9

Pharaoh had described Joseph in a most significant way, especially for an Egyptian. He identified him as a man in whom the Spirit of God was! He was absolutely right!

The manner in which Joseph dealt so graciously, and so faithfully, with his brothers so effectively illustrates this truth. There are so many of the aspects of Joseph's attitude and methods which remind us of the Lord's dealings with us.

As we look at each of the specific developments, we find ourselves being challenged, in a variety of areas. So many different aspects of our attitudes and our responses are brought under close scrutiny. We are challenged to look very carefully at our attitude to the Lord. At our responses to Him as He speaks His Word to us.

In fact, there are many diverse ways in which these developments challenge us personally. There is a most vital reminder here. We always need to come to the Word of God expecting the Lord to speak to us from it. To speak to our present situation. To our circumstances. To do so clearly and decisively. And, as He speaks, always keep in mind that His Word invariably requires an active response from us.

Nothing could be more relevant, or more up to date than what the Lord has to say to us today through His Word today. Nor could anything be more personally applicable to us and to our lives, especially as we seek to live for Him and serve Him.

How true this statement is of the next step in Joseph's relationship with his brothers. We see:

As Joseph prepared to test his brothers, he gave the most specific instructions to his servant

The Cup. His instructions were given in an expression of grace. He was genuinely concerned for his family. “He commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry.” He provided in abundance so that their need would be fully met.

"Put every man's money in his sack's mouth." He provided fully for them out of his own bounty. They did not have to bear the cost. He bore it.

How wonderfully his attitude reflected his walk with the Lord. That is the way the Lord deals with us. Every need is met, at no cost to us. Out of His riches in glory. He willingly bears the full cost. That is the expression of His amazing grace. His unfailing love.

In this context of having met all their need, and bearing the cost himself, as an act of grace and love, Joseph proceeded to test his brothers.

"And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack's mouth of the youngest, and his corn money. And he (the steward) did according to the word that Joseph had spoken."

The focus of this test was on Benjamin. Benjamin: the younger son of Jacob's favorite wife, Rachel. The issue was the same as previously!

It was out of their resentment, anger, and hatred that his brothers had acted against Joseph. That resentment, anger, and hatred was aroused and fed by Jacob's expression of favoritism to Joseph. Thus the reason for Joseph's plan involving Benjamin becomes clearer.

Benjamin was the key. Would his brothers treat him with the same contempt and bitterness which they had.shown to Joseph those many years earlier? Or, had they changed?

Jacob had so definitely shown his favoritism to Benjamin by his attempts to protect him. His brothers knew just how special he was to his father. The evidences of favoritism were still far too obvious to ignore.

Earlier, Joseph's brothers had so selfishly put their own interests first. They had deliberately sacrificed him into slavery. Would they do the same with Benjamin? Joseph was providing them with the opportunity to reveal their true nature. They could do so, either positively, or negatively.

The next morning Joseph sent his brothers on their way. It was very early in the morning. "As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses."

It is not at all difficult to imagine the feeling of great relief which they must have experienced at that moment. They were on their way home. All of them. Benjamin was still with them. They could safely restore him to his father. Also, Simeon was with them. Restored to the family after his period in the Egyptian prison.

They had all that they needed. There was enough food for all their families. They would be able to survive the famine, at least for some months more. Their families were safe.

Thus, they were able to relax. All their fears, their apprehensions and anxieties could be left behind in Egypt. They were on their way home.

That sense of wellbeing would only last for a very short time. They were complacently oblivious to the fact that all too soon their world would fall apart around them.

"When they were gone out of the city, and not yet far off." The timing of Joseph is so appropriate. The wisdom which he reveals in this plan is so evident. In the plan itself as well as in the execution of it.

At the right time: "Joseph said unto his steward, Up, follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good? Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? Ye have done evil in so doing."

The words which were chosen by Joseph were so significant. Why have you rewarded the good you were given with evil? They had been granted the privilege of being taken into the home of the prime minister of Egypt. They had been treated as honored guests. They had been lavishly fed from the table of that high official.

Their brother had been restored to them. Their requests for food had been fully and abundantly met. They had been permitted to freely return to their home. Having been shown all that "good"why did they repay it with evil? What an accusation for them to be called to answer!

"Ye have done evill" For them to be accused by any Egyptian under these circumstances would be most daunting. For that accusation to come from that one man who wielded such immense power and authority in Egypt, that would inevitably have a devastating effect and impact on them.

Which is exactly what Joseph intended. Put them in the most extreme position possible! Then they would reveal their true characters!

The Confidence, which was completely misplaced! They had absolutely no idea what they were being confronted with at this time.

