A Covenant of Grace
Old Testament Core Seminar
Sunday School,
March 25th 2008
Miles Crouse
Genesis 12-50
Genesis 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation…
Introduction: Good morning. We’re really moving! Well, fear not; we will pick up the pace here shortly. We are intentionally going slowly through the first book, Genesis, because it is so foundational and crucial for understanding the rest of the Bible.
Every major doctrine of the Christian faith has its origin in the book of Genesis. Everything from the inerrancy of the Word of God, to the gospel, to the resurrection, and everything else in between, exist in seed form here in Genesis. So, we are trying to really dig in and see the genesis of the Christian faith so that we’ll have some bearings as we move forward in the Old Testament and to more clearly understand the doctrines that make up our faith.
[PRAY]
Context: Today we will finish our study of Genesis. We’ll look at chapters 12-50. Moses is still our author; and, as mentioned the last two weeks, he is able to write these things because the events describe here were revealed to him by God.[1]
What’s new about chapter 12 is that we can now begin to assign some dates to when these events occurred. We’ll pick up today with Abraham, whose story we can date somewhere around the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC.
That is, about 2,000 years BC (give or take a 100 years or so). And we’ll cover through the life of Joseph, whose death we can date somewhere around 1800 BC.
So we’re covering about 200 years of history today. However, the amount of time covered isn’t as important as how much of God’s redemptive plan is covered.
Last week, I hope you’ll remember, we talked about redemptive-history, God’s work in history of redeeming a people from the fall into sin and death.
So far we’ve seen God make the promise that one descendent of Eve will eventually triumph over Satan and reverse the effects of the fall. Through Genesis, chapter 11, we’ve seen God preserve that promise, while nonetheless dealing with humanity in their sin.
We’ve seen Eve’s godly descendants persevere in the world, even while those who continue to hate God have tried to do them harm, and even kill them off.
We describe this as the enmity between “the seed of the woman, and the seed of the serpent,” which will ultimately culminate when Christ and Satan do battle at the cross and when Jesus returns. Well today, we are going to see that promise that God made to the woman reaffirmed as her lineage will be carried forward through one specific family: the descendants of Abraham. It’s as though there is a narrowing of focus now from the entire world to the exact line of descendants that will birth the savior into the world.
Theme: We can summarize these chapters like this: God is making a gracious covenant with one man and his descendants which will bless the entire world. In this covenant God has promised to be their God and that they will be His special people that they will live in the place of His choosing, and that they will enjoy a unique relationship with Him, under His rule.
So today we’ll see what a covenant is, God’s election of one family which will become a nation with a land, what it means that He is their God and they are His special people with faith, and how that will bless the rest of the world. In other words, God is establishing His kingdom through Abraham.
And that kingdom can be defined as God’s people, in God’s place, under God’s rule. That motif will actually serve us throughout our study of the Old Testament: The Kingdom of God as God’s people, in God’s place, under God’s rule.
[This outline does not need to be gone over. The class only needs to be told that it is printed in their handouts so that they could have a little guide for their own study.]
Outline w/ Pivotal Texts
I. Genesis 11:27-25:11*
God’s promises to Abraham and his sons Isaac and Ishmael
II. Genesis 25:12-18
Ishmael’s descendants
III. Genesis 25:19-35:29
God’s promises to Isaac and his sons Jacob and Esau
IV. Genesis 36
Esau’s descendants
V. Genesis 37-50
God’s promises to Jacob and his sons; particular focus on Joseph
*Notice that the longer sections, I, III, and V, focus on the lineage through which the Savior will come, while sections II and IV are brief excursuses.
Theme texts
Let’s now turn to Genesis again, and see how these doctrines are presented to us.
12:1-3
We’ll start with the story of Abraham, who was originally named Abram.
Turn to chapter 12, and let’s read verses 1-3. [READ]
Gen 12:1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee:
Gen 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
Gen 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
These verses are foundational to much of the rest of the Bible.
They are the beginning of God’s dealing with Abraham, which will dominate much of the rest of the Bible. And in these promises to Abraham we see God’s purposes in His kingdom: His people in His place under His rule. We’ll look at each of these components of the kingdom.
