Genesis 45:16-24 comments: Josephs sends his brothers back to get the rest of their families

Genesis 45:16 ¶  And the fame thereof was heard in Pharaoh’s house, saying, Joseph’s brethren are come: and it pleased Pharaoh well, and his servants. 17  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Say unto thy brethren, This do ye; lade your beasts, and go, get you unto the land of Canaan; 18  And take your father and your households, and come unto me: and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the land. 19  Now thou art commanded, this do ye; take you wagons out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come. 20  Also regard not your stuff; for the good of all the land of Egypt is yours. 21  And the children of Israel did so: and Joseph gave them wagons, according to the commandment of Pharaoh, and gave them provision for the way. 22  To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment. 23  And to his father he sent after this manner; ten asses laden with the good things of Egypt, and ten she asses laden with corn and bread and meat for his father by the way. 24  So he sent his brethren away, and they departed: and he said unto them, See that ye fall not out by the way.

Word of Joseph’s reunion with his brothers has now gotten around Pharaoh’s court. This Pharaoh, a type of God the Father, is pleased and so are his servants, probably his ministers, that this Saviour of the Egyptian people has been blessed with this reunion. Pharaoh opens up his arms to offer a place of abode for Joseph’s family. He orders Joseph to gather up his family in Canaan and bring them back to Egypt. Everything that the Egyptians have his family will have. It is a bold promise and one reason why I think this Pharaoh and his top officials ethnically represent the Hyksos dynasty rather than native Egyptian, being more sympathetic to foreigners from Canaan. So, now, a caravan heads back to Canaan to get Jacob and the rest.

Remember how when Rebekah watered Abraham’s servant’s ten camels and I talked about typology in 24:10-28. Let me review for a moment.

“For one example of prophetic interpretation, the phrase And God said is repeated ten times in the first chapter of Genesis. Perhaps, in symbolic, typology these ten camels, brought by a type of the Holy Ghost to a type of God’s church represent God’s word in Abraham, a type of God the Father, sending the Holy Ghost to gather His church for Christ, who in type is Isaac, already sacrificed in type and resurrected in type, based on how the church responds to the words of God. What is happening here is then telling us in shadow what has happened in the spiritual world since before creation.

Ephesians 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

The part played by the bride-to-be for Isaac, the church for Christ, is laid out by the servant of Abraham, or the Holy Ghost, as one who when approached by the Holy Ghost, responds. The Holy Ghost makes the truth of the gospel brought by the Holy Ghost on ten camels, in a manner of speaking, representing what God has said, apparent and the bride-to-be responds. The bride for Isaac waters the camels as the church glorifies the gospel of Christ by its response to that gospel, confirming that the church is indeed chosen, but chosen by her response. Below, Paul expresses his wish to present the church as pure to Christ as His bride.

2Corinthians 11:2  For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

And this marriage will be complete at the end of human history.

Revelation 19:9  And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.”

Back to this passage of Scripture, Ten represents many things, particularly God’s order and what He said, His words. Here, a type of Christ, Joseph, is sending by order of a type of God the Father, Pharaoh, provisions in numbers of ten to take back to nourish God’s people with the intent purpose of drawing them, bringing them to Egypt, which is here a type of Heaven. Heaven clearly is the end habitation of God’s people but He does not leave them without spiritual nourishment in the meantime in the period before their return. Of course, there are many much better sermons that can be taken from this one passage as with all.

Numbers like three hundred and five have great significance in the rest of the Bible and there are many opinions as to what they signify. But numerology is always a risky business and almost always a matter of opinion. You see a number and then start looking for its application in all sorts of ways, some clear from the text and others a total stretch. Be careful how you represent God and remember that Job’s three friends were criticized, not for lying in every particular as many of the things they said were true, but for misrepresenting God’s reasons and intentions, which they had no way of knowing.

Corn and bread and meat also might have a significance as three types of nourishment; one natural and raw, one prepared by human hands, and one as the general reference for food in the Bible. Could these refer to corn as God’s word in its raw form from the pages of the Bible, bread as God’s word interpreted by a human with the help of the Holy Spirit, and meat as the deepest and true doctrine that God’s word provides for us. I am sure there are other possibilities as well regarding the spiritual nourishment God’s food provides.

Job 34:3  For the ear trieth words, as the mouth tasteth meat.

Genesis 45:1-15 comments: Joseph declares himself to his brothers

Genesis 45:1 ¶  Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him; and he cried, Cause every man to go out from me. And there stood no man with him, while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren. 2  And he wept aloud: and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard. 3  And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph; doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence. 4  And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. 5  Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. 6  For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest. 7  And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. 8  So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. 9  Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry not: 10  And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children’s children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast: 11  And there will I nourish thee; for yet there are five years of famine; lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come to poverty. 12  And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin, that it is my mouth that speaketh unto you. 13  And ye shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that ye have seen; and ye shall haste and bring down my father hither. 14  And he fell upon his brother Benjamin’s neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck. 15  Moreover he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them: and after that his brethren talked with him.

Joseph could no longer contain himself and he told his Egyptian staff to leave the room. But, they could hear his emotional outcry to his brothers. It takes him a bit to convince them that he is, indeed, Joseph their brother. The brothers are dumbfounded. What they meant maliciously God turned to good. He does that with human actions on a regular basis. People throughout history have done many wicked things, often for power and profit, which God has permitted to be done but used to put forth His own purpose such as Europe conquering the world and enslaving millions by their will for power and profit yet God used their evil desire to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ and today faith in Christ is growing at its greatest rate in the so-called third world with people of faith in every part of the world. This does not make slavery and conquest less evil and murderous but simply shows that, as with Joseph’s brothers actions God will not let it go without using it in some way for His purpose.

