Forgiveness Pt. 15: Which Truth Should I Believe?

Yesterday’s blog allowed our imaginations to leap from one cliff to the next as we discovered the depth of Joseph’s forgiveness.  It is only fair that we re-cap some high points from the declaration Forgiveness Pt. 14: The Naked Truth before we continue:

·       Joseph finally revealed his identity to his 11 brothers in the privacy of a room in his palace

·       The brothers were dumbfounded by this naked truth because they had believed their lie for so long it had become their truth. 

·       Their obvious disbelief was: 1) Zaphenath-Paneah the second most powerful ruler in ALL of Egypt was in fact the brother they thought they got rid of; 2) He could enslave, imprison, torture and/or kill them and no one would question his decision – that thought alone was enough to terrorize them; 3) the memories of Joseph sharing his dreams of them bowing before him and them swearing they never would became a reality.  The metal taste of disbelief and the nauseating feeling it brought on was like a person in the middle of aggressive chemo therapy, the more they tried to eat (take in) the words the sicker they became

·       It was not until Joseph administered the soothing words of compassion, empathy, comfort and forgiveness to their ears which soothed their troubled minds that they were able to digest (take in) what he said

·       The mere fact that he hugged and kissed each and every one of them speaks volumes to Joseph’s character as a man of God.  The only way that any of this was possible was through and by the raw power of God.

The brothers leave Egypt with the blessing of Pharaoh, Pharaoh’s officials and their brother whom had completely forgiven them.  He gave them gifts, more than enough food for their journey and ensured they had the best wagons in all of Egypt to make the move easier on their wives and children.  They were pressed to return quickly because of the aggressive famine throughout the Country.

Meanwhile, Joseph is making plans for the return of his brother and the opportunity to finally see his beloved father and allow his father to see and bless his sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.  I can imagine him scouting the best land in Goshen and taking whatever steps necessary to prepare the land for his family’s arrival.

When the brothers finally reach Canaan they are giddy with excitement as they tell their father about the news

of Joseph.  When he hears the news he is numb.  I can imagine the thoughts and questions running through his well-seasoned brain most of which started with the word, How?  How is this possible? How can Joseph be alive when you led me to believe he was dead?  How could he possibly be a ruler and advisor to Pharaoh?  As an old man, he had hoped for so long that his son would return but when he didn’t he finally accepted “the Truth” that Joseph was dead.  He didn’t want to experience that hurt again of believing only to be disappointed, so he was naturally guarded.  He knew his sons were good for lying, there was no doubt about it, but they wouldn’t go this far to lie about something so dear to his heart.  When he stepped outside of the tent door and saw the wagons of goods that Joseph sent, he allowed himself to believe and instantly felt an infusion of life to the dead areas of his heart and mind.  Their camp was as busy as a hive full of bees as they prepared for their journey.  The wives and children were trying to pack everything they could into the wagons but the brothers limited the items to the necessities as Joseph and Pharaoh had assured them that they would be well provided for.  Not because of them, but in spite of them and solely because of God’s favor over Joseph’s life.

Genesis 46 paraphrased:  All 66 members of Israel’s family set out at dawn as they said farewell to Canaan and headed for Egypt.  They broke camp in Beersheba approximately 389 miles from Egypt – by car not such a big deal but in wagons pulled by donkeys with a bunch of children, women, livestock and servants, you can imagine the length of the journey.  Israel decided to worship and offer sacrifices to God for his many blessings.  Israel was familiar with Beersheba because it was the place where his brother Essau sold his birthright to him for some stew causing him to flee for his life.  After he worshipped, God spoke to him in a dream and said:

I am the God of your father. Don’t be afraid of going down to Egypt. I’m going to make you a great nation there. I’ll go with you down to Egypt; I’ll also bring you back here. And when you die, Joseph will be with you; with his own hand he’ll close your eyes.” Genesis 46:3-4 (The Message)

When they came near to Egypt, Israel sent Judah to get directions to Goshen, the land where they would be

living.  Joseph was I am sure as giddy as a kid on Christmas Day in Toys R Us.  I’m sure his servants were sick and tired of all the fuss he had made over making sure that everything was just right.  He made sure the servants cleaned and prepared his horses, the rims were waxed and shining and everything that could shine was shining like new money on that chariot.  I can imagine that he was so excited that he probably told his driver that he would do the driving as his body guards trailed behind him.  When he pulled up to the estate in Goshen, he could see the vast number of people busily unpacking but he didn't focus on them, he was looking for one person in particular and when he saw him, he ran to him and melted in his arms where he remained for a long time as they cried and whispered words that they shared with no one.

To be continued

In His Excellent Service

Tania Not Tanya