September 8, 2006

• Genesis 44 Joseph’s Cup

  Just finished the ritual buying of school gear. My kids’ school doesn’t send home a list in advance, so the first few days they make a list of what the teachers want, and we go to purchase it – what a zoo. Hundreds of people in the store all looking for the perfect binders, paper, etc. – kind of reminded me of a bluefish feeding frenzy. I don’t know about you, but for me school meant new pencils, pens, notebook paper and one binder and maybe a marble notebook or two. Now it is specific sized binders for each class, etc. and tons of other things. And they can’t carry their backpacks in the hallways unless they are mesh or see-through. What a sign of the times. I kind of long for the simpler days.

  Genesis 44

  After the dinner, Joseph instructed his steward to fill the men’s sack with food and put their money back in the sack. (Remember, you can’t pay for salvation). But notice the next test that happens, verse 2 Also put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, and his grain money. So he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken.

  In Egypt they used a cup for divination to determine their gods’ will. Although I don’t believe for an instant that Joseph divined with the cup. The silver of the cup would be kind of a reminder of the pieces of silver that they sold Joseph into slavery for. The brothers left in the morning on donkeys.

  Verse 4 When they had gone out of the city, and were not yet far off, Joseph said to his steward, “Get up, follow the men; and when you overtake them, say to them,’Why have you repaid evil for good?” Is not this the one from which my lord drinks, and with which he indeed practices divination? You have done evil in so doing.”

  This is some test! I am certain when the steward catches up with the brothers they will be shaking in their sandals. I know the outcome is good, but I wonder a bit at the kinds of tests that Joseph is doing to his brothers, they seem rather mean. I know that they have not yet confessed their sin to him, and that they have been brutal in the past. I think Joseph wanted to see what they would do with Benjamin. And they will pass with flying colors.

  The steward overtakes the brothers and tells them what Joseph told him to say. (I wonder what the steward thought about these actions on Joseph’s part. I imagine Joseph is acting pretty out of character here in the steward’s eyes.)

  Verse 7 And they said to him (the steward), “Why does my lord say these words? Far be it from us that your servants should do such a thing.” They point out that they returned the money that got into their sacks from the first trip and then make the following statement verse 9 “With whomever of your servants it is found, let him die, and we also will be my lord’s slaves.”

  They believed they were innocent, not realizing that Benjamin was being framed. The steward tones down their rash statement, verse 10 “And he said, “Now also let it be according to your words; he with whom it is found shall be my slave, and you shall be blameless.”

  The steward starts searching the sacks from the oldest to the youngest and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack.

  Here we will really begin to see how much the hearts of the brothers have been changed! Verse 13 Then they tore their clothes, and each man loaded his donkey and returned to the city. In the past they would have left Benjamin and preserved themselves, now they choose to stick together.

  Judah (remember he has taken the leadership role) and the brothers come to Joseph and fall down before him on the ground. And listen to the confession of Judah, he doesn’t point to Benjamin, but uses “we”. Reminds me of intercessory prayers of various prophets and Moses, who claim a universal “we” of guilt: verse 16 ”Then Judah said, “What shall we say to my lord? What shall we speak? Or how shall we clear ourselves? God has found out the iniquity of your servants; here we are, my lord’s slaves, both we and he also with whom the cup was found.”

  Joseph offers to let the brothers go, and keep Benjamin as his slave. But Judah speaks to Joseph, acknowledging that Joseph is like Pharaoh. Judah then recounts the story of what has happened between them.

  And at last, a confession of what their father believed happened to Joseph, verse 27-28  Then your servant my father said to us, “You know that my wife bore me two sons; and one went out from me and I said, “Surely he is torn to pieces”; and I have not seen him since.”

  Judah points out that their father could not handle Benjamin not returning, verses 33-34 “Now therefore, please let your servant remain instead of the lad as a slave to my lord, and let the lad go up with his brothers. For how shall I go up to my father if the lad is not with me, lest perhaps I see the evil that would come upon my father?”

  Beth Moore, in her study The Patriarchs has some interesting insights that I hadn’t considered.  Most commentators see Joseph as pure, and testing his brothers, but Beth thinks that he wasn’t completely selfless and pure in his motives. P. 212-213 “Joseph was as scarred emotionally as he would have been physically had the wild animal attacked him as his brothers had claimed….Madness and mercy wrestled. Joseph staggered between feelings….He loved his brothers. And he hated them. He never wanted to see them again. And he never wanted to let them go.”

  She also points out that the “fragile” band of brothers is gaining some solidarity. That they are sticking together in this trial instead of abandoning Benjamin. p. 213 “I’d like to suggest that from God’s perspective solidarity was the point of their 20-year ordeal. In a very short time, the entire people of Israel will move to Egypt and remain for four hundred years. Though we have difficulty reasoning how their mass transit from Canaan to Egypt fit into the sovereign plan of God, we know that it did because He prophesied it when He first “cut Covenant” with Abram.”

  p. 214 “Centuries passed between the end of the patriarchal narrative” (Genesis) “and the beginning of the Book of Exodus, yet the people of God retained their solidarity and identity.” They could have been swallowed up, absorbed into Egyptian culture – but God did not let that happen. He allowed them to be oppressed, and oppression (as Pastor Don pointed out yesterday), holds a people together.

  She points out that if the cup was a test, the band of brothers passed with flying colors. But she adds p. 215 “I’d like to make the case that Judah’s speech was every bit the test of Joseph that the silver cup was to his 11 brothers. First, Judah’s sincerity tested Joseph’s insincerity. ..We can give Joseph the benefit of the doubt and believe that his ultimate goal was pure, but his means were deceptive…We may understand why Joseph didn’t reveal himself in the beginning, but why hadn’t he by now? Did some small part of him enjoy the game?”

  P. 216 “Lastly Judah’s fight for his family tested Joseph’s fight with his family. How often the enemy tries to distract us by tempting us to fight with the very people we were meant to fight for!“

  Oh how I can relate to that!

  p. 216 “Through his (Joseph’s) story we will learn that nothing is more humbling than God teaching a lesson to the more spiritual through the less. And Joseph, too, would pass his test.

  Do you sometimes wish for a period free from testing? I sure do. Hoping you have a blessed day today.

  Heather

   

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