A Journey Through the Bible, Part 21

Old Testament

Genesis 41 and 42

Genesis 41:51-52—“Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: ‘For God has made me forget all my toil and all my father's house.’ And the name of the second he called Ephraim: ‘For God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.’"  This is the chapter that records Pharaoh’s two dreams and Joseph’s interpretation thereof (through God’s revelation, of course). Egypt will have seven years of plenty and then seven years of famine. I’ll discuss that more on the “Old Testament Chapter Summaries” blog in due course. In these two verses, we see the birth, via an Egyptian woman, of Joseph’s two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, who will become two of the 12 tribes in Israel. Interestingly, there was no “tribe of Joseph” that received an allotment of land. The tribe of Levi became the priestly tribe and thus was given no specific geographical region; therefore, Joseph’s two sons became recipients of land to make up the total distribution of 12 shares. During the Divided Kingdom period (after Solomon) the tribe of Ephraim will become the most powerful in the northern kingdom, so much so that that kingdom will often be referred to as “Ephraim.” “Ephraim is joined to idols; let him alone,” (Hosea 4:17).

Notice that the names Joseph gives to his two sons indicate that he is well aware of the distress he had endured through 13 years of hardship—slavery and imprisonment—but that, through his faith in God, he had been delivered. Waiting for the Lord can be so hard, but so rewarding.

Genesis 42:6—“Now Joseph was governor over the land; and it was he who sold to all the people of the land. And Joseph's brothers came and bowed down before him with their faces to the earth.” Har har har. Remember snotty-nosed Joseph’s two dreams about his family in Genesis 37? “So [Joseph] said to [his brothers], ‘Please hear this dream which I have dreamed: There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf,’” (Genesis 37:7; the second dream is recorded in verse 9). Over twenty years have passed since those dreams and now they are being fulfilled. The famine that struck Egypt was severe in Canaan, too, so Jacob had sent his sons (minus the youngest, Benjamin) to Egypt to buy food. And lo and behold, there is the brother whom they sold into slavery! The 10 brothers don’t recognize him, but Joseph knows them. He doesn’t trust them, so he puts them through an interesting test that won’t be completed until the following year. See my “Bible Blog” article “Who Can Say to Him, ‘What Are You Doing?’ Number 7” for a full overview of this fascinating story about Joseph and the workings of God’s providence.

New Testament

Matthew 23

Matthew 23:38—“’Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.’” This is the chapter where Jesus severely rebukes the scribes and Pharisees: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” He repeatedly denounces them for their corrupt religious attitudes and actions. After 1,500 years of spiritual obtuseness and disobedience, the Lord is finally fed up with the Jews. They have rejected Him, opposed Him, tried to turn the masses against Him, and, in a few days, are going to kill Him. Notice closely what Jesus says here in verse 38: “Behold, YOUR house [the temple] is left unto you desolate.” It’s not God’s house any more. This sets the stage for Matthew 24, which is perhaps the most misunderstood—or abused—chapter in the Bible. Stay tuned, here and in the “New Testament Chapter Summaries” blog. I’m going to try to catch up there very soon to where I am on this blog.