We’ll go a little out of order, looking first at God’s place, the land God promises to Abraham.
In verse 1 God promises Abraham a land. This becomes more explicit in verses 6 and 7. [READ] Gen 12:6 And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.
Gen 12:7 And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.
This land is significant because you’ll remember that with Adam and Eve’s sin they were driven out of the most perfect land there ever was: Eden. Eden was a place where God’s people could have fellowship and relationship with God and with each other.
And you’ll remember, I hope, that I’ve been saying these last two weeks that God’s plan of redemption is aimed at bringing His people back to a perfect land where they can have perfect love and fellowship with God and each other.
Well, this land being promised to Abraham is not Eden, and it’s not the New Heavens and the New Earth, that new re-created end-times-universe which we talked about last week.
But what it is is related to both of those things: the original perfect creation, Eden, and the re-created-end-of-time-universe, the New Heavens and the New Earth.
And the relationship is this: the land promised here to Abraham, while a real historic location, indeed occupied by his descendants, is meant to serve as a picture of a greater reality to come – that new creation at the end of time.
It’s meant to show that God is reversing the fall and reestablishing for Himself a people who will live in a certain place under His rule and blessing, like Adam and Eve once did. No, it’s not the complete return to Paradise, but it is a foreshadowing of it. Do you remember last week when I introduced you to the word “typology?” Well, the land is a type of greater things to come, greater things that God will do in relation to the land/earth/universe that has been set out of whack because of sin.[2] Abraham and his immediate descendants understood this.
In Hebrews 11 we read this: “8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”You see, they lived in tents like pilgrims, because they knew their real home was in heaven in the future, not now in this world – even though that very land was promised to them.
And we read on in Hebrews 11: “13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. 14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 Instead, they were longing for a better country-- a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.”
[Enter here application about living as a pilgrim…the sum of our lives not being here in this world…not being intrigued with all the bells and whistles of this world, but setting our hearts and hopes with Christ in heaven…]
[TAKE QUESTIONS]
Secondly, notice that in verse 2 it says that God will make of Abraham a great nation. In understanding the development of the kingdom of God, this nation is God’s people.
There is a lot that could be said here, but suffice it for now to say that what God is promising here is that from Abraham will descend that Godly line, which originated with the woman, who will eventually give birth to the Savior of the world.
This is clear from the next verse, verse 3. [READ]
Gen 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
While Abraham and his descendants make up one family, one nation, the blessing here is for all families, all nations, all peoples – for through God’s special relationship with Abraham’s descendants anyone anywhere can repent of their sins and put the trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for forgiveness, eternal life, and a relationship with God. Again, just like with the land, a larger greater reality is in view here,
for in that New Heavens and the New Earth there will be people from every tongue and tribe and people and nation.
Worth pointing out here is the corporate aspect of God’s people. Strictly speaking, God has never, and still doesn’t, call individuals to Himself. Rather, He calls a community of people to Himself. Whether it was Old Testament Israel, or the Church today God’s people are a corporate identity. It’s Not the Church plus anyone. It’s made up of individuals of course, but no individual is called in isolation from the rest. The individuals are called as part of the greater community. And that unity is not only theological, but meant to be experienced in the local church. Christians are called to be Christians in fellowship and community with other Christians. There is no room in God’s economy for solitary mavericks, but members that make up the healthy body.
15:1-21
Let’s continue to think about God’s people, as we look their primary characteristic: their faith. Turn to chapter 15. Look at verses 2 and 3. [READ]
Gen 15:2 And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?
Gen 15:3 And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir.
Abraham was 75 years old when the promises of chapter 12 were made, and his entire life his wife, Sarah, had been barren. Now he’s beginning to doubt if he’ll ever have one son, let alone an entire nation’s worth of sons.
So God reaffirms His promise to Abraham. Look at verse 5. [READ] 5
Gen 15:5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
Now it says in verse 6 that Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness. [READ]
Gen 15:6 And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.
Abraham is counted righteous in the sight of God because of his faith. This is good news for Abraham after we’ve seen how sinful mankind is. Abraham is a sinner just like everyone else, but he is counted righteous because of his faith in God.
