Joe Turner

Shelley Norman

Reggie

September 10, 2004

Reading through the Bible in one Year: Numbers 17-20

Weekly Memory Verse: 2 Corinthians 5:17

Good Evening Brothers and Sisters,

Daily Reminder, pray for the "Forty days of purpose" that is coming up on September 25th at 9pm each evening.  I am looking forward to the weekly meetings at Starbucks with many of you, be sure to email me and let me know if you plan to participate.  I haven't decided if I should re-focus the study during that time to focus on the "Forty days" material, or to treat it as a side study, continuing our daily Bible study.  Let me know what you want on this.

Genesis 43:1-34 (NASB95)
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.” 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.’ ” ⁶ Then Israel said, “Why did you treat me so badly by telling the man whether you still had another brother?” 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’?” 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, we 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.” 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. ¹³ “Take your brother also, and arise, return to the man; 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.” 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. 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. 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.” 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.” 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. ²⁴ Then the man brought the men into Joseph’s house and gave them water, and they washed their feet; and he gave their donkeys fodder. ²⁵ So they prepared the present for Joseph’s coming at noon; for they had heard that they were to eat a meal there. ²⁶ 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. ²⁷ Then he asked them about their welfare, and said, “Is your old father well, of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?” ²⁸ They said, “Your servant our father is well; he is still alive.” They bowed down in homage. ²⁹ As he lifted his eyes and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, he said, “Is this your youngest brother, of whom you spoke to me?” And he said, “May God be gracious to you, my son.” ³⁰ Joseph hurried out for he was deeply stirred over his brother, and he sought a place to weep; and he entered his chamber and wept there. ³¹ Then he washed his face and came out; and he controlled himself and said, “Serve the meal.” ³² So they served him by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because the Egyptians could not eat bread with the Hebrews, for that is loathsome to the Egyptians. ³³ Now they were seated before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth, and the men looked at one another in astonishment. ³⁴ He took portions to them from his own table, but Benjamin’s portion was five times as much as any of theirs. So they feasted and drank freely with him.^[1]

I read through today's study and could not help but think, "and the games go on".  Joseph has plenty of time and lots of food.  We really don't know how long the food lasted that the brothers took back on their last trip.  All we know is that it ran out and they were hungry again. Simeon was sitting in prison the entire time, or so we are led to believe.  Joseph went on with life as normal running the kingdom of Egypt.   

When Jacob finally relented to allow Benjamin to go with the brothers to buy more gain, the intensity of the problem had increased in their minds.  They were being tested as to whether they would return for their brother, and they returned only because they were hungry.  But in order to buy food, now they had to appease Joseph, so they took double the money necessary, and extravagant gifts as a guilt offering to him. 

Joseph threw them a few clues that he knew more than he let on, by referring to the Hebrew God, and by seating them in birth order at the banquet.  I find the comment to Benjamin, "May God be gracious to you, my son" comical as Joseph reflected on how it must be to live with people who would sell one brother into slavery and leave another brother in prison while they enjoyed the grain that they had previously purchased. I can't help but wonder if the tears that Joseph shed were tears of joy, or tears of disappointment as he observed and considered the way that his brothers were acting.

Consider also that the first dream of Joseph's was completely fulfilled at this time, all of his brothers had bowed down to him in relation to the need for grain.

Can you imagine how confusing it had to be for them as they were invited into Joseph's house for a banquet when they had come to purchase grain? Their only conclusion was that they were being set up to be captured and to be forced into slavery themselves.   They were hungry, and had been living in a famine, now they were able to feast at a kings table.  We are left with the story there, it will continue tomorrow.

It is a short study today, I hope that if you have more to add you will write in.  Lots of stuff happening around our house today.  The biggest lesson that we can learn from today's study is that the brothers were only concerned with themselves.  They weren't concerned with their brother Simeon enough to make the trip to try to negotiate his release.  It was clear to Joseph that they did not change over the years, they were still out for themselves.  He loved them in spite of themselves.  Joseph was a lot like Jesus in this story, He forgives us regardless of how that we cling to our old ways and refuse to change in our lives, yet His desire is for us to conform to and be driven by the will of God.

Father, as we consider Your word today and consider the time that the brothers left Simeon in prison, I pray that our concern for our fellow man will go beyond our own selfish desires.

In Him,

Joe Turner.