What's the Longest You've Ever Waited for Something?

in
 

LUKE 1:5-25

5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

8 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. 11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.” 18 And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 19 And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent
to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 20 And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.” 21 And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple. 22 And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute. 23 And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”

 
 

The birth of John the Baptist is foretold.

What’s the longest you’ve ever waited for something?
I think this story is one of the sweetest ones in the scripture—this old, faithful couple, waiting all these years for a child, only to be surprised by the angelic message that the Lord is answering their prayers.
So poignant.

Are you waiting for something? Don’t lose heart. Keep hanging on.

 

Why Was Jesus Born in Bethlehem?

in
 

MICAH 5:2-5a

2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.
3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel.
4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth.
5 And he shall be their peace.

 
 

The king will be born in Bethlehem.

Why was Jesus born in Bethlehem?
The above passage from Micah is what the scholars reference when the Magi show up in Herod’s palace asking to see the king of the Jews. Herod asks for expert opinion, and the scholars tell him that the Bible says that the Messiah will be born in Bethlehem, the city of David.

Of course Luke tells us that the reason Jesus was born in Bethlehem is because Caesar made a decree for a census, causing Mary and Joseph to travel to Bethlehem to be counted.

So, why was Jesus born in Bethlehem?
Was it because the Bible foretold that’s where it would take place, or was it because Caesar wanted a census?

Yes.

God is always at work, even when we can’t understand it at the time. God is always at work, and he is using our free choices to realize his divine purposes.

“God works all things for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).

 

Peaceable Kingdom

in
 

Edward Hicks, Peaceable Kingdom, circa 1833

From the Worcester Art Museum’s website:

Trained as a sign, coach, and ornamental painter, Hicks painted over a hundred versions of his now-famous Peaceable Kingdom between 1820 and his death. His artistic endeavors provided modest support for his activities as a Quaker preacher in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The theme of this painting, drawn from chapter 11 of Isaiah, was undoubtedly attractive to Hicks and fellow Quakers not only for its appealing imagery but also for its message of peace: "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the young lion and fatling together; and a little child shall lead them." Into many versions, including the Worcester painting, Hicks incorporated a vignette of William Penn's treaty with the Indians, an image he adapted from a popular painting by Benjamin West (q.v.). Hicks may have viewed parallels in the two parts of the composition, inasmuch as Penn, who had introduced Quakerism into Pennsylvania, had also brought about a measure of the peaceable kingdom on earth.

 
 

ISAIAH 11:1-9

1 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.
2 And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
3 And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or decide disputes by what his ears hear,
4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist,
and faithfulness the belt of his loins.
6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together;
and a little child shall lead them.
7 The cow and the bear shall graze;
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra,
and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den.
9 They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.

 
 

The king is coming and will usher in a reign of justice for the poor and peace for all of God’s creation.

 
 

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
How can you be a peacemaker today?

P.S. “The stump of Jesse” is the idea that the Messiah will come from David’s family. (Jesse was David’s father.) In 586 BC, the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and deposed David’s descendants from the throne—in the image that Isaiah uses, it is as if the “family tree” of David is cut down. Nevertheless, the line of David continued for the centuries and ultimately resulted in Jesus.

 

A Land of Deep Darkness

in
 

ISAIAH 9:2, 6-7

2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.

6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

 
 

The prophet announces the birth of a king to a people in darkness.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

My favorite part is the last verse:
“The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.”
What the Lord promises will come to pass.
Don’t be afraid today!

 

The Stars in the Sky

in
 

GENESIS 22:15-18

15 And the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven 16 and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, 18 and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”

 
 

The Lord promises Abraham that by his descendants all the nations of the earth shall obtain blessing.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

Jesus, centuries and centuries later, comes from the line of Abraham. The Lord is always at work!

Be encouraged today—the headlines don’t tell the whole story.

 

Family Is How We Fight

in
 

GENESIS 12:1-3

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

 
 

The Lord’s plan to save all of creation begins with one man’s family.

Despairing about the state of the world?
Worried about the future?
FAMILY IS HOW WE FIGHT.
Strong families are needed to raise strong children. The next generation is our hope. Remember, God’s entire plan depended on one man’s family. From Abraham’s family comes Jesus, so many centuries later, but at just the right time.

QUESTION FOR REFLECTION:

What can you do this weekend to build up and build for the next generation?

