Bible Study Online Article

In the last article we learned that the "seven year famine" had forced the "sons of Jacob" to go down to Egypt in order to buy grain for their household.

What they didn't realize is that the brother they had betrayed some twenty years before, had now risen to a position that had made him second-in-command within the land of Egypt.

However, before we go further - I just wanted to take this moment to point out, that when we read our Bibles, I believe that we should keep something in mind...

Know that it's always important to try to find and make a connection from within the Sacred Record, not only in a spiritual sense, but in a natural one as well. If one were to take the time to learn how to practice this kind of insightful approach, I personally believe, that it will help us when it comes to applying and injecting the Sacred Scriptures into our everyday lives.

I truly believe that it's this type of approach that keeps us from limiting God and His actions to a particular time-period or culture. For we must understand that when it comes to different time-periods or cultures - they're forever changing, but God will always remain the same today, yesterday and forevermore.

Also keep in mind that the Sacred Record gives us the unique ability, to be able to see and identify how God moves, not only in the spiritual, but in the natural as well. I'll tell you this, if you're able to grasp hold of this method when it comes to tracking God in both the natural and spiritual - you'll be surprised, when it comes to just how naturally visible the Lord can truly be within your everyday life.

With this being stated, let's continue forward as we try to make this "natural connection" when it comes to the Sacred Record of Joseph. As I'd pointed out in the last article, we now find that Joseph is struggling with "temptation," when it comes to the idea of him seeking revenge against his brothers, the ones who'd betrayed him some twenty years before.

Know that if it were us that was faced with the same type of opportunity, when it came to seeking revenge against the person who had betrayed us like Joseph was betrayed. I wonder how many would have had the strength and humbleness to resist taking this type of action? Especially when the action seems to be justified or reasonable by the world standards.

But let's see if we can travel further into the mind of Joseph, for we must try to understand why he would be struggling with the idea of revenge... I mean after all, Joseph is a God-fearing man and these types of thoughts shouldn't be dancing around from within his head -- right? For we must keep in mind, that it's this type of mindset, that could cause one to create a certain set of higher standards for those who are claiming to be Christians from within today's times as well.

This is why, when those who are claiming to be Christians are found to have made mistakes, for some strange reason, we use that as an excuse, to not proceed further when it comes to seeking and learning more about the Word of God for ourselves? Which is sad and dangerous on our parts, for we constantly make the mistake of treating the God-fearing person who had fallen short, as if they were sent here to save and redeem us? To treat their fallen-situation as if God had failed us - would be a huge mistake on our parts and it could cause us to come away from the path of Eternal Salvation.

But I digressed...

Now as we get back to the current topic, one should also consider that although Jacob had four wives who gave him twelve sons and one daughter, there was only one woman from out of the four that Jacob loved with all his heart and that woman name was "Rachel." For she was the one that Jacob had unfairly worked fourteen years for, so that he may finally earn her hand in marriage. The other three women: Leah, Bilhah and Zilpah were brought in as tools that were used to manipulate, or gain some kind of advantage when it came to Jacob.

Know that Leah was deceitfully handed over to Jacob first, in order for Leah and Rachel's father to manipulate and gain further employment services from Jacob. Also keep in mind that Jacob wanted and loved Rachel with all of his heart - not Leah. Now when it came to Bilhah and Zilpah, they were Leah and Rachel's maidservants, and they were brought in to help one wife to gain an advantage over the other, when it came to childbearing. These women felt that if they were able to bear Jacob the most children, then perhaps, they would win his favor and love.

To think that none of this "family drama" wouldn't have had any effect on the children that these women had birthed into the world, would be a very naïve approach on our part. Being that all we'd have to do is look at the same type of scenario that had happened with Joseph's grandfather Abraham. Being that it was during his day that Sarah and Hagar had a similar situation going on, when it came to child-bearing.

And because of their animosity towards each other - Hagar and her son Ishmael eventually were told to leave from Abraham's household. I would also like to point out that Ishmael had begun to adopt his mother's negative attitude towards Sarah as well. And because of this behavior that Ishmael had adopted, it caused him to start picking on Sarah's son Isaac. Now when Sarah had caught how Ishmael was treating her son (who was his little brother), she insisted that Hagar and Ishmael leave the household.

