Genesis 50:22-26 Bring Me Out
We have come to the end of Genesis and the end of Joseph. He will make a cameo appearance in Exodus as his family leaves Egypt. For now though, he stays.
Joseph lived in Egypt for 93 years yet he didn’t consider it home. He was looking to th
e land that God had promised his fathers; the land of Canaan. He knew he would never personally live there again but he didn’t want what remained of him to be left in Egypt. He made his brothers SWEAR to bring his remains with them when God restored them to the Promised Land.
I’m curious how many Pharaoh’s Joseph served under. Did the Egyptians live as long as the Israelites did? Joseph saw three generations of his own family. How many generations did Pharaoh, who Joseph initially served, see before he passed? There was around 400 years after Joseph died that the children of Israel left Egypt. It is probable, depending on lifespan, that the Pharaoh of that day never met Joseph and the famine was deemed ancient history.
Joseph shows amazing faith in God’s promises! His whole life was one example after another of God working out His plan in His faithful child’s life. You could almost call his relationship with God “a circle of faith.” God was able to work in Joseph’s life because Joseph followed God’s commands. Because Joseph followed God’s commands, God blessed him. And because God blessed him, Joseph’s faith increased. It took Joseph being in submission to God for God to use him like He did. Joseph didn’t know the next step in God’s plan for him but he served where he was at with all his ability. THEN God was able to move him to the next step in His plan.
This same principle holds true for our lives. If we are in opposition to God, He is not going to use us or bless our actions. God can only use us to the extent that we submit to His plan RIGHT WHERE WE ARE. Yes, God is able to do some extraordinary works with unsuspecting people, but on the whole, He wants you on board with what He has for you every step of the way. Joseph’s journey from the pit to the palace was not a comfortable one but his faithfulness to whatever God put in his path was essential to the journey. Trust God by serving where you and there is no telling how far He will take you from there.
I do have one question from our reading today that puzzles me. Why were the children of Machir counted as Joseph’s own? Looking to 1 Chronicles 7:14-19 we find Manasseh’s descendants. Machir was Manasseh’s son. Machir fathered Gilead for certain but it looks like he also fathered Huppim, Shuppim, Peresh, and Sheresh. Did all of these become Joseph’s sons as Manasseh and Ephraim became Jacob’s, or was it only a few? Our text doesn’t tell us and neither does the genealogy in I Chronicles. This might turn into another “bench question” that I have to wait for.
Another question that just cropped up in my mind. Did Ephraim and Manasseh move to the family compound with Jacob? How did they get assimilated into the body of the Nation of Israel? When did they become part of Israel instead of sons of the wealthiest man next to Pharaoh? Jacob claimed them as his own but what did that require of them? Their ancestors left with the rest of the family and were just as oppressed during their time there. How did they get from the palace to the pit? I believe I may have asked this one before but it still haunts me today.
Father God, thank You for Your faithfulness and for taking me right where I am. I have a LONG way to go to be as faithful as Joseph was but I’m trying. The last few days have been hard because of how many other commitments I had. I’m asking for Your help to get me through this weekend with company. I miss our time together when things get in the way. I want to be faithful in the midst of all things. That is my prayer Lord Jesus. Help me carve out time for us, no matter how small or how unique it may be. Thank You for those times You already answered this prayer in my life.
Lord Jesus, I want to be used by You in whatever way You so choose. I give You my hands and feet. Do with them as You will. That prayer feels scary right now but I put my trust in You and KNOW You won’t let me fall on my face. I’m looking forward to seeing where You take us.