 

My Favorite Image of Christmas

in

Created by Sr Grace Remington, OSCO in 2003 at the Sisters of the Mississippi Abbey in Dubuque, Iowa

 

GENESIS 3:8-19

8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” 11 He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” 12 The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” 13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” 14 The Lord God said to the serpent,

“Because you have done this,
cursed are you above all livestock
and above all beasts of the field;
on your belly you shall go,
and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel.”

16 To the woman he said,

“I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you.”

17 And to Adam he said,

“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife
and have eaten of the tree
of which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.

 
 

The Lord announces in the Garden of Eden Adam and Eve’s punishment for their rebellion and that the seed of woman shall bruise the serpent’s head.

REFLECTION:

Go back and look at that picture of Mary consoling Eve again. Keep it in front of your mind this Advent season—maybe save it as the wall- paper on your phone? It’s worth going back to over and over again. Praise God for his promise to undue all the wrongs and to renew all things.

 

The Image

in
 

GENESIS 1:20-2:3

20 And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” 21 So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 29 And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

2Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

 
 

The crowning achievement of Creation is the creation of the human, made in God’s own image to join with God to steward the earth and bring beauty out of it.

QUESTION FOR THE DAY:

How can you step into your identity today of an image-bearer of God and use your God-given creativity to bring order out of disorder or to care for the civilization we have inherited?

 

Creation By Separation

in
 

GENESIS 1:3-1

3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the dark- ness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

6 And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” 7 And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. 8 And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

9 And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.

11 And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each accord- ing to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for sea- sons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

 
 

Once you see the pattern, you’ll never forget it:

God creates through separation.

Each division brings order and complexity to Creation.

• light from dark;
• day from night;
• water from water;
• land from sea;
• plant from dirt;
• sun from sky;
• etc.

One quick thought:
God brings order out of chaos; he does it at Creation, Jesus does it in his healing ministry—order to chaotic minds and bodies—and the Holy Spirit is doing the same thing today.

QUESTION FOR THE DAY:

Where do you need God to bring order out of chaos this advent season?

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

in
 

I have my own personal reading plan that I’ve been following for several years now: I read one psalm a day, every day. There are 150 psalms, so when I get to Psalm 150, the next day I start again with Psalm 1.

Because I’m writing and working on future reading plans (Revelation begins January 2!), I don’t always read the churchwide current reading on its specified day. Instead, I always keep pushing on with my reading plan through the Psalms, one psalm a day, rinse and repeat when I get to Psalm 150.

There is a simplicity to this plan that really appeals to me, and I find beginning each day with a psalm to be a comfort (even when the psalms are sometimes dark and violent!). I have an app on my phone that tells me each morning what number psalm I’m on that day. (Unlike our churchwide reading plans, my reading plan through the Psalms is 7 days a week, so I read one on Saturday and Sunday, too.)

You are certainly welcome to join me in my practice. Our Advent reading plan begins on Monday, November 28, but if you’re interested in following along with my Psalms reading plan, today is Psalm 57.

Psalm 58 will be Friday.

Psalm 59 will be Saturday.

Psalm 60 will be Sunday. You get the idea.

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

The End

in
 

Genesis 50:15-26

15 When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “It may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil that we did to him.” 16 So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, “Your father gave this command before he died: 17 ‘Say to Joseph, “Please forgive the transgression of your brothers and their sin, because they did evil to you.”’ And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father.” Joseph wept when they spoke to him. 18 His brothers also came and fell down before him and said, “Behold, we are your servants.” 19 But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? 20 As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. 21 So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.

22 So Joseph remained in Egypt, he and his father's house. Joseph lived 110 years. 23 And Joseph saw Ephraim's children of the third generation. The children also of Machir the son of Manasseh were counted as Joseph's own. 24 And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die, but God will visit you and bring you up out of this land to the land that he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” 25 Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.” 26 So Joseph died, being 110 years old. They embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.

 
 

Today we’ve come to the end of a great work of art—a masterpiece and a wonder—and I feel a sense of loss. It’s bittersweet to have finished the Book of Genesis, because reading and working through it these last 3 months—my first 3 months at Asbury!—has been one of the most thrilling experiences I have ever had with scripture. I am in awe at the beauty and power of the first book of the Bible and am deeply moved that the Lord who can create light with one word would choose one man and one family as the means by which he would save the world. “From you,” the Lord says to Abraham, “all the nations of the earth shall be blessed.”

Genesis is the book of beginnings, but until the Lord returns and the New Heavens and New Earth are begun, all things in this world must come to an end. And so, here we are. And yet every ending is also a beginning, and the ending of Genesis is no different: it ends and the story of Israel begins.

