joseph gave God his best.  That's what he did.  He epitomized Colossians 3:23:  "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men."  Do you do that?

Go back and reflect on Gen. 39:3-6, 20-23.  This was the testimony of a great God working through a willing servant.  Sister, that is a recipe for being made "perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."  Oh that you and I would be so willing to endure trials of many kinds so that perseverance might be produced in us like Joseph!

Once again, under the authority of Pharoah, Joseph gives God his best.  He is responsible for saving the lives of all the Egyptians during the famine, as well as many people coming from all over to buy grain from him.  He also gets married and has two sons--Manasseh and Ephraim--who will be key players in the 12 tribes of Israel.

In chapter 42, the famine becomes so severe in Canaan that Jacob sends his 10 oldest sons to Egypt for grain.  Can you blame him for keeping Benjamin at home?  He's not going to make that mistake again and risk losing the only son he has left from Rachel.

1. What happens in Gen. 42:6?  Compare that with Gen. 37:5-11.  What just happened when Joseph's brothers came to get grain from him?  Never doubt what God has clearly told you, sister, even if it takes 13 years...or a lifetime...to come to fruition! 
2. What did Joseph do in Gen. 42:8-9?
3. What happens in vv. 22-24?

Can you even imagine being in Joseph's shoes at this moment?  The wave of emotions that swept over him as he saw his brothers for the first time in 13 years, remembered his dreams about them, remembered what they had done to him, and wondered about his father and younger brother Benjamin must have been like a tidal wave threatening to sweep him away.

Poor Jacob.  When his sons return home and explain the whole story, he is crushed.  His words make me so sad for him in Gen. 42:36.  Reuben is ready to make things right (remember when he convinced the brothers not to kill Joseph and had planned to bring him back to Jacob?), but Jacob is not about to let his youngest son out of his sight.

But the famine is severe, and they really need food.  So Judah does a noble thing as the one from whom our precious Savior would one day come. 

1. What does he say to his father Jacob in Gen. 43:9?
2. What does Joseph do the minute he sees Benjamin?  (Gen. 43:16)
3. I love what Joseph's steward says to them in Gen. 43:23.  To whom does he give the credit for their blessings?
4. What do the brothers do again in v. 26? 
5. What does Joseph seem concerned about in v. 27?
6. What happens in v. 30?
7. What was surprising to all the brothers in v. 33?
8. In chapter 44, which brother pleads for mercy from Joseph because he has guaranteed the safety of Jacob's youngest son, offering to become a slave in his place?  (starting at Gen. 44:18)

This beautiful offer on Judah's part to be the substituionary slave (any hint of Jesus there?) is more than Joseph can take.  He is convinced that his brothers are truly repentant for what they did to him and would never do the same to his brother Benjamin.  He sees their changed hearts after years of watching their father grieve Joseph's supposed death.  No longer able to control himself, Joseph reveals his identiy to his shocked brothers.

1. What did this shocking news do to his brothers?  (Gen. 45:3)
2. Who does Joseph say is the one responsible for him being sold into Egypt in Gen. 45:5, and why?
3. Why else did God do this?  See Gen. 45:7

"So it was not you who sent me here, but God."  (Gen. 45:8)  Those words could only come from one who has endured trials, faced the testing of his faith, and remained steadfast through difficult times.  God and time are excellent teachers.

Joseph sends his brothers off to get their father, sending all sorts of carts and provisions with them.  I absolutely love the words that describe Jacob's response when he heard the good news: "the spirit of their father Jacob revived."  (Gen. 45:27)   Thirteen years of grieving...done!

But that doesn't hold a candle to the beauty of their reunion in Gen. 46:29-30.  Try to picture that precious scene and the longing it fulfilled for both of them.  God is so very good.

Notice at the beginning of chapter 46 that God appears to Israel in a vision and tells him to not be afraid to go to Egypt.  Not only that, but He assures Jacob that He will go with him and will bring him back to the promised land again.  Friend, I want you to know that if God sends you somewhere to fulfill His purposes, He will go with you and be your God in that place of calling.

So all 70 of them, plus his daughters-in-law and all the servants, as well as all their flocks and belongings, set out for Egypt.

Who lead the whole caravan of Israel?  "Now Jacob sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph...." (Gen. 46:28)  How appropriate.

The Dreamer (Gen. 34-40)

Since I didn't get to write a blog yesterday, I'm going to squeeze these readings into one and focus on the key passages.  The only daughter of Jacob that we are told any specifics about is Dinah, although Gen. 37:35 implies that he had more than one daughter.  Dinah was born of Leah, and she was apparently rather beautiful--no "weak eyes" like her mother.  This daughter caught the eye of the son of the prince of the land, and he became consumed with longing for her.  He gets things rather backwards and acts upon his longings before asking her hand in marriage.  Not a smart thing to do to a girl who has 11 brothers.  As God says in verse 7, "...for such a thing must not be done."