Joseph introduces himself to his brethren and could it be that the Jews in Israel in the end of history learn of who Jesus really was and is in the same time frame? Some preachers have noted that if there is a seven-year Tribulation at the end of history, of which that last 3 ½ years is called the Great Tribulation, that Jesus might make Himself known to the Jews in a special way 2 years into it. Who can say? Prophecy revealed is not set up for us to gloat over a pretense of smugly declaring how we know the future in detail but as a warning and for the following reason.

John 14:29  And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.

He has already planned for them to live in the land of Goshen, which some say was the area of northeastern Egypt where the Nile entered the Mediterranean Sea. It was lush and fertile land and a place separate from the rest of the Egypt. Of course, this is an assumption based on the conclusions of a 19^th century scholar, Henri Naville. We must be careful in accepting this. Goshen is a word transliteration from a Hebrew word which may or may not have originated from an Egyptian word. Goshen could be in northeastern Egypt or it could have been elsewhere and drawing conclusions on lack of evidence is the bane of scholarship. Let us say that it was a suitable place for herds and it is doubtful that the Pharaoh would have imagined how numerous the Hebrews would become. 

Genesis, chapter 44 comments: Judah pleads with Joseph

Genesis 44:1 ¶  And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man’s money in his sack’s mouth. 2  And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack’s mouth of the youngest, and his corn money. And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken. 3  As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses. 4  And when they were gone out of the city, and not yet far off, Joseph said unto his steward, Up, follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good? 5  Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? ye have done evil in so doing. 6  And he overtook them, and he spake unto them these same words. 7  And they said unto him, Wherefore saith my lord these words? God forbid that thy servants should do according to this thing: 8  Behold, the money, which we found in our sacks’ mouths, we brought again unto thee out of the land of Canaan: how then should we steal out of thy lord’s house silver or gold? 9  With whomsoever of thy servants it be found, both let him die, and we also will be my lord’s bondmen. 10  And he said, Now also let it be according unto your words: he with whom it is found shall be my servant; and ye shall be blameless. 11  Then they speedily took down every man his sack to the ground, and opened every man his sack. 12  And he searched, and began at the eldest, and left at the youngest: and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. 13  Then they rent their clothes, and laded every man his ass, and returned to the city. 14  And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph’s house; for he was yet there: and they fell before him on the ground. 15  And Joseph said unto them, What deed is this that ye have done? wot ye not that such a man as I can certainly divine? 16  And Judah said, What shall we say unto my lord? what shall we speak? or how shall we clear ourselves? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants: behold, we are my lord’s servants, both we, and he also with whom the cup is found. 17  And he said, God forbid that I should do so: but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as for you, get you up in peace unto your father.

Joseph sets the brothers up yet again for a shock by not only filling them with food and wine and also giving them provisions for their return journey, but then placing a special silver cup in the sack of Benjamin. All of the men’s money was returned again to them.

This silver cup, which it is said that Joseph used to drink from and to divine with has some special significance. It was common for nobility in the ancient world to use cups for the purposes of divining the will of the spiritual world. Several sources attest to this. The same instrument used by the pagan was also used by the people of God before the Law was given and after to divine God’s will. As an example the casting of lots takes place many times to divine God’s will because, unlike we today who believe heavily in randomness and luck based on randomness, the ancients believed that there was a point to everything even if humans were unable to discern it. Just type in the word lots in a computer concordance or look it up.

Divining was used to try to understand that plan or the intention of spiritual entities; gods, devils, and, in the sense of the people of God, His will. If you believe that no flip of the coin results from chance and that God is in control of all reality and events then this becomes easier to understand although its purpose may be truly ungodly and an abomination based on intent. Judging from Joseph’s character and his close relationship with God, being used by Him, I am confident that Joseph was not seeking answers from devils, pagan entities, but from God alone.

In this bit of deception, as you read, Joseph accuses them of stealing his cup in order to bring them back to him. Now, Joseph states that he is going to keep Benjamin as a servant, even though Judah offered all of them as Joseph’s servants, and they can go back to their father.

Genesis 44:18 ¶  Then Judah came near unto him, and said, Oh my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord’s ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy servant: for thou art even as Pharaoh. 19  My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a father, or a brother? 20  And we said unto my lord, We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him. 21  And thou saidst unto thy servants, Bring him down unto me, that I may set mine eyes upon him. 22  And we said unto my lord, The lad cannot leave his father: for if he should leave his father, his father would die. 23  And thou saidst unto thy servants, Except your youngest brother come down with you, ye shall see my face no more. 24  And it came to pass when we came up unto thy servant my father, we told him the words of my lord. 25  And our father said, Go again, and buy us a little food. 26  And we said, We cannot go down: if our youngest brother be with us, then will we go down: for we may not see the man’s face, except our youngest brother be with us. 27  And thy servant my father said unto us, Ye know that my wife bare me two sons: 28  And the one went out from me, and I said, Surely he is torn in pieces; and I saw him not since: 29  And if ye take this also from me, and mischief befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. 30  Now therefore when I come to thy servant my father, and the lad be not with us; seeing that his life is bound up in the lad’s life; 31  It shall come to pass, when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that he will die: and thy servants shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to the grave. 32  For thy servant became surety for the lad unto my father, saying, If I bring him not unto thee, then I shall bear the blame to my father for ever. 33  Now therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant abide instead of the lad a bondman to my lord; and let the lad go up with his brethren. 34  For how shall I go up to my father, and the lad be not with me? lest peradventure I see the evil that shall come on my father.