The final chapter of Genesis also contains one of the greatest descriptions of the grace of God in all of the Old Testament, and even, perhaps, outside of it.

Jacob has died, and the brothers immediately fear that Joseph will now seek vengeance on them for the evil they did to him so many years before. Joseph, as I have been saying, is a complicated moral figure, but here—perhaps in spite of himself—he so perfectly captures what the grace of God is like that I’m not sure anyone apart from Jesus himself has ever said it better:

45 “What you intended for evil, God intended for good.” [Genesis 50:20]

Is there a better verse for Good Friday?

What we intended for evil—the Crucifixion of the Son of God—God intended for the ultimate Good.

Cross before Crown, yes, but don’t ever forget that Crown follows Cross.

The rest of the entire Bible—which is really one unified story that leads to Jesus—will be about God using human evil to bring about the Good News of the Gospel.

Amen.

P.S. Like all great stories, Genesis ends with a note of sadness and with a few loose ends. Joseph dies, but unlike Jacob, he is not buried back in the Promised Land. Before his death, I think he sees clearly the mistakes he has made in Egypt by turning his back on his heritage; he tells his descendants that they will need the help of God to get out of Egypt and return to the Promised Land, and he makes them promise that when that day finally comes they will carry his bones with them back to the land of his fathers.

And then he dies, and is embalmed after the custom of the Egyptians.

And so Genesis ends and the last sentence will take your breath away:

The book closes with Joseph as a mummy in Egypt.

P.P.S. But the Children of Israel never forgot their promise to Joseph. And generation unto generation, they were reminded that the day would come when God would bring them out of slavery, and that when that day came, they were to carry the bones of their brilliant ancestor Joseph with them. And so, this is what happens when the long-awaited Exodus finally occurs, so many centuries later:

19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the Israelites swear an oath. He had said, “God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place.” [Exodus 13:19]

I said before that Genesis ends without all the loose ends tied up. That may be true, but you know what?

In God’s time, all loose ends are eventually tied up. There are no details that the author of Creation forgets.

 

Thoughts on the Death of Jacob, Our Penultimate Reading

in
 

Genesis 49:28-50:14

28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel. This is what their father said to them as he blessed them, blessing each with the blessing suitable to him.

29 Then he commanded them and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 in the cave that is in the field at Machpelah, to the east of Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite to possess as a burying place. 31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife. There they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah— 32 the field and the cave that is in it were bought from the Hittites.” 33 When Jacob finished commanding his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed and breathed his last and was gathered to his people.

50 Then Joseph fell on his father's face and wept over him and kissed him. 2 And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel. 3 Forty days were required for it, for that is how many are required for embalming. And the Egyptians wept for him seventy days.

4 And when the days of weeping for him were past, Joseph spoke to the household of Pharaoh, saying, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, please speak in the ears of Pharaoh, saying, 5 ‘My father made me swear, saying, “I am about to die: in my tomb that I hewed out for myself in the land of Canaan, there shall you bury me.” Now therefore, let me please go up and bury my father. Then I will return.’” 6 And Pharaoh answered, “Go up, and bury your father, as he made you swear.” 7 So Joseph went up to bury his father. With him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his household, and all the elders 42 of the land of Egypt, 8 as well as all the household of Joseph, his brothers, and his father's household. Only their children, their flocks, and their herds were left in the land of Goshen. 9 And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen. It was a very great company. 10 When they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, they lamented there with a very great and grievous lamentation, and he made a mourning for his father seven days. 11 When the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning on the threshing floor of Atad, they said, “This is a grievous mourning by the Egyptians.” Therefore the place was named Abel-mizraim; it is beyond the Jordan. 12 Thus his sons did for him as he had commanded them, 13 for his sons carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave of the field at Machpelah, to the east of Mamre, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite to possess as a burying place. 14 After he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had gone up with him to bury his father.

 
 

THOUGHTS ON THE DEATH OF JACOB, OUR PENULTIMATE READING

I have a bit more to say tomorrow about our final day’s reading, but I want to leave you with what is one of the most powerful images in all of the Bible: the burial of Jacob.

Remember, Joseph has forgiven his brothers, but they are not really reconciled with each other. Joseph, the right hand of Pharaoh himself— is living like an Egyptian, whereas Israel and his sons are living as shepherds in Goshen, sojourning in a foreign land. Joseph has settled the family there, but for all intents and purposes he is not one of them any more.