It did not take very long for Joseph's steward to catch up to them. He immediately told them exactly what Joseph had told him to say. As they listened to his words, it must have been with mounting consternation. These were very serious charges which were being brought against them,

We sense their astonishment, and their reawakened apprehension, in their answer. Their sense of wellbeing was utterly shattered.

"Wherefore saith my lord these words?" They were staggering under the impact of the accusation. Why? It would make no sense for them to act so foolishly!

They urgently denied this charge. "God forbid that thy servants should do according to this thing." They knew only too well how circumspectly they needed to act. Their previous experience in Egypt would cause them to be very alert against any such foolishness. They would remember only too well the previous charge that had been made against them. That they were spies. How could they ever forget the precariousness of their position.

They reminded the steward of their previous attempts to do everything right. "Behold, the money which we found in our sack's mouth, we brought again unto thee out of the land of Canaan."

They had made a point of giving that money to this very steward. They did so when they were first taken to Joseph's house. They had so carefully explained to him how they had found it. They made sure that he understood that they really did want to do everything right.

To them, the charge was illogical. Irrational. Inexplicable. "How then should we steal out of thy lord's house silver or gold?"

There was so much happening which combined to keep them in a state of total confusion. They could not understand it. Everything was so completely perplexing.

They could not see the complete picture. Only that part of the picture which Joseph allowed them to see. They were panicking. Their mounting anxiety caused them to act irrationally.

Their next words were so foolish. Yet they probably felt that they had reason to be sure of themselves. Even if there was very little else that they could be sure of! They were too sure of themselves. Could it be that their expression of over-confidence was a blind attempt to assure themselves that they had nothing to worry about?

"With whomsoever of thy servants it be found, both let him die, and we also will be my lord's bondmen."

They were much too quick to put their brother's life on the line. Much too quick to offer to become the slaves of the prime minister of Egypt. Think of that: slaves of: Joseph! They were not thinking clearly. Rather they were desperately grasping at straws. Their response was the expression of panic.

Panic! And irony! "Let him die!" The one with whom the cup was found could die. Once before they were much too quick to say, "Let him die!" They said that when they saw Joseph coming towards them wearing that special coat. That had been their first reaction then:"Let him die!"

"We will be my lord's slaves." They had been far too ready to choose that very way out: for Joseph! They had him. They had to do something with him. This appeared to be the easiest way out of their dilemma. Sell him as a slave. That is what they did. Their words and actions were now bearing fruit in a most unexpected way. Another of their brothers could so easily die. The rest of them could be taken as slaves.

That could happen. But for one vital fact. The man with whom they were dealing was: the man in whom was the Spirit of the Lord. The one whom the Spirit of the Lord was using most effectively.

They found themselves face to face with the unalterable spiritual principle. "Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap."(Galatians 6:7) They could not evade that. Neither can we. Yet so many go on doing as they please as though that principle does not apply to them.

Joseph's brothers were learning the truth. Even as their hearts and minds were being haunted by dread anxiety and overwhelming apprehension. "Be sure: your sins will find you out.''(Numbers 32:23) God guarantees that. Today!

It was because the brothers of Joseph found themselves inextricably caught in the results of these principles that they also found themselves in:

He said to them, "Now aalso let it be according unto your words!" That sounds as though the steward was taking them exactly according to what they had said. Such a response would have only heightened their feelings of apprehension. They may very well have begun to wonder why they were so very rash.

But then the steward qualified his response. "He with whom it is found shall be my servant." They had said, "Let him die." The steward said, "He will be my slave."

They had already sold one of their brothers as a slave. Joseph. Now they were faced with the prospect of another brother being made a slave. There was nothing that they could do about it. They were in a situation where they had no choice but to go along with whatever decision was made.

It is important that we notice the wording that was used by the steward. The brothers had said, "With whomsoever of thy servants it be found, . . . let him die." They were assuming too much. That if one of them was found to be in possession of the cup that one was guilty.

The steward used exactly the same terminology. "He with whom it is found." But he was assuming nothing. Certainly not that the person cconcerned was guilty. He knew more than they did.

In fact, he knew exactly where the cup was. He knew, because he had placed it there at Joseph's command! Thus he also knew that the one concerned was not guilty. He was simply and carefully following the instructions of Joseph.

"He shall be my slave." Those words were carefully chosen. The reason is obvious. To gain their own ends the brothers had been willing to sell Joseph as a slave. Would they be just as willing for Benjamin to be held as a slave? The temptation to do so was so real.

The steward then said to them,"Ye shall be blameless.'' Which meant that they would not be held as slaves. They would be free to return to their homes. Only Benjamin would remain as a slave.

This was a very carefully prepared plan. It was being carefully executed. It would test these men in the most significant way!

