Genesis 50: the conclusion

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good.  Genesis 50:20

In my journey through Genesis, the overarching theme seems to have been this:  God has a plan, and uses these people who constantly appear to fail him and won't fall into line; and yet God's plans prevail.  It is not the first time I have come to Genesis 50:20 to summarise what has been going on: you intended to harm me, but God intended it for good.  

In our passage here, Jacob the great patriarch, whom we have followed through his ups and downs, has finally died.  His sons carry out his wishes and take him back to Egypt to be buried (Genesis 49:29-23, Genesis 50:4-13).  However, once the mourning period is over and the unifying presence of the family's head is gone, Joseph's brothers understandably start to fear.  What if, now that his father's feelings no longer feature, Joseph finally decides to get revenge for their wrongdoing?

We see, of course, that the brothers need never have feared.  Joseph says to them:

‘Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. So then, don’t be afraid. I will provide for you and your children.’ And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them. (Genesis 50:19-20)

Indeed, if Joseph had been around many centuries later, he would have concurred with the Apostle Paul when he wrote this:

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

We see in Joseph how the acknowledgement of God's power can save us from anger and bitterness - even that which could appear to be justified when we have been truly wronged as Joseph was.  If a morsel of bread is all you have, and someone snatches it away from you, then you will probably feel pretty upset.  But if you have a whole load of food stored at home and are on your way home to a delicious home-cooked feast, the snatching of that morsel by someone else will feel far less consequential.  For Joseph, that morsel of bread was his personal circumstances, and the feast at home was the promise of the goodness of God and the promised land.  Not only was Joseph able to see things from the perspective of God's plan, but also to, through this perspective, restore his relationship with his brothers.  

The theme of the overarching plans of God is more specifically brought out in the theme of the promises made to Abraham - of a great nation, in the promised land of Canaan, that will be a blessing to the whole world.  And in the close of this chapter is no different to the rest of the book when we see that the eyes of the Israelites are set firmly in the promised land.   Genesis ends with a great big 'to be continued...'.  The scene has been set, promises have been made, and Joseph reiterates them:

Then Joseph said to his brothers, ‘I am about to die. But God will surely come to your aid and take you up out of this land to the land he promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.’ And Joseph made the Israelites swear an oath and said, ‘God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up from this place.’ (Genesis 50:24-25)

At the end of Genesis God's people are not home yet, and neither are we.  And yet the certainty of the promise of eternity - the promise of home and the spiritual riches that lie there - is what must direct our perspective and our actions.   Our Egypt - whatever it looks like for us - is not all we have.  We must fix our eyes on God's plan.  And if we do that, then like Joseph, we will have a peace that passes all understanding.

Previous:  God's Plan Woven throughout