Episode Transcript
[00:00:01] I am Rich Young iii. And this is an amazing thing.
[00:00:17] I am here to facilitate learning the word of God on a fundamental level.
[00:00:23] So join me and let's grow together and build a relationship with our Creator.
[00:00:29] And that starts now.
[00:00:40] Hello everyone. Welcome to an amazing thing. Thank you for joining me today. This is our midweek study with our continual Bible study show. We're taking up now where we left off last time. This is going to be in the beginning, lesson number nine.
[00:00:54] And remember the last time we were here, we studied how Pharaoh had the dream. Joseph interprets the dream and helps them to prepare for what God is about to do. We'll begin reading at Genesis 41, 38, 40.
[00:01:10] And Pharaoh said unto his servants, can we find such a one as this, a man whom the spirit of God is? And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, forasmuch as God has shown thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art. Thou shalt be over my house. And according to thy word shall all the people be ruled.
[00:01:34] Only in the throne will I be greater.
[00:01:38] So Joseph has gone from the prison where he was accused of a despicable crime that he was innocent of to being the second most powerful ruler on, on earth. Now we know in the first seven years, Joseph instructed them to store up one fifth of all the crops so that they would have enough to make it through the famine. Okay, now the seven years has passed and now we're two years into the famine. And so now Joseph is about to open up the store houses so they can dispense food to all the people who are in need. And, and the famine has started to wax very, very sore and gross as the Bible says it. Okay, this is Genesis chapter 41, verses 56 and 57.
[00:02:24] And the famine was over the face of the earth. And Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold unto the Egyptians.
[00:02:32] And the famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt. And all the countries came to Egypt to Joseph to buy corn because that the famine was sore in all the land. Like I said, it was two years now into the famine. That means it was nine years since Pharaoh's dream and fan and Pharaoh putting Joseph in charge of what was going on in Egypt. So now Joseph had to wonder at this point he's starting to see people come from very, very far away. So he knows that this family is touching his family back in Canaan. He probably wonders, are they going to come down to Backhorn?
[00:03:12] So the word had spread throughout Egypt that there was corn there. This is Genesis chapter 42, verses one. And two, now when Jacob saw there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons, why do you look one upon another?
[00:03:27] He said, behold, I heard there is corn in Egypt. Get thee down there and, and buy for us thence a little bit of food so that we may live and not die.
[00:03:38] So Jacob asked his sons to get up and go down there. And the family was in a very, very dire need, so they had to go.
[00:03:45] Jacob did not send his youngest son Benjamin with him because he was the son of his old age. Now that in Jacob's mind Joseph is dead. And so he wouldn't send them, but he sent the other ten sons with them.
[00:04:00] So Jacob doesn't want to risk Benjamin. That's the only son he has left of his rifle, his wife Rachel. Okay, now Joseph dream is about to be fulfilled here. This is Genesis 42, verses 6 and verse 9.
[00:04:18] And Joseph was the governor over the land, and it was he that sold to all the people in the land. And Joseph's brethren came and bowed down before him with their faces to the earth. And Joseph remembered the dreams which he had dreamed of and said unto them, Ye are spies to see the nakedness of the land. You are come.
[00:04:42] Now this is after, after 22 years since the last time they saw Joseph as a 17 year old kid begging for his life.
[00:04:49] And Joseph speaks to them, of course, with Egyptian garb and accoutrements through an interpreter. So they don't know that Joseph understands their language and they don't know who he is at all.
[00:05:02] Joseph brethren give account of their family.
[00:05:05] There are 11 living brothers. One is not meaning Joseph was dead, not knowing they were speaking to Joseph. Now Joseph knows that that's the lie they told daddy. Well, Joseph is dead and that whole thing, so he knows what the situation is with just these few words that he, he hears from them. Now Joseph has to continue to devise a test to see what kind of men they've become after all this time. He says, you are spies.
[00:05:35] This is Genesis 42, 19, 20. If ye be true men, let one of your brethren be bound in the house of your prison. Ye go carry corn for the famine of your house. And bring your youngest brother unto me so that your words will be verified and ye shall not die. And they did so.
[00:05:57] So when you come back, you bring that younger brother with you so we can verify that you're telling me the truth. That's what Jacob is, Joseph is telling them. Joseph knows they will be back because he knows there's five more years of famine. So he knows they are. They have to come back.
[00:06:12] So Joseph brothers at this time are reaping what they have sown.
[00:06:18] It's amazing how God will bring back to man circumstances concerning the things that we're guilty of, especially unrepentant sin. He'll bring that to our minds, and that's what he does here.