Jacob’s death, however, unites the brothers for one last time.

Jacob makes his 12 sons swear a deathbed oath (the same oath, by the way, that Joseph will subsequently make his descendants swear to him):

29 Then he gave them these instructions: “I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 the cave in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre in Canaan, which Abraham bought along with the field as a burial place from Ephron the Hittite. 31 There Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried, there Isaac and 43 his wife Rebekah were buried, and there I buried Leah. 32 The field and the cave in it were bought from the Hittites.” 33 When Jacob had finished giving instructions to his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed, breathed his last and was gathered to his people. [Genesis 49-29-33]

Jacob, whose life’s journey has been long and winding, knows that his place is in the Promised Land, and so he will be buried with his fathers.

Joseph gets the necessary permission from Pharaoh and then joins the whole company as they make the long sad trek back to the land that the Lord promised Abraham.

And then we get what is one of the most moving images in the entire Bible:

12 So Jacob’s sons did as he had commanded them: 13 They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre, which Abraham had bought along with the field as a burial place from Ephron the Hittite. [Genesis 50:12-13]

Jacob’s 12 sons, erstwhile enemies in life, united in the death of their father:

The twelve sons of Jacob carry their father on their shoulders as they lay him to rest with his fathers in the land of Promise.

Wow.

 

Quick Bullets on the Joseph Story

in
 

I’m preaching at an All-City Thanksgiving Service being held at First Presbyterian Church of Tulsa TONIGHT (11/21) at 7 PM. My topic:

“How to Give Thanks While Holding Your Nose and Humming”

Come on out!

 
 

Note: Our Genesis readings are drawing to an end, and though I’m sad—I love Genesis so much!—I’m also looking forward to Advent, which begins on 11/27. Our Advent reading plan begins next Monday, 11/28. The Advent reading guides are beautiful; if you live in Tulsa, pick one up at Asbury Church this weekend. If you live in Dallas, email Sandie and she’ll tell you how to pick one up. If you live out of town and NOT in Dallas, email Sandie and she’ll mail you one this week.

 
 

Genesis 49:1-27

Then Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather yourselves together,that I may tell you what shall happen to you in days to come. “Assemble and listen, O sons of Jacob, listen to Israel your father.

3 “Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the firstfruits of my strength, preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.

4 Unstable as water, you shall not have preeminence,because you went up to your father's bed; then you defiled it—he went up to my couch!

5 “Simeon and Levi are brothers; weapons of violence are their swords.

6 Let my soul come not into their council; O my glory, be not joined to their company. For in their anger they killed men, and in their willfulness they hamstrung oxen.

7 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.

8 “Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father's sons shall bow down before you.

9Judah is a lion's cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him?

10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

11 Binding his foal to the vine and his donkey's colt to the choice vine, he has washed his garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes.

12 His eyes are darker than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk.

13 “Zebulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea; he shall become a haven for ships, and his border shall be at Sidon.

14 “Issachar is a strong donkey, crouching between the sheepfolds.

15 He saw that a resting place was good, and that the land was pleasant, so he bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant at forced labor.

16 “Dan shall judge his people as one of the tribes of Israel.

17 Dan shall be a serpent in the way, a viper by the path, that bites the horse's heels so that his rider falls backward.

18 I wait for your salvation, O Lord.

19 “Raiders shall raid Gad, but he shall raid at their heels.

20 “Asher's food shall be rich, and he shall yield royal delicacies.

21 “Naphtali is a doe let loose that bears beautiful fawns.

22 “Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a spring; his branches run over the wall.

23 The archers bitterly attacked him, shot at him, and harassed him severely,

24 yet his bow remained unmoved; his arms were made agile by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob (from there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),

25 by the God of your father who will help you, by the Almighty who will bless you with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that crouches beneath, blessings of the breasts and of the womb.

26 The blessings of your father are mighty beyond the blessings of my parents, up to the bounties of the everlasting hills. May they be on the head of Joseph, and on the brow of him who was set apart from his brothers.

27 “Benjamin is a ravenous wolf, in the morning devouring the prey and at evening dividing the spoil.”

 
 

QUICK BULLETS ON THE JOSEPH STORY

• I think the Bible wants us to have an ambivalent opinion on Joseph: on the one hand, he is obviously a genius, but on the other hand he becomes totally Egyptianized, which is not good because it means he’s forgotten that he is a child of Israel.

