The Story Of Joseph Part 19--Joseph's Consistent Witness

 Genesis 43: 16-25

Jacob is becoming Israel (from the "Deceiver" who couldn't trust, to the "Prince with God"), and he let the brothers bring Benjamin with them back to Egypt to buy more food, despite the dangers, leaving them all in God's hands. 

(16) When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to his house steward, "Bring the men into the house, and slay an animal and make ready; for the men are to dine with me at noon." (17) So the man did as Joseph said, and brought the men to Joseph's house.

Joseph didn't even talk to them out in the marketplace this time, he just instructed his manservant to bring them all to his house and prepare a feast. We must assume that his personal servant was fully aware of who these men were and what his master was doing, having been involved in this drama from the beginning.

(18) Now the men were afraid, because they were brought to Joseph's house; and they said, "It is because of the money that was returned in our sacks the first time that we are being brought in, that he may seek occasion against us and fall upon us, and take us for slaves with our donkeys." 

The brothers still didn't know what was going on, though, and being ushered into the royal house of this stern and suspicious Egyptian ruler was very scary. They assumed that they would be accused of stealing the former grain, just so this foreigner could take advantage of them.

(19) So they came near to Joseph's house steward, and spoke to him at the entrance of the house, (20) and said, "Oh my lord, we indeed came down the first time to buy food, (21) and it came about when we came to the lodging place, that we opened our sacks, and behold, each man's money was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full. So we have brought it back in our hand. (22) We have also brought down other money in our hand to buy food; we do not know who put our money in our sacks." 

As soon as they got there, they approached this servant who was in charge and tried to explain their predicament to him, hoping he'll put in a good word for them, before anything else happened to them.

(23) He said, "Be at ease, 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. 

Now they are probably surprised at what this head servant said to them. I am sure that Joseph, who initially witnessed to Pharaoh himself, also told all his household servants who his God is, and they all saw how he lived his life before them. I'm sure some of them even believed in God instead of all their Egyptian idols. 

Now his head manservant is telling Joseph's brothers that he is the one who facilitated the return of their money the first time, and he credits their God who is also the God of their father. And he also reunited them with Simeon, too.

I think this unnamed servant also worshiped the Lord God Almighty, through Joseph's witness.

(24) So they prepared the present for Joseph's coming at noon; for they had heard that they were to eat a meal there. 

The brothers are still going to give him the present their dad told them to bring, of all the balm and honey, aromatic gum and myrrh, and the pistachio nuts and almonds, to soften his stern attitude toward them.

(25) When Joseph came home, they brought into the house to him the present which was in their hand and bowed to the ground before him. 

Then when Joseph came home for lunch, they lost no time in presenting this gift to him, and they further fulfilled Joseph's dream by bowing down to him. 

I wonder what they thought of these Egyptians talking about their God. They knew that there was a whole pantheon of Egyptian gods that they all worshiped, how would this head steward even know about their God, and especially, why would he give Him credit for putting their money back? They must have been very confused at this point of the story. 

I am impressed with Joseph even more, seeing how he has maintained his faith in God and his witness for Him among this pagan nation he is helping to govern under Pharaoh. It looks to me that he talks of his God every time he has an appropriate opening, and his words and lifestyle are supporting what he says about this God. 

If anyone had "reason" (an excuse) to turn from God, Joseph would be the one. At every turn in his life, when he did "the right thing," it turned out bad for him, three times, and God seemed to be so distant for so many years. Yet Joseph never waned in his trust in God. We never see in any of his story that he made a wrong decision, or lost his way on the path he was following, even when it seemed darkest for a long time. 

If Joseph could maintain his dedication to God and his witness to others in his surroundings, then what could ever happen in my life to cause me to lose my faith, either. 

No matter what happens, no matter how long I must "wait on God" to fulfill my dreams to serve Him, I know that He is trustworthy, and that He wants His love to be broadcast over the whole world. And if He wants to use me in a little part of that, then I am available, and will endeavor to be faithful with the small tasks He lays before me each day. 

O my Father, please send out all of Your children, to share in all the ways You enable each of us to share, how much You love everyone You made; and that You are not willing for any to perish, but for all to come to the repentance of realizing we all deserve death; and that You sent Your own, only begotten Son to fulfill that Personal Sacrifice (Leviticus 1), as the Lamb of God, for each of us.

