Scripture and Observation:
Now that Joseph is in charge and the famine has come, Joseph’s dreams of his brothers bowing to him are coming true. Famine has reached the land of his family in Canaan and the brothers have followed their father Jacob’s orders to come to Egypt to buy food. Joseph sees his brothers and recognizes them immediately, but he is disguised and uses an interpreter to communicate with them. He accuses them of being spies, and the plead that they are not. Joseph insists on seeing the last living brother before he will ‘believe’ them. He detains them three days, then lets all be Simeon go. On the way home, they discover their money for the food they bought is still in their bags. They get home and tell Jacob that Simeon is hostage. Jacob is distraught and refuses to send Benjamin to free Simeon, even when Reuben promises his own sons as collateral. But the famine is fierce and they need to buy food again. So Judah finally convinces Jacob to send them with Benjamin to get food. They also bring along the money that had been returned along with more money to buy more food and gifts. When they arrive, they are brought in to eat with Joseph, who is moved to tears at the sight of his brother. They all eat, and the brothers are served according to birthright, but for Benjamin, who is served five times the others.
This is a call to God for protection and justice. Those who seek evil will have evil fall on them. Thanks to the Lord according to His righteousness!
Jesus continues in giving instruction to the people. He says to be a stumbling block is very bad. We must do what we must do, without seeking reward for merely doing what is expected of us. Jesus healed 10 lepers and only one came back to say thanks. Jesus wonders aloud where the other nine are. Jesus says there will be no signs that we can point at to signify the second coming of Jesus. It will be without warning, but all will know.
Application and Prayer:
Time and again we see Joseph achieve success into whatever environment he thrust. But never is it forgotten that he is a stranger. He was a slave—although given charge and trust over much, he was still a slave. He was a prisoner—also given charge over much, but never allowed to leave freely. Now he is over everything but the Pharaoh. But he eats alone. He is still a detestable Hebrew. They may need him for his organizational skills, but that is it. He is a tool that serves a purpose. Perhaps it isn’t too hard to believe that he was ultimately forgotten and the Hebrews were enslaved. They were always separate and unequal. This makes me think of that beautiful song by JJ Heller ‘Love Me.’ God loves us not for what we have done. It is unconditional based on His love, not on us. Joseph received power and trust, but never love. Thank you, Lord, for the lesson again that we should not seek the rewards of this life because they are without eternal meaning. Amen!
I do not know that I have the confidence of David. In his psalm, he asks of God to ‘release the hounds,’ as it were, if David is guilty of sin. He says if he is guilty, to go ahead and let the enemy pursue his soul AND OVERTAKE IT! I cannot be so bold. I am thankful for the singular word in verse 12: repent. Thankfully, I need not be flawless to be saved from my own self. I need only to repent from my wicked ways. Lord, help me to turn from my own sin. Help me to leave it behind as I joyfully and with abandon run after You!
I am having such a time reading Luke as I have never had before. I don’t know why that is, exactly. I believe part of the reason is the Observation portion of this devotion calls for me to ‘recap’ what happened. Luke feels so disjointed to me that I have a hard time, “and then-ing.” My mom belonged to the Order of Saint Luke, a healing ministries organization and we pored over the book. Our focus was on stories of healing, so I don’t remember having this issue. Lord, help me to see Your order in Your Word.
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Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts!