Front matter (continued, part 12)
However, they were also a brave people whose warriors had excellent reputations (1 Chron. 12:33). Deborah and Barak praised the men of Zebulun for rallying to the cause and fighting Sisera (Judg. 5:14–18). Elon, one of the judges, was from this tribe (12:11–12).
Genesis 49
would soon call him into eternity? The word translated "salvation" is yeshua, which gives us the name Joshua, "Jehovah is salvation." The Greek form is "Jesus."
Isaachar (vv. 14–15) was situated at the eastern end of the fertile Jezreel Valley (Josh. 19:17–22), sandwiched between Zebulun and the Jordan River. The judge Tola was from Isaachar (Judg. 10:1–2); the men of Isaachar fought against Sisera (5:15); and David had soldiers from that tribe who understood the times and knew what Israel should do (1 Chron. 12:32). Many of the men of this tribe were valiant in battle (7:5).
Naphtali (v. 21). For some reason, Jacob spoke to Gad and Asher, the sons of Zilpah, before he spoke to Dan's brother, Naphtali. This tribe's location was north of Zebulun and Isaachar and contained the Sea of Galilee. Zebulun and Naphtali were a part of the district called "Galilee of the Gentiles," which was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah (Isa. 9:1–2) and where Jesus ministered (Matt. 4:12–16). Note that Zebulun and Naphtali were distinguished for their bravery in battle (Judg. 5:18).
We today think of a donkey as an ignoble beast of burden, but in Old Testament times, kings rode on donkeys (1 Kings 1:38ff.). The image in Genesis 49:14–15 is that of a strong people who weren't afraid to carry burdens. The people of Isaachar were hard working and devoted to the soil. They were content with their lot and made the most of it. This tribe produced no great heroes, but their everyday labor was a help to others. After all, not everybody in Israel was called to be a Judah or a Joseph!
The image of "a hind [doe] let loose" suggests a free-spirited people, not bound to tradition. The tribe was located in the hill country. So this image was chosen wisely. Moses said they were "satisfied with favor, and full of the blessing of the Lord" (Deut. 33:23 nkjv). The last clause—"he gives goodly [beautiful] words" (nkjv)—suggests that they were a poetic people who could express themselves well. Possessing the abilities to run like does and speak beautiful words, the people of Naphtali would make ideal messengers.
Of Leah's six sons, three lost God's best blessings because of their sins: Reuben, Simeon, and Levi. They remind us that purity and self-control are essential to godly character. Zebulun and Isaachar were "everyday people" whose tribes served others but weren't especially known for their exploits. We need farmers and merchants if the machinery of life is to run smoothly. Finally, only one son—Judah—was preeminent among his brothers, the royal tribe that conquered enemies and produced kings, including the King of kings, Jesus Christ.
The descendants of Bilhah's two sons seem to be contrasting peoples. Dan turned away from faith in the true God and trusted in idols. They became a deceptive people who exploited others to get what they wanted. But Naphtali has no judgment against it. When the Assyrians invaded the northern kingdom of Israel, Naphtali was one of the first tribes to be taken and deported (2 Kings 15:29).
The sons of Bilhah (49:16–18, 21) Bilhah, Rachel's maid, was given to Jacob to bear him children because Rachel was at that point childless (30:1–8).
The sons of Zilpah (49:19–20) Zilpah was Leah's maid, given to Jacob to bear him more children after Leah had ceased bearing (30:9–13). However, later Leah gave birth to Isaachar, Zebulun, and Dinah (vv. 14–21).
Dan (vv. 16–18). The name Dan means "to judge" (30:6), and his tribe produced one of the most famous judges, Samson (Judg. 13—16). The tribe of Dan was given a fertile land bordering the Mediterranean Sea in Philistine territory (Josh. 19:40–48), but they weren't able to drive out the Philistines. In order to gain more land, they moved north and conquered the people of Laish and took their land (v. 47; Judg. 18:1–29).
Gad (v. 19). His name can mean both "good fortune" (30:11) and "a troop." Because of the tribe's location on the east side of the Jordan, enemy troops could easily invade their territory. Jacob assured the Gadites that no conquest would be final, but that they would eventually conquer their enemies. This verse literally reads, "Troop [Gad], a troop will troop upon him, but he will troop on their heels." An old man on his deathbed, Jacob could still make a clever wordplay out of his son's name. The Gadites were great warriors (Josh. 22:1–6). Moses compared them to a brave lion that could rend the arms and heads of its enemies (Deut. 33:20).
By associating Dan with the serpent, Jacob revealed his crafty nature and his habit of making sudden attacks on his enemies. The tribe's conquest of the defenseless people of Laish is an example of their subtle tactics, and their setting up an image in their territory shows that they weren't wholly devoted to the Lord (v. 20). Two centuries later, King Jeroboam set up one of his idolatrous golden calves in Dan (1 Kings 12:28–30).
Dan is left out of the genealogies in 1 Chronicles 2—10 and in the tribal listing in Revelation 7:1–8. Is this because of their idolatry? However, when Ezekiel described the placing of the tribes during the kingdom age, he had a place for Dan (Ezek. 48:1–2).
Asher (v. 20). The name means "blessed" or "happy" (30:13). Since the tribe of Asher wasn't able to drive out the inhabitants of their territory (Judg. 1:31–32), they settled down to be an agricultural people, taking advantage of the fertile land God gave them (Josh. 19:24–30). Moses said that Asher was "most blessed," referring to its wealth of olive oil and the security of its cities (Deut. 33:24–25). Indeed, Asher's food was rich, and the tribe even provided special delicacies "fit for a king."
The exclamation, "I have waited for your salvation, O Lord!" (Gen. 49:18 nkjv) suggests that Jacob was in communion with the Lord while he was speaking to his sons. Was he asking God for special strength to finish what he had to say? Or was he announcing that the Lord
Genesis 49
The sons of Rachel (49:22–27) Jacob didn't hesitate to make it known that Rachel was his favorite wife and that her two sons were his favorite children. This kind of favoritism caused a great deal of trouble in the family, and yet God overruled it to accomplish His own purposes. Jacob said more about Joseph than about any of the other sons, but he didn't have much to say about Benjamin.
streams in the earth beneath (see Deut. 33:13–16). He also promised fertility to the people so that the tribe would increase to God's glory (Hos. 12:8). Ephraim and Manasseh were important tribes in Israel. In fact, the northern kingdom was frequently called "Ephraim" (Isa. 7:1–2; Hos. 13:1).
God had blessed Abraham richly (Gen. 13:6), and Abraham had shared his wealth with Isaac (25:5), who in turn gave it to Jacob. But Jacob's hard work had generated even more wealth.
Joseph (vv. 22–26). Jacob used the word "bless" at least six times in his speech to and about Joseph. He compared Joseph to a fruitful vine (or bough of a fruit tree), drawing water from a spring (Ps. 1:3) and growing over the wall. It was Joseph who was taken from home and lived in Egypt, and the word "fruitful" points to his son Ephraim (Gen. 41:52), founder of a tribe that grew greatly and expanded its territory (Josh. 17:14–18).7 Neither Joseph nor his sons could be hemmed in!
Thus, from generation to generation, the wealth increased because of the blessing of the Lord, like filling the land up to the very mountains. But the number of heirs had also increased, and now there were twelve sons. But Joseph was the firstborn, and his two sons would share the inheritance of their father.
