Genesis 45
KNECHTGenesis 45:1
BENJAMIN’S JOURNEY TO EGYPT
But after some months the corn which the sons of Jacob had brought from Egypt was consumed, and the famine still continued. Therefore Jacob said to his sons: “Go again into Egypt and bring us a little food.” Juda told his father that the governor had forbidden them to come back to Egypt, unless they brought Benjamin with them. And Juda added: “Send the boy with me that we may set forward, lest both we and our children perish. I take the boy upon me; require him at my hand.‘¹
So Jacob consented to let Benjamin go. And he told his sons to take some of the best fruits of the country as presents to the governor of Egypt, and also to return the money, which they had found in their sacks, lest perhaps it was done by mistake. Then he prayed that God might prosper their journey, and make the governor of Egypt favourable² to them, and send them back with Simeon and Benjamin.
Then they went down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph. When Joseph saw them, and Benjamin in their midst, he commanded his steward to conduct them to his house, and prepare a banquet³. The steward obeyed. But the brothers, on finding themselves in the governor’s house, were seized with fear, and said one to another: “Because of the money, which we carried back the first time in our sacks, we are brought in that he may bring upon us a false accusation, and by violence make slaves of us.”
Therefore, they went to the steward at the door, and said: “We cannot tell who put that money in our bags.” But he said to them: “Peace be to you; fear not.” And he brought Simeon out to them. Joseph having now entered the house, they bowed down before him and offered their gifts. He kindly saluted them in return, and asked if their aged father⁴ was still living.
¹ At my hand. I will be surety for him. I myself will stay in Egypt rather than that Benjamin should not return to you.
² Favourable. Favourably inclined, or kindly disposed towards them.
³ Banquet. As soon as Joseph had convinced himself that Benjamin was alive, he resolved to receive his brothers cordially, and have a feast prepared.
⁴ Their aged father. How beautiful and touching it is that Joseph’s first thought should be to ask after his father.
— XXIII. BENJAMIN’S JOURNEY TO EGYPT.
They told him that their father lived, and was in good health. Then Joseph, seeing Benjamin, inquired if that was their youngest brother. They answered: “He is our youngest brother.” Then Joseph said: “God be gracious to thee, my son”; and, going out, he wept, for his heart was deeply touched¹ at the sight of his younger brother. Having dried his tears and washed his face², he returned to his brethren and ordered food to be placed before them. Then they were ordered to sit before him, and he placed them according to their age, the first-born first, and the youngest last. All received gifts, but Benjamin received five times more³ than the rest. And they wondered⁴ much.
COMMENTARY.
God rules over everything, even the hearts of men. For this reason Jacob said when he sent his sons back to Egypt: “May Almighty God make the man favourable to you.” God governs the hearts of men by His grace. “As the division of the waters, so is the heart of the king in the hand of the Lord. Whithersoever He will, He shall turn it” (Prov. 21, 1).
Love for parents. The first thing Joseph did was to ask after his father. While he was at home, Joseph had loved, honoured and obeyed him, and been a joy to him; and now, though he had become so distinguished, rich and powerful, he still loved his father dearly, and was most anxious for news of his welfare. He thus observed the Fourth Commandment.
Love for brothers and sisters. Joseph sincerely loved his brothers. He meant well by them, and was severe to them only for the purpose of doing them good. As soon as he was sure that Benjamin had suffered no harm from them, he was kind to them. He did not return evil for evil, but rather good for evil. They had sold him for money, and he, in return, gave them plenty of corn. They had thrown him into a pit and nearly starved him; he took them into his house, and feasted them royally. They had treated him as a rogue and a slave; he had them waited on like princes. They remained unmoved, when he prayed for
¹ Touched. Benjamin had been quite a little child when Joseph was sold.
² Washed his face. So that they might not see that he had been weeping.
³ Five times more. By doing this, Joseph not only wished to distinguish and favour his younger brother, but he also wished to see if his brothers envied Benjamin, as they had envied him.
⁴ They wondered. They could not understand how this Egyptian governor could know which was eldest &c. With the exception of Benjamin, they were all grown men of over forty, and, at that time of life, it is not easy to judge the difference of age.
