We are coming to the end of Genesis.
The end of another era of Biblical history.
A lesson in a lesson.
A lesson of forgiveness and reconciliation.
Genesis 50:14-26 NLT
The End of Another Era of Biblical History
A lesson of forgiveness and reconciliation.
14 After burying Jacob, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had accompanied him to his father’s burial. 15 But now that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers became fearful. “Now Joseph will show his anger and pay us back for all the wrong we did to him,” they said.
16 So they sent this message to Joseph: “Before your father died, he instructed us 17 to say to you: ‘Please forgive your brothers for the great wrong they did to you—for their sin in treating you so cruelly.’ So we, the servants of the God of your father, beg you to forgive our sin.” When Joseph received the message, he broke down and wept. 18 Then his brothers came and threw themselves down before Joseph. “Look, we are your slaves!” they said.
19 But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? 20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people. 21 No, don’t be afraid. I will continue to take care of you and your children.” So he reassured them by speaking kindly to them.
The Death of Joseph
22 So Joseph and his brothers and their families continued to live in Egypt. Joseph lived to the age of 110. 23 He lived to see three generations of descendants of his son Ephraim, and he lived to see the birth of the children of Manasseh’s son Makir, whom he claimed as his own.
24 “Soon I will die,” Joseph told his brothers, “but God will surely come to help you and lead you out of this land of Egypt. He will bring you back to the land he solemnly promised to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.”
25 Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath, and he said, “When God comes to help you and lead you back, you must take my bones with you.” 26 So Joseph died at the age of 110. The Egyptians embalmed him, and his body was placed in a coffin in Egypt.
Examine the Scriptures
Genesis 50:14-26 NLT
The End of Another Era of Biblical History
A lesson of forgiveness and reconciliation.
14 After burying Jacob, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had accompanied him to his father’s burial.
15 But now that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers became fearful.
A lesson in a lesson.
A lesson of forgiveness and reconciliation.
- Joseph’s brothers were experiencing feelings of guilt for their sinful behaviors
and
they underestimated the genuineness of Joseph’s forgiveness and affection for them.
“Now Joseph will show his anger and pay us back for all the wrong we did to him,” they said.
Had Joseph forgiven his brothers?
The brothers were “guilt-ridden” (consumed with guilt).
The brothers did not feel forgiven.
- Joseph’s brothers did not feel forgiven and expected Joseph to “pay them back” for all the wrong they had done to him.
16 So they sent this message to Joseph: “Before your father died, he instructed us 17 to say to you: ‘Please forgive your brothers for the great wrong they did to you—for their sin in treating you so cruelly.’
If Jacob, in fact, said this he too underestimated the genuineness of Joseph’s forgiveness and affection for them.
Discuss:
Reconciliation
Forgiveness (is not a feeling)
People often confuse forgiveness with reconciliation, as if they were the same thing. They aren’t. Reconciliation is the final step in the forgiveness process, but it might not happen. Forgiveness can take place without reconciliation taking place. It takes two people to reconcile, but only one to forgive.
Reconciliation – restore broken relationships.
- Forgiveness and reconciliation are not the same things.
- Forgiveness is not a feeling.
So we, the servants of the God of your father, beg you to forgive our sin.”
- Joseph’s brothers begged Joseph to forgive their sin.
When Joseph received the message, he broke down and wept.
Why did Joseph weep? I believe Joseph wept because his brothers had not experienced the forgiveness he had intended to extend to them.
Forgiveness is
a conscious, deliberate decision to release feelings of resentment or vengeance toward a person or group who has harmed you, regardless of whether they actually deserve your forgiveness. … Forgiveness does not mean forgetting, nor does it mean condoning or excusing offenses.
Understanding God’s forgiveness.
1 John 1:9 NLT
9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.
Hebrews 8:12 NLT
12 And I will forgive their wickedness,
and I will never again remember their sins.”
Forgive as God forgave.
Ephesians 4:32 NLT
32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.
- I believe Joseph wept because his brothers had not experienced the forgiveness he had intended to extend to them.
18 Then his brothers came and threw themselves down before Joseph. “Look, we are your slaves!” they said.
Genesis 37:5-8 NLT
5 One night Joseph had a dream, and when he told his brothers about it, they hated him more than ever. 6 “Listen to this dream,” he said. 7 “We were out in the field, tying up bundles of grain. Suddenly my bundle stood up, and your bundles all gathered around and bowed low before mine!”
8 His brothers responded, “So you think you will be our king, do you? Do you actually think you will reign over us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dreams and the way he talked about them.