Benjamin (v. 27). You would expect Jacob to say more to and about his youngest son Benjamin, the "son of his right hand," but his words were few and puzzling. Why compare Benjamin to a "ravenous wolf"?8 The men of Benjamin were brave and helped defeat Sisera (Judg. 5:14), but when you read Benjamin's tribal history in Judges 19 and 20, you see the ravenous wolf in action. Saul, the first king of Israel, was from Benjamin. During his career, he more than once tried to kill David (1 Sam. 19:10), and he ruthlessly murdered everybody in the priestly city of Nob (22:6ff.). Other Benjamites known for their ferocity were Abner (2 Sam. 2:23), Sheba (chap. 20), and Shimei (16:5–14). Saul of Tarsus, a Benjamite (Rom. 11:1; Phil. 3:5) was like a wild animal9 when he persecuted the church and tracked down Christians to imprison them.
Jacob used the image of "archers" to describe the suffering that Joseph experienced at the hands of his brothers and his master in Egypt. In Scripture, shooting arrows is sometimes an image of telling lies and speaking hateful words (Ps. 57:4; 64:3–4; Prov. 25:18; 26:18–19; Jer. 9:8). Joseph's brothers couldn't speak to him in a civil manner (Gen. 37:4), and they lied about him to their father, and Potiphar's wife falsely accused Joseph and helped put him into prison. Indeed, the archers shot mercilessly at the innocent young man.
But Joseph didn't shoot back! God strengthened him so that his words were always true, and it was this integrity that eventually led to his release from prison and his elevation to being second ruler of the land. But the reference to bows and arrows goes beyond the image of lies; it also reminds us of the military skill of the men of Ephraim (Judg. 8:1ff.; 12:1ff.; Josh. 17:17–18).
It's remarkable that Moses' words about Benjamin say nothing about the ferocious behavior of an animal (Deut. 33:12). Instead, Moses called him "the beloved of the Lord" and promised him constant protection from God. In fact, Benjamin shall "dwell between His shoulders" (nkjv), which suggests either being carried on his back or over his heart. When the nation divided after Solomon's death, the tribe of Benjamin remained faithful to the Davidic line and stayed with Judah. Together they formed the southern kingdom of Judah.
Jacob used three more special names of the Lord: the Mighty [One] of Jacob, the Shepherd, and the Stone [Rock]. Jehovah deigns to be called "the God of Jacob," and as "the mighty God," He cared for Jacob's needs, helping him with his difficult work (31:36–42), and delivering him from danger (v. 24).
Jacob had already referred to the Lord as "the God who shepherded me [looked after me]" (48:15). Since Jacob himself was a shepherd, he knew what was involved in caring for sheep. The concept of God as the Shepherd is found often in Scripture (Ps. 23:1ff., 80:1; 100:3; Isa. 40:11; Ezek. 34) and culminates in Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd who gave His life for the sheep (John 10).
All of the sons together (49:28–33) The statements that Jacob made to each of his sons would be remembered by them and repeated to the members of their family for years to come. As time passed, they would see new and deeper meanings in these pronouncements, and they would treasure the assurances Jacob had given them from the Lord.
The Stone [Rock] is another familiar image of the God of Israel (Deut. 32:4, 15, 18, 31; 1 Sam. 2:2; 2 Sam. 22:32) and also points to Christ (Ps. 118:22; Matt. 21:42; Acts 4:11; 1 Cor. 10:4; 1 Peter 2:7). When you think of a stone, you think of strength, stability, and security, and God provided all of that and more to Jacob during his difficult earthly pilgrimage.
But the old man's last statements were about himself, not about his sons, for he wanted them to guarantee that they would bury him in the cave of Machpelah where the bodies of five members of his family were now resting. Abraham had purchased the cave as a burial place for Sarah (Gen. 23), but over the years Isaac, Rebekah, and Leah had been buried there, and now Jacob would join them. He had already spoken about this matter to Joseph (47:27–31), so he
Jacob promised Joseph that God would give his descendants blessings on the soil that they farmed by sending the rains from heaven above and providing the
Genesis 49—50
Allen. "I just don't want to be there when it happens." But he'll be there, and you and I will be there when it happens to us. Nobody has yet figured out how to peek into God's appointment book and erase the date.
knew his requests would be followed, but he wanted all his sons to know they had the responsibility of obeying his last commands and showing respect for their father.
Jacob's long and difficult life was over. He had made his last journey, given his last blessing, and shared his last request. His work was done, and he breathed his last and died. With only his staff, he had crossed over Jordan many years before; and now he had his staff with him (Heb. 11:21) as he crossed to the other side.
This chapter records three burials, two of them literal and one figurative, and all of them important.
A coffin for a beloved father (50:1–14) The scene was a solemn one. Jacob had nothing more to say. So he drew himself into the bed, lay down, and went to sleep with his sons standing around him and his God waiting for him. He left behind the nucleus of a great nation and the testimony of what a great God can do with an imperfect man who sought to live by faith. He exchanged his pilgrim tent for a home in the heavenly city (Heb. 11:13–16).
He was a pilgrim to the very end.
1 The phrase "in the last days" (v. 1 kjv) means "in the days to come." Sometimes in Scripture "the last days" refers to the days prior to the return of Jesus Christ, but not in this case. 2 Isaachar and Zebulun were Leah's fifth and sixth sons, but they were born after Bilhah and Zilpah each had delivered two sons. Jacob included Isaachar and Zebulun with Leah's first four sons (vv. 13–15), but for some reason reversed their birth order. 3 Moses must have been concerned about the future of the tribe of Reuben, for he prayed, "Let Reuben live, and not die, nor let his men be few" (Deut. 33:6 nkjv). 4 The statement about Simeon and Levi crippling oxen (v. 6) shows how cruel the two brothers were, for the dumb animals certainly weren't responsible for what had happened to Dinah. God has a special concern for animals, and we'd better be careful how we treat them. (See Lev. 22:26–28; Deut. 22:6–7; Ps. 36:6; 104:10–30; Jonah 4:11.) 5 Judas Iscariot bore the same name but disgraced it by his sins. Who today would call a son "Judas"? 6 Five tribes are associated in some way with animal life: Judah the lion (v. 9), Isaachar the donkey (v. 14), Dan the serpent (v. 17), Naphtali the deer (v. 21), and Benjamin the wolf (v. 27). 7 Heroes like Deborah, Joshua, and Samuel came from the tribe of Ephraim, and Gideon and Jephthah came from Manasseh. 8 One of Benjamin's most famous descendants was Ehud, the judge who killed Eglon (Judg. 3:12–30). Benjamin means "son of my right hand," but Ehud the Benjamite was left-handed! (See Judg. 20:15–16.) 9 Luke said that Saul "made havoc of the church" (Acts 8:3), a word that describes an animal mangling its prey. Jesus said that Saul was "kicking against the goads" (9:5), a reference to the farmer proding an animal in order to control it. (For Paul's own statements about his preconversion behavior, see Acts 22:3–4, 19; 26:9–10; 1 Cor. 15:9; Gal. 1:13, 22–24; Phil. 3:6; 1 Tim. 1:12–13.)
Grief (vv. 1, 10–11). "Old men must die," wrote Alfred, Lord Tennyson, "or the world would grow moldy, would only breed the past again."
