Genesis
50:1 ¶ And Joseph fell upon his father’s
face, and wept upon him, and kissed him. 2
And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father:
and the physicians embalmed Israel. 3
And forty days were fulfilled for him; for so are fulfilled the days of
those which are embalmed: and the Egyptians mourned for him threescore and ten
days. 4 And when the days of his
mourning were past, Joseph spake unto the house of Pharaoh, saying, If now I
have found grace in your eyes, speak, I pray you, in the ears of Pharaoh,
saying, 5 My father made me swear,
saying, Lo, I die: in my grave which I have digged for me in the land of
Canaan, there shalt thou bury me. Now therefore let me go up, I pray thee, and
bury my father, and I will come again. 6
And Pharaoh said, Go up, and bury thy father, according as he made thee
swear.
Remember
God’s promise to Jacob earlier. Joseph would see his father die and cover his
eyes with Joseph’s own hand.
Genesis
46:4 I will go down with thee into
Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his
hand upon thine eyes.
Most
of us have heard about the ancient Egyptian’s practice of embalming the dead
through news stories of mummies uncovered.
We have a forty day period of embalming and a seventy day period of
mourning.
From
one authority we have this information as part of their description on the
Egyptian embalming process. “The process lasted for a period of 70 days…The
corpse was to be dried for a period of 40 days.”[1]
Here
we have God’s man being subjected to the death and funerary customs of the land
in which he lived. No one is saying that if Jacob’s body is disposed of in the
Egyptian manner that he cannot go to be with God.
The
Pharaoh, this Pharaoh, whom I said before was, in my estimation, not a native
Egyptian, was quite sympathetic to Joseph’s mourning of his father and his
father’s insistence that he be buried in the land of Canaan.
Genesis
50:7 ¶ And Joseph went up to bury his
father: and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his
house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, 8 And all the house of Joseph, and his
brethren, and his father’s house: only their little ones, and their flocks, and
their herds, they left in the land of Goshen. 9
And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen: and it was a very
great company. 10 And they came to the
threshingfloor of Atad, which is beyond Jordan, and there they mourned with a
great and very sore lamentation: and he made a mourning for his father seven
days. 11 And when the inhabitants of the
land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning in the floor of Atad, they said, This is
a grievous mourning to the Egyptians: wherefore the name of it was called Abelmizraim,
which is beyond Jordan. 12 And his sons
did unto him according as he commanded them: 13
For his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and buried him in the
cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the field for a
possession of a buryingplace of Ephron the Hittite, before Mamre. 14 And Joseph returned into Egypt, he, and his
brethren, and all that went up with him to bury his father, after he had buried
his father.
Joseph
took quite an entourage of officialdom with him to Jacob’s burial. The respect
and gratitude this Egyptian Pharaoh and his government had for Joseph was
immense and justifiably so. He literally had been their savior and deliverer,
although only on a temporal level. This is also an expression of power, an
extension of power that the Egyptians displayed in the land of Canaan. Once can
imagine that there were Egyptian garrisons already in the land and with a sort
of Egyptian peace that ensured trade and travel could go on safely. It is easy
to picture how dependent the kings of Canaan would be on Egyptian power and how
in awe they would be of this assembly.
The
phrase chariots and horsemen will
play a very important part in places in the Old Testament and be a source of
contention. One thing missing in scholarship and Bible exposition is the common
sense understanding of chariot warfare. A chariot was a mobile fighting
platform as well as a ceremonial vehicle whose weak link was also how it was
delivered to the forefront of the battle so quickly; its horses. Logic tells
us, logic and common sense, that the horses would be what the infantry would go
after first. Kill the horses and the chariot cannot move and respond to the
battle. So, with chariots there needed to be a string of horses and horsemen to
accompany them. Like the pit crew at a NASCAR event these teams needed to be
able to replace dead and injured horses or, in a fierce battle, the chariot
would have been rendered useless and even helpless quite quickly, as the driver
would not be able to remove to safety in the event of being overwhelmed, with
dead horses.
1Kings
4:26 And Solomon had forty thousand
stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen.
2Chronicles
9:25 And Solomon had four thousand
stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen; whom he bestowed
in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem.
So,
in these two verses which have been the source of much disagreement it is very
obvious to me that Solomon had 40,000 stalls for chariot horses and 4,000
stalls that were big enough for the chariot and the horse team that drew it.
This would be necessary for maintenance and preparation before training and
battle. This also implies a string of 10 horses per chariot as the primary team
and backup. These backup teams would have not only needed protection by cavalry
but perhaps were a capable fighting force all their own. There is no
contradiction, just common sense and reading comprehension needed here.
