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Finally after some good sound reasoning from Judah, Jacob allows Benjamin to head to Egypt with his brothers. Needless to say, Jacob was not happy about the decision and already had given his thoughts over to, perhaps, never seeing Benjamin again. I can't say that I blame Jacob for the type of attitude that he had adopted when it came to him depending on his sons? Joseph, the one son that he could depend on: according to the rest of his sons, was killed by a wild beast in the fields. Of course this was a lie, for his sons had betrayed their brother Joseph and sold him into slavery. Be as it may, Jacob saw Joseph as being lost after he had sent him out to look for his brothers.
Now, when the famine of seven years had struck, Jacob decides to send ten of his sons down to Egypt to buy grain so their households wouldn't starve. What seemed like an easy task; would still turn out to be problematic for Jacob's sons; for they would return home without their brother Simeon. Now we find that Jacob's sons needed to take Benjamin down to Egypt; and although Jacob was a God-fearing man, he allowed what he thought he had saw in the natural, to limit and influence him when it came to his finite rational mindset. For you must understand, that according to Jacob, he thought that God had allowed two of his sons to be taken from him, so, why not a third? But what Jacob didn't understand, is that God had not taken his sons from him, but had placed Joseph and Simeon on separate predestine paths, that were designed to plant more foundation roots when it came to the future of Israel. God did not forget His promise covenant that He had made with Jacob, and his father Isaac, and his grandfatherAbraham; but it would seem that Jacob did forget? Jacob's faith was weak at this point in his life; and because of this, he will pay a price when it comes to him going through a season of restlessness in his mind and spirit. I'll tell you this, being able to have peace of mind in a world that's so chaotic such as this, is definitely a gift from God. But it takes faith in the Almighty, in order for us to unwrap and enjoy the gift, when it comes to having a peace of mind. Be as it may, we now find that Jacob's sons had taken the gifts that their father had suggested and pack them for their journey. They also took double the amount when it came to their sliver: for they needed to pay for a new supply of grain, but they also needed to pay for the grain that they had previously brought back on their last trip to Egypt. Shortly after, they hurried down to Egypt and presented themselves to Zaphenath-Paneah the Revealer of Secrets: who was of course -- their brother Joseph. Needless to say, Joseph was delighted to see his little brother Benjamin, although he couldn't show his true emotions in front of his brothers: for we must understand, that Joseph still wanted to keep his identity a secret. So instead, Joseph told his steward: "Take these men to my house, slaughter an animal and prepare dinner; they are to eat with me at noon." The steward would do as he was told and took Joseph's brothers back to Joseph's house. In the meantime, Joseph's brothers would become very afraid, for they didn't know what to think? After all, it was very unusual for a man that had such an high standing, be so hospitable to strangers. So immediately they thought it was a trap of some sorts: "We were brought here because of the sliver that was put back into our sacks the first time. He wants to attack us and overpower us and seize us as slaves and take our donkeys," they would say amongst themselves. Now they were at the entrance to Joseph's house; and it was at this time, they began to explain their concerns to the Egyptian steward: "Please sir, we came down here the first time to buy food. But at the place where we stopped for the night, we opened our sacks and each of us found his sliver, the exact weight in the mouth of his sack. So we have brought it back with us. We have also brought additional sliver with us to buy food. Sir, we don't know who put our sliver in our sacks." After the steward had heard all that Joseph's brothers had to say, he responded by saying: "It's all right, don't be afraid. Your God, the God of your father, has given you treasure in your sacks; I received your sliver." Soon after the steward had said this, he took them in the house and went to go get their brother Simeon: who Joseph had kept in prison. Next the steward would go and get them some water so they could wash their feet; and he also provided their donkeys with some fodder (coarse food). In the meantime, Joseph's brothers had learnt that they would be dining there at the house, so they decided to prepare the gifts that they had brought from their father's house. With a man like Joseph that has everything, what will he think about the gifts? Joseph finally has Benjamin: will he let him go back with his brothers? Or, does he have different plans? How will Joseph brothers respond, if Joseph tries to force Benjamin to stay? After all, they did tell their father that Benjamin would return home. Will they let their father down again?
Jacob - The Path of Uncertainty **YOUR CURRENT SERIES WOULD BE HERE** 84) Joseph's Dark Dreams Interpretation 85) Joseph the Overseer of Egypt 86) Joseph the Revealer of Secrets 88) The Seven Years of Abundance 90) Joseph the Egyptian Prime Minister 91) Joseph the Temptation of Revenge 93) The Confessions of the Ten Tribes 97) <-CURRENT PAGE->  CrossDaily.com Web Search where you can VOTE FOR THIS SITE & other great ones. Christian search engine, directory & voting index. You'll find Bible, chat, churches, jobs, music, reviews, software, theology, & more. See the best sites!
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