Perhaps. But when old people die, those who love them feel the loss deeply. The longer you have someone in your life that you really love, the deeper the roots go into your heart and the more wrenching is the experience of having those roots pulled up. Yes, grief is a normal part of life, and believers don't grieve "as others who have no hope" (1 Thess. 4:13 nkjv). But death is still an enemy, and when he slinks in and robs us of someone dear, we feel the pain for a long time.
This is the sixth time we see Joseph weeping, and it wasn't a quiet affair. He "fell upon" his father as he had done Benjamin and his brothers at their family reunion (Gen. 45:14–15). Semitic peoples aren't ashamed to express their emotions openly; and Joseph didn't let his important office smother his true feelings of grief. Later, when the funeral cortege approached Canaan, Joseph led the people in a week of public mourning for Jacob (50:10).
When somebody we love dies, God expects us to weep. That's why He gave us the ability to shed tears. Normal tears are a part of the healing process (Ps. 30:5), while abnormal grief only keeps the wounds open and prolongs the pain. In my pastoral ministry, I've learned that people who suppress their grief are in danger of developing emotional or physical problems that are difficult to heal. The Anglican poet and pastor John Keble called tears "the best gift of God to suffering man."
Preparation (vv. 2–6). Jacob had prepared both himself and his family for his death, and this is a good example for us to follow. He had privately instructed Joseph concerning his burial (47:27–31) and then had repeated the instructions to all the sons publicly (49:29–32). There could be no disagreements about the matter because everything had been settled in advance.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN Genesis 50 THREE COFFINS I
once asked a friend what the death rate was in his city, and he replied quietly, "One apiece." That's the ratio everywhere.
It's strange how many people insist on detailed preparation for a vacation or a business trip but ignore making careful preparation for the last and most important journey of all. Jacob told his sons where he
Death isn't an accident, it's an appointment (Heb. 9:27). "It's not that I'm afraid to die," wrote Woody
Genesis 50
and so were Esau and Jacob when they buried Isaac (35:29).
wanted to be buried, and he put Joseph in charge of carrying out his wishes. Previous instruction plus a dependable person in charge kept everything running smoothly.
This was Joseph's first trip back to his homeland in thirty-nine years, and it's too bad it had to be for his father's burial. But he didn't linger in Canaan, for God had given Joseph a job to do in Egypt, and that's where he belonged with his family.
Joseph had his father's body properly prepared for burial, a skill the Egyptians had mastered.1 To do the work, he chose the physicians and not the official embalmers, probably to avoid the pagan religious rituals that accompanied the Egyptian embalming process. Jacob was a believer in the true and living God and didn't need the help of the gods of the Egyptians. Centuries later, Moses would call down plagues on the land and show how weak the Egyptian gods and goddesses really were.
A coffin for a painful past (50:15–21) When death invades a family, and you've done all you can to honor the deceased and comfort the sorrowing, there comes a time when you have to return to life with its duties. This doesn't mean we forget the deceased, but it does mean that we put our grief into perspective and get back to the business of living. After all, the best way to honor the dead is to take care of the living. Prolonged mourning may bring us more sympathy, but it won't develop more maturity or make us more useful to others. Joseph and his family returned to Egypt and went back to work, Joseph serving in Pharaoh's court and his brothers caring for Pharaoh's cattle.
Pharaoh commanded the Egyptians to observe an official mourning period for Jacob. After all, Jacob was the father of the second ruler in the land. This kind of recognition was usually reserved for important people like Pharaoh himself or members of his family. The forty days of the embalming period and the seventy days of the official mourning were probably concurrent.
Alarm (v. 15). When did this event occur? Was it after the family returned home from burying Jacob in Canaan, or was it during the period of official mourning in Egypt? The position of the narrative in the text suggests that it happened after the return from Canaan, but it could well have taken place during the long period of mourning prior to that trip. One day the eleven brothers became aware of the fact that their father's death left them without anyone to mediate with Joseph, the second most powerful man in Egypt, and they were afraid.
Why did Joseph use the court officials to take his message to Pharaoh instead of speaking to him personally himself? Perhaps Joseph was considered defiled because of his father's death, or there may have been an Egyptian tradition that prevented mourners from approaching the king (Est. 4:2). As a "father" to Pharaoh, Joseph had to get permission to leave the country, and he also had to assure Pharaoh that he and his family would return. In quoting his father's words (Gen. 50:5), Joseph was careful not to mention that Jacob specifically requested not to be buried in Egypt (47:29–30).
We who read this account centuries later want to say, "Men, what's the problem? Didn't Joseph forgive you, kiss you, weep over you, and give you every evidence of his love? Didn't he explain that God had overruled for good all the evil that you had done to him? Didn't Joseph make every provision to bring you to Egypt and take care of you? Then why are you alarmed?"
Respect (vv. 7–13). Except for the smallest children (v. 8), the whole family traveled from Egypt to Canaan to pay their last respects to the founder of the family. The trip was perhaps inconvenient for some and difficult for others, but it was the right thing to do. In our modern society, it's becoming less and less popular for people to take time to express their sympathy or pay their respects when somebody dies whom they know. In fact, we now have "drive-through mortuaries" that make it convenient for people to view the body and sign the guestbook without having to leave their cars.
The answer is simple: They didn't believe their brother. The gracious way he spoke to them and the loving way he treated them made no impact on their hearts. But Joseph's brothers are no different from some professed Christians today who are constantly worrying about God's judgment and whether or not He's really forgiven them and made them His children.
The period of mourning at Canaan made a great impression on the local residents. Joseph selected a threshing floor for the week-long observance, because threshing floors were outside the city, elevated, and offered a large clear space for many people to gather at one time.
"I feel the Lord has abandoned me," a church member said to me one day. "I'm sure I'm heading for judgment, and I'm just not saved at all." "What would you like God to do to assure you?" I asked. "Do you want Him to perform a miracle?"
Verse 13 suggests that the whole company didn't go into the land of Canaan to the cave of Machpelah, but that Jacob's twelve sons served as pallbearers and carried his body to its final resting place. Since we're all on the way to the grave together, death and sorrow ought to bring people together. Isaac and Ishmael were brought together when they buried Abraham (25:9),
"Oh, no, that wouldn't work. Satan can perform miracles."
"Would you like to hear Him speak to you from heaven?"
"Well, some personal message from God would be helpful."
"Fine. Let's open His Word and see what He has to
Genesis 50
There for me the Saviour stands, Holding forth His wounded hands; God is love! I know, I feel, Jesus weeps and loves me still.
say about your sins and His forgiveness. After all, when we open the Bible, God opens His mouth and speaks to us." We looked into the Scriptures together, and as she laid hold of God's promises, the Lord gave her peace.
Assurance (vv. 18–21). Joseph must have summoned his brothers to his home, for it's not likely they would go there on their own. When they arrived, they fell prostrate before him in fear, their last bow in fulfillment of Joseph's prophetic dreams. Like the Prodigal Son, they couldn't accept free forgiveness. That was expecting too much! The brothers offered to become servants and work their way to the place where Joseph could forgive them and accept them (Luke 15:19). If that's your approach to forgiveness, read Ephesians 2:8–9 and claim it. The only people God can forgive are those who know they're sinners, who admit it and confess that they can't do anything to merit or earn God's forgiveness. Whether it's the woman at the well (John 4), the tax collector in the tree (Luke 19:1–10), or the thief on the cross (23:39–43), all sinners have to admit their guilt, abandon their proud efforts to earn salvation, and throw themselves on the mercy of the Lord.
