Genesis 45:1-13 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is Genesis 45:1-13. Let’s go!
Genesis 45:1-8 (NIV)
1 Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!” So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers.
2 And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it.
3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?” But his brothers were not able to answer him, because they were terrified at his presence.
4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt!
5 And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.
6 For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping.
7 But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.
8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt.
On verses 1-8: Touched by Judah offering himself as a slave in place of Benjamin, Joseph can hold his secret in no longer. With everyone else outside the room, Joseph reveals his true identity to his brothers. Joseph tells his brothers not to be distressed or angry with themselves for selling him here. The reason is because God had a bigger purpose in allowing it to happen: it was so that Joseph could be sent ahead to save many lives, including his own family. Notice that three times Joseph says that God has “sent” him ahead (v5, 7, 8).
Similarly, God sent Jesus ahead of us and allowed him to suffer far more than Joseph ever suffered, and it is because God had in mind the saving of even more lives. That tends to be God’s way. God allows great hurt and pain not because He loves hurt and pain, but because through that great hurt and pain God would bring about even greater good that far outweighs the original hurt and pain,
When we realize that God had a greater purpose in allowing our greatest pain, a purpose which would bring about a far greater good than the original hurt that was inflicted, it helps us to stop being angry and wanting revenge against those who hurt us. What if that it is the way God deals with all our deepest hurts? What if the reason why God allows our deepest hurts is because down the road God had many, many more people He wished to save and help through that original hurt that was inflicted?
Genesis 45:9-13 (NIV)
9 Now hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don’t delay.
10 You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me–you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have.
11 I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.’
12 “You can see for yourselves, and so can my brother Benjamin, that it is really I who am speaking to you.
13 Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt and about everything you have seen. And bring my father down here quickly.”
On verses 9-13: Having been reunited with his brothers, now all that is on Joseph’s mind is reuniting with his father. Four times Joseph mentions his father in this passage (v3, v9, v13). Joseph’s life testifies to the fact that no matter how much success, fame or power we may gain in this world, no matter how many people we surround ourselves with, our dads hold a place in our heart that no one else can take.
The fact is that your relationship with your father is powerful in that few relationships have as much impact on a person as that relationship. Perhaps your relationship your dad is simple and beautiful. Perhaps your relationship with your dad is complicated and ugly. Or maybe it’s somewhere in between. Whatever the case may be, may you know that you have a Heavenly Father who loves you with an everlasting love, who will never leave you or forsake you, and who sent Jesus Christ ahead of you so that you and He would never have to be apart again. The good that you can see in your earthly father is actually an imperfect reflection of the goodness of your Heavenly Father. Knowing your Heavenly Father up close and personally is the key to being secure.
Heavenly Father, thank You that just as You sent Joseph ahead of his family into Egypt for the saving of many lives, You sent Your Son Jesus ahead of us all into this world for the saving of many lives. Thank You that the sending of Your Son Jesus is the greatest evidence that we have a Heavenly Father who is good and who loves us. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