Genesis 44:12-16 NLT
12 The palace manager searched the brothers’ sacks, from the oldest to the youngest. And the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack! 13 When the brothers saw this, they tore their clothing in despair. Then they loaded their donkeys again and returned to the city.
14 Joseph was still in his palace when Judah and his brothers arrived, and they fell to the ground before him. 15 “What have you done?” Joseph demanded. “Don’t you know that a man like me can predict the future?”
16 Judah answered, “Oh, my lord, what can we say to you? How can we explain this? How can we prove our innocence? God is punishing us for our sins. My lord, we have all returned to be your slaves—all of us, not just our brother who had your cup in his sack.”
- Joseph’s brothers recognized the reality of the relationship (roles) that existed between themselves and their brother.
1 Corinthians 12 – One Body with Many Parts
19 But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you?
Forgiveness never includes revenge.
Romans 12:19 NLT (17-21)
19 Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say,
“I will take revenge;
I will pay them back,”
says the Lord.
- Forgiveness can never include revenge.
20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good.
He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.
Another example of God’s sovereignty.
Esther 4:13-14 NLT
13 Mordecai sent this reply to Esther: … 14 Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?”
Ephesians 2:10 NLT
10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
Psalm 139:16 NLT
16 You saw me before I was born.
Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
before a single day had passed.
21 No, don’t be afraid. I will continue to take care of you and your children.”
So he reassured them by speaking kindly to them.
- Joseph reassured his brothers that he had forgiven them of their sin against him.
Genesis 45:4-11 NLT
4 “Please, come closer,” he said to them. So they came closer. And he said again, “I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into slavery in Egypt. 5 But don’t be upset, and don’t be angry with yourselves for selling me to this place. It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives. 6 This famine that has ravaged the land for two years will last five more years, and there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. 7 God has sent me ahead of you to keep you and your families alive and to preserve many survivors. 8 So it was God who sent me here, not you! And he is the one who made me an adviser to Pharaoh—the manager of his entire palace and the governor of all Egypt.
9 “Now hurry back to my father and tell him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me master over all the land of Egypt. So come down to me immediately! 10 You can live in the region of Goshen, where you can be near me with all your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and everything you own. 11 I will take care of you there, for there are still five years of famine ahead of us. Otherwise you, your household, and all your animals will starve.’”
- Joseph recognized God’s role (God’s sovereignty) in the events of his life.
The Death of Joseph
22 So Joseph and his brothers and their families continued to live in Egypt. Joseph lived to the age of 110. 23 He lived to see three generations of descendants of his son Ephraim,
Great-great grandchildren
and he lived to see the birth of the children of Manasseh’s son Makir, whom he claimed as his own.
Great-grandchildren
A sign of God’s blessing.
Psalm 128 NLT
1 How joyful are those who fear the Lord—
all who follow his ways! …
5 May the Lord continually bless you …
6 May you live to enjoy your grandchildren.
Proverbs 17:6 NLT
6 Grandchildren are the crowning glory of the aged; …
Proverbs 3:5-6
- Joseph experienced God’s blessings in his old age.
24 “Soon I will die,” Joseph told his brothers, “but God will surely come to help you and lead you out of this land of Egypt. He will bring you back to the land he solemnly promised to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.”
Genesis 17:8 NLT
8 And I will give the entire land of Canaan, where you now live as a foreigner, to you and your descendants. It will be their possession forever, and I will be their God.”
- Joseph understood the promises God had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
25 Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath, and he said, “When God comes to help you and lead you back, you must take my bones with you.”
Besides being a physical place (the land of Canaan), the Promised Land is a theological concept. In both the Old and New Testaments, God promised to bless his faithful followers and bring them into a restful place. Faith and faithfulness are the conditions of entering the Promised Land (Hebrews 11:9).
26 So Joseph died at the age of 110.
Joseph’s death signified the end of his generation and of the patriarchal age. From this point forward, God dealt with Israel as a nation.
The Egyptians embalmed him, and his body was placed in a coffin in Egypt.
Joseph’s body was kept in Egypt as a pledge of hope for the slaves awaiting the Promised Land.
Exodus 13:19 NLT
19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel swear to do this. He said, “God will certainly come to help you. When he does, you must take my bones with you from this place.”
Joshua 24:32 NLT
32 The bones of Joseph, which the Israelites had brought along with them when they left Egypt, were buried at Shechem, in the plot of land Jacob had bought from the sons of Hamor for 100 pieces of silver. This land was located in the territory allotted to the descendants of Joseph.
- Joseph’s dying wishes were carried out.