O Father, bring all of Your children to the birth into Your family, and fill Your great house with all of Your uncountable progeny. And no one else will have any excuse. 

For every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign, soon-coming King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus! 

The Story Of Joseph Part 18--Israel Learns To Trust God More

 Genesis 43: 1-15

We have seen that Joseph is selling Egypt's grain to everyone in the world who can come to buy it, as well as the locals, and his brothers have come also for food. He recognized them, but they didn't realize that this Egyptian ruler was their long-lost brother. So Joseph put them to the test, and let them go home with the grain to feed their families. 

Joseph told his brothers not to come back without his little brother Benjamin, under pain of accusation as spies, a very serious charge. But Jacob is still finding it hard to trust, to let Benjamin go. 

It's most likely a year later, and Joseph is still waiting on God to reunite his family.

(1) Now the famine was severe in the land. (2) So it came about when they had finished eating the grain which they had brought from Egypt, that their father said to them, "Go back, buy us a little food." 

This famine is lasting longer than one or two years, and they've eaten all the bread they were able to make from the grain they bought, and they're out of food again. So Jacob tells them to go buy some more. 

(3) Judah spoke to him, however, saying, "The man solemnly warned us, '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 do not send him, we will not go down; for the man said to us, 'You will not see my face unless your brother is with you.'" 

Judah is speaking for the brothers, and reminds his dad that if they go without Benjamin, then the Egyptian ruler will accuse them of spying and probably execute them all. So they have to bring Benjamin.

(6) Then Israel said, "Why did you treat me so badly by telling the man whether you still had another brother?" 

Now Jacob is taking this personally, as though his sons are conspiring against him!

(7) But they said, "The man questioned particularly about us and our relatives, saying, 'Is your father still alive? Have you another brother?' So we answered his questions. Could we possibly know that he would say, 'Bring your brother down'?" 

They are reminding him that this Egyptian was questioning them closely, asking for detailed personal information that could be verified. As though he would investigate them to see if they're spies. If they lied, they would be found out, and they had no reason to lie anyway, they're honest men. They had no idea that he would ask them to bring their little brother. 

(8) Judah said to his father Israel, "Send the lad with me and we will arise and go, that we may live and not die, as well as you and our little ones. (9) I myself will be surety for him; you may hold me responsible for him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame before you forever. (10) For if we had not delayed, surely by now we could have returned twice." 

Judah is appealing to his father Israel, the "Prince with God," rather than Jacob, the "Deceiver" who can't trust anyone else. He's saying to trust him to protect Benjamin, and to make sure he's safe the whole trip; and that he will take responsibility for him, so that if anything happens to him at all, then Judah will take the blame. And they've already been debating the issue for so long now that they could have made the trip twice.

(11) Then their father Israel said to them, "If it must be so, then do this: take some of the best products of the land in your bags, and carry down to the man as a present, a little balm and a little honey, aromatic gum and myrrh, Pistachio nuts and almonds. (12) Take double the money in your hand, and take back in your hand the money that was returned in the mouth of your sacks; perhaps it was a mistake. 

So Israel (not Jacob) rises to the occasion and advises them to bring a gift to this stern Egyptian ruler to soften his heart toward them, and to bring twice the price for the grain they want to buy, as well as the money that was returned last time. He didn't want to take any chances.

(13) "Take your brother also, and arise, return to the man; 

And he even relents and lets them take Benjamin with them. This is huge for him.

(14) "and may God Almighty grant you compassion in the sight of the man, so that he will release to you your other brother and Benjamin. And as for me, if I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved." 

And he decides to trust his children to God Almighty, the only One who ultimately can protect all of them and bring a positive result. This is a big step of faith for Israel, in all his years of knowing God, he's learning to trust Him more in his own circumstances. But is he leaving to God the disposition of his children, or is still not trusting Hm enough to bring them home safe?

(15) So the men took this present, and they took double the money in their hand, and Benjamin; then they arose and went down to Egypt and stood before Joseph. 