• The Bible makes it clear that the Lord was with Joseph when he was enslaved and imprisoned, but we aren’t told that the Lord is with Joseph when he is raised to power in Egypt. Why? I think it’s because it seems that Joseph forgets the Lord when he is delivered from prison and raised to power. As I mentioned above, he becomes so totally acculturated in Egypt that he doesn’t even live with his family when they settle in Goshen!

• Hundreds and hundreds of years later, Daniel is an Israelite who finds himself serving a foreign king—in this case, the Babylonian Emperor Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel, however, never gives up on his Israelite identity, and God still uses him and he still retains his high position.

• I wonder if Joseph’s problem was thinking that there is no way he could have kept his high position apart from turning his back on his heritage. Of course, if the Lord wanted Joseph to be Pharoah’s right hand, then it would have happened. It is almost as if Joseph stops trusting in the Lord at the very moment when things begin to turn around for him.

• All throughout the story of Joseph the central question has been, Who will lead the family after Jacob is gone? Jacob’s final blessings of his sons tell us the answer (though we’ve already figured it out): Judah, the fourth son, will be the leader! Read the blessings carefully and see how Jacob hasn’t missed anything. He remembers, e.g., how Reuben slept with his wife/concubine so many years before, and how Simeon and Levi led the brutal slaughter at Shechem. By the way, Judah is the tribe from which David comes, and later Jesus. Do you know that praise song “Lion and the Lamb”? This is why the songwriter in that song describes the Lord as “the Lion of Judah”.

 

Jacob Blesses Ephraim and Manasseh

in
 

Genesis 48:1-22

After this, Joseph was told, “Behold, your father is ill.” So he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. 2 And it was told to Jacob, “Your son Joseph has come to you.” Then Israel summoned his strength and sat up in bed. 3 And Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me, 4 and said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will make of you a company of peoples and will give this land to your offspring after you for an everlasting possession.’ 5 And now your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine, as Reuben and Simeon are. 6 And the children that you fathered after them shall be yours. They shall be called by the name of their brothers in their inheritance. 7 As for me, when I came from Paddan, to my sorrow Rachel died in the land of Canaan on the way, when there was still some distance to go to Ephrath, and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).”

8 When Israel saw Joseph's sons, he said, “Who are these?” 9 Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom God has given me here.” And he said, “Bring them to me, please, that I may bless them.” 10 Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. So Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. 11 And Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected to see your face; and behold, God has let me see your offspring also.” 12 Then Joseph removed them from his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth. 13 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel's left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel's right hand, and brought them near him. 14 And Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on the head of Ephraim, who was the younger, and his left hand on the head of Manasseh, crossing his hands (for Manasseh was the firstborn). 15 And he blessed Joseph and said,

“The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day, 16 the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys; and in them let my name be carried on, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.”

17 When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him, and he took his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. 18 And Joseph said to his father, “Not this way, my father; since this one is the firstborn, put your right hand on his head.” 19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great. Nevertheless, his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his offspring shall become a multitude of nations.” 20 So he blessed them that day, saying,

“By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying, ‘God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh.’” Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh. 21 Then Israel said to Joseph, “Behold, I am about to die, but God will be with you and will bring you again to the land of your fathers. 22 Moreover, I have given to you rather than to your brothers one mountain slope that I took from the hand of the Amorites with my sword and with my bow.”

 
 

I think Jacob’s blessing of Joseph’s two sons is fascinating. Jacob is blind, but he can still “see” and he deliberately blesses the younger—Ephraim—over the elder—Manasseh. He even crosses his hands to do so. An amazing scene.

 

Note: Our Genesis readings are drawing to an end, and though I’m sad—I love Genesis so much!—I’m also looking forward to Advent, which begins on 11/27. Our Advent reading plan begins on that Monday, 11/28. The Advent reading guides are beautiful; if you live in Tulsa, pick one up at Asbury Church starting this weekend. If you live in Dallas, email Sandie and she’ll tell you how to pick one up. If you live out of town and NOT in Dallas, email Sandie and she’ll mail you one this week.

 

P.S. I’m preaching at an All-City Thanksgiving Service being held at First Presbyterian Church of Tulsa on Monday, 11/21 at 7 PM. Come on out!