This is a doctrine that Paul will often stress in the New Testament.
In Romans 4 and in Galatians 3 Paul uses this very verse to prove that the only way anyone can be righteous in the sight of God is through faith, and faith alone. This is important because the only way we can escape the coming wrath of God (which Noah’s flood was a foretaste of you’ll remember from last week) is by being righteous as God sees us.
And the Bible is clear that no one can ever, through their good behavior, or good deeds, or church attendance, or baptism, or anything in themselves, earn and acquire this necessary righteousness. Even our most righteous acts amount to nothing more than “filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6) before this infinitely holy God.
Therefore the only way we are going to be saved is if righteousness is freely given to us from God, which we apprehend by faith alone.
Romans 1:16-17 “…[The gospel] is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes… For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."”
Romans 3:21-26 “…a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known…This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” [Enter here application about the subtle inclinations of our hearts towards self-righteousness…]
[TAKE QUESTIONS]
Let’s turn now to consider God’s rule over His kingdom.
Part of His rule is His faithfulness to His promises. To give Abraham confidence that God will keep His promises He enters into a covenant with Abraham. A covenant, in this context, is a solemn bond and agreement between two parties, with terms and conditions that can only be broken upon the penalty of death.
If verse 5 is God’s reiteration of His promise to make of Abraham a great nation, verse 7 is God’s reiteration of the promise to give Abraham the land. And although Abraham has faith (verse 6) he nonetheless asks God, “How I can I know?” He’s getting on in age, there are a lot of inhabitants to displace, and Abraham would simply like to know how this can happen. It in this context now that God will enter into a covenant with Abraham to reassure him that it will indeed happen just as God has promised, since after all, a covenant cannot be broken. God will enter into it to give Abraham confidence in God and in His promises.
In the ancient Near East it as a common event for covenants to be made between nations. What would happen is that a great and powerful suzerain lord, or king, would set the terms of the covenant for the weaker, smaller vassal lord, who reigned over a smaller area, a smaller nation.
The smaller lord would get protection and military aid and the such, and the larger would receive tribute, taxes, and an oath of fidelity. The terms were usually laid down in some document, and there would be witnesses and some sort of sign or omen to remember the covenant. Then there would be a covenant making ceremony, where the weaker vassal lord would walk between the carcasses of animals cut in half.
It was a symbol of the oath being taken that they would die, just like the hacked animals lying on the ground, if they broke the covenant. You can understand why we call marriage a covenant. There are oaths and promises made, a ceremony, witnesses, documents, symbols of the marriage (the rings), and the covenant is insoluble until one of the married couple dies. But there is a major difference between a marriage covenant and the type of covenant I’m describing here.
The covenant I’m describing carries with it a curse that the if anyone breaks the covenant they must be put to death.
Of course we frown upon adultery and divorce, but they do not result in execution for the unfaithful party. These covenants do.
Notice what God does in response to Abraham’s question in verse 8, “How can I know?” Look at verses 9 and 10. [READ]
Gen 15:9 And he said unto him, Take me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.
Gen 15:10 And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not.
Now in verse 13, you’ll see there, that God says, “Know for certain…” What God is about to do with these cut up animals is for the purpose of assuring Abraham of the truth of God’s promises.
Look at verses 17-21. [READ THROUGH “LAND” IN VERSE 18]
Gen 15:17 And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces.
Gen 15:18 In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates:
This is truly a shocking scene! Smoke and fire throughout the Bible are symbols of God’s presence. God is Spirit, and so He has no physical form.
So to demonstrate His very real presence in a place He would often use smoke and fire.
And what does God do as He presents Himself in this form? [WAIT FOR SOMEONE TO ANSWER]
He passes between the dead carcasses! What did I say earlier that that meant in the covenant making ceremony? [WAIT FOR SOMEONE TO ANSWER]
God is saying, “Abraham, may what has happened to these animals happen to Me if I don’t fulfill my promises to you!!! May I be cut in half, bloody, and mangled on the ground, food for the buzzards…if I do not keep my word to you and your seed, Abraham!” Now do you think that reassured Abraham and gave him confidence in God? You bet! Would He so powerful that He could create the universe ex nihilo ever allow Himself to fall under such a curse? Is it even possible for God to die like that; or die period? The whole scene is meant to drive into Abraham’s mind, and ours, that these covenant promises can never go unfulfilled.
