| Subject: Gen 46 vss 28-34 Post 210 |
Author:
Hillbilly
| [ Next Thread |
Previous Thread |
Next Message |
Previous Message
]
Date Posted: 18:59:31 07/26/12 Thu
Genesis 46:28-34 And he sent Judah before him unto Joseph, to direct his face unto Goshen; and they came into the land of Goshen. 29 And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen, and presented himself unto him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while. 30 And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive. 31 And Joseph said unto his brethren, and unto his father's house, I will go up, and shew Pharaoh, and say unto him, My brethren, and my father's house, which were in the land of Canaan, are come unto me; 32 And the men are shepherds, for their trade hath been to feed cattle; and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have. 33 And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupation? 34 That ye shall say, Thy servants' trade hath been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we, and also our fathers: that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians.
The settling in Goshen is a foregone conclusion with Joseph and the sending of Judah to Joseph by Jacob to "direct his face" was more of, "where in Goshen would it be best for us to settle" than anything else. Jacob and his sons knew where Goshen was but this land that was to become their home was owned by others at the time.
Joseph receives Judah and without delay prepares his chariot to meet his father and family. It must have been a spectacular sight for Jacob to see this magnificent chariot arrive and a man of royalty step out. "Is this really my son?" had to be going through Jacob's mind. Joseph would have looked far more Egyptian than Hebrew. His attire was that of a prince and the chariot had the seal of Pharaoh on the front. This chariot was the equivalent of "Air Force 2" which carries the vice president. Only Air Force 1 is more "decked out".
As Jacob stares in wonder Joseph quickly strides to him. The conversation would be very short at this time. "Father" answered by "Is this really my lost son?. The answer came in the form of a loving embrace that lasted quite a while as Joseph was wracked with sobs of joy. The greeting would have been like that of the father and the prodigal son. The circumstances may have been vastly different but deep love for father to son and son to father are not controlled by the past. The meeting time is for the moment and this case the moment was "a good while".
Israel is an old man at this time and has been contemplating his death for a while. Israel, as many others in advanced age was not willing to "let go" with the mystery of his son plaguing his mind. After their long embrace Jacob steps back, holding his son at arms length and with great love in his eyes simply says to Joseph: "Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive." The prodigal's dad though the words of Jesus said: "For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found." The statement was followed by great joy and merriment. I can picture Jacob's family all one by one coming to greet Joseph in a wonderful reunion. Many of the children would have to be introduced to Joseph and I'm sure he would greet the little ones with genuine love.
While fantasizing on the reunion I can also picture his brothers coming by to greet him again. There manner would be a little more subdued and possibly even apologetic while at the same time exhibiting genuine affection for this younger brother whom they had so mistreated and now held their future in his hands.
With the reunion over and time for Joseph to head back he leaves instruction on what to say to Pharaoh when the time comes for them to meet them. Joseph has already made the preparations for his kinsmen to live in Goshen but their is still the formality of Pharaoh officially blessing Joseph's decisions.
Pharaoh had set the good of the land of Egypt before Israel. "I (Pharaoh) will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the land. " (Gen. 45:18)
Foreshadowing a future event and promise to God's children in future generations Jesus said this to His little band of followers: John 14:2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Joseph went and finished the preparations for Israel. Jesus is doing the same for us and the rest of His promise to us is "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. " (John 14:3)
[
Next Thread |
Previous Thread |
Next Message |
Previous Message
] |
|
Feedback: 