Jacob s Family is Reunited Genesis 46

Transcription

1 Jacob s Family is Reunited Genesis 46 I. Introduction and review A. In the book of Genesis we saw where God originally set up the family 1. When did it start? 2. Then God added to it 3. But ever since the family as an institution established by God, has been under attack 4. Consider: a. Murder tore the first family apart b. Soon polygamy was being practiced c. Sons making fun of their father s nakedness d. Surrogate motherhood e. Sodom and Gomorrah f. Lot s incest g. Leah s father tricking his son-in-law to marrying both of his daughters h. Prostitution in Judah s life 5. But now a family is being reunited as God has planned B. In chapter 45, Joseph revealed himself to his brothers 1. He asked them to retrieve his father and the rest of the family, and return to Egypt Page 1 of 6

2 2. Pharaoh heard about it and extended his own invitation to Jacob and the rest of Joseph s family 3. Pharaoh told them to leave what they had because he would give to them all that they needed [45:19-20] a. Did Jacob and his sons do that? b. No 46:1 c. Consider what is the most valuable things you own? (1) If you were to relocate would you want to take them with you? (2) Would that be true if you were relocating in heaven? II. The trip down to Egypt [46:1-7] A. Jacob and his family packed up everything that they had to take with them B. But Jacob gets to Beersheba and stops why? 1. Beersheba is the jumping off spot 2. When you leave Beersheba behind, you have left Canaan 3. Should Jacob lead his family away from Canaan and down to Egypt 4. God forbid Isaac from going to Egypt [26:2] 5. And things didn t go well for Abraham when went down to Egypt without consulting God [13:10-20] 6. Jacob wasn t just going for a little trip, he was going to relocate 7. He was going at the request of his sons, especially Joseph 8. Jacob realizes that such a move should not be made, no matter how right it seems, without God being involved in that decision Page 2 of 6

3 a. So Jacob goes to God and God tells him to travel to Egypt b. He more importantly tells him that He will go with him c. Did Jacob have any experience with such a promise, see 28:15 III. The Genealogy of Jacob s family[46:8-27] A. When the reference is made to Simeon note 1. His last son is from a union with a Canaanite women, the one group that they were to stay away from 2. All of his sons were not part Canaanite, just Shaul B. When it mentions Judah, it doesn t refer to a Canaanite wife or even to Tamar 1. Why? 2. He had sought reconciliation with his God and God had covered his sin 3. If we truly repent and confess our sin, God covers that sin, forgives us of the sin and no longer holds it to our account, its forgotten IV. Jacob and Joseph reunite [46:28-34] A. Jacob trusts Judah to go before him and determine the right way to go 1. Judah would also be involved at the first level of deciding where in the land to settle 2. Judah has become the leader and decision maker 3. He has earned his father s trust 4. He earned his trust by being trustworthy B. Joseph counsels his father not to emphasize to Pharaoh that he is a shepherd 1. Instead he instructs Jacob to call himself a keeper of Livestock Page 3 of 6

4 2. The word translated shepherd in verse 32 is h[ 'r' (raah) and means to: pasture, tend, graze 3. Why would he do that? a. The man who was Pharaoh at this time was a descendant of the Hyksos line, that invaded Egypt from Mesopotamia a bit earlier b. His background was one of nomadic herders, but his people had been amalgamated into the Egyptian culture and religious system C. This passage demonstrates Joseph s leadership ability [46:31-34] 1. He accomplished his goals with a deferential attitude toward those in authority a. He would skillfully make suggestions b. While utilizing a knowledge of the history, customs and culture of those he was dealing with, to make his recommendations seem attractive 2. The Egyptians hated shepherds, they were cattlemen a. Joseph planned to use this ethnic prejudice of the Egyptians as a way of preserving the ethnic and spiritual identity of his own people b. Neither he nor God wanted the Israelites absorbed into the Egyptian culture and religion 3. The plan worked Page 4 of 6

5 a. In Goshen they could set up their own community where they could be separate from the Egyptian society and culture b. And it was perfect country for shepherding sheep V. Looking back, what can we learn? A. Jacob s family was a model of dysfunction 1. Consider the families history: a. It was plagued by jealousy b. The two wives envied each other and competed constantly c. Their sons inherited that competition and jealousy d. The only daughter in the family was raped e. Her older brothers viciously murdered a whole town in reprisal f. The father showed great favoritism towards certain of his sons g. Their hatred for their brother Joseph caused them to sell him as a slave h. The oldest son raped the handmaiden of Benjamin s mother i. The family started to separate j. Judah the fourth son led that separation, caused in part by him taking a Canaanite wife, from the cursed race k. Simeon followed his younger brother s lead and also married a Canaanite woman 2. But God would not let all of these troubles thwart His purposes a. He took the son who was a slave and made him the leader of the most powerful nation of the day Page 5 of 6

6 b. He brought a famine upon the whole world to move His family into the right place at the right time c. He had promised to make His people out of this family and He would do it d. God took the evil plans of Jacob s sons and used them for good e. In so doing God reunited His family f. He not only reunited them, He reconciled them to each other and to Himself (1) the story of the division that developed between the two brother s (2) the creek made to run between their property (3) and the handyman hired to build the wall of separation (4) that lead to reconciliation g. He went on to protect them in Egypt for the next 400 years, until He was ready to take them back to the promised land h. God did all of this to remain faithful to His promises to His friend Abraham i. And to build for Himself a people to carry His message to the rest of the world B. The question we should ask ourselves is what has He planned for your family and are you part of it, or are you working against it. Page 6 of 6