What God has promised to His people will come to pass!
Part of God’s rule over His people is the blessing of His faithfulness. But notice, if you will, that Abraham does not pass through the dead animals. Only God does. And notice that there are no obligations for Abraham to keep up his end of the covenant. There are only promises coming down from God! This covenant is completely unilateral, in that God has set all the terms, and entirely unconditional. God will keep these promises regardless of Abraham’s and his descendants’ actions. Now, this does not mean that Abraham’s descendants will have no obligations at all. The conditions that Abraham’s descendants have to meet will be added later? When will that be? [WAIT FOR SOMEONE TO ANSWER] They will receive some duties in Genesis 17, but the bulk of Israel’s covenant responsibilities will be given from Mount Sinai, after God leads them out of slavery through His servant Moses. More on that later. The point I’m trying to make now, is that the promise comes before the obligations. So while Israel has real duties, and there will be real consequences if they are not faithful, the promises will still stand. This is because God’s plan of redemption, of which this is a part, depends on His grace and His desire to renew the universe with a renewed humanity in it. It does not depend on sinful man. We’ve seen how far sinful man has gotten. Galatians 3:17-18: “The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.”
We’ll visit the covenant many more times. For now, we see that God is in covenant with Abraham, a covenant that will bless all the nations of the world as we read in Genesis 12. In chapter 26 we read about how the covenant promises are passed along to Abraham’s son Isaac, and then again passed long to his son, Jacob, in chapter 35.
The continuance of this covenant with the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will be a major theme through the rest of the Old Testament.
[TAKE QUESTIONS]
As we move on from Abraham it’s very important to keep Genesis 3:15 in mind. The promise that a savior will be born who will destroy the works of the Devil and save many people is driving the narrative. That promise of a savior, as we saw in chapter 12, is carried on in Abraham’s blood line. So as Abraham is finally able to have a son with his wife, Sarah, we, the readers, are wondering if this son is the Savior! Is Isaac the One in whom the promises come to completion? Well, as we read on we find out the answer is no. Isaac makes a lot of the same mistakes his father made, and he dies having not brought humanity back to God. But, he doesn’t die without an heir through whom the promises can continue. But again, we are left suspecting and wondering: Is Esau the one who will receive the blessing and carry the Kingdom of God forward? He is after all the firstborn. Surprisingly, the answer is no. His younger brother, Jacob, is the heir of the covenant! God has, through His free choice, decided that it is through Jacob that His plan of redemption will continue.
25:19-34
That God has chosen who will be in a special covenant relationship with Him, and who will populate the kingdom He is re-creating, is one of the more controversial doctrines in the Bible. It’s the doctrine of election. It’s the doctrine that some will be given grace; and those “some” are chosen by God purely on the grounds of grace, not on the grounds of anything they’ve done.
Well, controversial it may be, but so it is; and it’s important to understand.
Turn to chapter 25.[3] We’ll read verses 22-23. [READ]
Gen 25:22 And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to inquire of the LORD.
Gen 25:23 And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.
Now, that may not sound as though God is favoring one of the twins. He may just be making a prediction. But, not quite. God is saying that the younger son, Jacob here, will receive the promises made to Abraham and Isaac. Through Jacob the plan of redemption will move forward. Jacob will be the son of favor, the one whose descendants will possess the land and bless the world.
Well, why would God choose one son over the other? Was Jacob more righteous than his twin brother Esau? Um…no. Just read the following chapters. Jacob is a little weasel. If you think Jacob was chosen because he was more righteous than Esau, or more faithful to God, then the rest of Jacob’s story become very confusing. Rather, Paul points out the reason God chose Jacob.
Romans 9:10-13 “…
Rom 9:10 And not only this; but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac;
Rom 9:11 (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)
Rom 9:12 It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.
Rom 9:13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.
Did you hear that? God chose Jacob before either twin had done anything good or bad. And the reason He chose Jacob then was so that “God’s purpose in election might stand.”