— XXIV. JOSEPH’S SILVER CUP.
mercy: he was so moved by the sight of them and their anxieties that he could not restrain his tears. Is he not a noble and beautiful character? Would that all brothers and sisters loved each other like that!
Restitution. Jacob bade his sons take back with them the money which they had found in their sacks; the reason which he gave being that it might have been put there by mistake. Jacob was, we can see by this, upright and conscientious, and wished to restore what he had found to its owner. “If”, said he to himself, “this Egyptian governor refuses to take money for the corn, and has had the money returned in the sacks on purpose, then we can keep it with a clear conscience; but if it has been given back by mistake, I will, anyhow, return it, and then my conscience cannot reproach me.”
APPLICATION. How do you behave to your brothers and sisters? Do you provoke or strike them? And are you angry and revengeful when they have injured you? Do you often quarrel with them? Where, then, is your love for them? You ought to love all your neighbours; and surely your brothers and sisters are nearer to you than any one else, and you ought to love them more than any one else.
Do you really love your parents? Do you ever vex or grieve them? You will have neither happiness nor blessing in life, if you do not honour your parents.
Have you kept anything which does not belong to you? Have you always restored anything you have found to its owner, or returned the money when too much change has been given to you &c.?
JOSEPH MAKES HIMSELF KNOWN TO HIS BRETHREN
JOSEPH could no longer restrain himself, and, therefore, he commanded his officers and servants to retire¹. Then, with tears² and sobs, he said: “I am Joseph. Is my father³ yet living?” His brothers could not answer him, being struck with exceeding great fear⁴. But Joseph said mildly to them: “Come nearer to me. I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. Fear nothing, for God sent me⁵ before you into Egypt for your preservation.”
Then he said: “Make haste, and go ye up to my father, and say to him: ‘Thus saith thy son Joseph: Come down to me; linger not; and thou shalt dwell in the land of Gessen; and thou
¹ Retire. They were all Egyptians. He wished to talk undisturbed with his brothers, and also not to make known their guilt to others.
² Tears. His heart was so moved that he had to weep, before he could utter a word.
³ My father. How he loved his father! He asked repeatedly after him, in order to hear over and over again the glad news that he was still alive.
⁴ Great fear. Their guilty consciences made them fear that Joseph would now revenge himself on them.
⁵ God sent me. He meant: It was by God’s Providence that I came here, and became governor over Egypt, in order to save you and the Egyptians from starvation. He wished to comfort them and find excuses for them, and thus give them courage.
KNECHT, Commentary, 1. 3. ed. — 114 XXV. JOSEPH MAKES HIMSELF KNOWN TO HIS BRETHREN.
shalt be near me, thou and thy sons.” Then, falling upon the neck of Benjamin, he wept, and Benjamin wept also in like manner. Then he embraced all his brethren, and wept over them, after which they were emboldened to speak to him.
The news went abroad in the king’s court: The brethren of Joseph are come. And Pharao, with all his family, was glad. He told Joseph to invite his father and his brethren to come to Egypt. Joseph gave his brothers chariots and provisions for the way. He ordered two robes to be given to each of them, but to Benjamin he gave five robes of the best, with three hundred pieces of silver. Besides, he gave them rich presents for their father, and warned them not to be angry¹ on the way
COMMENTARY.
Providence. “Not by your counsel was I sent hither, but by the will of God”, said Joseph to his brothers. He understood that it was by God’s permission that he was sold by them. It was, indeed, a great crime which the brothers committed. It was not by God’s will that the evil was done, because He, being holy, can will no evil; but He permitted it, and so guided matters that good came out of evil. The good that came out of it was threefold. Firstly, Joseph’s virtue was tried and strengthened, and subsequently rewarded by his exaltation. Secondly, his own relatives and all the Egyptians were saved from starvation. Thirdly, his brothers were converted.
Forgiveness of others. Just think how cruelly his brothers had behaved to the innocent Joseph. Being the powerful governor of Egypt, he could easily have had them cast into prison or killed, or he could have kept them as his slaves. Instead of this he freely forgave them. He did not even reproach them, but, on the contrary, made excuses for them, and loaded them with presents. Was not that beautiful and magnanimous?
