Show Love In Victory - Part Two

A brother betrayed. A family starving. A reunion that could have turned into revenge, but instead becomes one of the most moving portraits of forgiveness in the Bible.

We spend a quarter-hour in Genesis 45 as Joseph finally reveals himself to the very brothers who sold him into slavery and listens to their stunned silence while he weeps openly.

We read the passage in the King James Version and a modern translation, then slow down to trace the backstory: Joseph’s rise from slavery to governor, the regional famine, and the tests he uses to see whether his brothers have truly changed.

When Judah offers himself in exchange for Benjamin, the whole story pivots. Joseph’s words land like thunder: don’t be distressed, because God sent me ahead to preserve life.

From there, we connect Joseph’s mercy to the way many of us approach God; with fear, shame, and hesitation. We talk about Romans 8:28, God’s providence, and what it means to trust that He is making a way even when you cannot see it yet.

We close in prayer, asking for hearts that understand Scripture and love neighbors through action.

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Genesis 45:1-15 - King James Version
45 Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him; and he cried, Cause every man to go out from me. And there stood no man with him, while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren.

2 And he wept aloud: and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard.

3 And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph; doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence.

4 And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt.

5 Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.

6 For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest.

7 And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

8 So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

9 Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry not:

10 And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast:

11 And there will I nourish thee; for yet there are five years of famine; lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come to poverty.

12 And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin, that it is my mouth that speaketh unto you.

13 And ye shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that ye have seen; and ye shall haste and bring down my father hither.

14 And he fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck.

15 Moreover he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them: and after that his brethren talked with him.

Transcript

Welcome And Today’s Passage

SPEAKER_00 0:06

Welcome to the Christ Quarter Podcast. Thank you for taking a quarter of an hour out of this day to enjoy the presence of Christ and the words of Christ. Today let's read a section of Scripture, discuss what it means, and also how it applies to our lives. I hope that God will speak to you through my words and more importantly through his scriptures, and will bring you closer to Him. I am blessed and thankful to have this time to speak with you, and I thank you so much for being with me here today. By the way, the Christ Quarter is available in Amazon Music. Just ask your Amazon Smart Speaker or app to play the Christ Quarter Podcast. Today's scripture selection is Genesis chapter forty five, verses one through eight and ten through fifteen. The King James Version reads as follows.

Joseph Reveals Himself In Genesis 45

SPEAKER_00 0:55

Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all that stood by him, and he cried, Cause every man to go out from me, and there stood no man with him, while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren. And he wept aloud, and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard. And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph, doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him, for they were troubled at his presence. And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you, and they came near. And he said, I am Joseph, your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither, for God did send me before you to preserve life. For these two years hath the famine been in the land, and yet there are five years, in which there shall neither be earring nor harvest, and God sent me before ye to preserve you of posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by great deliverance. So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God, and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and Lord of all his house, and it ruleth throughout all the land of Egypt, and thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy flocks and thy herds, and all that thou hast. And there will I nourish thee, for yet there are five years of famine, lest thou and thy household, and all that thou hast come to poverty. And behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin, that is my mouth that speaketh unto you, and ye shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that ye have seen, ye shall haste and bring down my father hither. And he fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, and Benjamin wept upon his neck. Moreover he kissed all his brethren and wept upon them, and after that his brethren talked with him. The Navy says it this way. Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, have everyone leave my presence. So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers, and he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh's household heard about it. Joseph said to his brothers, I am Joseph, is my father still living? But his brothers were not able to answer him because they were terrified at his presence. Then Joseph said to his brothers, Come close to me. When they had done so he said, I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed, and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no ploughing and reaping, but God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. I hurry back to my father and say to him, This is what your son Joseph says, God has made me Lord of all Egypt. Come down to me, don't delay. You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near to me, you, your children, and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have. I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come, otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute. You can see for yourselves, and so can my brother Benjamin, that it is really I who am speaking to you. Tell my father about all the honor accorded in Egypt, and about everything you have seen, and bring my father down here quickly. Then he threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin embraced him weeping, and he kissed all his brothers and wept over them. Afterward his brothers talked with him.