Judah pleads for his father, that Benjamin not be kept as a servant but that Judah take his place. He offered himself as surety for Benjamin’s safety, after all. He implores this mighty Egyptian official, whom he does not know as his brother, Joseph. Judah, who in 37:26 persuaded his brothers that, rather than kill Joseph, they should sell him to the Ishmaelites, was instrumental in Joseph having the opportunity to be the de facto ruler of Egypt’s internal policies regarding the preparation and survival of this famine.

This is a time of great tension and, as far as the brothers know, the fate of Benjamin, their fate, and their father’s all hinge on this Egyptian official’s sense of mercy. It is a time of desperation, fear, and anxiety. To them, everything hinges on this official’s decision. Can you imagine how filled with confusion and dread and apprehension they must be? I wonder if they imagined how filled with confusion, fear, and apprehension Joseph must have been when he was thrown in that pit and then sold by his own brothers as a slave to traveling traders.

Genesis 43:15-34 comments: Joseph reunited with his little brother, Benjamin

Genesis 43:15 ¶  And the men took that present, and they took double money in their hand, and Benjamin; and rose up, and went down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph. 16  And when Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the ruler of his house, Bring these men home, and slay, and make ready; for these men shall dine with me at noon. 17  And the man did as Joseph bade; and the man brought the men into Joseph’s house. 18  And the men were afraid, because they were brought into Joseph’s house; and they said, Because of the money that was returned in our sacks at the first time are we brought in; that he may seek occasion against us, and fall upon us, and take us for bondmen, and our asses. 19  And they came near to the steward of Joseph’s house, and they communed with him at the door of the house, 20  And said, O sir, we came indeed down at the first time to buy food: 21  And it came to pass, when we came to the inn, that we opened our sacks, and, behold, every man’s money was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight: and we have brought it again in our hand. 22  And other money have we brought down in our hands to buy food: we cannot tell who put our money in our sacks. 23  And he said, Peace be to you, fear not: your God, and the God of your father, hath given you treasure in your sacks: I had your money. And he brought Simeon out unto them. 24  And the man brought the men into Joseph’s house, and gave them water, and they washed their feet; and he gave their asses provender. 25  And they made ready the present against Joseph came at noon: for they heard that they should eat bread there.

The brothers take the amount of money they intended to spend on the last trip that was returned to them and the same amount of money again, to buy more food. They were then greeted at Joseph’s house in a manner that probably surprised them somewhat. Joseph’s steward, whom we would call a butler today, calms their fears and gives them the story about the money being in their sacks on the last trip being a miracle. This is the steward’s story, perhaps ordered by Joseph. The reader is under no requirement to view this as from God Himself. Joseph had their money put back in their sacks. In a way it was God working through Joseph who returned their money.

Genesis 43:26 ¶  And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth. 27  And he asked them of their welfare, and said, Is your father well, the old man of whom ye spake? Is he yet alive? 28  And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance. 29  And he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and said, Is this your younger brother, of whom ye spake unto me? And he said, God be gracious unto thee, my son. 30  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 wept there. 31  And he washed his face, and went out, and refrained himself, and said, Set on bread. 32  And they set on for him by himself, and for them by themselves, and for the Egyptians, which did eat with him, by themselves: because the Egyptians might not eat bread with the Hebrews; for that is an abomination unto the Egyptians. 33  And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his youth: and the men marvelled one at another. 34  And he took and sent messes unto them from before him: but Benjamin’s mess was five times so much as any of theirs. And they drank, and were merry with him.

Joseph is now overwhelmed at the presence of his beloved brother, Benjamin. The brothers are amazed at the feast set before them. The Egyptians not eating side by side with the Hebrews reveals the hostility and disgust these civilized people of one of the ancient world’s superpowers feel toward these herders from the area we today call Palestine. The arrangements are revealed with Joseph seated separately, appropriately for his rank it can be presumed, the Egyptians separately, and the brothers seated by eldest to youngest. Benjamin gets five times as much food as the brothers did but it apparently doesn’t affect them. They drank and were merry with Joseph.

A mess from which we get “mess-kit” and “mess hall” in old military terms also means a portion of food or a dish as in a mess of meat. Just think of it as a meal or as a specific dish in a meal as Nicholas Culpeper in his 1652 work ‘The English Physician’ wrote a “mess of warm broth.”

2Samuel 11:8  And David said to Uriah, Go down to thy house, and wash thy feet. And Uriah departed out of the king’s house, and there followed him a mess of meat from the king.

Genesis 43:1-14 comments: Bring your brother down?

Genesis 43:1 ¶  And the famine was sore in the land. 2  And it came to pass, when they had eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said unto them, Go again, buy us a little food. 3  And Judah spake unto him, saying, The man did solemnly protest unto us, saying, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with you. 4  If thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down and buy thee food: 5  But if thou wilt not send him, we will not go down: for the man said unto us, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with you. 6  And Israel said, Wherefore dealt ye so ill with me, as to tell the man whether ye had yet a brother? 7  And they said, The man asked us straitly of our state, and of our kindred, saying, Is your father yet alive? have ye another brother? and we told him according to the tenor of these words: could we certainly know that he would say, Bring your brother down? 8  And Judah said unto Israel his father, Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go; that we may live, and not die, both we, and thou, and also our little ones. 9  I will be surety for him; of my hand shalt thou require him: if I bring him not unto thee, and set him before thee, then let me bear the blame for ever: 10  For except we had lingered, surely now we had returned this second time.