Joseph as a type of Jesus Christ. We saw in chapt. XXI in how many ways Joseph is a type of our Blessed Lord. In this present chapter we can see a still further resemblance in him to the Divine Saviour. As Joseph forgave and excused his brethren, so did our Lord, hanging on the Cross, forgive His enemies, and pray for them: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do!”
The terror of sinners at the Last Judgment. When Joseph said to his brethren: “I am Joseph!” they were so full of fear that they could
¹ Not to be angry. He feared that they might begin to reproach one another, and each one make out that the others had had the greater share in the cruelty actised on Joseph. On this account, he admonished them to keep the peace.
— XXVI. JACOB GOES INTO EGYPT.
not speak. How much greater will be the fear of sinners at the Last Judgment, when Jesus appears in power and majesty, and says: “I am Jesus, whom you have persecuted, and injured and crucified by your sins!”
APPLICATION. Joseph’s example teaches us that we should from our hearts forgive those who have injured us, and return good for the evil they have done to us. The love of our enemies is, therefore, a beautiful and great virtue, which we Christians are bound to practise.
Brothers and sisters ought to love one another. Joseph’s exhortation to his brethren: “Be not angry in the way”, applies especially to them.
Genesis 45:25
JACOB GOES INTO EGYPT
[Genesis 45, 25 to 46]
WHEN Joseph’s brethren returned to their father, they told him: “Joseph, thy son, is living, and he is ruler in all the land of Egypt.” But Jacob did not believe them, till they showed him the chariots and all the presents that Joseph had sent. Then he awoke, as it were, from a deep sleep¹; his spirit revived², and he said: “It is enough for me, if Joseph, my son, be yet living³. I will go and see him, before I die.”
And he set out for Egypt, with his whole family⁴ and all his possessions. When he had reached the confines of Chanaan, he offered a sacrifice⁵ to God, who spoke to him in a vision of
¹ Sleep. When a person dreams something terrible and alarming, and then wakes up and finds that there is no real cause for fear, he feels relieved and consoled. Jacob had hitherto mourned for his son Joseph, as for one dead — and now he heard that he was alive! His former grief was like a terrible dream of the past, and it was as if a heavy load were removed from his heart. However, it seemed so wonderful that Joseph, whose blood-stained coat he had seen with his own eyes, should be alive, and a great ruler in Egypt, that he could not believe it to be true, until he saw the waggons and costly gifts he had sent.
² Revived. His spirit, crushed by grief, recovered itself, and he felt happy.
³ Yet living. It is quite enough for me to know that my son is alive. That he is rich and powerful is but a secondary consideration. I do not want anything in this world except to see him once more.
⁴ His whole family. Jacob’s sons were nearly all married, and had children. In all, Jacob’s family, without counting the wives, amounted to seventy persons.
⁵ Sacrifice. Jacob found himself on the point of again leaving the land which God had promised to give to him and his descendants, and of going with
S* — XXVI. JACOB GOES INTO EGYPT.
the night, saying: “Fear not, go down into Egypt, for I will make a great nation of thee there, and will bring thee back again from thence.” Consoled by the vision, Jacob continued his journey, and arrived in Egypt.
Juda went on in advance to apprise Joseph of his father’s approach. Joseph immediately made ready his chariot, and went out to meet his father. As soon as he saw him coming, he descended from his chariot and embraced him, weeping.
And Jacob said to Joseph: “Now I shall die with joy, because I have seen thy face, and leave thee alive.” Joseph presented his father to Pharao, who asked him: “How many are the years of thy life?” Jacob answered: “The days of my pilgrimage¹ are a hundred and thirty years, few² and evil³, and they are not come up to the days of the pilgrimage of my fathers.” Then Jacob, having blessed the king, retired. And Joseph gave his father and his brothers possessions in the land of Gessen⁴, the most beautiful and fertile part of Egypt.
COMMENTARY.
The love of parents for their children. You can see by the example of Jacob, how very strong is the love which parents have for their children. He had mourned for Joseph for twenty-three long years, and the moment he heard that he was alive, full of fatherly love, he cried out that he asked for nothing more on earth than to see his son Joseph once more. Then, too, how troubled he was about the prisoner Simeon, and how anxious about Benjamin! He proved his love for Joseph by his actions, for out of love for him he left his home, notwithstanding his infirmities, and undertook a long and difficult journey. Parents are only too willing to do all they can for their children.
all his family into a strange country. Very likely the doubt arose in his mind, whether he were doing right. He desired that Almighty God would make known His will to him, and he wished, in case he were acting rightly, to ask the Lord’s gracious protection for his journey. God heard Jacob’s prayer, and gave him a threefold assurance: firstly, that he might without fear proceed on his way; secondly, that his descendants would become a great people in Egypt; and thirdly, that God would bring his people back to Chanaan.