And what is that purpose?
So that inclusion in the covenant community, and receiving the gifts of God might come “not by works but by Him who calls.” Just like we heard with Abraham and his faith, no one will earn their way into the kingdom of God. The next question then becomes, why doesn’t God base entrance into His kingdom upon works? Why can’t anyone earn their way in? Well, the first answer would have to be because no one could ever reach the standard of perfect holiness the ascent to the presence of God.
But on a deeper level Paul tells us in Ephesians why God is so deliberate to choose His people and give them the kingdom by grace alone.
Ephesians 2:8-9 “…Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
And this Paul says, in Ephesians 1, is to the glory of God for His grace. No one will ever come into God’s kingdom, and stand before Him, and boast that they made it there by their own effort – as though God owed them the kingdom. God will be no man’s debtor. He is always Lord. He is always Benefactor. We are always beneficiaries. We have no rights over God. We are all rebels. If we get anything good from God, it is by pure, one-hundred percent, vintage grace!
And this grace is to God’s glory. Just as we saw that God created the universe and humanity for His glory, it is therefore no surprise that the kingdom and the humanity He is re-creating is done in a manner that most glorifies Him – by grace. God’s grace is meant to humble us, knowing that we have nothing to commend ourselves to God with; and it’s intended to give glory to God for how kind He has been to us who know Him through His Son, and are included in His gracious kingdom.[4] Even as Moses reminds the very descendants of Jacob years later:
Deuteronomy 7:6-9 Deu 7:6 For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.
Deu 7:7 The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people:
Deu 7:8 But because the LORD loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.
Deu 7:9 Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;
[Enter here application regarding the wisdom of the world and the wisdom of God, and how God’s wisdom is often counterintuitive to our finite wisdom and what we would think God would do.
1 Cor 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
[TAKE QUESTIONS (BRIEFLY)]
Again, as we continue on in Genesis, the story of the seed needs to be kept in focus.
From here we want to consider how the covenant promises continue in Jacob’s sons.
From Jacob now will begin to grow the great nation that God promised would come from Abraham’s descendants. Jacob had twelve sons, whose subsequent families are the beginning of the great nation as God’s covenant people: Israel. The rest of Genesis now is concerned with one of Jacob’s sons: Joseph. Joseph’s story is an interesting one. For a while we are made to think that maybe he is the One Seed who is to come into the world, to be a savior to the world. We think that because through his wisdom many people, especially the covenant family, are preserved from a famine. But it will turn out that Joseph is only a savior of sorts. He’s not the Ultimate One Savior because he can’t finally conquer death, for he too dies like everyone else.
But nonetheless, he is a type of a savior, and in that way (remember typology!) he prefigures Christ. In fact there will be many figures in the Old Testament who are saviors to the covenant people (and to others). Each of these will serve are prefigurements of the greater Savior, who will not save from mere famine, but from hell.
37:2-30
Let’s briefly go through Joseph’s story. Turn to Genesis 37:9-11. [READ]
Gen 37:9 And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.
Gen 37:10 And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?
Gen 37:11 And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.
This dream is a prophecy of Joseph’s future role as savior, as I just mentioned.
Now look at his brothers’ reaction. In verse 11 we saw that they were jealous. Look at verses 18-19, [READ] and verses 26-27.
Gen 37:18 And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him.
Gen 37:19 And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh.So his own brothers sold him into slavery. Gen 37:26 And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood?
Gen 37:27 Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content.
Eventually he wound up on Egypt as a slave. There, he was able to work his way up to a high position, but when he was betrayed by his master’s wife, he was thrown in jail. After many years in jail he was finally released, and again he was able to work his way to a position of high prominence: in the very court of the Pharaoh. The Pharaoh put him in charge of the food supplies for the nation. And when a famine hit, it was Joseph’s wisdom and foresight, which he credits to have come from God, that saved the Egyptians and many other nations around them.
45:1-15; 50:1-26
Now there are many things going on in this story that we could look at, but let’s look at just one thing.
Let’s see Joseph’s response when he encounters his brothers again after all his troubles, the same brothers who sold him into his troubles all those years earlier.
