THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST: GENESIS AND EXODUS (13)

GENESIS 41-44

JOSEPH’S EYPTIAN RULE

Key Passage: Genesis 43- 44

CHAPTER	41	CHAPTER 42	CHAPTER 43	CHAPTER 44
Pharaoh’s Vision	Joseph’s Vindication	Brother’s Visit	Benjamin’s Visit	Joseph’s Vengeance
Joseph Exalted	from Prison	Brother’s Humbled	in the Palace

OVERVIEW A difficult dream sent by God to Pharaoh jars the memory of the chief butler, and Joseph is soon promoted from prisoner to prime minister because of his God-given insight. The dream is a reliable forecast of the prosperity and famine in the years ahead. The worldwide famine prompts Jacob to send 10 sons to Egypt for grain, where Joseph, recognizing the immediately, proceeds to teach them a painful lesson. A series of confrontations builds up to the climax in chapter 44, where the brothers unknowingly fulfill the boyhood dreams of Joseph.

“For the sake of your name, O Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great” (Psalm 25:11).

OUR DAILY WALK For years, Joseph’s brothers had lived with their cunning deception of Jacob. The secret was so complete that Jacob probably blamed himself for the loss of his favorite son. And the other sons, though seeing the agony experienced by their father, maintained their conspiracy of silence at his expense.

But they overlooked one witness to their crime-God. As Judah discovered: “God has uncovered your servant’s guilt” (44:16). God gave them time to set things right, then He applied pressure. The result was a band of frightened men who seemed to be haunted by the memory of their lost brother. Guilt, anxiety, and uncertainty were their constant companions until their wrong was set right through confession and restoration.

As a sinner in the presence of God, you have two choices. You can carry the anxiety of your “secret” sins until God chooses to expose them. Or you can confess those sins to God and to those you’ve wronged, and as a result find forgiveness and peace. Because of Jesus’ death, you can take steps today to make things right with a brother or sister, pastor or neighbor, spouse or roommate. Will you do it?

INSIGHT Whatever Happened to the Tribe of Joseph?

Joseph’s sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, were later “adopted” by Jacob (48:5). Consequently, the descendants of Joseph would later comprise two tribes of Israel, named respectively for his two sons.