Vayigash
Genesis 44:18-47:27
=
As the saga of the sons of Israel continues, Joseph disc=
loses
his true identity to his brothers. The scene is packed with emotion. Genesis 45:2 says that Joseph wept=
so
loud that he was heard by the Egyptians and by Pharaoh. His weeping tells us how much he m=
issed
his family and how concerned he was for their welfare. His speech in 45:2-8
gives us insight into the thoughts and motives of Joseph and is very important<=
/span>
in understanding the purpose of the Joseph narrative and the book of Genesi=
s as
a whole. Joseph tells them th=
at
everything that has happened is in accordance with the plan of God. They may
have meant it or evil but God meant it for good. He says, “ And now do not be grie=
ved or
angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you=
to
preserve life….And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remna=
nt
in the earth, and to keep you alive by a great deliver=
ance.”Gen.
45:5,7. Joseph, who could interpret the dre=
ams of
Pharaoh could also interpret the historical even=
ts in
his life as God ordained.
<=
o:p>
T=
hroughout
this entire story we can see God at work through the lives of the sons of <=
st1:country-region
w:st=3D"on">Israel =
as well
as the Egyptians. Throughout the entire book of Genesis we see God at work
preserving his plan despite the actions of the people involved. The brothers did not realize it but
their decisions and actions brought forth the fulfillment of the dream of
Joseph! It is reminiscent of Paul’s statement about the rulers of this
world being ignorant to the plan of God when he says in 1Cor. 2:8&nbs=
p;
for if they had understood it, they would=
not
have crucified the Lord of glory. In other words, in their ignorance, t=
hey
were bringing to pass the very thing they were trying to prevent. In this way, Joseph is a type of Ye=
shua
the Messiah. In calling for his death, they were causing the very thing they
wanted to prevent. As a result, Yeshua died for our sins and rosae from the dead. The Jewish people, in the rejection of
Yeshua, have been used to fulfill God’s purpose in bringing the Gospe=
l to
the Gentile world. Even in Jewish literature, Joseph is a type of Messiah.
According to some ancient Sages, Joseph’s leaders=
hip (Messiah son of Joseph) pre=
pares
and refines the world for the ultimate leadership of Judah (Messiah son of
David). The Zohar (medieval kabbalistic
mystical interpretation of Scripture) refers to the meeting of Judah and Jo=
seph
as prophetic. According to the Zohar, Judah i=
s a king
and Joseph is a “Tzaddik” (righteous
person). “…their =
union
produced many benefits for the world: it was the cause of peace to all the
tribes and between all the tribes, it was the cause of Jacob’s spirit
being fortified, as it says “the spirit of Jacob their father was rev=
ived
(Gen.45:27). Whether&n=
bsp;
he is understood to typify the first of two messiahs or he is
understood as typifying the righteousness of the Messiah, Joseph is certain=
ly a
reminder of the Messiah in both traditional and messianic literature. Of course we know that the Scriptu=
res
themselves teach us that there is one Messiah who is perfectly righteous an=
d is
the Messianic King. In His first coming, he began preparing the world for H=
is
coming as king. That preparation was in dying for our sins and rising from =
the
dead. Today He is calling out Jews and Gentiles, preparing the world for His
coming as the righteous king. It is in His first coming – as the
suffering servant – where we see Joseph as a picture of the Messiah.<=
span
style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'>
<=
o:p>
J=
oseph
was rejected by his brothers and suffered hardship but was eventually made
great among the Gentiles which led ultimately to the deliverance of the Jew=
ish
people. As was stated above, they meant to harm him but God used that very =
act
to bring about redemption. When the brothers saw him, they did not recognize
him=3Dbut he recognized them. Joseph
set up a situation which caused his brothers to come to a place of contriti=
on.
It was only through Joseph that his family could live. All of these stateme=
nts
are true about Yeshua. While the Jewish people today do not recognize Yeshu=
a,
He knows who they are and He very much desires that Jewish people recognize=
Him.
Ultimately God will bring the world to a place which will cause the Jewish
people to recognize “him whim they have pierced” (Zech. 12:10).
When they recognize Him, they will live in peace and safety. Today God is at
work in the midst of Jewish history with the end result being that Israel =
will
trust in the Lord. It may not look like God is involved, but remember that
there was a famine in the land during Jacob’s day. Certainly it did n=
ot
seem that God was involved. However, He was “behind the scenes, orche=
strating
events. In our own lives, God is involved – we may forget it or not f=
eel
it but He is very much involved. Finally we look forward to the day when Ye=
shua
will finally be revealed to the Jewish people who will then come to faith in the Messiah=
and
live in peace and safety. The righteous priest and the regal king will rule=
. "Yes, it is He who will build =
the
temple of the LORD, and He who will bear the honor and sit and rule on His
throne. Thus, He will be a priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace w=
ill
be between the two offices."'(Zech. 6:13) Shabbat Shalom!
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=