So, now there is nothing left of what Joseph had given his brothers. The famine is getting worse. Jacob tells them to go again to Egypt to buy food. Now, it is Judah who says to let Benjamin go and offers himself up as a guarantee against the young man’s return.

First Reuben then Judah tried to persuade their father to let Benjamin go with them.

Genesis 43:11 ¶  And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds: 12  And take double money in your hand; and the money that was brought again in the mouth of your sacks, carry it again in your hand; peradventure it was an oversight: 13  Take also your brother, and arise, go again unto the man: 14  And God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may send away your other brother, and Benjamin. If I be bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.

This passage shows that it is the basic food crop that is affected by the famine and not other substances so that the famine has most likely been caused by a failure of the wheat crop throughout the Ancient Near East over several years. The reason I believe this famine has been caused by back to back wheat crop failures due to disease or other causes is that growing almonds takes a lot of water and I’ve even read it takes ten gallons of water to grow one almond. We’ve seen recently by the drought in California that drought takes its toll on nut and honey production. Egypt itself was not dependent upon rain as it was for the annual flooding of the Nile River. Taken together the evidence appears to indicate that it is not a lack of rainfall and water that hindered the wheat, the corn crop, but some other factor such as disease or even too much water. We must remember that many crop failures and famines in Medieval England were caused by too much rainfall. Nevertheless, Jacob’s family must have wheat from Egypt which would one day provide a great deal of the wheat necessary for the survival of Rome, the capital of empire, at the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry.

The famine was sore, very severe. See the definition of sore linked by and with great in a similar context.

Deuteronomy 6:22  And the LORD shewed signs and wonders, great and sore, upon Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and upon all his household, before our eyes:

This has been the cause of many food riots in the recent past, when the cost of food rises too high. Americans spend about 20% of their incomes on food while some countries, particularly in Africa, have to spend 80% of their income on food.

If you want to pick a single indicator of where political instability will occur in the modern world; political, social, or economic then the price of grain is your best bet. Other factors such as tribal hatreds, lack of participation in the political process, etc. set the stage but the rising cost of food is the tipping point. Desperation drives revolutions.

Back to the passage, the brothers must go back to Egypt, and to Joseph.

Genesis 42:29-38 comments: Reuben makes an offer

Genesis 42:29 ¶  And they came unto Jacob their father unto the land of Canaan, and told him all that befell unto them; saying, 30  The man, who is the lord of the land, spake roughly to us, and took us for spies of the country. 31  And we said unto him, We are true men; we are no spies: 32  We be twelve brethren, sons of our father; one is not, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan. 33  And the man, the lord of the country, said unto us, Hereby shall I know that ye are true men; leave one of your brethren here with me, and take food for the famine of your households, and be gone: 34  And bring your youngest brother unto me: then shall I know that ye are no spies, but that ye are true men: so will I deliver you your brother, and ye shall traffick in the land. 35  And it came to pass as they emptied their sacks, that, behold, every man’s bundle of money was in his sack: and when both they and their father saw the bundles of money, they were afraid. 36  And Jacob their father said unto them, Me have ye bereaved of my children: Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away: all these things are against me. 37  And Reuben spake unto his father, saying, Slay my two sons, if I bring him not to thee: deliver him into my hand, and I will bring him to thee again. 38  And he said, My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he is left alone: if mischief befall him by the way in the which ye go, then shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.

The brothers return to their father and report what happened to them. Jacob joins in their fear. Reuben offers his own sons as hostage to Jacob if he does not take Benjamin to Egypt and return him again. Their situation must be most desperate. But Jacob refuses to let his precious youngest son, who may be a young adult now, go. Losing him will be the death of Jacob he says.

The earth has been drying out since the Flood. Land use studies of the Ancient Near East show the climate was cooler before 1,000 BC. and better suited to crops and forests. The Scriptures themselves give evidence to this wetter, cooler climate so unlike the arid landscape we see today. It is likened to the Garden of Eden.

Genesis 13:10 ¶  And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.

Exodus 3:7 ¶  And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; 8  And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

Josephus, chronicler of the war against the Romans, tells of the climate himself at Christ’s time.

Its nature is wonderful as well as its beauty; its soil is so fruitful that all sorts of trees can grow upon it, and the inhabitants accordingly plant all sorts of trees there; for the temper of the air is so well mixed, that it agrees very well with those several sorts, particularly walnuts, which require the coldest air, flourish there in vast plenty; there are palm trees also, which grow best in hot air; fig trees also and olives grow near them, which yet require an air that is more temperate. One may call this place the ambition of nature, where it forces those plants that are naturally enemies to one another to agree together; it is a happy contention of the seasons, as if every one of them laid claim to this country; for it not only nourishes different sorts of autumnal fruit beyond men’s expectation, but preserves them a great while; it supplies men with the principal fruits, with grapes and figs continually, during ten months of the year and the rest of the fruits as they become ripe together through the whole year” (The Jewish War, Book 3, Chapter 10:8).

So, no matter what you’ve been told the testimony of Scripture and history shows that this area was once a fertile place that was a great producer of food. The famine must have been a very great shock and source of dismay to the inhabitants. Many people probably starved to death. His status as the eldest son, this famine, and his brother’s hostage state were great motivators to get Reuben to make his offer.

Genesis 42:21-28 comments: What is this that God hath done unto us?

