Author: cackywalker@yahoo.com

Eventually, a new king came to power in Egypt who knew nothing about Joseph or what he had done. He said to his people,”Look, the people of Israel now outnumber us and are stronger than we are. We must make a plan to keep them from growing even more. If we don’t and war breaks out, they will join our enemies and fight against us. They will escape from the country.”

So the Egyptians made the Israelites their slaves. They appointed brutal slave drivers over them, hoping to wear them down with crushing labor. They forced them to build the cities of Pithom and Ramses as supply centers for the king. But the more the Egyptians oppressed them, the more the Israelites multiplied and spread, and the more alarmed the Egyptians became. So the Egyptians worked the people without mercy. They made their lives bitter, forcing them to make their mortar and make bricks and do all the work in the fields. They were ruthless in their demands. (vv. 8-14, NLT)

So Joseph and his brothers and their families continued to live in Egypt. Joseph lived to the age of 110. He lived to see three generations of descendants of his son, Ephraim, and he lived to see the birth of the children of the children of Manasseh’s son, Makir, whom he claimed as his own.

“Soon I will die,” Joseph told his brothers, “but God will surely come to help and lead you our of this land of Egypt. He will bring you back to the and He solemnly promised to give to Abraham, to Issac, and to Jacob.”

Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear by an oath, and he said, “When God comes to help you and lead you back, you must take my bones with you. So Joseph died at the age of 110. The Egyptians embalmed him and his body was placed in a coffin in Egypt. (vv. 22-26, NLT)

After burying Jacob, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had accompanied him to his father’s burial. But now that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers became fearful. “Now Joseph will show his anger and pay us back for all the wrong we did to him,” they said.

So they sent a message to Joseph:”Before your father died, he instructed us to say to you: “Please forgive your brothers for the great wrong they did to you-for their sin in treating you so cruelly.’ So we, the servants of the God of your father, beg you to forgive our sin.” When Joseph received the message, he broke down and wept. Then his brothers cam and threw themselves down before Joseph. “Look, we are your slaves!” they said.

But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? You tended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save lives of many people. No, don’t be afraid. I will continue to take care you and your children.” So he reassured them by speaking kindly to them. (vv. 14-21, NLT)

[Jacob’s last words to Judah]

“Judah, your brothers will praise you. You will grasp your enemies by the neck. ALl your relatives will bow before you.

Judah, my son, is a young lion that has finished eating his prey. Like a lion he crouches and lies down; like a lioness-who dares to rouse him: The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from his descendants, until the coming of the one to whim it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor. He ties his donkey to a grapevine, the cold of his donkey to a choice vine. He washes his clothes in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes. His eyes ae darker than wine, and his teeth are whiter than milk.” (vv. 8-12, NLT)

Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Now that your father and brothers have joined you here, choose any place in the entire land of Egypt for them to live. Give them the best the best land of Egypt. Let them live in the region of Goshen. If any of them have special skills, put them in charge my livestock, too.”

Then Joseph brought his father, Jacob, and presented him to Pharaoh. And Jacob blessed Pharaoh.

“How old are you?” Pharaoh asked Jacob.

Jacob replied, “I have traveled this earth 130 hard years. But my life has been short compared to the live of my ancestors.” Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh again before leaving his court. (vv. 5-10, NLT)

As they neared their destination, Jacob sent Judah ahead to meet Joseph and get directions to the region of Goshen. And when they finally arrived there, Joseph prepared his chariot and traveled to Goshen to meet his father, Jacob. When Joseph arrived, he embraced his father and wept, holding him for a long time.

Finally, Jacob said to Joseph, “Now I am ready to die, since I have seen your face again and know that you are still alive.”

And Joseph said to his brothers and to his father’s entire family. “I will go to Pharaoh and tell him, ‘My brothers and my father’s entire family have tom to me from the land of Canaan. These men are shepherds, and they raise livestock. They have brought with them their flocks and herds and everything they own.'”

Then he said, “When Pharaoh calls for you and asks about your occupation, you must tell him, ‘We, your servants have raised livestock all our lives, as our ancestors have always done.’ When you tell him this, he will let you live here in the region of Goshen, for the Egyptians despise shepherds.” (vv. 28-34, NLT)

So Jacob set out for Egypt with all his possessions. And when he came to Beersheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father, Issac. During the night God spoke to him in a vision. “Jacob!” he called.

“Here I am,” Jacob replied.

“I am God, the God of your father”, the voice said. “Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make your family a great nation. I will go with you down to Egypt, and I will bring you back again. You will die in Egypt, but Joseph will be with you to close your eyes.”

So Jacob left Beersheba, and his sons took him to Egypt. They carried with him and their little ones and their wives in the wagons Pharaoh had provided for them. They also took all of the livestock and all the personal belongings they had acquired in the and of Canaan. So Jacob and his entire family went to Egypt-sons and grandsons, daughter and granddaughters-all of his descendants. (vv. 1-7-NLT)

The total number of Jacob’s direct descendants who went with him to Egypt, not counting his sos’s wives, was sixty-six. In addition, Joseph had two sons who were born in Egypt. So all together, there were seventy members of Jacob’s family in the land of Egypt. (vv 26-27, NLT)

The news soon reached Pharaoh’s palace: “Joseph’s brothers have arrived!” Pharaoh and his officials were delighted to hear this.

Pharaoh said to Joseph, ” Tell your brothers, ‘This is what you must do: Load your pack animals , and hurry back to the land of Canaan. Then get your father and all of your families, and return here to me. I will give you the very best land in Egypt, and you will eat from the best that the land produces.”

So the sons of Jacob did as they were told. Joseph provided them with wagons, as Pharaoh had commanded, and he gave them supplies for their journey. And he gave each of them new clothes-but to Benjamin he gave five changes of clothes and 300 pieces of silver. He also sent his father ten male donkeys, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and other supplies he would need on his journey. (vv. 16-23, NLT)

Joseph could stand it no longer. There were many people in one room, and he said to his attendants, “Out, all of you!” So he was alone with his brothers when he told him who he was. Then he broke down and wept. He wept so loudly that the Egyptians could hear him, and word of it quickly carried to Pharaoh’s palace.

“I am Joseph!” he said to his brothers. “Is my father still alive?” But his brothers were speechless! They were stunned to realize that Joseph was standing there in front of them. “Please, come closer,” he said to them So they came closer. And he said to them again, “I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold to slavery in Egypt. But don’t be upset, and don’t be angry with yourselves for selling me to this place. It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives. This famine that has ravaged the land for two years will last five more years, and there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. God has sent me here ahead of you to keep you and your families alive and preserve many survivors. So it was God who sent me here, not you! An he is the one who made me an advisor to Pharaoh-the manger of his entire palace and governor of all of Egypt.” (vv. 1-8, NLT)

When his brothers were ready to leave, Joseph gave instructions to his palace manager: “Fill each of their sacks with as much grain as they can carry, and put each man’s money back in his sack. Then put my personal silver cup at the top of the youngest brother’s sack, along with the money for his grain. So the manager did as Joseph instructed him. (vv. 1-2, NLT)

Joseph was still in his palace when Judah and his brothers arrived, and they fell to the ground before him. “What have you done?” Joseph demanded. Don’t you know that a man like me can predict the future?”

Judah answered, “Oh, my lord, what can we way to you? How can we explain this? How can we prove our innocence? God is punishing us for our sins. My lord, we have all returned to be your slaves-all of us, not just our brother wh had you cup in his sack.”

“No,” Joseph said. “I would never do such a thing! Only the man who stole the cup will be my slave. The rest of you my go back to your father in peace.” (vv 14-17, NLT)