After all that Joseph had done to encourage them, it was cruel of his brothers to say, "Joseph will perhaps hate us and pay us back for what we did to him." (We often suspect in others what we'd do ourselves if we had the opportunity!) When you doubt God's Word, you soon begin to question God's love, and then you give up all hope for the future, because faith, hope, and love go together. But it all begins with faith: "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Rom. 10:17 nkjv).
What the men should have done was to sit down and calmly review all that Joseph had said to them and done for them. In many tangible ways, Joseph had demonstrated his love and forgiveness and had given them every reason to believe that their past sins were over and forgotten. They really had nothing to fear.
How did we know God loves us and forgives those who put their faith in Christ? His unchanging Word tells us so. "These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life" (1 John 5:13 nkjv). How we feel and what God says are two different things, and we must never judge God's eternal Word by our transient emotions. "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" asked Paul, and then he proceeded to answer the question: Nothing (Rom. 8:35, 38–39).
How does God assure His children that He has indeed forgiven them and forgotten their sins? The same way Joseph assured his frightened brothers: He speaks to us from His Word. Twice Joseph said, "Don't be afraid!" He comforted them and spoke kindly to them. This is what God does for His own if they will read His Word, receive it into their hearts, and trust it completely. "Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid" (Isa. 12:2).
Appeal (vv. 16–17). Afraid to approach Joseph personally, they sent a message to him, hoping to convince him. Did Jacob actually speak the words they quoted? Probably not. If Jacob had wanted to intercede for the guilty sons, he could easily have done it when he was alone with Joseph. And he had seventeen years in which to do it! It's likely that the brothers concocted this story, hoping that Joseph's love for his father would give him a greater love for his brothers.
Some Christians think it's a mark of humility and special sanctity to be fearful and insecure about their salvation. Actually, an attitude of fearful indecision and anxiety is only evidence of unbelief and a refusal to take God at His Word. It's nothing to brag about! Can God be trusted? Does He lie? Are His promises true? Then why do people waver in unbelief?
Joseph didn't minimize their sins, for he said, "You intended to harm me" (Gen. 50:20). He knew that there had been evil in their hearts, but he also knew that God had overruled their evil deeds to accomplish His good purposes. This reminds us of what happened on the cross. Peter said, "Him [Jesus], being delivered by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; whom God raised up" (Acts 2:23–24 nkjv). Out of the greatest sin ever committed by humankind, God brought the greatest blessing that ever came to humankind.
How did Joseph respond to their message? "When their message came to him, Joseph wept" (v. 17). He was deeply hurt that his own brothers didn't believe his words or accept his kind deeds at face value as true expressions of his love and forgiveness. What more could he have done to convince them? Charles Wesley may have had Joseph and his brothers in mind when he wrote his hymn "Depth of Mercy":
Depth of mercy! Can there be Mercy still reserved for me? Can my God His wrath forbear— Me, the chief of sinners, spare?
Joseph not only forgave his brothers, but he also assured them of his constant care. "I will nourish you, and your little ones" (Gen. 50:21). He gave them homes to live in, work to do, food to eat, and provision for their needs. Once again, we see here a picture of our Savior, who promises never to leave us or forsake us (Matt. 28:20; John 6:37; 10:27–29; Heb.
Now incline me to repent; Let me now my sins lament; Now my foul revolt deplore, Weep, believe and sin no more.
Genesis 50
tribes founded by Joseph's two sons, that was the ideal place for him to be interred.
13:5–6) and to meet our every need (Rom. 8:32; Phil. 4:19). For seventeen years Joseph's brothers lived under a cloud of fear and apprehension all because they didn't really trust him. As long as their father was alive, they trusted in human ties to protect them, but when Jacob died, their only defense was gone. Had they believed Joseph, they could have enjoyed those years with him and their father, and there wouldn't have been clouds of fear to rob them of joy.
When you stop to consider the matter, it's really remarkable that Joseph had any faith at all. He had lived apart from his family for many years, and a powerful false religion in Egypt surrounded him. There was nobody in Egypt that we know of who could encourage his faith. If Joseph had resorted to the excuses people use today for rejecting God's promises, he would have ended up a pagan himself.
His "believing" brothers had treated him cruelly, the Lord had caused him to experience severe trials, and the people he helped forgot about him in his hour of need. "If that's what a life of faith is all about," he might have argued, "then I'm not interested." But Joseph's faith, though tested, didn't falter. All he had to go on were his dreams, but he clung to the promise that one day his brothers would bow before him, and the Lord didn't disappoint him.
As God's children through faith in Christ, let's rejoice that our sins are forgiven and forgotten, buried in the depths of the sea (Mic. 7:19), cast behind God's back (Isa. 38:17), blotted out and remembered no more (Isa. 43:25, 44:22; Heb. 8:12, 10:17). Let's believe what God says! The old life has been buried and we can walk in newness of life (Col. 2:13; 3:1–11).
A coffin for a special brother (50:22–26; Heb. 11:22) Whether you look at Joseph as a son, a brother, or an administrator, he was certainly an exceptional man. Because of Joseph, many lives were saved during the famine, including his own family, and therefore the future of the people of Israel was guaranteed. If the family of Jacob had died out, the world would have been deprived of the Word of God and the Son of God. So we owe a lot to Joseph.
Future (50:26). Fifty-one years after Jacob's death, at the age of 110, Joseph died. He probably outlived his older brothers, but his own grandsons knew their grandfather's wishes regarding his mortal remains. Joseph's coffin in Egypt was a constant reminder to the Jewish people to have faith in God. When their situation changed in Egypt and the Jews found themselves slaves instead of resident aliens (Ex. 1:8ff.), they could look at Joseph's temporary burial place and be encouraged. During their wilderness wanderings, as they carried Joseph's remains from place to place, he ministered to them and urged them to trust God and never give up.
Family (vv. 22–23). Joseph was seventeen years old when he was taken to Egypt (37:2), and he lived there ninety-three years, fifty-one of them with his beloved family near him. During those years, he saw to it that the Jewish people were cared for and protected, for God had a special work for them to do. He became a grandfather and then a great-grandfather! Joseph adopted Manasseh's grandchildren just as Jacob had adopted Joseph's children. How this affected their future isn't explained.
"A coffin in Egypt" may appear to be a discouraging way to close a book, but from the viewpoint of faith, it couldn't be more encouraging. After all, even though Joseph was dead, his witness was still going on. As John Wesley said, "God buries His workman, but His work goes on," and the apostle John wrote that "he who does the will of God abides forever" (1 John 2:17 nkjv). G. Campbell Morgan said:
Faith (vv. 24–25). "By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones" (Heb. 11:22 nkjv). God's promises to Abraham (Gen. 15:13–16) were passed along to Isaac and Jacob, and Jacob shared them with Joseph (48:21). Faith isn't a shallow emotion that we work up by ourselves, or an optimistic "hope-so" attitude of "faith in faith." True faith is grounded on the infallible Word of God, and because God said it, we believe it and act upon it.
