Old Testament Lesson #12 "Fruitful in the Land of My Affliction"

(Genesis 40-45)

TRUE BIRTHRIGHT SONS

In the three generations following Abraham, we have met brothers Ishmael and Isaac, Esau and Jacob, and Reuben and Joseph.  There are many striking similarities in the three generations. 

• The older brother had evil or even murderous intent toward his younger brother, who should have been his charge. 
1. Ishmael mocked and persecuted Isaac (Gen. 21:9; Gal 4:29).  According to the historian Josephus, Sarah had concerns that Ishmael would kill Isaac after their father's death (see "Abraham's Wives" in a previous post.)
2. Esau intended to kill Jacob after their father's death (Gen. 27:41).
3. Joseph's older brothers considered killing him, then sold him as a slave instead (Gen. 37).
• The brothers were estranged for many years.
1. Ishmael and his mother were sent into the wilderness (Gen. 21:14).
2. Rebekah sent Jacob to Haran to protect him from Esau (Gen. 27:42-44).  He ended up staying twenty years (Gen. 31:41).
3. Joseph was sold into Egypt while the rest of his family remained in Canaan (Gen. 37).
• The younger brother had many trials, but remained righteous.
1. Isaac was offered as a sacrifice to Jehovah by his father (Gen. 22:9).  Isaac had to wait to the age of 40 to find a covenant wife (Gen. 25:20), and they had to wait 20 years to have children (Gen. 25:26).
2. Jacob was tricked into marrying Leah, had to work twice as long as planned to earn Rachel, and his father-in-law cheated him continually (Gen. 29-30).
3. Joseph was sold into slavery, framed as a sex offender, and forgotten in prison (Gen. 39-40).
• The younger brother had great spiritual experiences.
1. Isaac was present when the angel of the Lord spoke to his father at the altar (Gen. 22:11-12).  The hand of the Lord was obvious when Abraham's servant went to find a covenant wife for Isaac (Gen. 24).  Isaac also received personal revelation restating the covenant (Gen. 26:2-5; 24).
2. Jacob saw the vision of the ladder going into heaven (Gen. 28).  He also received direction from an angel in a dream (Gen. 31:11-13).  He saw angels again while traveling home (Gen. 32:1).  Jacob's name was changed to Israel by an angel (Gen. 32:28).
3. Joseph had the ability to receive and to interpret dreams that were revelations (Gen 41:16,25).
• The older brother did not follow righteousness.
1. There is not any information about Ishmael in this regard, except that the Ishmaelites became a heathen nation (Bible Dictionary p. 707).
2. Esau disregarded the birthright (Gen. 25:32), and married Hittite women (Gen. 26:34-35).
3. See "Opposites" in the previous post for the many escapades of Joseph's brothers.
• The younger brother earned the right to be the birthright son.
1. The Lord established His covenant through Isaac (Gen. 17:18-19), and Abraham gave him all that he had (Gen. 25:5).
2. Rebekah overrode her husband, and arranged the birthright blessing for Jacob (Gen. 27).
3. Joseph was given the coat of many colors (Gen. 37:3), which LDS scholars consider to be symbolic of the birthright.  After his sojourn in Egypt, he was able to take care of his family's welfare (Gen 45).
4. This carried on to the fourth generation as patriarch Israel blessed Joseph's younger son Ephraim with the birthright (Gen. 48:14-20).
• The older brother eventually mended his ways.
1. We have no details about Ishmael.
2. Esau married a third wife who was of the family of Abraham (Gen. 28:8-9).
3. Joseph's brothers felt remorse for their treatment of him (Gen. 42:21-22); they consequently treated their youngest brother, Benjamin, with much care, offering their own lives or children's lives for his on three occasions (Gen. 42:37; 43:9; 44:33-34).
• The younger brother prospered...eventually.
1. Isaac had a hundredfold return in one year (Gen. 26:12-14).
2. Despite the cheating of Laban, Jacob cleverly increased his own herds (Gen. 30:37-43) and gave the glory to God (Gen. 31:7-9).
3. Joseph became a leader in Potipher's house, in prison, and in all of Egypt (Gen. 38-41).
• The younger, birthright brother treated the older brother with great kindness, compassion, and forgiveness.
1. There are no details about Isaac and Ishmael.
2. When he returned to his homeland and his murderous brother, Jacob did not bring an army, but gifts of reconciliation (Gen. 33:11).
3. Joseph sold his brothers food, then returned their money to them (Gen. 42:28; 44:1).  When he revealed himself to them, after testing their integrity, he frankly forgave them, and encouraged them to forgive themselves (Gen. 45:5-8).
• The brothers were reconciled and reunited.
1. Isaac and Ishmael together buried their father (Gen. 25:9).  Although there have been centuries of feuding between the descendants of Isaac and Ishmael (the Jews and the Arabs), attempts at reconciliation continue through the missionary work of the House of Israel, and in political organizations such as Ishmael & Isaac.
2. "Esau ran to meet [Jacob], and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept" (Gen. 33: 4).
3. Joseph invited his brothers to live near him in Egypt where he could take care of them (Gen. 45:10-11).  He "kissed all his brethren and wept upon them" (Gen. 45:15).  He sent Pharoah's wagons and provisions with them to Canaan to move their families to Egypt (Gen. 45:19).