[00:06:30] This is Genesis 42, 21, 23. And they said, one to another, we are verily guilty concerning our brother.
[00:06:40] And that we saw the anguish of his soul when he bestowed us. And we would not hear. Therefore, this distress has come upon us. And Reuben answered, saying to them, I spoke I not unto you, saying, don't sin against the child. And you would not hear. Therefore, behold, also his blood is required of us.
[00:07:03] And they knew not that Joseph understood him because he spoke to them through an interpreter. So Joseph hears them acknowledge they're wrong.
[00:07:12] So he has still has a lot to find out about him. But he not he knows that they acknowledged they're wrong here. And Joseph goes away and weeps privately when he sees this. And he misses his family, he misses his brothers.
[00:07:25] And so let's continue farther. This is Genesis chapter 42, verses 25 and 26.
[00:07:33] Then Joseph commanded to fill their sacks with corn and to restore every man's money into his sack and to give them provision for the way. And thus did he unto them. And they loaded their asses with corn and departed thence. Now Joseph gave them provision for the row so they wouldn't have to look in the sacks until they got home. And so that is one of. So they wouldn't know that the money was there. And they also wouldn't have to unpack all those donkeys to be able to just get a little grain for the donkeys to eat as they're carrying the food back.
[00:08:11] So Simeon remains in Egypt, probably in. Not in a traditional prison cell, but probably confined to quarters is probably the way they did it.
[00:08:25] He's comfortable there.
[00:08:27] Joseph's brothers returned to Egypt. Now, okay, this is Genesis 43, 4 and 5.
[00:08:35] And the famine was sore in the land. And it came to pass that when they had eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said unto them, go again and buy a little food.
[00:08:47] They said, benjamin got to go with us. Let's read that. That's Genesis 43, 4 and 5.
[00:08:53] If that will send our brother with us, we will go down and buy food. But if thou will not send him, we will not go down. For the man said unto us, you shall not see my face except your Brother be with you. After Jason. Jacob refuses.
[00:09:11] There's a back and forth between him and his sons. Jacob sees that there's no other way.
[00:09:15] He must send Benjamin, and he charges them. It'll destroy me if you don't bring that boy back.
[00:09:22] It will destroy me.
[00:09:24] His father dreads letting Benjamin go, but he knows he has to make the trip in order for these things to come true. And they get what the provision that they need. This is Genesis, chapter 43, verses 29 and 30.
[00:09:38] And he lifted up his eyes and saw his brother Benjamin. They've made it back. Now he sees them coming back, his mother son and said, is this your younger brother of whom you spake unto me? And he said, God be gracious unto thee, my son.
[00:09:53] And Joseph made haste, for his bowels did yearn upon his brother, and he sought where to weep. And he entered into his chamber and he wept there.
[00:10:04] You know, things are happening in Joseph's life that he thought would never happen again. He sees his brothers the last time they come back and they bring his younger brother Benjamin, which he never thought he'd see.
[00:10:16] So Joseph sees his little brother. He's overwhelmed because he didn't think he'd ever seen. So Joseph's brethren was still have no idea that this is not an Egyptian, but this is our brother. And they had sold into slavery 22 years earlier. They had no idea what they were looking at. Joseph's brethren still thought he was an Egyptian. And so now he has to test them a little bit farther. So some of the things that they've grown out of is good, but I need to know a little bit more about these people before I make myself known to them. This is Genesis, chapter 44, verses 1 and 2. And he commanded the stewards of the house, saying, fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man's money back in his sack's mouth. And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack of the mouth of the youngest and his coin money. So he's now devising a plan to see how these men treat my younger brother. They. They didn't care for me very much because I was Dad's favorite. Obviously, Benjamin has become Dad's favorite. Let's see how they treat him.
[00:11:27] So that's the test that he's trying to fulfill here. Do they hate Benjamin like they hated me?
[00:11:34] Surely he's become dad's favorite now. Joseph made sure they saw him using that cup so that when he takes this next step, they'll know Whose cup that is? The next morning they started back to their home and they left the city. Joseph sent his stewards after them, accusing them of taking Joseph's silver cup.
[00:11:58] Okay, and this is Genesis 44, 9 and 10.
[00:12:03] With whom ever of that service it will be found, let him both die, and we will also become my Lord's bondsmen. And he said, now also let it be according to your word. Whosoever is found shall be my servant, and ye shall be blameless. So they change it up a little bit. Now you know the, the. It's clear what Joseph is trying to do. I want to isolate that youngest boy from you and see if you would just leave him here and see what your thoughts are about him. And so this is Genesis chapter 44:12.