Genesis 42:21 ¶  And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us. 22  And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required. 23  And they knew not that Joseph understood them; for he spake unto them by an interpreter. 24  And he turned himself about from them, and wept; and returned to them again, and communed with them, and took from them Simeon, and bound him before their eyes. 25  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. 26  And they laded their asses with the corn, and departed thence. 27  And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the inn, he espied his money; for, behold, it was in his sack’s mouth. 28  And he said unto his brethren, My money is restored; and, lo, it is even in my sack: and their heart failed them, and they were afraid, saying one to another, What is this that God hath done unto us?

The brothers’ guilt in regard to Joseph is brought before their minds. They believe that they are in trouble now, forced to pay, for what they did to him. Reuben reminded them that he had pleaded with them to do no harm to Joseph. He views this as cosmic justice for what they did to Joseph. It was acknowledged by preachers such as Jonathan Edwards in his sermon entitled Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God that sin carries with it the burden of justice. We do awful things and awful things come back on us. Heathens understand this in the Hindu concept of Karma and mostly in its popular Western application of getting what you have coming to you. God has His ways of dealing with people, sometimes slowly, and nations, sometimes slowly, in regard to their wickedness and evil treatment of others but God repeatedly warns people;

Genesis 4:10  And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground.

Numbers 32:23  But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out.

You cannot escape the evil that you do to others. Do you beat-up your wife or children? It will come back to you. Are you cruel to other people or to animals? God sees all that you do. The fact that some people seem to get away with much evil is no guarantee that you can walk in your wickedness with impunity. Bible figures lamented what seemed like a lack of needed judgment at times.

Jeremiah 12:1  Righteous art thou, O LORD, when I plead with thee: yet let me talk with thee of thy judgments: Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacherously?

But, judgment does come and God does visit those who act wickedly. The brothers see this situation they are in as just payment for their mistreatment of Joseph.

Joseph hears, of course, what they are saying but since Joseph feigned to be Egyptian he spoke through an interpreter so they didn’t know he spoke their language. We use the word interpreter today for a person who translates languages, for instance, at the UN.

Joseph can’t help but cry but he doesn’t want them to see him. He then bound Simeon and sent the rest of them away filled with food and provisions for the journey home but he also ordered their money to be returned to them.

When they realize that they have their money back they are terrified and ask What is this that God hath done unto us? Clearly, they believe that they are going to be in deep trouble with this Egyptian government official. They have no idea that it is Joseph or what he is up to.

This is important to add to the long list of things that indicate the Bible is telling us that there is no such thing as blind chance, that God works through our reality, through people and events, to accomplish something which we may have no understanding of in our finite minds. Moderns would do well to ask this question when things go awry or seem unexplainable. What is this that God hath done unto us?

Genesis 42:7-20 comments: Joseph questions his brothers

Genesis 42:7 ¶  And Joseph saw his brethren, and he knew them, but made himself strange unto them, and spake roughly unto them; and he said unto them, Whence come ye? And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy food. 8  And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him. 9  And Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, and said unto them, Ye are spies; to see the nakedness of the land ye are come. 10  And they said unto him, Nay, my lord, but to buy food are thy servants come. 11  We are all one man’s sons; we are true men, thy servants are no spies. 12  And he said unto them, Nay, but to see the nakedness of the land ye are come. 13  And they said, Thy servants are twelve brethren, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and, behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is not. 14  And Joseph said unto them, That is it that I spake unto you, saying, Ye are spies: 15  Hereby ye shall be proved: By the life of Pharaoh ye shall not go forth hence, except your youngest brother come hither. 16  Send one of you, and let him fetch your brother, and ye shall be kept in prison, that your words may be proved, whether there be any truth in you: or else by the life of Pharaoh surely ye are spies. 17  And he put them all together into ward three days. 18  And Joseph said unto them the third day, This do, and live; for I fear God: 19  If ye be true men, let one of your brethren be bound in the house of your prison: go ye, carry corn for the famine of your houses: 20  But bring your youngest brother unto me; so shall your words be verified, and ye shall not die. And they did so.

Joseph puts on a good show for his brothers. He probably has spoken to several envoys from suffering lands around him and has his speech set by repeated usage. “Where are you from?” is the first thing he wants to know. There are probably countries that Egypt would be concerned about possibly sending spies in preparation for an attempted invasion to seize Egypt’s supplies. Joseph probably was normally wary. But he knows his brothers. He is successful in keeping them from knowing who he is.

As he speaks roughly to them he remembers the dreams he had where his family all bow to him.

Genesis 37:5 ¶  And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. 6  And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: 7  For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. 8  And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. 9  And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. 10  And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? 11  And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.

Joseph realizes the fulfillment of these prophetic dreams. Now, notice the prophetic similarity regarding the Jews and Christ at the end of human history in the following verse.

Revelation 12:1 ¶  And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:

We can see how the Holy Spirit imparting wisdom to Moses to write this account of early history uses a metaphor to describe the tribes of Israel. We can then have a better understanding of prophetic verses in later parts of the Bible.

In this passage there is then an exchange where the brothers declare that they came to buy food but Joseph accuses them of being spies, come to check out the land. The brothers declare their innocence of this. When they admit that they have a brother that was left behind with their father Joseph demands that, to prove who that they are speaking the truth, they bring that brother to him. One of them is to go fetch Benjamin and the rest are to be hostages. He locks them up for three days, again symbolizing the bondage that death represents for God’s people until He releases them. Here, in this passage we see the synonymous comparison between ward and prison.