Now, as we fast forward from Abraham's account, back to Joseph's - we find that Jacob had favored Joseph over all his other sons. I can't help but to wonder, if this could have came about, because Joseph was the first born son of the woman Jacob truly loved - who was Rachel? Could this also have been, that between the four women - Rachel was the last to be blessed with a child that she could actually call her own? Oh, how Jacob's heart must have ached when it came to Rachel's mental and spiritual suffering. And to make matters worse, Rachel had passed away while she was giving birth to her second child Benjamin.

Be that as it may, eventually Jacob's other sons had became jealous of the attention and favor that their father had for their younger brother Joseph. They were also insulted and angry that their father had given Joseph a very valuable coat that consisted of many colors. And on top of this - Joseph had the boldness and arrogance to tell them that he will rule over them one day.

Obviously I could go on, but as you can gather from the text - the family situation was quite toxic when it came to Jacob's overall household environment. Understand that Joseph had a good heart and he cared for his brothers and this was shown when he was frantically searching for them - for he feared that something bad had happened, being that they might have been traveling in dangerous territory.

Joseph would show his loyalty to his brothers while he'd search all over for them. And he did this, all the way up to the time his brothers had betrayed and sold him into slavery, back in the place that was known as Dothan. Now if I were in Joseph's position, I could easily understand how he would see his brothers in a totally different light from that moment forward?

Just the mere fact that they did what they had done to him, shows just how cold their hearts and minds had become when it came to him. So from Joseph's perspective, it's very easy to see how he could have adopted a mindset: "If they would do this to me - then they would surely do it to my little brother Benjamin?"

Now let's journey further into this account:

Joseph said to his brothers: "It is just as I told you: You are spies! And this is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your younger brother comes here. Send one of your number to get your brother; the rest of you will be kept in prison, so that your words will be tested to see if you are telling the truth. If you are not, then as surely as Pharaoh lives, you are spies!"

Now it's at this point that Joseph reveals his possible tipping point? For I believe that if his brothers are found to be lying about the well-being of Benjamin, then they will suffer a similar season of captivity, just like Joseph had done, or worse. But in the meantime, Joseph would give his brothers' sometime to think about the terms he had placed before them. And because of this, Joseph would have them locked up into custody for three days.

I for one don't believe that Joseph would have killed his brothers, even if they couldn't produce Benjamin? Since Joseph had every right to do so, being that the penalty in Egypt at the time, dealt with the fact that if you were caught being a spy - you were put to death. It's Joseph's next statement that leads me to this viewpoint:

And on the third day Joseph said to them: "Do this and you will live, for I fear God: If you are honest with me, let one of your brothers stay here in prison, while the rest of you go and take grain back for your starving households. But you must bring your youngest brother to me, so that your words may be verified and that you may not die."

The mere fact that Joseph mentions that he has the fear of God - leads me to believe that in spite of his personal feelings towards his brothers, Joseph would not have risked his position of favor and ambassadorship with the Almighty.

As we inch closer to Joseph's possible tipping point when it comes to seeking revenge against his brothers, we are learning how God trained Joseph to have the strength that enabled him to hold back his emotions of anger.

Because of this, the power of wisdom and humbleness has an opportunity to shine through. As we journey further, perhaps we will be able to see just how powerful these traits can truly be once applied. We will also learn if Joseph's brothers will have a moment of reflection while they sit in prison as they now endure a season of uncertainty?

The Introduction of Abraham

The Birth of Isaac

The Birth of Esau & Jacob

Jacob - The Path of Uncertainty

Jacob - Wrestles with God

Joseph the Favorite Son

**YOUR CURRENT BIBLE STUDY ONLINE SERIES WOULD BE HERE**

83) Pharaoh's Dark Dreams

84) Joseph's Dark Dreams Interpretation

85) Joseph the Overseer of Egypt

86) Joseph the Revealer of Secrets

87) The Unveiling of Pharaoh

88) The Seven Years of Abundance

89) The Famine of Seven Years

90) Joseph the Egyptian Prime Minister

91) Joseph the Temptation of Revenge

92) <-CURRENT BIBLE STUDY ONLINE PAGE->

93) The Confessions of the Ten Tribes

94) The Returning Nine Tribes

95) Jacob the Bereaved

96) Jacob's Reality Check

97) Joseph's Secret Delight

98) Joseph the Great Host

99) Judah Pleads For Benjamin

100) The Unveiling of Joseph