Commit your life to God, see vision, do the work that's nearest, the work He appoints, truly and well and faithfully, and die knowing that you have started delicate influences, dynamic forces which will proceed through every succeeding generation until they gather up the harvest of glorious result about the throne of the Eternal. The man of God has not finished his work in the world when they put him in a coffin.2
True faith always leads to obedient action (James 2:14–26). Joseph knew what he believed and where he belonged. Therefore, he didn't want his coffin to remain in Egypt when God delivered his people. He made his brothers swear that they would instruct their descendants, who would then pass the word along to future generations, and they kept their promise. Moses took Joseph's remains with him when the Jews left Egypt (Ex. 13:19), and Joshua buried him in Shechem (Josh. 24:32; see also Gen. 33:19). Since Shechem became the "capital" for Ephraim and Manasseh, the
Yes, Joseph is still blessing us today even as we study his life!
1 Old Testament Jews didn't embalm the dead but merely wrapped the corpse with cloths and spices and laid it in the tomb or grave without a coffin. They rejected cremation, since the body is destined to return to dust and not to ashes.
Genesis
days and wished they'd never been born. So much for perfection.
Furthermore, they wanted nothing to do with the funeral pyres of the pagan peoples around them. 2 26 Sermons by G. Campbell Morgan (Joplin, MO: College Press, 1969), Vol. 3, 158–9.
I find it liberating to realize that God can use frail, flawed people to get His work done on earth, people who make mistakes, people who want to do better but rarely feel they've achieved their goal. The important thing about these authentic people that made them what they were was simply that they accepted themselves and were themselves, and that they dared to trust God to use them in spite of themselves. Though the Lord didn't approve of their disobedience, these people were precious to God, and He kept every promise that He ever made to them.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT BE AUTHENTIC: A Survey and a Summary W
e've been getting acquainted with Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, and some of the people in their family; and we've made some interesting discoveries about what it means to be an authentic believer.
Frederick Buechner calls these saints "peculiar treasures," and the name fits.2
Authentic believers depend on the grace of God. Now let's balance the ledger with a second obvious fact: Authentic people pay for their sins and mistakes and learn from them because they depend on the grace of God. For them, life is a school; the lessons are hard, and grace is the teacher (Titus 2:11–12). Struggle as they must, they make progress and learn more about themselves, their peers, and their God because they learn from God's grace.
Authentic believers are all made of clay Let's begin with a confession from the famous American evangelist Dwight L. Moody.
There was a time when I used to be troubled a good deal about these Bible characters. I used to think that, because they were saints, everything they did was right; and I could not understand how it was that God would permit them to do such things and not be punished. … But when we come to a character like Jacob, and we find that God had grace enough to save him, I think there is hope enough for almost any of us.1
If you were God, would you have met Jacob at Bethel, shown him the angels going up and down the ladder, and given him those marvelous promises? Remember, Jacob had deceived his brother and his father, and Scripture makes it clear that God desires truth in the inner person (Ps. 51:6). If God had consulted you about His plan to appear to Jacob at Bethel, would you have agreed with Him? Probably not.
Anybody who takes the Bible seriously identifies with Mr. Moody's concern. Too often we think that the important characters in Scripture are angelic, not human, always obedient and above reproach, never stumbling or resisting God's will. Then we discover that these famous people in the Bible drama are frail and flawed, made out of the same clay as we are, and yet the Lord used them to accomplish His purposes!
Authentic people depend on and experience the grace of God. They know they aren't worthy of the least of God's mercies (Jacob said that—Gen. 32:10), but they also know that there would be no blessings at all apart from the good pleasure of the Lord. Don't misunderstand me: I'm not suggesting that we "do evil that good may come" (Rom. 3:8). I'm only suggesting that we adopt the outlook of Joseph who said, "You meant evil against me; but God meant it for good" (Gen. 50:20 nkjv). I have a suspicion that the apostle Paul may not have been an easy man to work with in Christian ministry. He was trained as a Pharisee, which suggests a love for precision, an orderly life, an emphasis on obedience and will-power, and a high standard of perfection. Because he was single, he'd never been tempered by the demands of marriage and parenthood. Was he wrong in the way he treated Barnabas and John Mark? (Acts 15:36–41) Probably. At least 2 Timothy 4:11 suggests that he changed his mind. But with all his angular character traits—and we all have some—Paul was an authentic servant of God because he depended on the grace of God. "But by the grace of God I am what I am … but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me" (1 Cor. 15:10). To live by
Gideon was a frightened farmer until God turned him into a courageous general. Rachel and Leah were scheming wives who competed for Jacob's affection; yet they helped build the nation of Israel. Moses was a fugitive from justice, and wanted for murder in Egypt, but he turned 2 million slaves into a mighty nation and wrote the first five books of the Bible. Jeremiah occasionally went off by himself and wept before God, offering to resign his prophetic calling, yet he faithfully stayed on the job during forty difficult years of Jewish history.
If I believed some of the sermons I've heard and books I've read, I could easily come to the mistaken conclusion that God calls and uses only perfect people, people who are never discouraged and who never want to quit, but the facts are otherwise. Moses and Elijah became so discouraged that they asked God to take their lives (Num. 11:14–15; 1 Kings 19); and both Job (Job 3) and Jeremiah (Jer. 20:14ff.) cursed their birth-
Genesis
and help many people. The church probably has more Josephs than we realize, people who just do their jobs faithfully, put up with misunderstanding and criticism, and glorify God. And, like the Old Testament Joseph, even after death they encourage us to trust God.
God's grace means to depend on Him to enable us. We aren't striving in our own power to do something for Him. Rather, He's working in and through us to accomplish the good pleasure of His will. It's the difference between legalism and life.
The enemy wants God's people to concentrate on their imperfections and failures, because that keeps them from getting lost in the greatness and grace of God. Yes, there's a time for godly introspection and confession, but the Christian life isn't a perpetual autopsy. It's a feast! So after we've washed ourselves, let's enjoy the feast to the glory of God (5:7–8).
When Jesus called His twelve apostles, He selected a variety of men. Matthew had worked for the Roman government while Simon the Zealot had worked to destroy the Roman government. Peter appeared to be a type-A activist, willing to try anything once, but Thomas seemed to be a pessimist who had a hard time believing even when he heard the evidence. Each of the men was authentic, occasionally blundering, sometimes even opposing, not always able to get along with the other apostles, but always in love with Jesus and wanting to be more like Him.
Authentic believers aren't all alike. One of the major differences between a church and a cult is that cults turn out cookie-cutter followers on an assembly line, while churches model a variety of individual saints on a potter's wheel. The Christian faith thrives on unity in diversity, "one body, many members" (1 Cor. 12:12ff.).
God wasn't ashamed to call Himself "the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob" (Ex. 3:6), nor is Jesus ashamed to call us His brethren (Heb. 2:11–12). He knows our weaknesses and failures, and yet He stays with us and helps us run the race with endurance for the goal He's chosen just for us. God's authentic people are originals, not imitations.
Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph were all believers, but they were all different from each other. Isaac made a great beginning as a young man when he obeyed his father and willingly put himself in the place of death on the altar. He showed spiritual sensitivity in the way he accepted Rebekah, God's choice to be his wife, and the way he prayed about their family situation.