On the third day Joseph changes his order and demands that only one of them be a hostage and, in his mercy, the rest can take food back to their families. But, the younger brother must be brought to him. There are some interesting prophetic ideas here regarding Israel’s relationship with Christ, the Messiah whom they rejected and demanded that Rome murder. Who does Benjamin represent in this relationship? Whatever we think we must remember that this is regarding the Jews rather than Gentiles.

Joseph wants so badly to see his little brother.

Genesis 42:1-6 comments: Jacob's sons go to buy food in Egypt

Genesis 42:1 ¶  Now when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons, Why do ye look one upon another? 2  And he said, Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt: get you down thither, and buy for us from thence; that we may live, and not die. 3  And Joseph’s ten brethren went down to buy corn in Egypt. 4  But Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, Jacob sent not with his brethren; for he said, Lest peradventure mischief befall him. 5  And the sons of Israel came to buy corn among those that came: for the famine was in the land of Canaan. 6  And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all the people of the land: and Joseph’s brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth.

Here is an interesting idiomatic expression. “What are you looking at each other for? Get down to Egypt and get some grain!” I remember a boss at a job down in Georgia saying to me when they wanted me to do something right away, “Don’t look at me like a cow looks at a new gate! Get moving.” Or, if you’re more uppity and want to quote Shakespeare you might respond to a blank stare with, “There is a tide,” from Julius Caesar, to stop someone from spinning their wheels, to take action.

Jacob wants his sons to take action so they don’t just sit there and starve to death. All of them except for Jacob’s favorite, his baby boy Benjamin, go down to Egypt to buy grain. Just in case something bad happens Benjamin will be safe. This doesn’t say much for Jacob’s concern for the rest, does it.

Bowing oneself to the earth is one of the postures of reverence and worship.

Sometimes people bow their head to worship God.

Genesis 24:26  And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the LORD.

Sometimes to the earth.

Genesis 24:52  And it came to pass, that, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, he worshipped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth.

Even falling down and grabbing the feet of the person worshipped.

Matthew 28:9  And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him.

Sometimes they kneeled.

Psalm 95:6  O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.

So, it is that there are different postures of acknowledging someone as superior. We Americans are taught to bow to no one as superior so we have a hard time acknowledging God’s power over our lives in a real, tangible way. Americans lack the awe for anything other than something like a fireworks display or a huge bomb going off. Our shallowness of culture does get in the way of our understanding of who God is and of His power over our lives. The weakness of other cultures was that for centuries they acknowledged a king, tsar, or emperor as being God’s agent on earth and were in fear and awe of him but still not seeing, because of the propaganda their government controlled them with, that it was God who controlled every heartbeat and breath and God, not their king, who could save or destroy in an instant. Only God is worthy of our awe and reverence, our worship.

Psalm 33:8  Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.

Hebrews 12:28  Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

The brothers come to this Egyptian official, mightiest in the land under the Pharaoh himself, to plead for food to buy. They are showing their inferior position and his power over their lives. This is a beautiful image of how we should come to Christ. Let Him lift us up.

James 4:10  Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

1Peter 5:6  Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: 7  Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Genesis 41:46-57 comments: Joseph manages the famine in Egypt

Genesis 41:46 ¶  And Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of Egypt. 47  And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth by handfuls. 48  And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he up in the same. 49  And Joseph gathered corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering; for it was without number. 50  And unto Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came, which Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On bare unto him. 51  And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: For God, said he, hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father’s house. 52  And the name of the second called he Ephraim: For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction. 53  And the seven years of plenteousness, that was in the land of Egypt, were ended. 54  And the seven years of dearth began to come, according as Joseph had said: and the dearth was in all lands; but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. 55  And when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread: and Pharaoh said unto all the Egyptians, Go unto Joseph; what he saith to you, do. 56  And the famine was over all the face of the earth: And Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto the Egyptians; and the famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt. 57  And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph for to buy corn; because that the famine was so sore in all lands.

Note that Joseph is thirty years old when he stood before the Pharaoh. Young Hebrew Levite men began their service to God at thirty years of age (Numbers 4:3). David was thirty years old when he began to reign (see 2Samuel 5:4). Jesus Christ began His ministry on earth at that age, as well when He, the Holy Ghost, and God the Father were all three present together at His baptism (Luke 3:21-23).

Joseph toured Egypt as Pharaoh’s representative, carrying with him the power of Pharaoh over the Egyptians. For seven years harvests were plentiful and there was no end to the amount that Joseph could store up for the coming dearth. Obviously, all the food doesn’t mean he left the Egyptians with no food, now, does it but that he gathered all of the food from the 20% of the land that the government took. Countries in crisis, like England in WWII, did things similar to this in their control of food output for war purposes. His wife, Asenath, gave him two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, the meaning of their names found in the text with Manasseh having to do with forgetting and Ephraim being fruitful. The seven years of famine came and in Egypt there was plenty of bread. Finally, when Egyptians began to feel the bite of the dearth they sought for help from the government. Wisely, Pharaoh directed them to Joseph.

This brings us to an important point about reading the Bible. The modern fundamentalist reads it like the owner’s manual for his car and sees And the famine was over all the face of the earth and says there was famine in South America, in the Pacific islands, and in China then, too. But, that is not what this means. The earth, in many places in the Bible, has only to do with the area under concern, the lands of the Near East, what we call the Middle East unless explanatory descriptions like uttermost part of the earth or the four corners of the earth are referring to the entire earth as we know it. This modernistic view of the Bible where we make it mean what we want it to mean and leave no room for question has caused much confusion over the past century, at least. Just remember that when the Bible says;

Luke 2:1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.