Prayer For Understanding And Love

SPEAKER_00 4:46

Let us pray. Lord, we thank you for this day. We thank you for the freedom and the ability to discuss your word and enjoy your presence. Help us to understand your word and your will for our daily lives more fully. We ask that you bless this discussion of your word that it will speak to someone who needs to hear from you. We ask that you use these words to bring someone closer to you, and that you will touch their hearts to love others through action in your name. That each of us will do something to show love to their neighbor, in action as well as in word. That each of us will do our best to represent you to the world. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

The Backstory And The Brothers Tested

SPEAKER_00 5:26

The verses for today are emotionally touching. As today's scene opens, we see Joseph crying aloud, so loud that the other members of the household heard him. But why is he crying? Well here's a little background. Joseph, having risen from slavery to governor, and having completed his job of preparing for the famine, the famine which he, through God given dream interpretation, predicted, is now in charge of distributing grain during a famine. The famine has affected the areas around Egypt, and as these areas heard of Egypt's plenty, many of them went to Egypt asking for grain. Among these countries were Joseph's home country Canaan. Joseph's father Jacob sent all his sons except for Benjamin to Egypt to ask for help. Can you imagine the look on Joseph's face when he looks up from his seat of power and sees his brothers? His brothers who harassed him and bullied him and sold him into slavery about twenty years earlier. His brothers who are now kneeling before him in submission and respect, asking for food to save their home? Joseph was shocked, but he managed to maintain his composure. He decided to keep his true identity from his brothers and to put his brothers through several tests to see if their hearts had changed. Joseph needed to see if they had grown into good men and if they regretted what they had done to him. Joseph held one brother in prison while the others went home to get their remaining brother. Before they left, Joseph had their money, which had been paid to get their grain, back in their sacks. This made them appear to have stolen their money back. This was forgiven, though, and the brothers were sent back home with grain a second time. This time Joseph had his silver cup placed in their sack. Once the brothers had been gone a while, Joseph sent his steward to catch up with them and accused them of stealing the cup. When the cup was discovered in the sack of the youngest brother, all the brothers were upset and tore their clothes. They were nonetheless brought back to Egypt to face Joseph. When they all stood before Joseph, he told them that the youngest brother who had the silver cup would remain in Egypt as Joseph's servant. When Judah heard this, he pled for his brother and even offered himself in exchange. This was the opposite of how he had treated Joseph those many years before. This is shown in Genesis chapter 37, verses 26 and 27. At this Joseph begins to cry aloud, and this is where today's scene opens. Let's get right to it. Joseph, having sent his servants and attendants away, is now openly crying. I'm sure his brothers are not only shocked and confused, but also afraid. Here is their brother whom they assume to be dead, but not only dead, but dead because of their actions. Is this truly their little brother from twenty two years ago? Is he still angry? What will he do to them? They seem to be in a very bad situation. But fortunately for them, Joseph reassures them to not be afraid or even upset with themselves. What they meant for evil God used for good. Joseph is intentionally or not, paraphrasing Romans chapter eight, verses twenty eight. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose. Not only has Joseph forgiven them and holds no ill will towards them, he asks them to go get their father and all their possessions, and return to live in the land of Goshem, where Joseph would provide for them. Goshem was a very fertile land with plenty of room for their family, their flocks, and their herds. All this time, while Joseph has been talking, his brothers have likely been in shock. They have likely been gradually accepting that this is really their little brother, speaking to them in their native language and forgiving them for the crime that weighs so heavily on them. As Joseph embraces and cries on Benjamin, all the brothers have accepted that this is truly Joseph, and they all begin to cry and embrace him.

Forgiveness, Romans 8:28, And Trust

SPEAKER_00 9:29

This is a beautiful scene of forgiveness and God's provision for those who love him. Just as Joseph's brothers sinned against him, so we have all sinned against God. Just as Joseph was concerned with the hearts of its brothers, and if they truly had changed, so God is concerned with our hearts. Just as Joseph's brothers were afraid of Joseph because he could have justly and easily punished them for their crimes, so we are often afraid of God, because he would be correct in punishing us for our many sins. We are often too ashamed of ourselves to even approach God in prayer. But just as Joseph was so happy to see his brothers and cried on them, God is happy when we return to him. Just as Joseph brought his brothers, his father and all their family close to him, not only to a much better life, but away from future harm that they were unaware of, so God brings us closer to him, to a much better life and away from harm that we cannot even see coming. Remember Romans chapter eight verse twenty eight, if we love God, whatever we are going through is working for our good. No matter our circumstance, trust that God has you and is making way for you. That concludes our scripture discussion for today. Thank you for spending this time with me talking about, learning about, and enjoying Christ. It is my hope that God has used my words to touch you today and has brought you closer to Him. Let us pray. Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.