The Testing of Joseph’s Brothers
Genesis 43-44
Pray
The lesson this week is the stuff Block Buster movies are made of. There’s drama, guilt, fear of death, lots of money, perceived crimes, intrigue, and suspense. Joseph’s brothers are full of tension and anxiety. What will happen to them? What will happen to Benjamin? And is it all their fault?
It has now been over 20 years since Joseph was so casually sold into slavery by his brothers. At the time, the brothers ignored Joseph’s pleas for help and they cruelly and heartlessly caused Jacob to believe Joseph was killed by a wild animal. But a lot has happened to all the men in those twenty years. We know that Joseph is now 2nd in command in Egypt and that he is in charge of the food that is feeding the world. Benjamin was probably the right age to be in my class and is now 20 years older-a full grown man. It appears that since Joseph left, Benjamin has become Jacob’s favorite son. But instead of hating him for it, the other brothers are not jealous, but protective of him.
The mysterious man in Egypt who sold the brothers their food insisted that they come back and bring Benjamin with them. Jacob was not going to let this happen. He refused to send Benjamin to Egypt. First he lost Joseph, then he lost Simeon (when he was put in Egyptian prison until the brothers returned) and he was not about to lose Benjamin. Reuben even said that Jacob could kill Reuben’s sons if Benjamin doesn’t return with them. Still, Jacob refused. But an empty stomach can make people change their minds, and he eventually did. Judah told Jacob that they were almost out of food and that they had to go. Judah promises to watch out over Benjamin. Jacob decides that the brothers should also take many gifts, hoping that the Man in Egypt would be pleased and would show favor to them. Jacob finally put his trust in God and sent them on their way.
The brothers complete their 300 mile journey and arrive in Egypt to find an unsettling surprise. They are instructed to go to the home of Egypt’s 2nd in command. What could that mean? Why would such an important man want weary, dirty travelers-Hebrews, even! - in his house? This must mean that he will accuse them of stealing the silver that they found in their grain sacks after their previous journey. Maybe he will sell them as slaves and even sell their donkeys! They are so fearful that they talk to the steward of the house, sort of like a butler. They tell him that they are innocent, and that they have returned the money. The steward tells them that everything is ok, that he had received the money and that the money found in their bags must have been gifts from their God. Then he brought Simeon out to them. Do you think Simeon wanted to know what took them so long?
When Joseph comes home, the brothers bow down to him-they bowed really low, all the way to the ground. Somewhat reminiscent of a dream, isn’t it? Well, Joseph proceeded to ask how their father was, and then asks if the young man before him is their youngest brother. He was told that it indeed was their youngest brother. Benjamin was his only full brother. As the youngest in the family, they probably had some special bonds. Also, Joseph could not see that the brothers had mistreated Benjamin in anyway. Joseph was so overjoyed to see his brother that he had to leave the room and he cried.
Joseph composed himself and returned to the dining room. He sat separate from his brothers, because an Egyptian would not eat next to a Hebrew. He did something very curious, however. He sat the brothers in their birth order. Now, if I had all the Goldbranson kids in front on me, I think I could place them in order by their age. But could you do that with Mrs. Weiss, Mrs. Eager, and me? I couldn’t. Grown ups all look the same. Joseph then proceeds to share his own food with the brothers, and he gives Benjamin so much extra food that everyone had to have noticed it. But no one complained. They ate in peace.
I wonder about Joseph’s steward. He probably really enjoyed playing a part in Joseph’s investigation of his brothers. Joseph had him secretly put a special silver cup in Benjamin’s bag and then send them on their way. After a while, the steward was sent to catch the brothers and accuse them of theft. The brother’s emphatically denied any wrongdoing, calling attention to their honesty of returning the original silver. They told the steward and his men to search their belongings. If any stolen property was found, the thief would be killed and the rest of them would go into slavery. Well, weren’t they all surprised to see that silver cup in Benjamin’s sack. This was a really interesting time. They could have turned their back on Benjamin; told the steward, ok, he is the thief, the rest of us will go. But they didn’t. They got back on their donkeys and returned to Egypt with him. They stood by Benjamin and would not let him go alone.
When they returned to Egypt, they went to Joseph and told him that they would all be his slaves. Joseph only wanted to punish the thief though, not all of them. Judah begged Joseph to let Benjamin free, because he could not bear to see his father suffer if he loses another favorite son. He told Joseph the whole story about how they had to convince Jacob to let them bring Benjamin on their journey. Judah seems to really love his father now.
Well, I think we know what happens, but we will have to wait for next before we move forward with the story.
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