So they journeyed again to Egypt to face this stern Egyptian lord, hoping that the present and the money and Benjamin will convince him to be lenient and not think they're spies. 

When we're between a rock and a hard place, what will we do? Jacob found himself and his family between the hard place of starvation and the rock of the Egyptian ruler who seems so suspicious of them. So he's trying to soften the rock. He's relying more on God than before, but he's still not taking any chances, which is probably wise. We are to do what we can, and leave the rest to God. 

O my Father, You are so good to us! You are teaching Jacob to be Israel, to trust You with his children, where a parent's deepest fears lie. You are teaching him that You are not only trustworthy, but will grant him blessings beyond his imagination, right here in this life. 

My Father, You will also grant me blessings, the color and flavor of which I don't know, but I'm sure I will be surprised and satisfied beyond what this world can give. So I want to trust You, too. 

O Father, teach all of Your children to love You back and trust You with their greatest fears and insecurities. We all have different cares, and You are sufficient for all of us, each with our own particular need. 

Father, send out all Your children, to share with all the world how much You love us all, and have already met all of our various and sundry necessities. We all do have some common needs, being broken humans, and these are the deepest most fundamental issues that You have taken care of first, through Your Son. 

Give Your children the words to tell and write and communicate with those who are looking for You, to bring every developing embryo to the birth into Your family. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, come with haste, Lord Jesus! 

The Story Of Joseph Part 17--Simeon, Reuben, And Jacob's Despair

 Genesis 42: 29-38

Now that Joseph's dreams are coming true, and Pharaoh's dreams are coming true; Joseph is opening the grain bins to everyone in the world who can come to buy some, so his own brothers show up to also get food for their families among all those in the Canaan caravan. When they are recognized by Joseph, he is greatly encouraged, but he has to test them first. And he really wants to see his little brother, too, after 20+ years. So he keeps Simeon in the elite jail he had been in, to encourage them to bring Benjamin to Egypt.

(29) When they came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him all that had happened to them, saying, (30) The man, the lord of the land, spoke harshly with us, and took us for spies of the country. (31) But we said to him, 'We are honest men; we are not spies. (32) We are twelve brothers, sons of our father; one is no longer alive, and the youngest is with our father today in the land of Canaan.'

They are recounting their adventures in Egypt, and they tell their father that they were truthful to this stern ruler, admitting their family relationships, only this time they mention Joseph being "dead" before telling of Benjamin. 

To the "foreign" lord of Egypt they named the living before the "dead," but to their father, they listed them in birth order.

(33) "The man, the lord of the land, said to us, 'By this I will know that you are honest men: leave one of your brothers with me and take grain for the famine of your households, and go. (34) But bring your youngest brother to me that I may know that you are not spies, but honest men. I will give your brother to you, and you may trade in the land.'"

They left out that this lord of Egypt was going to keep all of them, and only let one go home to get the little brother. They seem to be unaware of this ruler's graciousness in letting them all go home and just keeping one for insurance, and allowing them to bring food for their families.

(35) Now it came about as they were emptying their sacks, that behold, every man's bundle of money was in his sack; and when they and their father saw their bundles of money, they were dismayed. 

Not only the one who discovered his money in his sack on the way home, but all of them found that none of them actually paid for their grain! Now will they be accused of robbing the Egyptians? Things seem to be going from bad to worse!

(36) Their father Jacob said to them, "You have bereaved me of my children: Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and you would take Benjamin; all these things are against me." 

And Jacob is going into despair! Oh, woe is me! Everything is going wrong! And you guys want to make it even worse! Not only will I never see Joseph again, now I'll never see Simeon again, either! And you want to take my little Benjamin, too!

(37) Then Reuben spoke to his father, saying, "You may put my two sons to death if I do not bring him back to you; put him in my care, and I will return him to you."  

Then Reuben, who talked his brothers out of killing Joseph, is now sticking up for Benjamin, too, putting his own sons on the line if he can't bring their little brother back safely to their father.

(38) But Jacob said, "My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he alone is left. If harm should befall him on the journey you are taking, then you will bring my gray hair down to Sheol in sorrow." 

But Jacob doesn't want to lose any grandchildren, either! He just doesn't trust that they can keep him safe, he feels that he must protect this "little one," the only other son of his favorite wife Rachel, who is now also dead. He's the last one from her. 

I wonder what the brothers were thinking, with Jacob's favoritism. This is what prompted them to get rid if Joseph in the first place. 

But it's now over 20 years later, and they have all grown older and had their own families, and maybe they're coming to accept the dysfunction in their family, or have come to the conclusion that Jacob is Jacob, and will never change. 

Now Jacob is thinking that things will just continue to go as they've been going, and he has to try to make sure nothing can happen to this last child of Rachel. That his other sons will just keep on grieving him until he dies.

So as it stands, Joseph is considered dead by his father, but is waiting again, Simeon is locked away in a foreign jail, and, even though they can now feed their families, they will have to bring Benjamin with them if the famine continues longer than their grain will hold out. 

And Jacob doesn't see any light at the end of the tunnel. 

Joseph never did give in to the circumstances he found himself in, but was able to see the good in it, and turn it around into prospering. Even three times that he did right, but it resulted negatively, he turned it into a positive. 

Now Joseph is trying to see if his brothers have learned anything. It looks like each character in this play is still maintaining their personalities throughout the performance. Joseph is still joyfully faithful. Simeon is still maintaining his support of Joseph. His brothers are feeling the guilt of what they did to him. And Jacob has dropped into a morose stubbornness to try to hang on to what he feels he has left.

O my Father, Your ways are so far above our ways! You will let Your favorites go through so much sorrow and trouble and dismay. You have told us that You will scourge every son that You receive into Your family (Hebrews 12: 6), so we see You leaving these precious sons of Yours in adverse circumstances for great lengths of time before they are resolved. But when they continue to trust in You, in spite of their surroundings, and even when they just sit in their own misery, You will still bring the resolution in Your time. 

My Father, Your timing is perfect. You are never early or late. We cannot usually see how You're going to work out our troubles, but I want to continue to trust Your timing in my life, too. Help me to keep on keeping on as I wait for Your next step on the path You have placed my feet. Let my patience and perseverance that You are building in my character have a positive influence on others whose lives touch mine in any way. Let my efforts to promote Your kingdom bear the luscious fruit of new births and growth to maturity in those who encounter my works that You planned before time for me to accomplish. 

O Father, continue to lead me every day to do what needs to be done each day, so that I can be responsible and gracious and generous. Keep building the character of Christ in me, and enable me to reach all of everyone who needs to hear what You are having me say. 

And Father, send out all of Your children to share with everyone in every nation, so that every living person will be able to hear and perceive Your great love for each of us, in providing for all we need to be saved from ourselves and redeemed from this Earthly life, through Your only-begotten Son, Christ Jesus. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus! 

The Story Of Joseph Part 16--He Finally Sees His Brothers

 Genesis 42: 1-28

The dreams that Joseph has interpreted for Pharaoh are coming to pass, and the seven years of plenty have past. Now the famine has come to the whole area, not just Egypt. Since Joseph stockpiled a fifth of all the grain produced in Egypt during the seven years of bounty, now the only food that was to be had in all the known world of the day is in Egypt. 

Joseph does not limit his sales of the grain to only Egyptians, but anyone from the rest of the world who can travel to Egypt is welcome to also buy grain, since there is enough to go around.

(1) Now Jacob saw that there was grain in Egypt, 

Back in Canaan, also under drought conditions, Jacob got the news that there was food to be had in Egypt.

and Jacob said to his sons, "Why are you staring at one another?" (2) He said, "Behold, I have heard that there is grain in Egypt; go down there and buy some for us from that place, so that we may live and not die." (3) Then ten brothers of Joseph went down to buy grain from Egypt. 

Jacob tells his sons to stop standing around and do something before we all starve! Go on down to Egypt and buy some of that grain they have there. So the ten brothers take off for Egypt.

(4) But Jacob did not send Joseph's brother Benjamin with his brothers, for he said, "I am afraid that harm may befall him."  

Since Jacob lost his favorite wife's son Joseph, he was afraid of also losing her other son, who she died in childbirth with, so he made him stay home. He didn't want to take any chances.

(5) So the sons of Israel came to buy grain among those who were coming, for the famine was in the land of Canaan also. 