In
verse 11 we have something very interesting. The phrase Abelmizraim combines the name Abel
with the name Mizraim. We were not
told Abel’s name’s meaning early in Genesis but here, with the founder of
Egypt, Mizraim, (see comments on 10:6) we have the meaning of the phrase as grievous mourning to the Egyptians. As Mizraim refers to Egypt so Abel refers to sorrow or mourning.
Define your words by the context or you will be hopelessly lost in the maize of
scholars debating over root words, meanings, and usages in documents outside of
the Bible.
Genesis
50:15 ¶ And when Joseph’s brethren saw
that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and
will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him. 16 And they sent a messenger unto Joseph,
saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, 17 So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray
thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee
evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of
thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him. 18 And his brethren also went and fell down
before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants. 19 And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I
in the place of God? 20 But as for you,
ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it
is this day, to save much people alive. 21
Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And
he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.
We
have no evidence that Jacob told his sons to make this request of Joseph. As
far as we know this is pure self-interest and understandable as the brother
whom they abused is the second most powerful man in their world’s great
superpower. They plead with Joseph, through a messenger, not to seek revenge
and then further the plea in person. But, they do admit the evil that they did
to him in restraining him in the pit and selling him into slavery into Egypt
those years ago.
Joseph
wept when they spoke to him. Then, he gave an important statement about God’s
permissive will that we all must understand if we are to understand
reality. This is akin to understanding
through the book of Job how all reality, even the most simple thing like dust
turning into a clod of dirt in a farmer’s field (see Job 38:38), is a function
of His will. Man chooses to do evil; malicious violence, with harmful intent.
God can and does use that bad intent to accomplish something for His purpose.
You can’t escape His will, though try as you might.
This
principle will be noted in the book of Esther, that God’s hand and control can
be seen in all events and He has a purpose for us in that situation that we may
be blessed by if we acknowledge His sovereignty.
Eshter
4:13 Then Mordecai commanded to answer
Esther, Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king’s house, more
than all the Jews.14 For if thou
altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews
from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who
knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?
This
does not make our evil acceptable. The follower of Christ who believes in His
resurrection and that He is the visible image of God, the body of God, and to
see Him is to see God, and is the only way to God the Father, in other words, a
Christian, is not to do evil so that good may come. In Romans 3 Paul condemns
those who twist His words to make it sound like that is what he is implying,
that we may do evil that good may come. Instead, we are to seek God’s complete
and perfect will as he said in Romans 12.
Romans
12:1 ¶ I beseech you therefore, brethren,
by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye
transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good,
and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
We
are to keep our minds focused on what is right and good.
Philippians
4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things
are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever
things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good
report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these
things.
And
to permit the fruit or proof of having God’s Spirit indwelling us to shine from
us.
Galatians
5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is
love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is
no law.
Any
so-called Christian who professes that they are willing to do evil so that God
may bring something good out of it should be removed from the congregation and
you should have no fellowship with them. You only action should be to pray for
them, that they may be genuinely saved at some point before it is too late.
God
used Joseph’s brothers’ human frailty and hatred of him as a youth to set up
His temporal salvation of the people He was creating for Himself.
Joseph
forgave and did not seek revenge for wrongs done to him. The Bible speaks often
of forgiveness, particularly under the Law where there was a judgment for not
forgiving.
Matthew
6:14 For if ye forgive men their
trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
Mark
11:26 But if ye do not forgive, neither
will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.
Paul
told us that revenge belongs to God.
Romans
12:19 Dearly beloved, avenge not
yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is
mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
Joseph understood these things more than most
Christians, particularly in dealing with wrongs done to them by the members of
their own family.
Jesus
forgave His brethren, the Jews, on the cross, for their ignorance.
Luke
23:34 Then said Jesus, Father, forgive
them; for they know not what they do…
A
willingness to forgive is a fundamental Christian principle although it does go
against the American ideal of demanding respect from others and getting fired
up if we don’t get our “propers.” In fact, we are so jaded that we will treat
someone else in a cruel or thoughtless manner and then become incensed when
they respond negatively. We then talk about forgiving them, as Christians,
ignoring the fact that we were the original malefactors.
Joseph
was abused by his brothers; kidnapped and sold into slavery. He rose to
prominence in his new surroundings and was able to turn around and help his own
family survive. He realizes God’s hand in these events and does not turn and
rend his brothers. He promises to care for them and their families and does so.
There are many lessons here for those of us going through trials and
tribulations with our families. We must always realize, in every thing, God’s
hand in the affairs of men who think they are in control, when they are not.
Joseph is a prime example we should follow not some character in an action
movie about ‘get-backs’ on people who have hurt you. Remember, though, the
brothers are repentant. Forgiveness can only include restoration when there is
repentance. That is an important lesson to learn, as well, as some
fundamentalists demand women who are abused not only to forgive their tormentor
but to restore a sincerely unrepentant tormentor to a position where they can
do more harm.
