Joseph Reveals Himself To His Brothers.

Jesus said to his disciples, I have  food to eat you know nothing about John 4:32.
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Joseph Reveals Himself To His Brothers.. 

 

Genesis 45:1 (NIV) 1 Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, "Have everyone leave my presence!" So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. 


Genesis 45:4 (NIV) 4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, "Come close to me." When they had done so, he said, "I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! 


J. Clayton Sheridan, II

With a burst of emotion Joseph revealed himself to his brothers. This (v. 2) was the third of five times he wept over his brothers (42:24; 43:30; 45:14; 50:17; cf. 50:1). They were stunned by the news, unable to speak for fear that Joseph might kill them. In this passage strong feelings and sound spiritual judgment and argument complete the work of reconciliation which till now had called for severe testing. It had been the task for a wise man, and over an extended period of time Joseph accomplished the task marvelously.

Joseph explained that God had sovereignty brought him to Egypt to prepare for their deliverance from famine. His words form a classic statement on providential control. God sent me ahead of you (45:5). It was not you who sent me here, but God (v. 8; cf. v. 9). The certainty that God’s will, not man’s, is the controlling reality in every event shined through as the basis for reconciliation. No doubt Joseph had consoled himself many times with this principle of faith. He who is spiritual can perceive the hand of God in every event, and therefore is able to forgive those who wrong him.1

Joseph then instructed his brothers to hurry back without delay to Jacob and inform him of Joseph’s power as “ruler of all Egypt,” 45:8, and lord of all Egypt, v. 9) and honor in all the land of Egypt (vv. 9, 13). The whole family must move to Egypt and live in the region of Goshen, a fertile area in the Nile Delta (cf. comments on 47:1-12), to dwell under Joseph’s rule, because God had prepared the way through all the circumstances.

Finally the brothers were reunited, first Joseph and Benjamin, then all of them. Those were emotion-filled moments, filled with weeping (cf. 42:24; 43:30; 45:2) and then conversation. Their previous hatred and jealousy of Joseph (37:4, 8, 11) was now gone.

The moving of the family: Instructions were given to the brothers to bring Jacob’s entire family to Egypt. Pharaoh himself instructed them to return, offering them the best of the land of Egypt, providing carts for transporting the family members back (cf. 46:5), and promising them the best of all Egypt.

Joseph gave his brothers elaborate provisions for their journey, including clothing, food and, for Jacob, the best things of Egypt. As they left, Joseph told his brothers not to quarrel on the way. This was not a time for accusations and recriminations. It was a time for joyful reunion. Yet he knew that they could fall out on the way home.

At first Jacob was stunned with unbelief at his sons’ report that Joseph was alive. But then, hearing their story and seeing what all Joseph had sent him, Jacob was convinced and immediately decided to make the move and see his son.

This royal invitation to Jacob, the old patriarch near the end of hope, and to the 10 brothers burdened with guilt, was a turning point in their lives and a fulfillment of God’s prediction (15:13-16) that they would go into isolation in a foreign country and multiply without losing their identity.2

Genesis 15:13-16 (NIV) 13 Then the LORD said to him, "Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. 14 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. 15 You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age. 16 In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure."

1 & 2  The Bible Knowledge Commentary   - Victor Books