Since the famine was everywhere, people from all over Canaan were traveling to Egypt for food, and the sons of Jacob (Israel) joined the caravan trekking through the desert, to Egypt.

(6) Now Joseph was the ruler over the land; he was the one who sold to all the people of the land. And Joseph's brothers came and bowed down to him with their faces to the ground. 

This refers back to the last chapter, that Joseph was vizier, second in command from the king himself. So Joseph was overseeing the sales of the grain to all of the crowds of people coming to buy. And when his brothers came in, they, like everyone else in line, gave honor to the man in charge by bowing to him. 

This is Joseph's dreams starting to come true!

(7) When Joseph saw his brothers he recognized them, but he disguised himself to them and spoke to them harshly. And he said to them, "Where have you come from?" And they said, "From the land of Canaan, to buy food." 

Joseph immediately knew his brothers, but as an Egyptian now, he maintained his foreign persona and proceeded to question them.

(8) But Joseph had recognized his brothers, although they did not recognize him. 

Joseph had the drop on them, because he knew who they were, but they didn't know him; they never expected to see their brother again.

(9) Joseph remembered the dreams which he had about them, 

Joseph is remembering how the dreams went, and he sees now that his brothers are bowing down to him, just like he dreamed.

and said to them, "You are spies; you have come to look at the undefended parts of our land." 

Joseph is going to pick on them, to see what their reaction would be.

(10) Then they said to him, "No, my lord, but your servants have come to buy food. (11) "We are all sons of one man; we are honest men, your servants, not spies. 

They start to defend themselves, and reveal a little bit about who they are.

(12) Yet he said to them, "No, but you have come to look at the undefended parts of our land!" 

And Joseph continues to egg them on. 

(13) But they said, "Your servants are twelve brothers in all, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and behold, the youngest is with our father today, and one is no longer alive." 

Joseph isn't going to let them go yet.

(14) Joseph said to them, "It is as I said to you, you are spies; (15) by this you will be tested: by the life of Pharaoh, you shall not go from this place unless your youngest brother comes here! (16) Send one of you that he may get your brother, while you remain confined, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you. But if not, by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies." 

Now Joseph is going to test his brothers, to see how honest they are. And he really wants to see his little brother!

(17) So he put them all together in prison for three days. 

Joseph is going to let them stew in their own juices for a while. This is probably the elite jail he had been in, not the common one for the criminals.

(18) Now Joseph said to them on the third day, "Do this and live, for I fear God: 

Here Joseph gives them a hint: he doesn't worship the multiple gods of Egypt, but the same Lord God that his brothers believe in. So he's decided to be more lenient on them.

(19) "if you are honest men, let one of your brothers be confined in your prison; but as for the rest of you, go, carry grain for the famine of your households, (20) and bring your youngest brother to me, so your words may be verified, and you will not die." And they did so.  

Instead of sending only one back, he tells them he will send them all back, except for one; but they must bring their little brother to get him out of jail. Otherwise, if they're lying he would be executed. This put "the fear of God" into them, because they had to agree with him, and they talked about it among themselves.

(21) Then they said to one another, "Truly we are guilty concerning our brother, because we saw the distress of his soul when he pleaded with us, yet we would not listen; therefore this distress has come upon us." (22) Reuben answered them, saying, "Did I not tell you, 'Do not sin against the boy'; and you would not listen? Now comes the reckoning for his blood."  (23) They did not know, however, that Joseph understood, for there was an interpreter between them. 

They felt free to converse in his presence, because he was using an interpreter, and they thought he couldn't understand their language, so Joseph heard them confess what they had done to him, and that Reuben said, "I told you so!" in defending him back then. Now Joseph heard "the rest of the story" of who did what while he was in that pit.

(24) He turned away from them and wept. 

Joseph was so moved by their sorrow that he had to leave to cry his eyes out with all the emotion he felt.

But when he returned to them and spoke to them, he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes. 

Then when he came back, he chose Reuben, because he's the one who stood up for him, and tied him up so they could see how serious this Egyptian official was. 

(25) Then Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain and to restore every man's money in his sack, and to give them provisions for the journey. And thus it was done for them. 

Since Joseph was still speaking in Egyptian, his brothers didn't know that he was telling the servants how to take care of them, returning their money and giving them provisions.

