THE K I NG ’ S BUS I NESS must not be confounded, but ever con tinue firm and steadfast in his calling. —Hall. There was no water in it. May be taken as a type of Hades, the under world, the abode of disembodied dead, of all the dead before the resurrection of Christ (Zech. 9:11). It was here our Lord as to His soul abode between death and resurrection.—Haldeman. v. 25. Sat down to eat. They take their ease as if they had well done their work. Conscience is secure, sin is asleep, yet God sees all.-—Luther. The Pharisees who delivered Jesus sat down to the Passover, while the soldiers who had parted His garments sat down to watch Him.— Gaebelein. What a grim meal! With what heart could they say grace either before or after meat? What an indication of their seared consciences and deadened affections!—LThos. Puller. v. 27. Let ns sell him. A Judas sold Joseph and a Judas sold Christ.— Comp. Bible. He prefers the paltry gain from selling Joseph to the unprofitable lux ury of killing him. Hatred darkening to murder is bad enough, but hatred which has also an eye to business and makes a profit out of a brother is a shade or two blacker.-S-Maclaren. It affords relief and pleasure to return from the crafty changeable Jacob to his lovable, trusty and stable Joseph. It is difficult to account for Joseph’s good traits of char- MY acter with such a father GIRLS and grandfather on his mother’s side. As we read these last chapters of Genesis it seems that all wickedness of the father has been visited upon the ten sons and the daughter, while Joseph and Benjamin apparently have inherited only the good traits. We can only account for it by the place that God had in Joseph’s life. “ How can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (39:9). We have divided Genesis into two divisions, the first eleven chapters cov ering four familiar facta. Creation, Fall,
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coming were the same in spirit and meaning as those the Jews used to Jesus (Matt. 21:38; 27:40-2).—Tor- rey. “ Dreamer” is literally “ master of dreams;” a hitter, ironical sneer.— J. P. & B. It may seem foolish for Joseph to have made known his dreams to his brethren and thus increase their enm ity, but we should consider God’s pur pose in the matter. These dreams were .really prophecies which they needed to know.— Gray. It is not easy to for give a man who has dreamed an unpleasant dream concerning us. The world’s dreamers have never had an easy lot.S-Parker. v. 20. Let us slay him. In the same guilty spirit the Jews took counsel to slay the Son of God.— Haldeman. You can slay the dreamer hut you cannot touch the dream. You may poison the preacher, hut what power have you over his doctrine?— People’s Bible. We will say. Bad men have to argue upon what they are going to say. They can not afford to he' inconsistent and dis crepant in their statements.— Parker. v. 23. They stript Joseph. Just as the slayers of Jesus heartlessly gambled for His garments at the foot of the cross.— Torrey. Coat of many colours. In giv ing this splendid coat to his son, Jacob publicly exalted Joseph and declared his coming lordship (cf. Phil. 2:10-11). — Haldeman. v. 24. Cast him into a pit. It was tes timony which brought Joseph down to the pit. Had he kept hack his testi mony or taken off aught of its edge and power, he might have spared himself, but no, he told them the truth and therefore they hated him. Thus it was with Joseph’s great antitype— His tes timony to the truth was answered on man’s part by the Cross, vinegar and the soldier’s spear.—^McIntosh. The pit was intended to he his grave and may be taken as a type of the death and burial of Jesus.—Torrey. Though a Christian does not always prosper, though difficulties beset his way, he
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