Turn to chapter 45, and look at verses 4-5. [READ]
Gen 45:4 And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt.
Gen 45:5 Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. Isn’t that interesting?
Joseph says that they sold him into slavery. They cannot escape the responsibility for their actions. But in the same breathe he says that God sent him before them. And the reason? To preserve life from the famine.
He says a similar thing chapter 50, verses 19-20. [READ]
Gen 50:19 And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?
Gen 50:20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
What we learn here is that humans play a real role in the events of life, and they have real responsibility for what they do, either good or evil. But finally, and ultimately, God superintends, oversees and directs all the events of His universe.
He is in complete and total control. Admittedly sometimes it is very hard to see how God is in control when so many tragic and disastrous things happen.
We make no claim that we can understand what God is doing all the time.
It is indeed often a mystery. But we can be assured that the universe is not spinning out of the control of its Creator and He is indeed doing good things in every situation, no matter how hard it is to see that. Even Joseph I’m sure at times in his prison cell wondered what in the world God was doing to him. Why was this happening to him? Why did things have to turn out that way? But nonetheless, here at the end, Joseph can see what God was doing: preparing to save many lives through Joseph. A great mystery indeed. It’s not without reason that we sing the hymn “God Moves in a Mysterious Way.”
Romans 8:28-29
Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Rom 8:29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Can we trust in God’s sovereignty…especially during times of trial and temptation?…]
[TAKE QUESTIONS]
49:8-12
One last thing needs to be considered before we conclude. Not only do we eventually find out that Joseph is not the One Seed to come into the world, but we also find out that he’s not even the one through whom the promise of the Seed will continue.
It will be through Judah, His brother! Turn to chapter 49, and look at verse 8. This is a prophecy concerning Judah, one of Jacob’s sons. [READ] 16
Gen 49:8 Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father's children shall bow down before thee.
Did you hear the language from Genesis 3:15 there – putting down the neck of his enemies? And look at verse 10.
Gen 49:10 The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
What we have here is a prophecy that through Judah will come a ruler, a king, for the people.
And that king will be the very one who triumphs over Satan, crushing his head.
And who is that? [WAIT FOR SOMEONE TO ANSWER] It is Jesus.
The words of this prophecy are a little vague, admittedly, but this concept will become clearer as we continue through the Old Testament. So while these chapters by and large focus on Joseph, it will be through his brother Judah that the promised “seed of the woman” who will defeat the “seed of the serpent.” And we have added to our understanding of this One Seed that He will also be a King to rule over the rest of the people of God.
Conclusion: Well, like I told you we would, we’ve seen the genesis of a lot of doctrines here in Genesis: the nature of God, creation, re-creation, sin, fall, judgment, the gospel, the land, grace, faith, the covenant, election, sovereignty of God. It is all very up lifting. Yet…there is something strange at the end of Genesis.
The covenant family seems to be growing, but…they are not in the land!
They are far away in Egypt. Surely God works in mysterious ways.
What will He do next, to bring them back to the land, as He has promised in the covenant with Abraham? What will He do to establish His reign and rule over His people? And when will the Savior come into the world? Well, we’ll just have to come together again next week to study Exodus…and keep studying redemptive-history as was keep moving through the Old Testament.
[TAKE QUESTIONS]
[PRAY]
[2] Everything in the Old Testament needs to be understood as foreshadowing of greater realities in the New Testament. And those New Testament realities need to be understood as a return to the Edenic conditions God’s creatures once enjoyed. As it says in Colossians 2:17: “These are a shadow of the things what were to come; the reality however is found in Christ.”
[3] What’s going on in this passage is that Isaac has received the covenant blessings because he was the only son of Abraham’s wife, Sarah. And now Isaac is about to have twins. But to whom should the covenant promises go? To which son? The older one, of course, right? Wrong, God does not do things according to the wisdom of the world.
[4] While there are a lot who would object to this doctrine on philosophical grounds, there is little argument that the Bible is clear about this. And while those philosophical questions deserve answers, and there are answers to them, they are beyond the scope of this class. J. I. Packer, Wayne Grudem, R. K. McGregor Wright, and (of course) John Calvin and Jonathan Edwards are good to read on this issue.