Authentic believers know that life is a pilgrimage. According to Hebrews 11:13–16, the patriarchs confessed that they were "strangers and pilgrims on the earth." A vagabond has no home; a fugitive is running from home; a stranger is away from home; but a pilgrim is heading home. They had their eyes on the future, the glorious city that God was preparing for them, and they passed that heavenly vision along to their descendants.
But Isaac's life of faith reached a plateau and then began to decline, and in the end, he was more concerned with his dinner menu than in doing the will of God. Not all authentic people end well.
Jacob's spiritual experience was up one day and down the next, like a cork in the ocean during a storm. "A double minded man is unstable in all his ways" (James 1:8). He would earnestly pray about his problems and beg for God's help, and then go out and engineer a scheme to get things done his own way. He was a master of using bribes that were wrapped up like gifts. It wasn't until God wrestled with Jacob and broke him that he became Israel, a prince with God.
Living like a pilgrim isn't a matter of geography but of attitude: You feel like a traveler and not a settler. You tend to feel "temporary," wondering if you really belong here; and your eyes have that faraway look.
Pilgrims make progress. If you stand still in your life of faith, you've ceased to be a pilgrim. There are always new promises to claim, new enemies to fight, and new territories to gain. Pilgrims have many privileges, but one privilege they don't have is that of standing still and taking it easy.
As for Joseph, his life of faith seemed to be steady and even, and each new trial lifted it only higher. Yes, he had his times of suffering when he wondered whether the Lord would ever hear; but as far as we know, his faith never wavered. Joseph was a forgiving man and a man who remembered to forget the evil things others did to him. He lived by faith and he died by faith, and his faith brought about the salvation of the Jewish nation.
The famous Scottish Presbyterian preacher Alexander Whyte said that the victorious Christian life is a series of new beginnings. We never arrive, and if we think we have, it's proof that we haven't. Martin Luther said it best:
So, here are three important men, servants of the Lord, and yet all of them different. In the church today, we still have the Isaacs who make glorious beginnings in their youth but gradually decline into respectable worldliness. We have many like Jacob who always seem to be fighting a battle or trying to get out of a predicament, and yet they somehow get things done for God and end up blessing everybody.
This life, therefore, is not righteousness but growth in righteousness; not health but healing; not being but becoming; not rest but exercise. We are not yet what we shall be, but we are growing toward it. The process is not yet finished, but it is going on. This is not the end, but it is the road. All does not yet gleam in glory, but all is being purified.3
There are some steady solid Josephs, men and women who end up in places of significant leadership
Genesis
Authentic believers become like Jesus Christ. To be "conformed to the image of his Son" is the goal of the work of God's grace in our lives (Rom. 8:29), and nobody reveals that better than Joseph.
Life itself is a stewardship, and as such it should be invested, not merely spent or wasted. When we accept our lives as God's gift and our opportunities as a stewardship, then we can make a lasting difference in our world. We may not climb the heights that Joseph climbed, but we'll still make the contribution that God has assigned to us (Eph. 2:10). What Mary of Bethany did for Jesus became a blessing around the world (Mark 14:9), which is the last thing she expected. So, the challenge comes to us today: Will we be dull copies or exciting originals? Will we take the safe route of the tourist or the dangerous route of the pioneer? By the grace of God, will we allow trials and suffering to be our servants to help make us more like the Master? When we come to the end of our lives, will it make any difference to our world that we have lived?
Like Jesus, he was beloved by his father but rejected by his brothers. He was punished for crimes he hadn't committed, and he took it without fighting back. He thought of others and served them, though they forgot him and his kindnesses. He was separated from his father so that he might save his brethren, and he went from the prison to the throne, from suffering to glory.
He forgave those who wronged him and never again held their evil deeds against them. He wept over them because he loved them. He graciously provided a home for them and met all their needs. We could go on, but the point is obvious: What Joseph experienced as an authentic believer made him more and more like Jesus Christ. That's what the pilgrim life is all about. But Jacob too experienced the work of grace in his life and ended his life on a much higher plane. As he grew older, he matured in his faith and sought to be a better spiritual leader to his growing family. It's never too late to get back on the upward pilgrim path.
"Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling" (Phil. 2:12) is the call of God to be authentic, to become one of God's "peculiar treasures," a special person to do His special work.
1 The Gospel Awakening: Sermons and Addresses of D. L. Moody (Chicago: J. Fairbanks and Co., 1879), 620. 2 Peculiar Treasures, by Frederick Buechner (New York: Harper and Row, 1979) is a collection of short but insightful essays on some of the major characters of the Bible. The author's approach is unique and not without humor. 3 See What Luther Says, compiled by Edwald M. Plass (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 1959), vol. 1, 234–5. There are several different English translations of this famous quotation but the total message is the same.
Authentic believers make a difference in their world. The important thing in life is not what we drag along but what we send ahead and what we leave behind. We came into this life owning nothing, and we'll leave this life taking nothing with us. Between the joys of birth and the sorrows of death, we're only stewards of all that God gives us, and God wants us to be faithful stewards.
E X O D U S
G e n e s i s E x o d u s L e v i t i c u s N u m b e r s D e u t e r o n o m y J o s h u a J u d g e s R u t h
1 S a m u e l 2 S a m u e l 1 K i n g s 2 K i n g s 1 C h r o n i c l e s 2 C h r o n i c l e s E z r a N e h e m i a h
E s t h e r J o b P s a l m s P r o v e r b s E c c l e s i a s t e s S o n g o f
J e r e m i a h L a m e n t a t i o n s E z e k i e l D a n i e l H o s e a J o e l A m o s O b a d i a h
J o n a h M i c a h N a h u m H a b a k k u k Z e p h a n i a h H a g g a i Z e c h a r i a h M a l a c h i
S o l o m o n I s a i a h
Note the balance in the spiritual experience of the Jewish people: God delivered them from bondage (1—18), but freedom should lead to obedience (19—24), and obedience results in worship to the glory of God (25—40). Apart from worship, freedom becomes lawlessness and obedience becomes oppression.
OUTLINE Key theme: God sets us free that we might serve
Him Key verses: Exodus 6:6–8
I. REDEMPTION: THE LORD DELIVERS HIS PEOPLE (1—18)
"I will bring you out" (6:6) A. The Lord calls a leader—1—4 B. The Lord declares war on Pharaoh—5—10 C. The Lord wins the victory—11:1—15:21 D. The Lord provides for His people—
CONTENTS Exodus 1—4 148 Wanted: A Deliverer
15:22—17:16 Healing —15:22–27 Meat—16:1–13 Manna—16:14–36 Water— 17:1–7 Protection—17:8–16 E. The Lord counsels His leader—18
Exodus 5:1—8:19 152 War Is Declared
Exodus 8:20—10:29 157 "The Lord, Mighty in Battle"
Exodus 11:1—13:16 161 One More Plague
II. COVENANT: THE LORD CLAIMS HIS PEOPLE
Exodus 13:17—15:21 166 Redeemed and Rejoicing
(19—2)
"I will take you to Me for a people" (6:7) A. The people prepare—19 B. The Lord declares His law—20—23 C. The covenant confirmed by blood—24
Exodus 15:22—16:36 170 The School of Life
Exodus 17—18 174 "The Lord of Hosts Is with Us"
III. WORSHIP: THE LORD DWELLS WITH HIS
Exodus 19:1—20:21 179 Hear the Voice of God
PEOPLE (25—40)
"I will be to you a God" (6:7) A. Instructions about the tabernacle—25—
Exodus 20:22—24:8 184 The Book of the Covenant
27; 30—31 B. Consecration of the priests—28—29 C. Disobedience of the people—32—34 D. Construction of the tabernacle—35—39 E. God's glory enters the tabernacle—40
Exodus 24:9—25:40; 27:20–21; 30:11–16; 31:1–11; 35:4—36:38; 37:1–24; 38:21–31 189 The Place Where God Dwells—Part I
Exodus 1
Exodus 26:1–37; 27:1–19; 30:1–10, 17–21; 37:25–29; 38:1–20 192 The Place Where God Dwells—Part II
Exodus 28—29; 30:22–33; 39 196 The Holy Priesthood
Exodus 32—34; 40 200 A Broken Heart and a Shining Face
multiplication of the Jewish people, so he took steps to control it.
