In The Word
Read: Genesis 43
The Return to Egypt
43 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 sternly 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 specifically asked 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 So Judah said to his father Israel, “Send the boy with me and we will arise and go, so that we may live and not die, we as well as you and our little ones. 9 I myself will take responsibility for him! You may demand him back from me. If I do not bring him back to you and present him to you, then you can let me take the blame 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 gift, a little balsam and a little honey, labdanum resin and myrrh, pistachio nuts and almonds. 12 And take double the money in your hand, and take back in your hand the money that was returned in the opening 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 sons, I am bereaved!”15 So the men took this gift, and they took double the money in their hand, and Benjamin; then they set out and went down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph.
Joseph Sees Benjamin
16 When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to his house steward, “Bring the men into the house, and slaughter an animal and make preparations; 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, so that he may attack us and overpower us, and take us as slaves with our donkeys.” 19 So they approached 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 happened when we came to the campsite, that we opened our sacks, and behold, each man’s money was in the opening 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 But he said, “Peace be to you, do not be afraid. Your God and the God of your father has given you treasure in your sacks; your money was in my possession.” 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 feed.25 So they prepared the gift for Joseph’s arrival 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 gift which was in their hand, and they bowed down 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 And they said, “Your servant our father is well; he is still alive.” Then they bowed down again in homage. 29 And as he raised his eyes and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, he said, “Is this your youngest brother, of whom you spoke to me?” Then he said, “May God be gracious to you, my son.” 30 Joseph then hurried out, for he was deeply stirred over his brother, and he looked for a place to weep; so 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 Then they served him by himself, and Joseph’s brothers by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves; because the Egyptians could not eat bread with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians. 33 Now they were seated before him, from the firstborn according to his birthright to the youngest according to his youth, and the men looked at one another in astonishment. 34 Then he took portions to them from his own table, but Benjamin’s portion was five times as much as any of theirs. So they drank freely with him.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
Joseph’s brothers obviously committed an evil act by selling him into slavery, but, in today’s passage, some time has passed since it happened. They were standing in the presence of the very person that they wronged. Joseph had the power to get revenge, but instead he put their hearts to a test. The test was to see if they had truly changed. Joseph placed money in their bags upon them leaving to return home. He also held Simeon hostage until they returned with their youngest brother. He wanted to see how they would handle this situation.
Upon realizing the money was in their bags, the brothers instantly knew that they had to return it to Pharaoh’s house. They promised not only to protect their brother Benjamin but also to return him to their father. This was a completely different point of view from their handling of Joseph. Something happened in their hearts. They saw how the loss of one son caused their father great sorrow, and they did not want to see him experience that again.
When we sin, we cause this same deep sorrow to our Father in heaven. Once we come to the knowledge of what our sinful nature does to Yahweh, it should spark a change in our hearts. The word “repent” simply means to change one’s mind or to turn from. Today let’s turn our hearts toward God and truly repent for hurting Him with our actions.