…it most certainly does not mean that a Roman Emperor had the power to tax the Kalahari bushman of southern Africa or the Olmec kingdom of Mexico. Use some common sense. When you say, “I want everyone to come to my party,” you most certainly don’t mean the entire world without exception.

Thanks to God’s use of Joseph Egypt is now the source of food for the countries around it. All are drawn to it for food as all were supposed to be drawn to Israel for the food that is the word of God had they been obedient. The Old Testament model for evangelism was Israel as a place where men were drawn to know about God as it shall be in the millennial reign of Christ.

Zechariah 8:23 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.

While under the New Testament model for the Christian the role of evangelism is to go out in the world as we have no abiding earthly country. Jesus told the early Jewish Christians so. Notice in the following how the meaning is to go beyond the boundaries of what the Jew considered his homeland and the command is to go to the uttermost part of the earth.

Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Genesis 41:1- 45 comments: the Pharaoh's dreams of plenty and famine

Genesis 41:1 ¶  And it came to pass at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh dreamed: and, behold, he stood by the river. 2  And, behold, there came up out of the river seven well favoured kine and fatfleshed; and they fed in a meadow. 3  And, behold, seven other kine came up after them out of the river, ill favoured and leanfleshed; and stood by the other kine upon the brink of the river. 4  And the ill favoured and leanfleshed kine did eat up the seven well favoured and fat kine. So Pharaoh awoke. 5  And he slept and dreamed the second time: and, behold, seven ears of corn came up upon one stalk, rank and good. 6  And, behold, seven thin ears and blasted with the east wind sprung up after them. 7  And the seven thin ears devoured the seven rank and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and, behold, it was a dream. 8  And it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt, and all the wise men thereof: and Pharaoh told them his dream; but there was none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh.

Two complete years have gone by and Pharaoh has this dream. This reminds one of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and his calling of all his wise men together to interpret it for him, although he insisted he couldn’t remember it, so they had to tell him the dream, as well.

Daniel 2:1 ¶  And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him. 2  Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, for to shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king. 3  And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream. 4  Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation. 5  The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, The thing is gone from me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream, with the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dunghill. 6  But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof.

Dreams are often disjointed things with actors and events that make no sense and seem like the extra stuff left over from what you thought about the day previous. It is almost as if the mind uses the film that lies on the proverbial cutting room floor in the old movie days and creates something surreal. The kind of sleep that allows you to dream is important for a successful sleep, we are told. But, occasionally, in cases mentioned in the Bible, some dreams are communications. These are communications from God and God also provides the interpreter of the dream. It is like the New Testament speaking in tongues, which are always foreign languages. If there is no one in the assembly who can translate the speech does it serve a purpose from God and can it be from God? Paul says no. It is nothing more than confusion and God is not the author of confusion.

So, we have a dream that means something and we have need of someone to interpret it.

Here we have the definition of well favoured and ill favoured in the text as they are contrasted with fatfleshed and leanfleshed. Kine are cows, as is evident from the twenty or so verses in the Bible where the word is used. Do a word search or use a concordance to see.

And again, for corn, understand that it is a reference to a head of wheat in British English as it can refer to any type of grain. For example, look up the English “Corn Laws.”

John 12:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

Genesis 41:9 ¶  Then spake the chief butler unto Pharaoh, saying, I do remember my faults this day: 10  Pharaoh was wroth with his servants, and put me in ward in the captain of the guard’s house, both me and the chief baker: 11  And we dreamed a dream in one night, I and he; we dreamed each man according to the interpretation of his dream. 12  And there was there with us a young man, an Hebrew, servant to the captain of the guard; and we told him, and he interpreted to us our dreams; to each man according to his dream he did interpret. 13  And it came to pass, as he interpreted to us, so it was; me he restored unto mine office, and him he hanged. 14  Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in unto Pharaoh. 15  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it. 16  And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.

Now, after two years, the butler remembers Joseph. The Pharaoh is desperate for an answer and ready to call this Hebrew prisoner to be brought before him. Joseph probably didn’t just shave his face in a bowl of water with a razor. There is evidence that Egyptians shaved the hair on their heads and face with razors and even some evidence that, at least the priests, shaving their entire bodies. Lice was something that was disgusting to ancient Egyptians, I have read, and this sanitary practice became a cultural practice for those who were not desperately poor. Wigs were very popular among both men and women and the Ebers Medical Papyrus gives us information about such details as how they made soap.[1]

Joseph’s answer to Pharaoh is significant in that he acknowledges that the interpretation of a dream is not in him but from God. God will put Pharaoh’s heart at rest regarding the meaning of the dream. See 1Chronicles 22:9 and Isaiah 62:1 for peace and rest and quietness as synonyms. Pharaoh’s troubled heart can only be calmed by God and Joseph says God will do it.

Genesis 41:17 ¶  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, I stood upon the bank of the river: 18  And, behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fatfleshed and well favoured; and they fed in a meadow: 19  And, behold, seven other kine came up after them, poor and very ill favoured and leanfleshed, such as I never saw in all the land of Egypt for badness: 20  And the lean and the ill favoured kine did eat up the first seven fat kine: 21  And when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they were still ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke. 22  And I saw in my dream, and, behold, seven ears came up in one stalk, full and good: 23  And, behold, seven ears, withered, thin, and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them: 24  And the thin ears devoured the seven good ears: and I told this unto the magicians; but there was none that could declare it to me. 25  And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do. 26  The seven good kine are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one. 27  And the seven thin and ill favoured kine that came up after them are seven years; and the seven empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years of famine. 28  This is the thing which I have spoken unto Pharaoh: What God is about to do he sheweth unto Pharaoh. 29  Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: 30  And there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land; 31  And the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very grievous. 32  And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice; it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.

