The Berean Pursuit
Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, "Send everyone away from me!"
So none of them were with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. But he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh's household soon heard of it.
Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?"
But they were unable to answer him, because they were terrified in his presence.
Then Joseph said to his brothers, "Please come near me." And they did so.
"I am Joseph, your brother," he said, "the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed or angry with yourselves that you sold me into this place, because it was to save lives that God sent me before you. For the famine has covered the land these two years, and there will be five more years without plowing or harvesting. God sent me before you to preserve you as a remnant on the earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. Therefore it was not you who sent me here, but God, who has made me a father to Pharaoh-lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
Now return quickly to my father and tell him, 'This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me without delay. You shall settle in the land of Goshen and be near me-you and your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and everything you own. And there I will provide for you, because there will be five more years of famine. Otherwise, you and your household and everything you own will come to destitution.'
Behold! You and my brother Benjamin can see that I, Joseph, am the one speaking with you. Tell my father about all my splendor in Egypt and everything you have seen. And bring my father down here quickly."
Then Joseph threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin wept as they embraced. Joseph kissed each of his brothers as he wept over them. And afterward his brothers talked with him.
When the news reached Pharaoh's house that Joseph's brothers had come, Pharaoh and his servants were pleased.
Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Tell your brothers, 'Do as follows: Load your animals and return to the land of Canaan. Then bring your father and your families and return to me. I will give you the best of the land of Egypt, and you shall eat from the fat of the land.' You are also directed to tell them: 'Take wagons from the land of Egypt for your young children and your wives, and bring your father and come back. But pay no regard to your belongings, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.'?"
So the sons of Israel did as they were told. Joseph gave them wagons as Pharaoh had instructed, and he also gave them provisions for their journey. He gave new garments to each of them, but to Benjamin he gave three hundred shekels of silver and five sets of clothes. And he sent to his father the following: ten donkeys loaded with the best of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and provisions for his father's journey.
Then Joseph sent his brothers on their way, and as they were leaving, he said to them, "Do not quarrel on the way!"
So the brothers went up out of Egypt and came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan. "Joseph is still alive," they said, "and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt!"
But Jacob was stunned, for he did not believe them. However, when they relayed all that Joseph had told them, and when he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob was revived.
"Enough!" declared Israel. "My son Joseph is still alive! I will go to see him before I die."
So Israel set out with all that he had, and when he came to Beersheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. And that night God spoke to Israel in a vision: "Jacob, Jacob!" He said.
"Here I am," replied Jacob.
"I am God," He said, "the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there. I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will surely bring you back. And Joseph's own hands will close your eyes."
Then Jacob departed from Beersheba, and the sons of Israel took their father Jacob in the wagons Pharaoh had sent to carry him, along with their children and wives. They also took the livestock and possessions they had acquired in the land of Canaan, and Jacob and all his offspring went to Egypt.
Jacob took with him to Egypt his sons and grandsons, and his daughters and granddaughters-all his offspring.
Now these are the names of the sons of Israel (Jacob and his descendants) who went to Egypt: Reuben, Jacob's firstborn.
The sons of Reuben: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.
The sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman.
The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
The sons of Judah: Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah; but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan.
The sons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul.
The sons of Issachar: Tola, Puvah, Job, and Shimron.
The sons of Zebulun: Sered, Elon, and Jahleel.
These are the sons of Leah born to Jacob in Paddan-aram, in addition to his daughter Dinah. The total number of sons and daughters was thirty-three.
The sons of Gad: Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi, and Areli.
The children of Asher: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, and their sister Serah.
The sons of Beriah: Heber and Malchiel.
These are the sons of Jacob born to Zilpah-whom Laban gave to his daughter Leah-sixteen in all.
The sons of Jacob's wife Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin.
Manasseh and Ephraim were born to Joseph in the land of Egypt by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On.
The sons of Benjamin: Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim, and Ard.
These are the sons of Rachel born to Jacob-fourteen in all.
The son of Dan: Hushim.
The sons of Naphtali: Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem.
These are the sons of Jacob born to Bilhah, whom Laban gave to his daughter Rachel-seven in all.
All those belonging to Jacob who came to Egypt-his direct descendants, besides the wives of Jacob's sons-numbered sixty-six persons. And with the two sons who had been born to Joseph in Egypt, the members of Jacob's family who went to Egypt were seventy in all.
Now Jacob had sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph to get directions to Goshen. When Jacob's family arrived in the land of Goshen, Joseph prepared his chariot and went there to meet his father Israel. Joseph presented himself to him, embraced him, and wept profusely.
Then Israel said to Joseph, "Finally I can die, now that I have seen your face and know that you are still alive!"
Joseph said to his brothers and to his father's household, "I will go up and inform Pharaoh: 'My brothers and my father's household from the land of Canaan have come to me. The men are shepherds; they raise livestock, and they have brought their flocks and herds and all that they own.'
When Pharaoh summons you and asks, 'What is your occupation?' you are to say, 'Your servants have raised livestock ever since our youth-both we and our fathers.' Then you will be allowed to settle in the land of Goshen, since all shepherds are detestable to the Egyptians."
A song. A Psalm of David.
My heart is steadfast, O God;
I will sing and make music with all my being.
Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awaken the dawn.
I will praise You, O LORD, among the nations;
I will sing Your praises among the peoples.
For Your loving devotion extends beyond the heavens,
and Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
may Your glory cover all the earth.
Respond and save us with Your right hand,
that Your beloved may be delivered.
God has spoken from His sanctuary:
"I will triumph!
I will parcel out Shechem
and apportion the Valley of Succoth.
Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine;
Ephraim is My helmet, Judah is My scepter.
Moab is My washbasin;
upon Edom I toss My sandal;
over Philistia I shout in triumph."
Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
Have You not rejected us, O God?
Will You no longer march out, O God, with our armies?
Give us aid against the enemy,
for the help of man is worthless.
With God we will perform with valor,
and He will trample our enemies.
Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, accompanied by Barnabas. I took Titus along also. I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I spoke privately to those recognized as leaders, for fear that I was running or had already run in vain. Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek.
This issue arose because some false brothers had come in under false pretenses to spy on our freedom in Christ Jesus, in order to enslave us. We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.
But as for the highly esteemed-whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not show favoritism-those leaders added nothing to me. On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted to preach the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been to the circumcised. For the One who was at work in Peter's apostleship to the circumcised was also at work in my apostleship to the Gentiles.
And recognizing the grace that I had been given, James, Cephas, and John-those reputed to be pillars-gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, so that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcised. They only asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.
When Cephas came to Antioch, however, I opposed him to his face, because he stood to be condemned. For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself, for fear of those in the circumcision group. The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray.
When I saw that they were not walking in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, "If you, who are a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?"
We who are Jews by birth and not Gentile "sinners" know that a man is not justified by works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
But if, while we seek to be justified in Christ, we ourselves are found to be sinners, does that make Christ a minister of sin? Certainly not! If I rebuild what I have already torn down, I prove myself to be a lawbreaker.
For through the law I died to the law so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. I do not set aside the grace of God. For if righteousness comes through the law, Christ died for nothing.