As you know, this young man Shechem learned his lesson, and all the men of his land along with him.  Nothing like taking the whole city down with you in your inability to control your desires!  Jacob reprimands his two sons Simeon and Levi for doing such an evil thing, because revenge is not our job but the LORD's (Gen. 32:35).  He is concerned about the trouble this will bring upon him and his people.  When we come to chapter 49 in a few days and Jacob is blessing each of his sons before he dies, you will see how their sin in this incident plays into their blessing (or curse) at the end of their father's life.

Read Gen. 35:1-15 again.

1. To where does God tell Jacob to go in v. 1?
2. What was the significance of this place?  (see Gen. 28:10-22)
3. Have you ever revisited a place in which you encountered God and He did something significant in your life?  If you have, write about it.  What was it like to go back there and remember what God had done in your life at that time?  How different of a person were you in going back than at the time of that original encounter?  What a time of worship such an experience can be!  If you haven't done this, keep this concept in mind...I have a hunch you will have the opportunity to erect some memorial stones this year on your journey with God.
4. What did Jacob tell everyone in his household to do?  How does Jacob describe God in v. 3?
5. What did God do to the peoples of the lands through which they were journeying back to Canaan in v. 5?
6. In verses 9-15, what does God do, and what does Jacob do?

In verses 16-21, Rachel gives birth to another son, but she dies in child-birth.  Benjamin is now Jacob's youngest son, brother to Joseph by the same mother--the wife whom Jacob loved.  This relationship will come into play when Joseph's brothers come to Egypt for grain in tomorrow's readings.

Take note of verse 21.  I love firsts!  This is the first time Scripture refers to him as Israel rather than Jacob.  We will see both names used for him throughout the Bible, but it seems that he is referred to as Israel when he is representing God's people.  Try to notice as you read and see what you think.

In verses 23-26 we get a re-cap of which sons were born to which wives, and now Jacob has 12 sons.  These are not the exact 12 tribes of Israel, as you will find out in a few days.  But we'll wait till we get there to cover that.  At the end of ch. 35, Isaac dies and is buried by his two sons Esau and Jacob.  I love the wording used for both Abraham's death and now Isaac's:  "...he died and was gathered to his people, old and full of days."  I want to be "full of days" when I die, how about you?  Not just mindless, meaningless time spent here on planet earth, but "full" days of walking with the Lord and doing His will.  And I definitely want to be "gathered to my people" in God's Kingdom!

^"By faith Isaac invoked future blessings on Jacob and Esau." (Hebrews 11:20)  That's all we read about Isaac in the "hall of faith" in Hebrews 11.  Dear sister, especially fellow moms, I believe there's a message for us in that.  If you are a parent, some of the most significant work you do for the Kingdom of God is raising those children to live for Him and His glory, carrying on the work begun for God in previous generations. 

If you recall, it wasn't really Isaac's idea to give Jacob the first-born blessing.  He was tricked into it by his wife and son.  Yet he didn't go back on what he had said and change the blessing, thus God commends Isaac for this in Hebrews.  Isaac went with it and trusted that God had allowed him to do that for a reason and would bring good from it.  Will you trust what God allows, believing He can bring good out of it?  "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."  (Romans 8:28, ESV)

We read in Gen. 36 that God blessed both Jacob and Esau so much that they had to go separate ways, just as Abraham and Lot had to do.  Jacob, of course, stayed in the land of Canaan because God had promised him that land.  We also learn in verse 31 that kings reigned from Esau's descendants before the nation of Israel ever had kings of their own.  God was their only king for many years, until the time of Samuel the prophet, when Saul became the first king of Israel.

Genesis 37 is when the story of Joseph begins to get interesting, leading us into the next phase of Israel's history.

1. How old was Joseph when these events began to happen?  (v. 2)
2. What did Jacob do that caused much conflict between Joseph and his 10 older brothers (who were all grown men by now)?
3. What stupid thing did Joseph do in vv. 5-9?
4. The brothers were naturally angry and jealous, but what did Joseph's father Jacob do in v. 10 and then at the end of v. 11?

You know the story.  The spoiled younger brother goes to check on his older brothers (what was Jacob thinking?), wearing his colorful coat, of course.  This one is so full of drama, it has even made its way onto the Broadway stage.

The brothers plot to kill him, but the oldest brother Reuben shows some maturity and keeps them from spilling his blood.  His plan is to take Joseph back to his father after teaching him a lesson in humility.  But then he does a foolish thing and goes off on his own long enough for the other brothers to sell Joseph into slavery...to Ishmaelites at that.  This is a key moment in Israel's history, bringing to pass the prophecy God spoke to Abraham in Gen. 15:13-16.

