Dede Chandler

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But imagine with me for a moment what this reunion scene would look like if the “send off” moment was not joyous. What if the family, instead of saying “I love you,” said things like “I hate you,” “I’m glad you’re gone,” or “I hope to never see you again”? How would that display of emotion change the reunion? Theoretically, there might not be a reunion! The families might stand apart, arms crossed, giving each other a weary eye. If first impressions are “everything,” then last impressions are “almost everything.”

Genesis 45:1–5 narrates one of the most emotional and powerful scenes in the entire Bible: Joseph is reunited with his brothers. But think about it, when these brothers said their “goodbye,” it was it was just like the imaginative scene above. Joseph’s brothers hated him, betrayed him, and sold him into slavery. But surprisingly, when we might expect a “non-reunion” of hate, we get get a joyous, emotional, and loving homecoming. We get the “good kind” of reunion… but how? How can Joseph have a joyous reunion with his brothers, when they wronged him so bad before? How could he have forgiven his brothers, when they had done him such evil? The answer lies in his belief about his God.

The Scene of Forgiveness (Genesis 45:1–3)

Twenty-two years have passed since Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery in Genesis 37. Back in Genesis 42, Joseph first saw his brothers, coming to buy food. After tests of honesty (Genesis 42), jealousy (Genesis 43), and loyalty (Genesis 44), Joseph was convinced his brothers had changed, matured, and were different men. Joseph had longed to reveal himself to his brothers, and now in Genesis 45 he cannot hold back any longer.

In a display of raw emotion, Joseph dismisses his attendants, weeps openly in front of his brothers, and yells “I am Joseph”! (Genesis 45:3). The brothers, understandably so, are dismayed and confused at this sudden revelation. We can imagine what was going through their minds: if this is Joseph, then what is going to do to us? Although the brothers probably expected punishment (after all, they had been struggling with their guilty consciences since Genesis 42), Joseph gives them a surprising and loving lesson about God.

The Basis for Forgiveness (Genesis 45:4–13)

How could Joseph forgive his brothers after all the wrong they’d done to him? Two reasons:

Joseph believed God sovereignly preserves life.

Joseph understood God’s character and that God is sovereign, that is, he is ruler, king, and commander over all. Nothing surprises God. He is involved in everything that happens. Therefore, Joseph was able to say three times that “God sent me” to Egypt (see vv. 5, 7, and 8). Joseph knew God sent him ahead of his family to help preserve a remnant of his family and to ensure his family would survive. The famine was still raging, and in fact, it would get worse as it continued for another five years. But Joseph was there, in the perfect condition, to provide for his family. Why did God send Joseph? God is not just a promise-making God, he is a promise-keeping God! God made promises to Joseph’s great-grandfather starting in Genesis 12, and now God was upholding his promises (covenants) through Joseph. This is the consistent message of the Bible: God keeps his promises (see also Psalm 105:7-22; 2 Corinthians 1:18–21).

Joseph believed God can use anything, including evil, for his purposes.

God’s character is such that he is more powerful than ever our worst intentions. When Joseph revealed himself to his brothers, they were understandably worried. After all, the last time they saw Joseph he was probably screaming as he was being carried off into slavery. But now, the brothers stood before the second-most powerful man in Egypt, a man with enough power to do whatever he wanted to do. Would Joseph make them slaves? Would he execute them? Would he lock them in prison? Surprisingly, Joseph assures them “do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here” (v. 5). Joseph knew it was not his brothers who sent him to Egypt, but God (v. 8). Why does God work this way? God desires to demonstrate his power, not just in spite of the evil in the world, but through the evil in the world. This is consistent with the message of the Bible. God uses the bad things of the world for his purposes. (See Proverbs 16:4; 19:21; Romans 8:28; Luke 22:22.) God used the evil intentions of Joseph’s brothers to save their family and keep God’s promises.

Here is an important aside: although God uses the sinful actions of people to accomplish his purposes (remember, God is sovereign), that does not excuse their sin. We are always responsible for our sin. In Luke 22:22, mentioned above, Jesus says he is going to die, as it has been determined, by being betrayed. There is no getting around this fact. However, Jesus also says “woe to that man by whom he is betrayed,” meaning, the betrayer will pay the consequences of his sin. In the same way, even though God used the sin of Joseph’s brothers for good, the family still paid consequences for that sin. The brothers carried around a guilty conscience for twenty-two years. Jacob suffered the anguish of “losing” a son. There is a balance, expressed here, between God’s divine sovereignty and human responsibility. Again, this is the consistent message of the Bible.

So the basis of Joseph’s forgiveness was his belief in God’s sovereignty and his belief that God can use even sinful circumstances for his purposes.

The Results of Forgiveness (Genesis 45:14–15)

Because Joseph was able to forgive, we see a joyous, emotional, and tearful reunion between brothers who have not spoken to each other in twenty-two years. Brothers who could not even speak a peaceable word to Joseph (Genesis 37:4) are now able to speak in love (Genesis 45:15). Don’t you think they had lots to talk about?!

Conclusions

1. Forgiveness is rarely easy. People hurt us, our feelings are damaged, and we struggle to move on. Forgiveness, although necessary, is a difficult and slow process. Even after we forgive, we still feel the effects of how we were hurt.
2. God is sovereign over all things. Nothing surprises God. He is in control of the situation. He can use the difficult things in our lives, and even our own sin, for good.
3. God’s sovereignty is the basis for our forgiveness. Because God is in control, we can, we must, forgive. In a world in which God is sovereign, there is no room for retaliation or bitterness. God is using all these things for good, even if that “good” is tough.

Thomas Jefferson is quoted as saying “when the heart is right, the feet are swift.” I take this that Jefferson meant that when our heart is in the right place, our actions will quickly follow. I believe this passage tells us “when the heart believes the right things, the feet are swift.” When we believe the right things about God (that he is sovereign), it must affect our forgiveness. When our “vertical relationship” with God is correct, it must affect our “horizontal relationship” with others. Right beliefs and right actions go hand-in-hand.

Discussion Questions

• What do you need to believe about God?
• Who do you need to forgive because of your belief about God?
• Why is forgiveness so hard?
• How does our “right belief” affect our “right actions”? What keeps this from being true sometimes?

Jeannie Ralston

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