 

The People Become Slaves to Pharaoh

in
 

Genesis 47:13-31

13 Now there was no food in all the land, for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished by reason of the famine. 14 And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, in exchange for the grain that they bought. And Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house. 15 And when the money was all spent in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph and said, “Give us food. Why should we die before your eyes? For our money is gone.” 16 And Joseph answered, “Give your livestock, and I will give you food in exchange for your livestock, if your money is gone.” 17 So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them food in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the herds, and the donkeys. He supplied them with food in exchange for all their livestock that year. 18 And when that year was ended, they came to him the following year and said to him, “We will not hide from my lord that our money is all spent. The herds of livestock are my lord's. There is nothing left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our land.

19 Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food, and we with our land will be servants to Pharaoh. And give us seed that we may live and not die, and that the land may not be desolate.”

20 So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh, for all the Egyptians sold their fields, because the famine was severe on them. The land became Pharaoh's. 21 As for the people, he made servants of them from one end of Egypt to the other. 22 Only the land of the priests he did not buy, for the priests had a fixed allowance from Pharaoh and lived on the allowance that Pharaoh gave them; therefore they did not sell their land.

23 Then Joseph said to the people, “Behold, I have this day bought you and your land for Pharaoh. Now here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land. 24 And at the harvests you shall give a fifth to Pharaoh, and four fifths shall be your own, as seed for the field and as food for yourselves and your households, and as food for your little ones.”

25 And they said, “You have saved our lives; may it please my lord, we will be servants to Pharaoh.” 26 So Joseph made it a statute concerning the land of Egypt, and it stands to this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth; the land of the priests alone did not become Pharaoh's. 27 Thus Israel settled in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen. And they gained possessions in it, and were fruitful and multiplied greatly. 28 And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. So the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were 147 years.

29 And when the time drew near that Israel must die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, “If now I have found favor in your sight, put your hand under my thigh and promise to deal kindly and truly with me. Do not bury me in Egypt, 30 but let me lie with my fathers. Carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burying place.” He answered, “I will do as you have said.” 31 And he said, “Swear to me”; and he swore to him. Then Israel bowed himself upon the head of his bed.

 
 

I wonder if we’re supposed to see Joseph’s economic measures as morally questionable. Yes, he saves Egypt and the Middle East from starvation through his prudent planning, but he also enriches Pharaoh and strengthens Pharoah’s grip over all of Egypt, thereby turning the people into little more than indentured servants to Pharaoh. Could not he have saved the people another way? Will these measures come back to haunt the Israelites later? Here, an Israelite causes the Egyptians to essentially become enslaved. Later, the Egyptians will return the favor and enslave the Israelites.

It's worth considering.

 

Note: Our Genesis readings are drawing to an end, and though I’m sad—I love Genesis so much!—I’m also looking forward to Advent, which begins on 11/27. Our Advent reading plan begins on that Monday, 11/28. The Advent reading guides are beautiful; if you live in Tulsa, pick one up at Asbury Church starting this weekend. If you live in Dallas, email Sandie and she’ll tell you how to pick one up. If you live out of town and NOT in Dallas, email Sandie and she’ll mail you one this week.

 
 

Did You Notice Jacob Bless *Pharoah*?!

in
 

Genesis 48:28-47:12

28 He had sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph to show the way before him in Goshen, and they came into the land of Goshen. 29 Then Joseph prepared his chariot and went up to meet Israel his father in Goshen. He presented himself to him and fell on his neck and wept on his neck a good while. 30 Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face and know that you are still alive.” 31 Joseph said to his brothers and to his father's household, “I will go up and tell Pharaoh and will say to him, ‘My brothers and my father's household, who were in the land of Canaan, have come to me. 32 And the men are shepherds, for they have been keepers of livestock, and they have brought their flocks and their herds and all that they have.’ 33 When Pharaoh calls you and says, ‘What is your occupation?’ 34 you shall say, ‘Your servants have been keepers of livestock from our youth even until now, both we and our fathers,’ in order that you may dwell in the land of Goshen, for every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians.”

Jacob's Family Settles in Goshen

47 So Joseph went in and told Pharaoh, “My father and my brothers, with their flocks and herds and all that they possess, have come from the land of Canaan. They are now in the land of Goshen.” 2 And from among his brothers he took five men and presented them to Pharaoh. 3 Pharaoh said to his brothers, “What is your occupation?” And they said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds, as our fathers were.” 4 They said to Pharaoh, “We have come to sojourn in the land, for there is no pasture for your servants' flocks, for the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. And now, please let your servants dwell in the land of Goshen.” 5 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6 The land of Egypt is before you. Settle your father and your brothers in the best of the land. Let them settle in the land of Goshen, and if you know any able men among them, put them in charge of my livestock.”

