Joseph - Forgiveness And Reconciliation Series

January 25, 2025

It must have been quite a shock to see Joseph after all those years. He certainly wasn’t where the brothers thought he would be. He was the greatest man in Egypt and they were in his power – a rather uncomfortable place to be.

It was Joseph who reached out to them offering forgiveness and reconciliation. He had thrown his arms around them and kissed them and wept over them. But, had he really forgiven them? Did he really want a restored relationship? They had built their entire lives on lies and deception…… Could Joseph be trusted?

Just like consequences, guilt has long legs. For the next 17 years the brothers lived under a question mark. Is Joseph’s forgiveness real?

Meanwhile, life had to go on and home was 300 miles away. Soon they were on the road back to Canaan and they were not a small party. In addition to the grain, there were carts for the family’s comfort on the return trip. There were donkeys loaded with the finest Egypt had to offer. The brother’s themselves were wearing new clothes and Benjamin was carrying an extra 300 shekels of silver and 5 sets of clothing.

What do you say to a father you have lied to for 22 years? “Hey dad, funny story………”

Interestingly, the Bible gives us no specifics as to the confession and forgiveness that occurred between Jacob and his boys, only that – Genesis 45:25-28:

They told him, "Joseph is still alive! In fact, he is ruler of all Egypt." …. That Jacob was stunned and he did not believe them. …. But after hearing their story and seeing the carts Joseph had sent to carry him back to Egypt, his spirit was revived and he said, "I'm convinced! Joseph is still alive. I will go and see him before I die."

Off to Egypt they went. When Jacob reached Beersheba, he offered sacrifices to God and in a night vision God spoke to him:

Genesis 46:3-4 – "I am God, the God of your father," he said. "Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there. I will go down to Egypt with you, and I will surely bring you back again. And Joseph's own hand will close your eyes."

What follows is a genealogy of those who accompanied Jacob to Egypt - Genesis 46:8-27

The descendants of Jacob and Leah (+ Dinah):

• The sons of Reuben: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron and Carmi.

• The sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jakin, Zohar and Shaul.

• The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath and Merari.

• The sons of Judah: Shelah, Perez and Zerah (Er and Onan had died).

o “The sons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul.” ---- Truth be told, in all the times I have read Genesis, this verse never registered. While writing this sermon, the lightbulb did go on and it brought up all sorts of time-line problems. Based on my understanding of the phrase “At that time” in Genesis 38:1, the events surrounding the birth of Perez and Zerah occurred after Joseph went to Egypt, and yet, the sons of Perez are listed as being among the descendants of Jacob who went to Egypt 22/23 years later. It was mathematically impossible for Judah to marry, have 3 sons - 2 to get to marriable age then die, a “considerable” amount of time to go by after Judah’s wife’s death, the incident with Tamar, Perez and Zerah being born and Perez being old enough to marry and have sons of his own…. All in the space of 22/23 years. Had I mis-understood “At that time.”? I went on a little investigative journey:

? The Hebrew word used, “hayah” means “to be, become, come to pass, exist, or happen.”

? Bible Commentators don’t agree: some suggest that the phrase indicates a long period of time that predates and overlaps Joseph’s slavery and that Moses placed it in the context of Joseph’s slavery for reasons known only to himself. Others suggest that the 22/23 year time frame is correct and the Perez’s sons were actually born in Egypt but are counted as going into Egypt because they were “in the loins” of their father, Perez. But that doesn’t work either considering the total number of “direct descendants” going to Egypt was 66 and would have had to include them to arrive at that number. Some Commentaries don’t address the apparent time discrepancy between Gensis 38:1 and 46:12 at all and my girl, Ellen White, is silent as well.

After careful consideration, I have come to the conclusion that I did mis-understand “At that time.” Here is the option that I now believe to be most correct: The story of Judah predates and overlaps Joseph’s slavery. Above and beyond that I am comfortable with the unknown….. LAP QUESTION!!!