Still,
the important thing in this passage is the quality of Joseph’s forgiveness as
he recognizes how God acted in his life. We see this more often than we admit
if our eyes are open.
Genesis
50:22 ¶ And Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he,
and his father’s house: and Joseph lived an hundred and ten years. 23 And Joseph saw Ephraim’s children of the
third generation: the children also of Machir the son of Manasseh were brought
up upon Joseph’s knees. 24 And Joseph
said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out
of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.
25 And Joseph took an oath of the
children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my
bones from hence. 26 So Joseph died,
being an hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a
coffin in Egypt.
Genesis,
also known as the First Book of Moses,
covers nearly half of history from the creation of the physical universe and
life until the people that God carved out of fallen mankind for Himself are
secure in Egypt. Egypt will be a nursery where this people can grow from a few
into many. In God’s ministry of reconciliation, drawing mankind to Himself,
Genesis lays out the first steps, dealing with man’s sin, using man’s foolish
and often wicked choices, and going beyond anything that man himself planned to
produce this end result of salvation for those who would receive God in the
flesh for their salvation.
It
began with a world much different than we live in today. Nothing was meant to
die. As one non-Christian evolutionary biologist pointed out whom I referenced
earlier;
Humans on
rare occasions may survive to 120 years, some turtles to 200. But all animals
eventually die. Many single-cell organisms may
die, as the result of accident or starvation; in fact the vast majority do. But
there is nothing programmed into them that says they must die. Death did not appear simultaneously with life. This is
one of the most important and profound statements in all of biology. At the
very least it deserves repetition: Death
is not inextricably intertwined with the definition of life.[2]
But, Adam, the first man, stood by and watched
his wife, Eve, get taken in by Satan’s rebellion against God, his desire to be
God, and then followed her lead. She was tempted by the three things that
mankind has ever since then fallen to repeatedly.
Genesis
3:6 And when the woman saw that the tree
was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of
the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he
did eat.
1John
2:15 Love not the world, neither the
things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father
is not in him. 16 For all that is in the
world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the
Father, but is of the world. 17 And the
world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God
abideth for ever.
As
Jesus warned the religious of His day of walking on earth as a human being;
Luke
16:15 And he said unto them, Ye are they
which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that
which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.
Genetically,
spiritually, psychologically, culturally, and in every way all human behavior
was tainted by this willingness to exercise their free will to defy God’s
commands and break fellowship with him. The result was death for all living
thing, decay and corruption. Death became the primary cause of disruption of
God’s perfect plan, a judgment on all of the earth for man’s sin. We alone bear
the responsibility for all death from the African savanna to the Mariana Trench
in the Pacific, from the hospital in town to a lonely hut in the wilderness.
Man
suffered and suffers;
Romans
5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin
entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for
that all have sinned:
Hebrews
2:15 And deliver them who through fear
of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.
And,
in fact, all creation suffers because of man’s sin.
Romans
8:22 For we know that the whole creation
groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
Another
atheist science writer noted with no hope of reconciliation;
The total amount of suffering per year
in the natural world is beyond all decent contemplation. During the minute that
it takes me to compose this sentence, thousands of animals are being eaten
alive; others are running for their lives, whimpering with fear, others are
slowly being devoured from within by rasping parasites; thousands of all kinds
are dying of starvation, thirst and disease. It must be so. If there ever is a
time of plenty, this very fact will automatically lead to an increase in the
population until the natural state of starvation and misery is restored….In a
universe of blind physical forces and genetic replication, some people are
going to get hurt, other people are going to get lucky, and you won't find any
rhyme or reason in it, nor any justice. The universe that we observe has
precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no
purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference. (51)[3]
These
men have no hope nor do they have any understanding because they reject God’s
revelation of His ministry of reconciling mankind to Himself. But we know the
truth and should teach it to each other and to our children.
Now,
God, the Creator of all things and master of all reality, has taken a people
for Himself from out of a sin-darkened world through which He will insert
Himself physically into this dimension of existence for a brief time as one of
us while still being fully God. Thus ends the first book of the account given to
Moses, the story of God’s ministry, His-story.
And
so, the first half of history ends in a
coffin in Egypt.
[1]
“Process of Embalming,” http://www.ancientegyptianfacts.com/ancient-egyptian-process-of-embalming.html.
(accessed 7.1.2017).
[2] William R. Clark, Sex and the Origins of Death (London: Oxford University Press,
1998), 54.
[3]
Richard Dawkins, River out of Eden: A
Darwinian View of Life (New York: Basic Books, 1995), 154-155.
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