7 Then Joseph brought in Jacob his father and stood him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 8 And Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How many are the days of the years of your life?” 9 And Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning.” 10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from the presence of Pharaoh. 11 Then Joseph settled his father and his brothers and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. 12 And Joseph provided his father, his brothers, and all his father's household with food, according to the number of their dependents.

 
 

Family is how we fight.

That’s a phrase I use that—to me—sums up the entire biblical story.

See, when, after Babel (see Genesis 11), God starts to put his plan into action to rescue his Creation, he starts with one man and his family:

12 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. [Genesis 12:1-3]

The Lord’s promise is to use Abraham’s family to bring blessing to the world.

When I say, “Family is how we fight,” what I mean is that it’s the focus on being the people of God—the Family of God—that is our primary way of fighting back against evil and bringing blessing into the world.

So, don’t miss the significance of what happens with Pharoah: rather than Jacob coming in subservience to Pharoah, Pharoah comes and receives a blessing from Jacob.

Just as the Lord said would happen.

How can you be a conduit for Edenic blessing today?

 

The Lord Speaks to Jacob One Last Time

in
 

Genesis 46:1-27

So Israel took his journey with all that he had and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. 2 And God spoke to Israel in visions of the night and said, “Jacob, Jacob.” And he said, “Here I am.” 3 Then he said, “I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make you into a great nation. 4 I myself will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you up again, and Joseph's hand shall close your eyes.”

5 Then Jacob set out from Beersheba. The sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons that Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 6 They also took their livestock and their goods, which they had gained in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob and all his offspring with him, 7 his sons, and his sons' sons with him, his daughters, and his sons' daughters. All his offspring he brought with him into Egypt. 8 Now these are the names of the descendants of Israel, who came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons. Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, 9 and the sons of Reuben: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi. 10 The sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman. 11 The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 12 The sons of Judah: Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah (but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan); and the sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul. 13 The sons of Issachar: Tola, Puvah, Yob, and Shimron. 14 The sons of Zebulun: Sered, Elon, and Jahleel. 15 These are the sons of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob in Paddan-aram, together with his daughter Dinah; altogether his sons and his daughters numbered thirty-three.

16 The sons of Gad: Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi, and Areli. 17 The sons of Asher: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, with Serah their sister. And the sons of Beriah: Heber and Malchiel. 18 These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter; and these she bore to Jacob—sixteen persons.

19 The sons of Rachel, Jacob's wife: Joseph and Benjamin. 20 And to Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera the priest of On, bore to him.

21 And the sons of Benjamin: Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim, and Ard. 22 These are the sons of Rachel, who were born to Jacob—fourteen persons in all.

23 The son of Dan: Hushim. 24 The sons of Naphtali: Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem. 25 These are the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban gave to Rachel his daughter, and these she bore to Jacob—seven persons in all.

26 All the persons belonging to Jacob who came into Egypt, who were his own descendants, not including Jacob's sons' wives, were sixty-six persons in all. 27 And the sons of Joseph, who were born to him in Egypt, were two. All the persons of the house of Jacob who came into Egypt were seventy.

 
 

It’s been a long, long time since Jacob has heard from the Lord. And here, as Jacob is weighing the decision to go to Egypt, the Lord speaks to him in a vision in the night and reassures him that going to Egypt is the right thing to do.

And so Jacob goes.

I wonder if it was important for later Israelites to understand that the decision for Jacob’s family to go to Egypt was NOT a mistake, though it would later lead to their enslavement. It was God’s gracious, guiding hand that brought them there, just as it would be God’s mighty right arm that would later bring them out.

 

No Quarreling

in
 

Genesis 45:16-28

16 When the report was heard in Pharaoh's house, “Joseph's brothers have come,” it pleased Pharaoh and his servants. 17 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Say to your brothers, ‘Do this: load your beasts and go back to the land of Canaan, 18 and take your father and your households, and come to me, and I will give you the best of the land of Egypt, and you shall eat the fat of the land.’ 19 And you, Joseph, are commanded to say, ‘Do this: take wagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones and for your wives, and bring your father, and come. 20 Have no concern for your goods, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.’”

21 The sons of Israel did so: and Joseph gave them wagons, according to the command of Pharaoh, and gave them provisions for the journey. 22 To each and all of them he gave a change of clothes, but to Benjamin he gave three hundred shekels of silver and five changes of clothes. 23 To his father he sent as follows: ten donkeys loaded with the good things of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and provision for his father on the journey. 24 Then he sent his brothers away, and as they departed, he said to them, “Do not quarrel on the way.”