¹ My pilgrimage. i. e. my life.
² Few. In comparison with those of his fathers, Abraham lived to be 175, Isaac 180, and Noe 950 years old.
³ Evil. He called his days evil, because he had had so much trouble in his life.
⁴ Gessen. The north-eastern part of Egypt. — XXVI. JACOB GOES INTO EGYPT.
Love and respect for parents. This story shows us the love and respect which Joseph had for his father. Joseph acted as he did, although his father was a shepherd, and shepherds were despised in Egypt. Moreover, by reason of the famine, Jacob had become poor. Joseph, however, was not ashamed of the humble and poor condition of his father, but showed him every open mark of respect that he could.
Respect for old age. King Pharao paid respect to Jacob, not only because he was Joseph’s father, but because of his old age. We should always respect old age. “Rise up before the hoary head, and honour the person of the aged man” (Lev. 19, 32).
Prayer for light. Jacob prayed and offered up a sacrifice, in order to learn God’s will. If we are in doubt, we should seek counsel not only from our parents, confessor &c., but we should pray to the Holy Ghost for light.
Consolation in suffering. Once both Jacob and Joseph wept for sorrow; now they wept for joy. After the rain comes sunshine, and after sorrow comes joy, often in this world, but most certainly in the next, if the sufferings are borne with patience and resignation. “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes: and death shall be no more, nor mourning nor crying” (Apoc. 21, 4).
Life is a pilgrimage. God’s servants know that they are stranger, and pilgrims on earth. “The years of my pilgrimage have been few and evil”, said old Jacob. His life had, indeed, been one of unrest, pain, and danger. He had had to leave his home, when he was quite young, and live for many years in exile and servitude. After his return home, there fell on him the heavy blow of Joseph’s loss. Then came the great famine; and now, towards the end of his life, he found himself once more in a strange country, far from the Promised Land. He looked back sadly on his years of pilgrimage, and told the king that they had been evil. But, at the same time, he looked onward to that better and imperishable home, which is the aim and end of our earthly pilgrimage. Comparing his life in this world with that which is eternal, he said that his long years of pilgrimage had been few. “For we have not here a lasting city” (Hebr. 13, 14); we are but pilgrims on the road to eternity. Heaven is our home. We should not, therefore, cling to the things of this earth, but should, above all things, seek the kingdom of God. St. Peter writes: “I beseech you, as strangers and pilgrims, to refrain yourselves from carnal desires” (1 Pet. 2, 11).
God’s Wisdom, shown by His guidance of the Israelites. Why did Almighty God’s wise Providence send Jacob and his family into Egypt? In order that Jacob’s descendants, His chosen people, should not be led into idolatry. The danger of this would have been very great in Chanaan, where they lived surrounded by idolaters. Esau had already made himself one with the children of Heth. Had Jacob’s descendants
— 118 XXVII. THE PROPHECY AND DEATH OF JACOB AND JOSEPH.
remained in Chanaan, they would either have got scattered among the heathen, or they would have died out. They could not have developed into an independent nation. In Egypt it was different. The Israelites lived in a district of their own, cut off from and despised by the Egyptians, on account of their being shepherds: thus the danger of falling away from the true God was less. Besides this, God knew that His chosen people would be purified by their long course of servitude and suffering, and would be, as it were, forced by want and persecution, to place all their confidence in God and look to Him as their only Helper and Saviour. Lastly, Jacob’s descendants would learn much that was valuable from the Egyptians, these being far ahead of the Chanaanites in agriculture, the arts, and all social laws and institutions. By this means, the Israelites would be educated for their high vocation.
APPLICATION. Say the first words of the Our Father: “Our Father who art in heaven”, with great devotion. Excite in yourself a longing for heaven, and say: “Thy kingdom come.” To win heaven is the most important business of our lives.