[00:12:41] And he searched and began at the eldest and left off at the youngest. And the cup was found in. Benjamin said, that is amazing. Okay, we found the guilty party. Take him back into the bondsman. Take him back and put him in jail and y' all can go home. That's what he told him. And then we can't do this. We got to go back and straighten this out.
[00:13:04] And so Judah is the one now that stands up and pleads for, for Benjamin here. This is Genesis chapter 44, verses 33 and 34.
[00:13:14] Now I pray thee, let thy servant abide instead of the lad as a bondsman to my Lord, and let the lad go home with his brethren.
[00:13:23] For how shall I go up to my father and the lad not be with me, lest per adventure I see the evil that shall come on my father?
[00:13:34] This will kill him if we don't take this boy back. Let me go back. I'll be your slave, but let him go. So Judah now volunteers to stay himself.
[00:13:44] He was instrumental in selling Joseph 22 years earlier. Now he's intermittently trying to get Benjamin back.
[00:13:51] And you know, this is an amazing thing to see how these men have changed.
[00:13:59] They tell Joseph, this is certainly going to kill our father if we don't take him back. Joseph now knows his brothers have truly changed. They don't treat Benjamin like they treated me.
[00:14:11] So we have to know that people do change sometimes. Sometimes they're in grow up in different circumstances and have to find out that the way they think and the way they live is not something to be proud of.
[00:14:25] And so this is the case here.
[00:14:27] So Joseph reveals himself to them now, now that he sees that they have truly changed. They didn't treat Joseph, Benjamin, like they treated me. This is Genesis 45:1 and 2. Then Joseph. Joseph could not refrain himself before all of them that stood before him. And he cried.
[00:14:46] He caused every man to go out from me, and there stood no man with him. While Joseph made himself known unto his brethren and he wept aloud. And the Egyptians heard, even in the house of Pharaoh, they heard it. So Joseph's brethren didn't know what to make of it. He sends all of the Egyptian servants out. He starts taking off his clothes and all the dressing.
[00:15:11] Then he lets them know who they're dealing with here. This is Genesis 45, verse 5.
[00:15:17] Now, therefore, be not grieved nor angry with yourselves that you sold me hither, for God did send me before you to preserve life.
[00:15:29] So Joseph never stood to stoop to hate. And bitterness is the root of hate. He didn't get bitter at them. And life is too short to to have hatred and bitterness toward anybody because that turns into a cancer to our souls. And we have to know that bitterness and hatred does nothing to the people that we have bitterness toward. It only affects us in our lives, and it turns into a cancer of our soul that becomes deeper and deeper and deeper and harder to root out.
[00:15:59] So life is too short to hate anybody.
[00:16:02] Joseph gives them fulfillment, forgiveness before they ask. This is Genesis 45, verses 7 and 8.
[00:16:10] And God sent me before you to preserve prosperity on the earth and to save your lives by great deliverance. So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God.
[00:16:23] And he has made me a father to Pharaoh and the Lord of all of his house and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. And that means in the world.
[00:16:33] So he's telling her, don't blame yourself. Joseph imparts no guilt or blame to his brothers. It wasn't you. You didn't know. And remember, all things work together for good to them that love the Lord who are the called according to his purpose. Joseph is living this now in his life long before this. This is stated in the New Testament scripture that we're constantly referring to here.
[00:16:58] So when it was time for Joseph's exaltation, God sent Pharaoh a dream and set these things in motion.
[00:17:05] God sent Joseph to Potiphar's house to learn business, administration and to be an administrator, economics and so forth. He sent Joseph to prison to learn how to handle desperate people.
[00:17:19] Because there's nothing more desperate than starving people, people with children starving to death and that sort of thing.
[00:17:26] So that was what Joseph was going to have to deal with in order to have enough provision to last the duration of the famine.
[00:17:33] So we know that that God was preparing Joseph. Joseph loved his brother regardless to the way that they had done him. And we see Joseph epitomizes that Scripture, that all things work together. And that's found in Romans 8, 28. He epitomizes that.
[00:17:50] This is Genesis, chapter 45, verses 14 and 15.
[00:17:55] He fell on his brother Benjamin's neck and he wept upon his neck. He was so glad to see his brother more. Moreover, he kissed all his brethren and wept upon them. And after that, his brethren talked with him. I can't imagine what this conversation would have been like from either of their points of view. You know, the brothers. And then from Joseph's point of view, the Bible doesn't tell us what they talked about, but would imagine it was a fantastic thing to hear, if you could.
[00:18:27] Joseph now sins for his father. This is Genesis, chapter 25, verse. Chapter 45, verse 9. I'm sorry.
