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not be returned (vs. 30, 31). Finally, Judah very simply offers himself as a bondslave in the stead of his younger brother. The plea was so moving that it broke through all the reserve and self-control of Joseph, and “ he wept aloud” (45:1, 2). 1 2. As Dr. Jamieson has pointed out, the very literary form of the speech shows that Judah’s heart was in his plea. It consists at first of “ short and broken sentences, as if, under the overwhelming forces of the speak er’s emotions, his utterance were choked until it becomes.more free and copious by the effort of speaking, as he proceeds.” We can almost hear the sob in Judah’s throat as he speaks in verse 20: “W e have a father, An old man, And a child of his old age, A little one; And his brother is dead, And he alone is left of his mother, And his father loveth him.” 3. We should not forget that as Judah made his great plea, Benjamin was listen ing. And it may well be, as some one has suggested, that the magnanimous offer of Judah to become a slave in the stead of Benjamin may have marked the beginning of that special tie between the two tribes that appears in their later history. Golden Text Illustration H ebrews 13:1 Just before the Battle o f Trafalgar in which the gallant Nelson lost his life, he was engaged in giving instructions to his officers. When he inquired of Admiral Col- lingwood where his captain was, he was told that he and Captain Rotherham were not on good terms with each other. Nelson exclaimed, in tones of kind reproach: “Terms I Not on good terms with each other!” And then, sending a boat for Cap tain Rotherham, he led him promptly to Collingwood. Placing their hands together, he pointed to the enemy’s ships, and looking them both in the face, uttered the simple words: “Look, yonder is the enemy.” It was enough; the two officers forgot their dis agreements and fought side by side till victory crowned their heroism.— ljQ.00 Acts and Facts, by Pickering. Benjamin’s Big Brother G enesis , C hapters 43 and 44 Memory Verse: “This commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also” (1 John 4:21). Approach: Joseph had a hard time find ing his ten brothers, but at last he came to the place where they were. But when they saw him coming, some wanted to kill him;
plained that his father was an old man whose very life was bound with that o f his youngest son, Benjamin. This consideration for Jacob, and for the object of his affection, manifested a complete reversal in the brothers’ line of thinking. Jacob had also loved Joseph tenderly, yet the brothers had sold him because they hated him. Their anger had been aroused because their father had showed more favor to Joseph than to them. They did not hesitate at that time to do what they knew would break their father’s heart. But now, after years had passed, they showed no bitterness toward Benjamin although their father manifested more affection for him than for themselves (vs. 18-20). On behalf of his father, Judah attempted to move Joseph’s heart by appealing first to his sense of fairness, and then to his sym pathy (vs. 21, 22). “Thou saidst . . . Bring him” (v. 21), Judah reminded Joseph, and the brothers had obeyed. Judah recalled also how he had told Joseph at the first that “the lad cannot leave his father: for if he should leave his father, his father would die” (v. 22). II. T he A ppeal for H is F ather (23-31) Judah made plain to Joseph that the brethren had carried his previous message to Jacob, their father (vs. 23, 24). No word is recorded in regard to Jacob’s recep tion of the message, but we can imagine that as he saw the store of food disappear ing gradually, the father’s heart would be come increasingly anxious concerning Ben jamin. The fear that Benjamin would be lost to him, and the memory of Joseph’s loss, would certainly show in his demeanor, and this in turn would wring the hearts of his other sons as they remembered how deceitfully they had treated their father at an earlier time. All of these factors would serve to wear down their stubbornness and, unknown to them, would lead them toward repentance. Finally, Judah continued, their supply of foou was exhausted, and Jacob told his sons to go to purchase a fresh supply from the overlord of Egypt (vs. 25-29). They had remarked to their father that it would be useless to go without taking Benjamin with them. Because of the acuteness of their need, Benjamin was entrusted to the brothers’ care and sent with them to Egypt on the second journey. But, Judah reasoned, should Benjamin not return to his father, “thy servant shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to the grave” (vs. 30, 31). It speaks volumes concerning the deep desire of Joseph’s heart — the longing to bring his brethren to full repentance—that he could remain calm outwardly while Judah pleaded on behalf of his father. Joseph must have yearned to make himself known to his brethren and to send them back to Jacob with the comforting message that both of his absent sons were safe—? the son whom he thought was lost, and the son whom he feared he was losing. In Joseph’s treatment of those who were dear to him, patience and love prompted his action. Far more tender and long-suffering is the heavenly Father who “ waits to be gracious.” His backslidden children are a
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grief to Him, and He would gladly have them restored to fellowship with Him at once. But God knows (and Joseph evidently knew also) that'to bring the backslider back to the father’s house before he is truly re pentant would result in worse conditions than prevail during his wandering. III. T he A ffection for H is F ather (32-34) Judah told Joseph that he, Judah, had become surety for his brother (v. 32). When the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack, Judah might have said, “Well, since he tried to steal the cup, let him bear the consequences.” But with no word of blame for Benjamin, Judah pleaded that he him self be allowed to take Benjamin’s place and become the slave of Joseph, while Benjamin should be set free (v. 33). Here we have a faint foreshadowing of what actually did take place on Calvary when the Lord Jesus Christ took the sinner’s place. There our Lord, in providing atonement for sin, said in effect to the Judge of all the earth, “Let thy servant” be the Bondman, and “ let the lad go” free to return to his Father’s arms (cf. vs. 32, 33). Through the years, a deep change had been wrought in the hearts of Jacob’s sons. Those who had sinned grievously could not bear to see the evil that should come upon their father should Benjamin be left behind in Egypt (cf. v. 34). W e are reminded again of the work of Christ upon the cross, which had in View the satisfaction of the heart of God as well as the provision of salvation for sinning humanity. God’s heart could never be satisfied until His erring ones were brought to Him. To accomplish this union, the Lord Jesus Christ, through whom alone can. fellowship with the Father be established, willingly become the sinner’s Substitute. The speech of Judah, delivered for the purpose of saving Benjamin from Egyptian slavery and of restoring him to his aged father, is one of the finest speci mens of pleading found in all of literature .. Even if one should not be interested in the spiritual and moral lessons of the incident, it would pay to study the speech as a perfect literary model of convincing appeal. Notice the structure and method: The speaker be gins with a courteous and deferential bid for considerate hearing (Gen. 44:18). Next he rehearses the chain of events which brought Benjamin down into Egypt against his father’s desire (vs. 19-29), dwelling with especial emphasis on the father’s old age, his love for the youngest son, and the probable sorrowful end should Benjamin Points and Problems 1.
another said to put him in a near-by pit, a deep hole in the ground. And that is what they did, and they left Joseph there until they had a chance to sell him as a slave to some trad ers who were pass ing on their w ay. to E g y p t . Then the
wicked brothers went home to their father and let him believe that wild beasts' had killed Joseph. ^ V i s i © 1
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