(26) So they loaded their donkeys with their grain and departed from there. (27) As one of them opened his sack to give his donkey fodder at the lodging place, he saw his money; and behold, it was in the mouth of his sack. (28) Then he said to his brothers, "My money has been returned, and behold, it is even in my sack." And their hearts sank, and they turned trembling to one another, saying, "What is this that God has done to us?" 

These brothers are scared now. They don't know who this stern official is who doesn't trust them, and now they find that one of them didn't even pay for his grain; what kind of trouble will they be in now! And Simeon is still in jail in Egypt, too, what about him?

Joseph has hope now, with seeing his brothers, he expects to also see his little brother. And he is seeing how his own dreams are starting to come true. So exciting! 

And he has to wait again. 

O my Father, You have grown Joseph's patience and perseverance through all the waiting he has already endured. And he will be ready whenever it is that his brothers will return. 

O Father God, You are sovereign over Your whole creation. You have already decided the whole Plan of the Ages, and each one of our stories as part of it. You know what You're doing, and You let us know day-by-day and step-by-step where You are leading us. 

You had Joseph deal with his brothers in a way that would bring them to the place You wanted them, to reunite this family and bring Your judgment on Egypt when the time was right. Father, You are never too early or late, You're always just on time! 

And Father, You are just in time for me, too. Help me to do each day the things You would have me accomplish, to be strengthened in Your thoughts and ways, and to always do for others what You know they need from me, whether it be my words, my finances, my attitude, my material belongings, whatever it is You have given me to share. 

O Father, send me out, send out all Your children in the way each of us can go, to tell the world how much You love us all, so that every living person in all the nations will be able to hear, and open their minds and hearts to understand the gracious and generous gift You are offering us all in Your Son. 

Fill Your great house will all of Your uncountable children, and let no one have any excuse for neglecting or refusing Your amazing Salvation. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, come soon, Lord Jesus! 

The Story Of Joseph Part 15--He Sells Food To The Whole World

 Genesis 41: 53-57

Joseph has interpreted Pharaoh's dreams and Pharaoh appointed Joseph his vizier, second in command after the king so he could manage the economy and the people's welfare when the interpretation came true. And it has been going just as he said it would. 

They had seven years of plenty, during which Joseph taxed the people 20% of all the grain produced and stockpiled it all into storage bins all over the country, in all the cities. And they stored more than they could even count, and still kept adding to it until the seven years were over. 

(53) When the seven years of plenty which had been in the land of Egypt came to an end, (54) and the seven years of famine began to come, just as Joseph had said, then there was famine in all the lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. 

When the seven years of plenty were over, then the famine was all over the world, and only Egypt had grain for bread because Joseph had stored it all. 

(55) So when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried out to Pharaoh for bread; and Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, "Go to Joseph; whatever he says to you, you shall do." 

Pharaoh had put Joseph in charge, so he left the people in Joseph's hands as his responsibility. 

(56) When the famine was spread over all the face of the Earth, then Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold to the Egyptians; and the famine was severe in the land of Egypt. 

When the fields stopped producing and the famine came, they all lined up at Joseph's storage bins to buy enough food to feed their families. That was the only place they could find food to eat. 

(57) The people of all the Earth came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe in all the Earth. 

Joseph wasn't selfish with the grain, the famine was over the whole world, so anyone who could travel to Egypt could also buy grain. He didn't hoard it for Egyptians only. There was more than enough for everyone. But he did not give it away free, they purchased it. 

O my Father, You were so good to everyone in the world, to have given Pharaoh the dreams for Joseph to interpret for him, then to have Joseph prepare for not only the Egyptians, but everyone anywhere else in the world who wanted to purchase food from them were welcome also to buy grain. There was enough for everyone. 

My Father, You are so generous to us all. Even people who do not know or acknowledge You receive of Your bounty, as well as those who worship and serve You. Father, bless them all with the knowledge of You, send Your children out to every nation to share with every living person who You are and how You have already met their most desperate needs in Your Son. 

O Father, let every embryo be drawn to the birth into Your own family, and fill Your great house with all of Your uncountable children. Let no one have any excuse for rejecting Your gracious and generous gift. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus! 