They were quick to respond to the challenge made by Joseph's steward. "Then they speedily took down every man his sack to the ground, and opened every man his sack!"

The steward began his search. He began with the eldest: Reuben. He went through each sack, one by one, according to the age of the brothers. It is interesting that nothing is said about the money which had been placed in each of the sacks. If they became aware of the money it would appear that they made no comment about it, probably because they were so afraid.

This would have been a time of great tension. Yet as the steward went from sack to sack, and the cup was not found, that tension would slowly begin to ease. It would be increasingly replaced by relief and hope as, one by one, they were exonerated.

That is, until the steward came to Benjamin's sack! They would have found it so very difficult to believe their eyes as the cup was taken from Benjamin's sack! They would be totally stunned. How can we begin to imagine their thoughts in that moment of shocked consternation?

Could it be that one, or more, reacted negatively? “Well, let him stay as a slave. He deserves it! We can go free. Go home.”

There is no suggestion that such a thought was expressed. Rather in fact the opposite.

When they saw the cup taken from Benjamin's sack," Then they rent their clothes'' It was a mark of the great grief and anguish which they felt in that tragic moment. They knew what that meant. Benjamin would be held in Egypt as a slave. There was nothing they could do about it.

Already we see evidence of a distinct difference in these brothers. When Joseph was sold as a slave, they tore his clothes, his special coat. They soaked it in animal blood to deceive their father. Now, it was their own clothes which they tore!

Then, they were only too happy at the thought of Joseph being a slave. Now, they were distraught at the prospect of Benjamin being made a slave!

They acted as: A FAMILY! They "laded every man his ass, and returned to the city." They would not leave Benjamin alone. They were all fully determined to stand by him in this moment of great crisis.

Together they returned to Joseph's house. "And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph's house; for he was yet there: and they fell before him on the ground." Together, as a family, they threw themselves prostrate before this man whom they had come to fear so much.

They were so urgently, so desperately hoping for mercy from him. Yet he was the one who had so urgently, so desperately begged for mercy from them. And they refused to listen.

To them it would appear that mercy was the last thing that they could expect. Rather they were confronted by the harsh challenge of this man who literally held their lives in his hands. This man who wielded the most awesome authority and power. Who had previously accused them of being spies.

His words clearly indicated that he intended to hold them responsible. "What deed is this that ye have done?" He included them all in that accusation. How did you think that you could ever get away with this. You should have recognized, "that such a man as I can certainly divine?"

Accused! Together! Yet the solidarity of the family held under that assault! It was not a matter of "everyone for himself." No one suggested that only one of them, Benjamin, was guilty. They continued to stand together.

Judah assumed the responsibility of being spokesman for the family. It is so obvious that he was perplexed and confused. He did not know what to say. "What shall we say unto my lord? What shall we speak? Or how shall we clear ourselves?" Words seemed to be so completely futile at this point.

Judah was staggering under that overwhelming sense of their utter futility. A new thought was breaking through. He was beginning to believe that he knew exactly why they were trapped in this terrifying predicament.

How can we prove our innocence? Especially when God is revealing our guilt? The stark conviction of the guilt of their sin, their guilt before God, was burning into their hearts and minds.

He was not talking about the cup which Benjamin was thought to have taken. Benjamin was the only one there who was totally innocent of the events which Judah was talking a about.

It was that very guilt which had pursued those ten brothers down through all the years. The guilt which came from selling Joseph as a slave! That guilt had caught up with them. It was that guilt which God was now bringing out into the full light of day.

"Behold, we are my lord's servants, both we, and he also with whom the cup was found."

They could not escape the sense of great guilt. They knew that they fully deserved to be made slaves. They were openly acknowledging that fact. The ten of them deserved to be condemned for what they had done to Joseph. That was a fitting penalty. Benjamin, well, the cup had been found with him.

Did they really mean what they were saying? Joseph fully intended to test their sincerity. He said, "God forbid that I should do so: but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as for you, get you up in peace to your father."

The reality is that, too often, we make statements about commitments, yet they will not stand the test of fire. In fact, they will not stand any test. The Lord does test every statement of commitment that we make. Most often He does so without us being aware that He is testing us, or that we are failing His test.

Not all of them would be slaves. Just one: Benjamin. The rest could go free. Would they selfishly grasp that way out? That is the question which Joseph wanted answered.

The Cause of Judah's plea. It was all too obvious to everyone involved. The cause driving Judah was Joseph's great authority.

Judah spoke with the greatest of deference to the man. The man with whom he must plead. He knew that he had no choice. "Oh my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord's ears, and let not thine anger burn against they servant: for thou art even as Pharaoh."

Judah reminds him of the manner in which he had earlier questioned them. Questions concerning their father? A brother? He indicated that they had answered honestly. "We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one." Then he offered added information! "His brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him."

At last! Evidence of greater understanding. Certainly more than they demonstrated earlier when Joseph had been hated and resented. Greater understanding and greater compassion. There is evidence that they may want to protect their father from further suffering.

The Concern of Judah is also clearly revealed. Judah did not understand what was behind the demand of this man. He could not understand that. All he could do was to remind him of that demand.

"Thou saidst unto thy servants, Bring him down unto me, that I may set my eyes upon him." Judah wanted this man to know how unexpected that demand was. How unsettling it was to the entire family.

They had tried to explain the situation to him. "We said unto my lord, The lad cannot leave his father : for if he should leave his father, his father would die."

Their feeling of weakness, of stark impotence, comes through as Judah pleads. All their best efforts to explain the situation had proved to be so futile! They were trapped. They were utterly incapable of getting themselves out of this predicament.

Judah continued. You refused to listenl You insisted. "Except your youngest brother come down with you, ye shall see my face no more."

They knew exactly what that meant. They had no choice. No alternative. No alternative, except starvation! Death! They knew that he really meant what he said. If they returned to Egypt, Benjamin must be with them. The noose was getting tighter.

Judah went on to explain what they did in response. “It came to pass when we came up unto thy servant my father, we told him the words of my lord.” Judah and his brothers had been honest with their father. Just as they were honest and open with this man before whom they had to plead.

What a significant change this is! Previously they were only too willing to deceive, even their father. They deceived him in relation to Joseph. They knew that he was a slave while allowing their father to believe that he was dead.

The Cost of this requirement is made clear by Judah. It is to be seen so poignantly in his anguish.

His recital of the events continued. Once again they were running out of food. Jacob told them to return to Egypt to buy more food for the family. They had no choice but to respond, "We cannot." Jacob's attitude left them with no choice. He had refused to allow Benjamin to go with them.

"We cannot go down!" Yet, did they really have any alternative. None, except death by starvation.

"If our younger brother be with us, then will we go down: for we may not see the man's face, except our youngest brother be with us.'' They had no alternative. There was no other way.

The impact of Jacob's grief on his sons becomes unmistakable. Judah confessed, "My father said unto us, Ye know that my wife bare me two sons. And the one went out from me, and I said, Surely he is torn in pieces; and I saw him not since: And if ye take this also from me, and mischief befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave."

Earlier they had been quite callous in their attitude to their father's grief. They were content to stand back and let him grieve. But now things were different. The anguish of their father had touched their hearts at last.

He states what he fully believes to be the truth in this situation. "It shall come to pass, when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that he will die!" He really believed that "He will die." Even as he knew who would be responsible. They would be responsible.

"Thy servants shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to the grave." He said it. He really meant it. That was a most significant confession. He declared the vital truth: "We will be responsible!"

The evidence of a genuine change grows increasingly stronger! Earlier they were only too willing to evade their responsibility. But not now! Now they fully acknowledged it!

One of the most important evidences of a genuine change in life and character is seen right at this point. It is the willingness to accept and acknowledge personal responsibility.

This is so true when a person really comes to know Jesus as Saviour and Lord. They will demonstrate that reality at this point. They will willingly, openly, accept responsibility for themselves. For their lives. Their words. Their actions. Everything.

"Thy servant became surety for the lad unto my father, saying, If I bring him not to thee, then I shall bear the blame to my father for ever." That is what he said to his father. He stood by it now! "I shall bear the blame!" I accept that. I am responsible.

"Take me as your slave instead of my brother!" "Now therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant abide instead of the lad a bondman to my lord." "Let me be your slave so that he can go free." He meant exactly what he said!

Remember, as far as he knew, Benjamin may have been guilty of stealing the silver cup! But that was not the issue. That was totally ignored. Genuine love at last triumphed!

God was at work gloriously and victoriously. Judah had initially been the one who suggested that Joseph be sold as a slave. Now he offered himself as a slave. What a dramatic change. A total transformation.

He had been able to go back to his father without Joseph, and lie about what had happened. He could not think of going back to his father without Benjamin. He knew the agony, the misery, that would cause. "Lest peradventure I shall see the evil that shall come on my father."

The evidence of a total change of attitude is so clear. A complete transformation of motivation.

That is exactly what Joseph was looking for. It is exactly what the Lord was and islooking for!

It is that total change which the Holy Spirit always seeks to make a reality. When the Holy Spirit is really working in our lives the change will be total. Dramatic. Obvious for all to see. We will become so devoted to the Lord, so committed to Him, that everyone will know.

The evidence of new attitudes will be undeniable. New priorities. New motivation. New standards. There will be genuine evidence of Christlike love and compassion.