CHAPTER ONE Exodus 1—4 WANTED: A DELIVERER T
Step #1—Afflicting the adults (vv. 8–14). God had told Abraham that his descendants would go to a strange country and there be enslaved and mistreated, but He had promised that He would set them free by His power at the right time (Gen. 15:12–14). God compared Egypt to a smoking furnace (v. 17; see Deut. 4:20) where His people would suffer, but their experience in that furnace would transform the Israelites into a mighty nation (Gen. 46:3).
I. Redemption: The Lord Delivers His People
(1—18) A.The Lord calls a leader—1—4
he little girl who defined "radio" as "television without pictures" didn't know what she was talking about. I grew up in the Golden Age of Radio, and I can assure you that as I listened, I saw many vivid and exciting pictures—right in my own imagination. Television doesn't let you do that. And the stories on radio went on and on, day after day, always leaving us wondering, "What will happen next?"
During the centuries the Jews had been in Egypt (15:13; Ex. 12:40–41), they had seen many Egyptian dynasties come and go, but who was the new king who was ignorant of Joseph and his family and tried to destroy "the people of the children of Israel"?3 The 17th Dynasty, the Hyksos,4 were foreigners and "strangers" in the land as were the Jews, so they were probably sympathetic with Israel, but the 18th Dynasty was Egyptian and their rulers expelled foreigners from the land. This may have been the dynasty that began the persecution of the people of Israel.
The Old Testament is God's "continued story" of His great program of salvation that He announced to Adam and Eve (Gen. 3:15) and to Abraham (12:1–3). That explains why the Hebrew text of Exodus begins with the word "and," for God is continuing the story He started in Genesis.1 God's wonderful story finally led to the coming of Jesus to earth and His death on the cross, and it won't end until God's people go to heaven and see Jesus on the throne. What a story!
Why would the Egyptians want to make life miserable for the Jews? Israel was a source of blessing in the land, as Joseph had been before them (Gen. 39:1–6), and they weren't causing trouble. Pharaoh's stated reason was that the presence of so many Jews was a security risk: since the Jews were outsiders, if there were an invasion, they would no doubt ally themselves with the enemy. However, whether Pharaoh realized it or not, the real cause was the conflict announced in 3:15, the enmity between the people of God and the children of Satan, a conflict that still goes on in the world today.
The theme of Exodus is deliverance, and you can't have deliverance without a deliverer. That's where Moses comes in, the great liberator, legislator, and mediator.
The deliverer needed (1:1–22) The Jewish rabbis call Exodus "the Book of Names" (or "These Are the Names") because it opens with a list of the names of the sons of Jacob (Israel) who brought their families to Egypt to escape the famine in Canaan (Gen. 46).2 God used Israel's experiences in Egypt to prepare them for the special tasks He gave them to accomplish on earth: bearing witness to the true and living God, writing the Holy Scriptures and bringing the Savior into the world.
No people in recorded history have suffered as the Hebrew people have suffered, but every nation or ruler that has persecuted the Jews has been punished for it. After all, God's promise to Abraham was, "I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you" (12:3 nkjv). God kept that promise in the way He dealt with Egypt and Babylon in ancient days and Stalin and Hitler in modern times. God is longsuffering as He sees nations persecute His chosen people, but eventually His hand of judgment falls on the oppressors.
Blessing (vv. 1–7). During the years Joseph served as second ruler in Egypt, his family was greatly respected, and even after Joseph died, his memory was honored in the way the Egyptians treated the Hebrews. God kept His covenant promise to Abraham by blessing his descendants and causing them to multiply greatly (Gen. 12:1–3; 15:5; 17:2, 6; 22:17). By the time of the Exodus, there were more than 600,000 men who were twenty years and older (Ex. 12:37; 38:26), and when you add the women and children, the total could well be nearly 2 million people, all of whom descended from the original family of Jacob. God certainly kept His promise!
The Egyptian taskmasters "worked them ruthlessly" (Ex. 1:13 niv), forcing the Jewish slaves to build cities and work in the fields. But the blessing of God caused the Israelites to continue to multiply, and this frightened and enraged their captors even more. Something else had to be done to keep Israel under control.
Step #2—Killing the Jewish boys at birth (vv. 15–21). If this plan had succeeded, Pharaoh would have wiped out the Hebrew people. The future generation of
But a new Pharaoh wasn't happy with the rapid
Exodus 1—2
Jochebed obeyed the letter of the law when she put Moses in the waters of the Nile, but certainly she was defying Pharaoh's orders in the way she did it. She was trusting the providence of God and God didn't fail her. When the princess came to the Nile to perform her religious ablutions, she saw the basket, discovered the baby, and heard him cry, and her maternal instincts told her to rescue the child and care for him.
men would be dead and the girls would eventually be married to Egyptian slaves and absorbed into the Egyptian race. But Genesis 3:15 and 12:1–3 said that God would not permit such a thing to happen, and He used two Jewish midwives to outwit Pharaoh.5
This is the first instance in Scripture of what today we call "civil disobedience," refusing to obey an evil law because of a higher good. Scriptures like Matthew 20:21–25; Romans 13; and 1 Peter 2:11 admonish Christians to obey human authorities, but Romans 13:5 reminds us that our obedience must not violate our conscience. When the laws of God are contrary to the laws of man, then "[w]e ought to obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29). You see this exemplified not only in the midwives but also in Daniel and his friends (Dan. 1; 3; 6) and the apostles (Acts 4—5).6
God used a baby's tears to control the heart of a powerful princess, and He used Miriam's words to arrange for the baby's mother to raise the boy and get paid for it! The phrase "as weak as a baby" doesn't apply in the kingdom of God, for when the Lord wants to accomplish a mighty work, He often starts by sending a baby. This was true when He sent Isaac, Joseph, Samuel, John the Baptist, and especially Jesus. God can use the weakest things to defeat the mightiest enemies (1 Cor. 1:25–29). A baby's tears were God's first weapons in His war against Egypt.
Were the midwives lying to Pharaoh? Probably not.7 The babies were born before the midwives arrived because Shiphrah and Puah had told their assistants to be late! God blessed the two leading midwives for putting their own lives on the line in order to save the Jewish nation from extinction. However, He honored these two women in a strange way: He gave them children at a time when it was dangerous to have children! Perhaps all their children were daughters, or perhaps God protected their sons as He protected Moses. However, this blessing from God shows how precious children are to the Lord: He wanted to give these two women His very best reward, so He sent them children (Ps. 127:3).