The Story of Joseph Part 14---Joseph Prospers In Egypt

 Genesis 41: 46-52

Now when Pharaoh, king of Egypt, had dreams that baffled his wise men, Joseph was called to interpret his dreams, and he also presented a plan for how to survive what the dreams predicted. Pharaoh believed him, and appointed Joseph his vizier, the second in command after Pharaoh, to administer the plan he gave him. 

(46) Now Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh and went through all the land of Egypt. 

Now Joseph had to assess the whole nation's assets, so he went through all the land of Egypt. He familiarized himself with the lay of the land, in order to honestly tax the people's produce from their fields. It was a flat tax of 20% of all the grain from everybody's fields (verses 33-36).

(47) During the seven years of plenty the land brought forth abundantly. 

Just as Joseph told the king from his dreams.

(48) So he gathered all the food of these seven years which occurred in the land of Egypt and placed the food in the cities; he placed in every city the food from its own surrounding fields. 

Joseph's experience in managing Potiphar's holdings prepared him for this. He had good business sense to store the gathered grain all over the whole land, in the cities near the fields where the grain had grown, and near the people who lived all over the nation. He didn't gather it up into a centralized place. He scattered the storage bins all over.

(49) Thus Joseph stored up grain in great abundance like the sand of the sea, until he stopped measuring it, for it was beyond measure. 

The fifth of the grain that was produced during these seven years mounted up so abundantly that they didn't even have numbers to count that high, he just kept on building more bins to store more grain all over the place. 

(50) Now before the year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore to him. 

While Joseph is charioting around the land gathering all the grain into the storage bins, and managing all the kings people, he also is building his family. Life has never been better for Joseph! God has honored his patience and perseverance and has prospered him greatly.

(51) Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, "For," he said, "God has made me forget all my troubles and all my father's household." 

The name Manasseh means, "Making to Forget." Now he can focus on all the good that is happening in his life, and he's too busy to think about all the trouble his brothers brought on him.

(52) He named the second, Ephraim, "For," he said,"God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction."  

The name Ephraim means, "Fruitfulness." God is prospering him not only with his work and his income, but also with two beautiful sons to carry on his line. So much bad has happened to him in this foreign land, but it has all led to this wonderful good life he is living now. 

God used all the experiences in Joseph's life to prepare him for this very thing. Joseph had no idea of what would happen to him at every step of the way. Every time he thought he was doing well, it just collapsed on him. 

When he obeyed his father and found his brothers, they betrayed him. Then when he was working for Potiphar and managing all his holdings, then Potiphar's wife goes and slanders him, and he ended up in jail. Then even when he thought the cupbearer would put in a good word for him, he forgot and let him down, so Joseph still sat and waited. 

Joseph was disappointed at least three times that we are told about, when he did what was right but it turned out negatively anyway. God was building in Joseph the trust in Him and the perseverance to slog through those disappointments without losing faith in God. Without losing his footing. He was building character. "What doesn't kill us makes us stronger!" It's all in how we choose to respond. 

O my Father, this story of this man is so encouraging. You had Joseph go through so much trouble and hardship and disappointment, yet he never lost sight of You, and the encouragement of those two dreams he had in early youth. His own dreams are now coming true, as he now has the honor and respect and homage of the whole nation of Egypt, one of the most powerful nations of that day. 

My Father, seeing how Joseph hung on to You through the storms of life, and how You rewarded him, is so encouraging to me. You have me also sitting, waiting for what You have prepared for me. Strengthen me to keep on keeping on, as Joseph did. He didn't know how it would turn out until it did, and I don't know how my life will turn out, either; but I trust You and Your love for me, that uses everything I experience to prepare me, too. I don't know if what I think I see is what You have planned for me, or if You have something even better! 

O Father, use me. Send me out, send my words out, into all the world; so that Your children will grow up in You, and that everyone will hear of Your great love for us all. Father, send out all Your children, wake us up to Your Plan of the Ages, and our parts in it, each one of us. Make each of our threads in Your grand Tapestry of Time to shine and sparkle against the black velvet backdrop of the threads of the evil, rebellious ones. And bring every embryo to the birth into Your family to fill Your great house with all of Your uncountable children. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is our Christ, our Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus! 