[00:18:35] Hasten ye and go up to my father and say to him.
[00:18:39] Thus saith that Joseph, God has made me all, Lord of all of Egypt. Come down unto me and tarry not.
[00:18:49] So he sends them back again with provision for the road and to get their father and to bring him back. Joseph knows we still have quite a lot of famine to go, so. But in this whole thing, he explains that God made me the Lord of all of Egypt. Joseph gives God the glory. He didn't take the glory from himself. He didn't say, you know, I work so hard, they put me in prison. None of that. He said, God did this. So we see Joseph is exhibiting all the word of God that with our relationship with him. We know that the Bible mainly deals with two relationships. Our relationship with God and our relationship with each other. Me and God. Me and you. And we see Joseph is exhibiting these two aspects of what the word of God is all about.
[00:19:40] Joseph's brethren will hastily return to their father with this fantastic news. You know, it was fantastic.
[00:19:46] They go back and tell him, Joseph still alive. This is Genesis 45, verses 25 and 26.
[00:19:53] And they went up out of Egypt and they came into the land of Canaan unto Jacob, their father, and told him, saying, joseph is yet alive and he is governor of all the land of Egypt.
[00:20:06] And Jacob's heart fainted, for he believed them not. He didn't believe them and thought it was a story they were making up. But Joseph sent with his brother and everything they needed to move their dad and the family and stuff up there. So they show up with all these chariots, probably decorated with all kinds of royal emblems and things from Egypt. And so after that, Jacob believes that Joseph is there. This is Genesis chapter 45, verse 28.
[00:20:34] And Israel said, it is enough that Joseph, my son is alive.
[00:20:38] I will go and see him before I die. Now Israel is contemplating the. That is, he's nearing the end of his life. And Joseph being alive in his mind helps bring closure to his life. So he feels like, I'm gonna go see him before I die. So God has more in store for Jacob than what Jacob has in store for himself.
[00:21:01] So Jacob goes down to Egypt. Now this is Genesis 46, verses 2 through 4.
[00:21:07] And God spake unto Israel in a vision of the night and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, here am I. And he said, I am God, the God of thy father. Fear not to go down to Egypt. I will make of thee a great nation.
[00:21:25] I will go down with thee into Egypt, and I will surely bring you up again.
[00:21:31] And so this is the beginning of the prophecy that God gave Abraham two generations ago, that your descendants were sojourned in Egypt for 400 years. So now this is the beginning of that prophecy coming to pass.
[00:21:44] And the purpose of this prophecy, to take them into the conditions, to make them a mighty nation, is starting right now. God promises to bring his people back into the promised land at some point. So we know that this is all part of of God's plan and the purpose of God plan. He says, I will make of you there a mighty nation.
[00:22:05] One thing we can see, we know that what's going to happen with them. And I guess I'll save this comment until it starts to happen and we can talk about that then.
[00:22:15] 70 Hebrews head down into Egypt. Now this is Genesis 46, verse 27.
[00:22:21] And the sons of Joseph which, which were born in Egypt were two souls. All the souls of the house of Jacob which came to Egypt were three score and 10. We know a score is 20 years. Three scores would be 60 years and 10 years, that's 70. 70 people is what's coming down here. Now Joseph is reunited with his father here. This is Genesis 46, 29.
[00:22:47] And Joseph made ready his chariot, went up to meet his father to Goshen, and presented himself unto him. And he fell on his neck and wept on his neck a good while, you know, two men, so glad to see that, laying out of the middle of the road, hugging and kissing and crying. So that's an amazing sight too. So Joseph and Jacob were emotionally overwhelmed, as we would know in a situation like this.
[00:23:13] Again, we're all things working together for good.
[00:23:16] And now God is fulfilling the things that he promised.
[00:23:20] And now it's the beginning, they're all down in Egypt now of God making them a great nation. This is Genesis 47:29. Now we're nearing the end of Jacob's life. Now God has used Jacob to the fullness of what God had in store for him. Now Joseph, Jacob knows that his time is nearing and he goes to talk to Joseph. Now this is Genesis chapter 47, verse 29 through 30.
[00:23:48] And the time drew nigh that Israel must die.
[00:23:52] And he called his son Joseph and said unto him, if now I have found grace in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh and deal kindly and truly with me. Bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt, but I will lie with my fathers.
[00:24:09] Thou shalt carry me out of Egypt and bury me there in the burying place.