But let's not skip over the brothers throwing Joseph into a pit.  Now that's enough fodder for a whole lesson in itself.  Ever been "thrown into a pit" by people you thought you could trust, maybe even your own family?  Was it partly your own fault because of your arrogance or another sin, like Joseph?  Here is where I am going to highly recommend Beth Moore's book Get Out of that Pit.  Whether you slipped in (on your own), jumped in (on your own), or were thrown in (by others), your Redeemer and Deliverer can pull you out.  But He alone can get you out of that pit.

God got Joseph out of the pit.  It didn't look too promising at first, as he was sold into slavery, but remember God works all things together for good for those who love Him and are called accoring to His purposes (paraphrase of Rom. 8:28).  All this evil God allowed to be done to Joseph makes perfect sense when we arrive at the end of Genesis, and especially when we see the ultimate fulfillment in Christ.  Please know for certain that God does not cause evil--our own sin causes that.  But He will allow it when He can use it to raise up a person for His glory.  (We will get heavily into this in next week's readings in Job.)

1. Whose idea was it to sell Joseph? (v. 26)
2. Where did the Ishmaelites take Joseph? (v. 28)
3. What did Reuben do when he saw that Joseph was gone? (v. 29)
4. What did the brothers do to explain this to their father Jacob?

Read Gen. 36:35.  I wonder what was going on in the minds of Jacob's sons as they sought to comfort their father.  Guilt, perhaps?  I hope so.  They got to live with this guilt for many years, too.  Oh the regrets of rash behavior in a moment of anger!  But none of them were man enough, or humble enough, to confess what they had done to their father. 

We can relate, right?  Sometimes we are not humble enough to confess what we've done to our Father.  We think the person was getting what they deserved.  Dangerous ground, dear friends.  “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven."  (Luke 6:37)  Withholding forgiveness is just not worth it, and Joseph understood this.  That's why his story is the one full of God's blessings and prosperity, not his brothers'.

We've seen the sin of Simeon and Levi's anger at Shechem, we watched Reuben unsuccessfully try to save Joseph, and now we watch Judah commit a disgusting sin with his daughter-in-law.  The encounter between Judah and Tamar in Genesis 38 is a disappointing one, but it is also an important one to remember. 

• Turn to Matthew 1.  In verse 3, whose name do you find in the geneology of Christ?

Only four women are mentioned in Jesus' lineage, and all of them have somewhat scandalous stories.  Tamar prostituted herself to deceive Judah, Rahab was a prostitute and a Gentile (not of the Hebrew nation), Ruth was a Moabitess (i.e. a Gentile) and she laid down at Boaz' feet hoping he would take her as his wife, and Bathsheba was brought into King David's chambers to have relations with him while she was still Uriah's wife.  How's that for the Holy Child's female ancestors?

Why did God include these women's names in Matthew's account of Christ's lineage?  Could it be that God wants us to realize that He can take a messed up life, one of a former pit-dweller, and use it for good and for His glory?  I personally think so.  Like Jesus, you may have some scandalous stories in your ancestry.  But just like Jesus, that doesn't have to be the end of the story.  God can redeem anything and anyone.  I praise Him that He does and that He redeemed me!

In Genesis 39 we watch as Joseph's story continues to unfold.  He is now in the service of Potiphar, and it is very apparent the LORD is with Him.  We read that the LORD blesses Potiphar because of Joseph.  But then his wife has to go and mess it all up, because apparently Joseph is rather handsome.

1. What did God do to redeem this wrong done to Joseph?  See vv. 21-23.
2. Then what happens in ch. 40 with the cupbearer and the baker?
3. To whom does Joseph give credit/glory in verse 8?
4. What does he ask of the cupbearer in v. 14?  Did he?  (v. 23)

Not only does God give Joseph dreams, as he did at the beginning of our readings, but now the LORD grants him the ability to interpret dreams.  This was only possible because Joseph knew that the interpretation came from God and not himself.  No wonder God kept blessing Joseph and everyone for whom he worked!  Joseph's life was a testimony of God's glory.  And it's about to get even better in the next chapter.  We'll talk about that tomorrow.  Let's end with Joseph's testimony to God's goodness.

His master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD caused all that he did to succeed in his hands.  (Gen. 39:3)  So he left all that he had in Joseph’s charge, and because of him he had no concern about anything but the food he ate.  (Gen. 39:6)

But the LORD was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.  (Gen. 39:21)  The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph’s charge, because the LORD was with him. And whatever he did, the LORD made it succeed.  (Gen. 39:23)