Then Joseph settled his father and brothers in the land of Egypt and gave them property in the best part of the land, the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. And Joseph provided his father, his brothers, and all his father’s family with food for their dependents. Genesis 47:11-12
There was no reason that Jacob and his sons should have received so much favor and blessing from Pharaoh. He did not have to welcome them into Egypt, treat them with kindness, assign them the best part of the land, or feed them. Yet, there it was. Blessing after blessing coming to those who had done nothing to merit them. In fact, Joseph’s brothers are being blessed in spite of all they had done to deserve contempt.
{The older I get, the more I recognize the many unmerited blessings of God that have overflowed in my life.}
“Buy us and our land in exchange for food. Then we with our land will become Pharaoh’s slaves.” Genesis 47:19
The story moves away from Jacob and his family in verses 13 – 26 as we watch the people of Egypt give everything they have in exchange for the life sustaining food that Joseph would give them. In his God-given wisdom, he had prepared far in advance for the famine that would come, making him a resource of life to people who would have otherwise died of starvation. We can also see that Joseph was shrewd enough to use food as an opportunity to enrich Pharoah. Over the course of two, possibly three years, Joseph took all of the silver, livestock, and then the land. And finally, he made the people to be servants of Pharoah. It’s quite the story and it speaks to me of preparedness. Joseph prepared, because he knew what was coming. The people were unprepared, because they had no idea what was coming.
{I know a storm is coming. Whether it is the end times or not, something is coming. Am I prepared? Is my faith, my trust in God, strong enough to stand? Am I living in truth, or in compromise? Will I be able to be a resource of life for those who are unprepared?}
This chapter concludes with a request from Jacob of Joseph –
“Do not bury me in Egypt. When I rest with my ancestors, carry me away from Egypt and bury me in their burial place.” Genesis 47:29
And here is the final thought that lays on my heart from this chapter: Even though Jacob was now in a place of blessing, he knew it wasn’t home, and home is where he longed to go when his life was over.
{As I count the abundance of blessings in my life on this earth, I must guard against feeling at home here. I want my heart to be filled with a longing for my true home.}
“But they now desire a better place—a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.” Hebrews 11:16
Karla Jo Wasion 