From Survivors To Thrivers

The beginning of Exodus picks up where the end of Genesis leaves off. After Joseph passes away and his generation is gone the Hebrews begin multiplying in the land of Egypt. It seems like the honeymoon will continue on. However, just a few verses into Exodus we read about a new Pharaoh coming to power “who did not know Joseph.” This is where things begin to turn south for the Hebrews:

Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, “Behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and, if war breaks out, they join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.” Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with heavy burdens. They built for Pharaoh store cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad. (Exodus 1:8–12)

The blessings of Jacob upon Ephraim and Manasseh had come to pass and the Hebrews had proliferated into “a multitude in the midst of the earth” (Genesis 48:16). However, fearing the growing number of these Hebrews, the new Pharaoh came up with a plan to ensure that this growing minority would not overrun Egypt. He “set taskmasters over them to afflict them with heavy burdens” (Exodus 1:11). Thus began the oppression of the Children of Israel in the land of Egypt.

From My Heart to Your Heart

For the last three portions we have been seeing the story of Joseph unfold. Up until now we have learned the main events of Joseph’s life. We learned about Joseph’s descent into Egypt through the seemingly unfortunate circumstances initiated by his brothers’ hatred toward him. But then we saw how God used this for his own purposes, placing Joseph in a strategic position to be not only the savior of his own family, but of the world as well. We read about the reunion of Joseph and his family, and how he moved his father and all of his brothers down to Egypt so that he could take care of them. Now, in our final portion from the book of Bereisheet (Genesis), we learn about the final days of Jacob and his desire to bestow his blessings upon his children before his passing. The focal point of this portion is the individual blessings he gives to each of his sons, with the adoption and blessing of Joseph’s sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, being an unexpected turn of events.

Within this narrative there are numerous lessons we can learn from a detailed reading of the text. There is, however, one lesson tucked away toward the end of the portion that may easily be glossed over by a surface reading of the text. After Jacob dies, Joseph’s brothers realize that up to this point Jacob may have been the only buffer between them and their brother’s vengeance. They knew how bad they had treated him and fully expected retaliation after their father’s passing. So, they devised a plan. They told Joseph that before Jacob had died, he told them to convey a message to Joseph that he was not to harm his brothers or take revenge on them. When Joseph listened to his brothers, however, he wept. It hurt him to realize that his brothers believed he had malicious intent towards them. He quickly cleared up the matter: