Genesis chapter 43-44
RECONCILIATION part 1
"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."
Genuinely, the brothers did not know Joseph-chapter 42v30, "The man who is lord of the land spake roughly to us, and took us for spies of the country." This perception was continued through the narrative-42v33;43v7; 44v15. This is a story of reconciliation: we must remember that through envy, his brethren sold him into Egypt, and lied to their father, concerning him, and this lie, and the consequences that accrued, will now come back to haunt them. We remember also, that Jesus, who came to His brethren in incarnation, was rejected by them and sold into the hands of the Romans-in the words of John chapter 1v11 "He came to His own, and His own received Him not". For almost two millennia, Israel have excluded Him, who is their Messiah, and who will rule the world, yet now they don't know Him. This was a huge wrong that has to be put right.
The principle of reconciliation is that all wrongs of the past must be resolved, and this comes out vividly in the story. The modern trend is to turn a blind eye to all the wrongs, on the basis that "to err is human". However it is not so with God; every wrong must be put right, if universal harmony will be maintained. All the actions of evil must be reversed before reconciliation is made. Christ laid the basis for this at Calvary, but it was not a compromise with evil, it was in fact a confrontation with evil.
Joseph's brethren committed a great evil against their brother, and if reconciliation is to be made, it must involve acknowledgment of their sin. For this treason, Joseph did not ignore the past, but made them uncomfortable enough to trouble their consciences, before showing forgiveness and compassion toward them. In minute detail, he torments them until they confess their sins, and regret their past actions. The narrative unfolds each step toward reconciliation, for there can be none until confession is made. Chapter 42v7 "Joseph knew his brethren but he made himself strange unto them, and spake roughly unto them"; chapter 42v9 "Ye are spies, and to see the nakedness of the land ye are come"; chapter 42v15, "...by the life of Pharoah, ye shall not go forth hence, except your youngest brother be with you". Reuben the firstborn expressed pangs of conscience-42v22, "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." When they found their money returned in the sacks, they panicked and said, "...what is this that God hath done unto us?42v28. Jacob their father chided them on returning home, saying, "Me ye have bereaved, Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin?" The famine continued and they had to return to buy corn, and Jacob sent them with double money and gifts, along with young Benjamin, for whom Judah had to become surety. Joseph received them and invited them to dine with him, but it is recorded, "And the men were afraid, because they were brought into Joseph's house", 43 v18. What Joseph dreamt, that caused their envy, came to pass exactly as he had said, "And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present that was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth"-chapter 432v26, with chapter 37v7. Their consciences were to be prodded yet more: chapter 44v14, after being found with Joseph's cup in their sacks, returned, and "Judah and his brethren came to Joseph's house, and they fell before him on the ground. 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?" The brothers were made to feel the sins of the past. Before Joseph could reveal himself and show compassion, they needed to feel the weight of what they had done. Thus the principle of reconciliation is established, which carries on through scripture. Before reconciliation there must be repentance; before compassion there must be confession.
It will be so with Israel, who rejected and abused, and crucified Christ. "They shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourneth for his only son, and they shall be in bitterness for Him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn" Zechariah 12v10. John records in Revelation 1v7 "Behold He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him, and all nations of the earth shall wail be4cause of Him. Even so, Amen". The stone which the builders rejected, the same is made the head of the corner"-1st Peter 2v7, from Psalm 118v22-23. Before Israel is reconciled to God, and gathered to Him again, they will confess and repent of their betrayal of the Messiah. It is the same for all of us; God will reconcile all things to Himself, but only those who have confessed and forsaken their sins. At the cross, God put away offending sins, and in time He will apply it to everyone. In a universe that is destined to be at harmony with the Creator and each other, every wrong must be made right, and it will be.
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