The princess adopted Moses as her own son, which means that Moses had a favored position in the land and was given a special education for service in the government (Acts 7:22). In the Egyptian language, Moses means "born" or "son" and sounds like a Hebrew word that means "to draw out" (of the water). Years later, his name would remind Moses of the God who rescued him and did great things for him in Egypt. On more than one occasion, Moses would rescue his people because he trusted the Lord.
The deliverer prepared (2:11–25) Moses spent his first forty years (Acts 7:23) serving in the Egyptian bureaucracy. (Some students think he was being groomed to be the next pharaoh.) Egypt seems the least likely place for God to start training a leader, but God's ways are not our ways. In equipping Moses for service, God took several approaches.
Step #3—Drowning the male babies (v. 22). When Pharaoh discovered he'd been deceived, he changed his plan and commanded all his people to see to it that the Jewish male babies were drowned in the sacred Nile River. Pharaoh's police couldn't check up on every Jewish midwife, but the Egyptian people could keep their eyes on the Jewish slaves and report when a boy was born. But one boy would be born that Pharaoh couldn't kill.
Education. "And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds" (Acts 7:22 nkjv). What did that involve? Egypt had a highly developed civilization for its time, particularly in the areas of engineering, mathematics, and astronomy. Thanks to their knowledge of astronomy, they developed an amazingly accurate calendar, and their engineers planned and supervised the construction of edifices that are still standing. Their priests and doctors were masters of the art of embalming, and their leaders were skilled in organization and administration. Visitors to Egypt today can't help but be impressed with the accomplishments of this ancient people. The servant of God should learn all he can, dedicate it to God, and faithfully serve God.
The deliverer born (2:1–10)8 Amram and Jochebed were Moses' parents (6:20), and while the Exodus text emphasizes the faith of the mother, Hebrews 11:23 commends both the father and the mother for trusting God. Certainly it took faith for them to have normal marital relations during that dangerous time when Jewish babies were being killed. Moses became a great man of faith, and he learned it first from his godly parents. Amram and Jochebed already had two children: Miriam, who was the oldest, and Aaron, who was three years older than Moses (Ex. 7:7). From the very first, Moses was seen to be "no ordinary child" (Acts 7:20 niv; see Heb. 11:23),9 and it was evident that God had a special purpose for him. Believing this to be true, the parents defied Pharaoh's edict and kept their son alive. This wasn't easy to do since all the Egyptians were now Pharaoh's official spies, watching for babies to be drowned (Ex. 1:22).
Failure (vv. 11–14). Though some people were confused about his racial identity (v. 19), Moses knew that he was a Hebrew and not an Egyptian, and he couldn't help but identify with the plight of his suffering people. One day he made a courageous decision to help his people, even if it meant losing his noble position as the adopted son of the royal princess (Heb.
Exodus 2—3
11:24–26). The pleasures10 and treasures of Egypt faded from view as he saw himself helping to liberate God's chosen people.
nights in the field, he no doubt meditated on the things of God and prayed for his people who were suffering in Egypt. It's significant that God calls people who are busy: Gideon was threshing grain (Judg. 6), Samuel was serving in the tabernacle (1 Sam. 3), David was caring for sheep (17:20), Elisha was plowing (1 Kings 19:19–21), four of the apostles were managing their fishing business (Mark 1:16–20), and Matthew was collecting taxes (Matt. 9:9). God has nothing good to say about laziness (Prov. 24:30–34; Matt. 25:26–27; 2 Thess. 3:10–12). What Moses saw (vv. 1–4). God can take an insignificant bush, ignite it, and turn it into a miracle, and that's what He wanted to do with Moses. Some see in the burning bush a picture of the nation of Israel: they are God's light in the world, persecuted but not consumed. But the burning bush was also a picture of what God had planned for Moses: he was the weak bush but God was the empowering fire (19:18; 24:17; Deut. 4:24; Judg. 13:20; Heb. 12:29), and with God's help, Moses could accomplish anything.
It's possible that the Egyptian officer wasn't just disciplining the Jewish slave but was beating him to death, because the Hebrew word can mean that, so when Moses interfered, he was probably saving a man's life. And, if the Egyptian officer turned on Moses, which is likely, then Moses was also defending his own life.
But if Moses was planning to free the Hebrews by killing the Egyptians one by one, he was in for a shock. The next day he discovered that the Egyptians were only part of the problem because the Jews couldn't even get along with each other! When he tried to reconcile the two Jews, they rejected his help! Even more, he learned that his secret was out and that Pharaoh was after his life. There was only one thing to do and that was to flee.
These two incidents reveal Moses as a compassionate man who was sincere in his motives but impetuous in his actions. Knowing this, you would never suspect that later he would be called "the meekest man on the earth" (Num. 12:3). Moses' failure to help free the Jews must have devastated him. That's why God took him to Midian and made him a shepherd for forty years. He had to learn that deliverance would come from God's hand, not Moses' hand (Acts 7:25; Ex. 13:3).
What Moses heard (vv. 5–10). God spoke to Moses and assured him that He was the God of his fathers and that He felt the suffering of the Jews in Egypt. He was now ready to deliver them out of Egypt and lead them into the Promised Land, and Moses would be His chosen leader.13 God's statement "Behold, I will send you" must have astonished Moses. Why would God choose a failure?
Solitude and humble service (vv. 15–25). Moses became a fugitive and fled to the land of the Midianites, relatives of the Jews (Gen. 25:2). True to his courageous nature, he assisted the daughters of Reuel, the priest of Midian (Ex. 2:18), and this led to hospitality in their home and marriage with one of the daughters, Zipporah, who bore him a son.11 Later, she would bear another son, Eliezer (18:1–4; 1 Chron. 23:15). Reuel ("friend of God") was also known as Jethro (Ex. 3:1; 18:12, 27), but Jethro ("excellence") may have been his title as priest rather than his given name.12
What Moses did (3:1—4:17). Moses should have rejoiced because God was at last answering prayer, and he should have submitted to God's will saying, "Here I am! Send me!" But instead, he argued with the Lord and tried to escape the divine call to rescue Israel from slavery. In Egypt, forty years before, Moses had acted like the impetuous horse and rushed ahead of God, but now he is acting like the stubborn mule and resisting God (Ps. 32:9). Moses gave five reasons why he couldn't accept God's call.
The man who was "mighty in word and deed" is now in the lonely pastures taking care of stubborn sheep, but that was just the kind of preparation he needed for leading a nation of stubborn people. Israel was God's special flock (Ps. 100:3) and Moses His chosen shepherd. Like Joseph's thirteen years as a slave in Egypt and Paul's three years' hiatus after his conversion (Gal. 1:16–17), Moses' forty years of waiting and working prepared him for a lifetime of faithful ministry. God doesn't lay hands suddenly on His servants but takes time to equip them for their work.
(1) "I'm a nobody" (3:11–12). What Moses thought of himself, or what others thought of Moses, really wasn't important. God had spoken and that was all Moses needed for assurance that he was the right man for the job. Had forty years of shepherding so extinguished the fire in his soul that he didn't think he could serve the Lord? Why was he looking at himself instead of looking by faith to the Lord? "I will be with you" is all the assurance God's servants need in order to succeed (Josh. 1:5; Isa. 41:10; 43:5).