[00:24:14] Joseph answers, I will do as thou have said. And you know, putting your hand under a knee, under someone's thigh was like an oath. Situation was a tradition of of course, Abraham, Isaac and now Jacob as well. And so Jacob to be buried in the cave of Machpelah. And so, and remember, that's why Abraham and Sarah are buried. Isaac and Rebecca are buried there. Now Jacob and Leah will be buried there together. We know that his other wife Rachel died on their way back to the promised land. So she is not there.
[00:24:49] And so now that Jacob has died and they've buried him, Joseph's brothers now believe that the buffer between Joseph's revenge and what they did is now gone. They think the only reason he didn't kill us because dad was still alive.
[00:25:06] And so now they know their wrongdoing and they think that Joseph is just pretending to be as great as he. As he is obviously is. Here. This is Genesis chapter 50, verse 15 and verse 17.
[00:25:20] And when Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us. And we're certain to wear quite the evil which we did unto him by the way of messenger.
[00:25:34] Forgive, I pray now, the trespass of thy brother and their sin.
[00:25:40] For they did unto thee evil. And now we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of God of thy father. And Joseph wept as they spoke unto him. They still believe that Joseph is pretending here. Now they sent a messenger to speak to Joseph and so that's what they did. Obviously they didn't believe what a wonderful man their brother Joseph was. And they felt some helplessness that Joseph had felt when they did, when they sold him into. Into slavery. Now they know exactly how it feels to be helpless to do something. And they saw the anguish of Jake, of Joseph's soul. Way back, Joseph was crying. He wasn't only crying, he was barely crying. You know, that crying like when we were kids on the playground, you know, you could be teasing somebody, some kid on the playground, and all of a sudden the kid will cry. But when he cries a certain way, you know he's had enough.
[00:26:39] And that anguish, that's where that comes from, that anguish of a person's soul that they saw. Joseph was begging for his life. Now they're feeling some of that.
[00:26:50] This is Genesis 50, 19, 21. And Joseph said unto them, fear not, for am I in the place of God.
[00:27:00] But as for you, you thought evil against me, but God meant it unto good to bring to pass as it is this day, to save many people alive.
[00:27:12] Now therefore fear you not. I will nourish you and your little ones.
[00:27:18] He comforted them and spoke kindly to them.
[00:27:21] So he's reassuring them that I'm not going to do anything to you. And so you. And to assure them your kids are going to grow up here and they're going to be cared for.
[00:27:31] Most of the things that happen in a person's life is caused by others. You know, a lot of it is and they probably mean it for evil. But if we think about the scripture that we read in the beginning of these stories, that all things work together for good to them that love the Lord who are the called according to his purpose.
[00:27:53] No matter who's at fault, God will make it out for good.
[00:27:57] Joseph was in no position before going through this turmoil, tumultuous situation in his life to be an administrator. Nor was he in a position to deal with desperate people. God put him through the on the job training for this.
[00:28:14] And so this is a wonderful example that we need to learn within all of our hearts, souls and minds that God is the one that we look for, for deliverance from things. And we look for, for to find the good in every situation here.
[00:28:30] And so God, Joseph continues to give God the glory for what has happened to them.
[00:28:36] This is Genesis, chapter 50, verses 25 and 26.
[00:28:40] And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you and you shall carry my bones from hence.
[00:28:49] So Joseph died, being a hundred and ten years old, and they embalmed him and put him into a coffin in Egypt. This probably was a place that he laid in state for all that time, until it was time for the children of Egypt to come out of this.
[00:29:05] This place that they're in. So the children of Egypt promised they had perfected the embalming process so that they can they embalm their body. So Joseph had himself embalmed. He had the power to do it and make sure that they did it.
[00:29:22] And so he made the children of Israel promise that when God brings you out, he surely is going to make sure you don't leave me here, bring my body out with you.
[00:29:31] And so that's the mandate that Joseph made of the children of Israel.
[00:29:37] Joseph remembers the promise to Abraham that God would bring them out again.
[00:29:44] So even though at this point in their lives, things are not as bad as they're going to get because Joseph is still the second most powerful man on earth.
[00:29:53] But things will slowly go downhill and we'll find that out on our next lesson.
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[00:31:14] We come to the end of our show now and the last scriptures we read was talking about how God was going to fulfill his promise that he made with Abraham.
[00:31:24] And so I'll leave you on this word that God always fulfills his promises and a promise from God is the most valuable thing that we can have.
[00:31:34] So remember that we can always trust God and we can know that he is not slack in providing for us and we have to seek him with all our heart, all of our mind, all of our spirit, and all of our souls.
[00:31:48] Thank you so much.
[00:32:05] Well everyone, that brings us to the end of our show today.
[00:32:08] I hope you found this show a blessing.
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[00:33:34] Sa.