25 So they went up out of Egypt and came to the land of Canaan to their father Jacob. 26 And they told him, “Joseph is still alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt.” And his heart became numb, for he did not believe them. 27 But when they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said to them, and when he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived. 28 And Israel said, “It is enough; Joseph my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”

 
 

One little detail that I love about today’s reading: the simple instruction Joseph gives his brothers:

“Do not quarrel on the way.”

Ha.

 

Eden Can Be Anywhere

in
 

Genesis 45:1-15

Then Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by him. He cried, “Make everyone go out from me.” So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. 2 And he wept aloud, so that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it. 3 And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence.

4 So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near. And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. 5 And now do not be distressed 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 yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. 7 And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. 8 So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt. 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 tarry. 10 You shall dwell in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children's children, and your flocks, your herds, and all that you have. 11 There I will provide for you, for there are yet five years of famine to come, so that you and your household, and all that you have, do not come to poverty.’ 12 And now your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see, that it is my mouth that speaks to you.

13 You must tell my father of all my honor in Egypt, and of all that you have seen. Hurry and bring my father down here.” 14 Then he fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, and Benjamin wept upon his neck. 15 And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them. After that his brothers talked with him.

 
 

This is one of the great scenes of the Bible: the reunification of the Sons of Jacob.

And one of its lessons is this: Eden can be anywhere.

Since Genesis 3, God’s people have been exiled from Eden, but God has constantly been blessing them anyway. And here, in Egypt—of all places(!)—the family of Abraham finds blessing and abundance. That is, they find Eden.

All it took was for one man to sacrifice himself for the many….

(Let the reader understand.)

 

Judah the Statesman Makes His Great Speech

in
 

Genesis 44:14-34

14 When Judah and his brothers came to Joseph's house, he was still there. They fell before him to the ground. 15 Joseph said to them, “What deed is this that you have done? Do you not know that a man like me can indeed practice divination?” 16 And Judah said, “What shall we say to my lord? What shall we speak? Or how can we clear ourselves? God has found out the guilt of your servants; behold, we are my lord's servants, both we and he also in whose hand the cup has been found.” 17 But he said, “Far be it from me that I should do so! Only the man in whose hand the cup was found shall be my servant. But as for you, go up in peace to your father.”

18 Then Judah went up to him and said, “Oh, my lord, please let your servant speak a word in my lord's ears, and let not your anger burn against your servant, for you are like Pharaoh himself. 19 My lord asked his servants, saying, ‘Have you a father, or a brother?’ 20 And we said to my lord, ‘We have a father, an old man, and a young brother, the child of his old age. His brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother's children, and his father loves him.’ 21 Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me, that I may set my eyes on him.’ 22 We said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father, for if he should leave his father, his father would die.’ 23 Then you said to your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you shall not see my face again.’

24 “When we went back to your servant my father, we told him the words of my lord. 25 And when our father said, ‘Go again, buy us a little food,’ 26 we said, ‘We cannot go down. If our youngest brother goes with us, then we will go down. For we cannot see the man's face unless our youngest brother is with us.’ 27 Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons. 28 One left me, and I said, “Surely he has been torn to pieces,” and I have never seen him since. 29 If you take this one also from me, and harm happens to him, you will bring down my gray hairs in evil to Sheol.’

30 “Now therefore, as soon as I come to your servant my father, and the boy is not with us, then, as his life is bound up in the boy's life, 31 as soon as he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die, and your servants will bring down the gray hairs of your servant our father with sorrow to Sheol. 32 For your servant became a pledge of safety for the boy to my father, saying, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, then I shall bear the blame before my father all my life.’ 33 Now therefore, please let your servant remain instead of the boy as a servant to my lord, and let the boy go back with his brothers. 34 For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I fear to see the evil that would find my father.”

 
 

This is the longest speech in Genesis, and one of the longest in the entire Bible. It’s a beautiful, statesmanlike speech, moving in its raw, honest emotion.

It’s the action that finally breaks the heart of Joseph and pierces through his fierce exterior.

And guess what it’s about: a man (Judah) who is willing to give his life for his brother (Benjamin). Joseph has brought the family to the point where the one who before sold his brother into slavery (remember it was Judah who suggested way back in Genesis 37 that the brothers sell Joseph off) is now humbled and so full of love that he will lay down his life to preserve the life of another young brother.

Which brother will be the one to lead the family into the next generation?

We are getting closer to an answer.