Genesis 43

Finally, someone callsJacob on his favoritism. Judah points out that if they don't get food soon, not only will Jacob  and Benjamin die, but so will the s wother ten brothers and their children,

God intended them to go to  Egypt. What Jacob wanted was about as important as what you or I want. When God means to do something, he does it.

Genesis 42

Did Joseph mess with his brothers because of the way they treated him?

Yeah, probably,

Notice that Jacob didn't send Benjamin. He was still playing favorites.  Naturally, since Benjamin was Rachel's other son, he was both the one Joseph wanted to see and Jacob's favorite. Joseph found a way to get what he wanted without giving himself away; he'd later use that intelligence to save his family.

Genesis 41

"Oh, by the way, a couple years ago I met a Hebrew who might be able to help you."

The amazing thing is that Joseph patiently kept working. Of all the patriariarchs he was probably the only one who trusted Yahweh from the beginning.

Genesis 40

I didn't set out to write devotions,but that's what these have become for some people. I didn't st out to have a stroke, either, but that's what happens when you're not paying attention.

One thing I've never liked about "devos" is the way they always seem to hold up Bible characters as people to be imitated. This may come  as a shock to you, but you're not the Joseph of the Bible. You won't be accused by Potiphar's  wife, or run a prison from the inside, or save Egypt and the rest of the world  by saving grain for seven years.

Not that there's nothing admirable about Joseph. In this chapter, he trusts God, but still works hard. There's a lot we can learn from Joseph.

But I'm not holding him up as an example or anything.

Genesis 39

What's most interesting to me about this chapter is what it says about sin.

When he was attacked by Potiphar's wife, Joseph didn't worry about sinning against Potiphar. He didn't worry about sinning against the wife. He could hurt the, no doubt, but he could only sin against God.

Sin is, at its heart, rebellion against God. It's breaking his rules, which he gets to make because he made everything. That's why every sin is ultimately against God.

Genesis 38

Here's a small side-story that ended up having big consequences.

Judah wasn't a great man. That's one thing I like about the Bible. It's not full of paragons, but of people. Real people, with real flaws. The people in Scripture look like the ones around me.

Kings and our Savior himself were descended not only from a whoremonger and a woman pretending to be a hooker, but from the child of their union. And God told everyone.

Genesis 37

It was no secret that Jacob played favorites.

Rachel's was his favorite wife. Joseph was his favorite son. Everybody knew it too. How do you think Gad or Zebulun felt about that?

Add to that the fact that Joseph was kind of a snot, as most of us were at 17, and there's little wonder his brothers did what they did.

R