The Story Of Joseph Part 13--Joseph's Elevated Position

 Genesis 41: 38-46a

Pharaoh, king of Egypt, has had a couple of dreams that concern him, and none of his magicians or wise men have any idea of what they can mean. 

Then his forgiven Head Cupbearer finally faces his shameful episode, and reveals that another prisoner can interpret dreams. 

So Joseph is rushed into Pharaoh's presence and put to the test, which he passes with flying colors. Then he takes a calculated risk, and gives this king some advise he did not ask for--and his boldness is paying off.

(38) Then Pharaoh said to his servants, "Can we find a man like this, in whom is a Divine spirit?" 

Pharaoh admits that God's Spirit is in Joseph.

(39) So Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Since God has informed you of all this, there is no one so discerning and wise as you are. 

Now Pharaoh is acknowledging Joseph's Lord God, and recognizes that because he listens to Him, He has given Joseph wisdom and discernment.

(40) "You shall be over my house, and according to your command all my people shall do homage; only in the throne will I be greater than you." (41) Pharaoh said to Joseph, "See, I have set you over all the land of Egypt."

Pharaoh is appointing Joseph into the office of Vizier to the king, the second-in-command.

(42) Then Pharaoh took off his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph's hand, 

This signet ring is the king's credit card, it is the seal that legalizes all purchases and declarations and edicts. This is the financial power of the kingdom.

and clothed him in garments of fine linen 

Only the king himself and his highest officials were able to wear clothing as fine as this.

and put the gold necklace around his neck. 

Egyptian Pharaohs often put gemstones and amulets in the gold of their jewelry, to ward off evil spirits, protect their wealth, and bring good luck. Certain colors, designs and materials were associated with supernatural powers and deities. 

So when the king put "the" gold necklace on Joseph, he was intending to give him protection and let him show the authority he was giving him.

(43) He had him ride in his second chariot; and they proclaimed before him, "Bow the knee!" And he set him over all the land of Egypt. 

So, all of the Egyptian populace were commanded to give Joseph respect, honor and obeisance.

(44) Moreover, Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Though I am Pharaoh, yet without your permission no one shall raise his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt." 

Pharaoh gave Joseph dictatorial authority over the personal lives of every citizen in Egypt. No one would be permitted to come or go or work or do whatever without Joseph's okay.

(45) Then Pharaoh named Joseph Zaphenath-Paneah; and he gave him Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, as his wife. And Joseph went forth over the land of Egypt. 

The name Pharaoh gave Joseph means, "God speaks--He lives," because Joseph's God must be alive to tell him what the dreams mean. And, of course, he must have a wife! So he gave him the daughter of the next most important man in his kingdom. 

And Joseph accepted all of these accouterments and the position, and started to exercise his authority over the people.

(46) Now Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. ...

Joseph was only seventeen when was kidnapped and carried to Egypt, so he essentially grew up here in this foreign land. Now it's thirteen years later, and God has prepared him culturally, emotionally, and spiritually for this weight of authority he now bears. 

O my Father, You never do put anything on any of us, that You haven't prepared us for. You put our feet on the path that You have determined for each of us, and You take our hand as we tread the road. And as we encounter problems, and sorrows, and disappointments in life, and stumble over the rocks and get stuck in the ruts, You continue to hold us up, so that we won't fall. 

O Father, You prepared Joseph to change history. And You have prepared others to lead nations, and discover great discoveries, and write important books and documents, and to rear and bring up the leaders in this world, all who shape history. And You are still guiding our human story into the great saga of Mankind, to flow according to how You have planned it all. 

My Father, please raise up Your children to be the leaders in the world, to lead nations, to lead cultures, to lead children to grow into Your adults. To lead the attitudes and thinking processes and world-views of the world. Father, there have been so many evil people who have led so many away from Your ways. 

Father, send out Your children as Your messengers and missionaries, to tell every living person in the whole world about who You really are, and to reach even the leaders of the world, as Joseph reached Pharaoh. Let everyone in all the nations have the knowledge and understanding to make a clear and informed decision to receive Your gracious and generous free gift. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is our Christ, our Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, come swiftly, Lord Jesus!