Pharaoh recounts his memory of the dream to Joseph. With a little embellishment and adding some emphasis, which is very human, he tells Joseph what was troubling him. There are very few people who do not read back their thoughts into previous experiences. Many Christians embellish upon the day they announced their belief on Christ by reading back into that experience things they think should have happened or wish had happened. We do the same thing with other events and moments in our lives but we are often not honest enough with ourselves to admit it.

These two dreams are actually one dream explaining how God intends to provide Egypt with seven years of plenty and then seven years of famine. The fact that God repeated this theme to Pharaoh twice establishes it as a definite prophecy of the soon-to-be future. This reminds you of how things are emphasized by God and in the Bible generally and established as definite and not merely, ‘if you or they do this then I (God) will do this,’ propositions. An example would be when Jesus says verily, verily from the word we also get amen from when He is telling Peter of Peter’s future martyrdom.

John 21:18  Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.

It is questionable to make a doctrine out of one verse and can lead to error but when many verses comment on a thing you can be sure that God has established it as an eternal decree such as everlasting life, for instance, which is reflected clearly in many verses.

Genesis 41:33 ¶  Now therefore let Pharaoh look out a man discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt. 34  Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint officers over the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous years. 35  And let them gather all the food of those good years that come, and lay up corn under the hand of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities. 36  And that food shall be for store to the land against the seven years of famine, which shall be in the land of Egypt; that the land perish not through the famine. 37  And the thing was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all his servants. 38  And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is? 39  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art: 40  Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou. 41  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt. 42  And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck; 43  And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt. 44  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt. 45  And Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphnathpaaneah; and he gave him to wife Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On. And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt.

Joseph made a final recommendation to the Pharaoh, not meaning to suggest himself, a lowly prisoner in the king’s dungeon, a foreigner sold into slavery there. Someone wise and discreet should rule under the Pharaoh’s authority. Here is our first example of government being used to serve the needs of the state apart from war. The Pharaoh is to take 20% of the land so that wheat can be stored up during the good years to prepare for the lean years to come. This tax was for the benefit of the people and the security of the state when the famine would come.

Corn is the British reference to a seed of any cereal grass, notably wheat, and expands to be a reference to the plant itself.

John 12:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

See how our Bible is written below in this verse’s parallel phrasing defining corn as wheat.

Amos 8:5  Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and falsifying the balances by deceit?

Government for the welfare of the people is mentioned in Paul’s letters to the Christian in Rome. In fact, it is the only mandate listed in Paul’s letters for human government, to punish evil-doers. As said before, evil is usually a reference to malice or malicious, violent intent. Again, here in Paul, taxes are mentioned, paying tribute.

Romans 13:1 ¶  Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. 2  Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. 3  For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: 4  For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. 5  Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. 6  For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God’s ministers, attending continually upon this very thing.

Jesus Himself acknowledged that paying taxes to your government is a good testimony.

Matthew 17:24 ¶  And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute? 25  He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers? 26  Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free. 27  Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.

I assure you that the Roman government referred to in the previous two passages was not a Christian or a righteous government. But, government has a mandate and, as we know, the power to tax is the power to govern.

Pharaoh acknowledges that the Spirit of God, the very mind of God, is in Joseph. Here, typology implies that Pharaoh is in type God the Father and here Joseph is a type of Christ, or God in the flesh, issuing from God and possessing His authority.

All ability, power, and authority, even that to do evil, comes from God. Nothing can be done without His permissive will or His direct will.

John 19:11  Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.

But, Christ as God in the flesh or the Son of God comes in God the Father’s authority…

John 5:18  Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.

Philippians 2:6  Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

…and in fact, to have seen Him is to have seen God the Father.

John 14:9  Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?

John 10:30  I and my Father are one. 31  Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. 32  Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? 33  The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.

John 12:45  And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me.

So, in this passage in Genesis we have a picture, a type of God the Father and the Son of God, as Pharaoh gives Joseph his own ring, his own authority and power over Egypt. To see Joseph was to see the Pharaoh and Joseph carried all of the power and authority of Pharaoh. For such a thing to happen this could only have been God’s direct will. Do you see how many things He allowed the men and women of this narrative so far to do and how He molded and shaped those things no matter what their intentions, good or evil, into His plan, His ministry of reconciliation toward mankind?

The priesthood of Egypt was a powerful class whom the Pharaoh would want on his side and having Joseph marry one of their daughters was an astute political move. In this we can speak in type of how God drew Abraham from the Gentiles to create a people for Himself for Joseph’s offspring would be among God’s chosen.

On was a city that became known as Heliopolis, city of the sun. On is said by some authorities to be the birthplace of Egyptian mythology. It was the first capital of Egypt and the place where Egyptian myth said that creation itself took place. It is here that the great sun god, Ra or Atum, self-created god, was to have arisen from the Benben stone in the great temple to light up a dark universe. He was the source of all other gods and people themselves were born from his tears. It is of no little significance that God arranged for a priest’s daughter of this city and this god to be married to Joseph. God drew mankind away from the darkness of paganism and chose Egypt’s greatest god’s priest’s daughter to be the vessel through whom would come two tribes of the Hebrews, Ephraim and Manasseh. We will learn how troublesome they were.

Strong’s dictionary says that Joseph’s Egyptian name means, “treasury of the glorious rest.” We will receive new names from God.

Revelation 2:17  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

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[1] Numerous sources talk about this. Here is one website among other;  http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/timelines/topics/hair.htm (accessed 4.4.2017).