Whenever we see such repetition in the scriptures, we can be sure that the Lord is trying to teach us something. These stories teach us great truths about birthright sons.


THE PRODIGAL SON

Jesus Christ taught a parable to the Jews, the descendants of Judah, Joseph's older brother. As it is a part of our scriptures, He is still trying to teach that parable to us today.

"A certain man had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want" (Luke 15:11-14). The prodigal ("wasteful") son was reduced to poverty and starvation before he decided to return home to his father prepared to beg forgiveness, intending to say, "'Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.' And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him" (Luke 15:18-20). The father hastened to make a feast to welcome his son back wholeheartedly and invited his whole household to celebrate.  This is the beautiful part of the story.  Now comes the ugly part: The other son reacted with bitterness. He complained about a feast being given for his brother when he had always done what his father wanted and never got a calf or a ring.  The father, surprised by this jealousy, pointed out that the older son had been greatly blessed all along and would be in the future because of his obedience.  With this reminder, the story ends abruptly, leaving us to choose for ourselves the older son's reaction.

If we have learned the lessons of the birthright taught three times in Genesis, we will not miss the message of the parable, and neither should have the Jews in Christ's day.  The parable has at least two interpretations:

First, we as the House of Israel, the members of the Church, most of us direct descendants of Joseph through Ephraim, are the birthright sons and daughters. Those who have willfully or wanderingly left the Church family are the younger brothers. We have "ever been with our Father" and have been blessed accordingly. If we are one with Christ, we will be on the road, watching and ready for the return of our younger (or less spiritually mature) siblings. Our "bowels [will] yearn upon [our] brothers," as did Joseph's (Gen. 43:30). We will rejoice at their progress, even when they are still "a great way off," as did the father of the prodigal son.  We will greet them with generosity rather than enmity, as did Jacob, saying, "Take, I pray thee, my blessing that is brought to thee; because God hath dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough" (Gen. 33:11).  Rather than resent any troubles our siblings have brought upon us by their errors, we will recognize, as did Joseph, that it was all a part of the plan: "God sent [us] before [them] to...save [their] lives by a great deliverance" (Gen. 45:7). If we are true birthright sons, our attitude will reflect that of the repentant Judah, who refused to leave Egypt without his younger brother Benjamin, saying, "How shall I go up to my father, and the lad be not with me?" (Gen. 44:34).

We can also learn a great truth from this parable if we put ourselves in the role of the prodigal son. Imagine what would have happened to us had Christ, our birthright Brother, behaved as the "good" son in the parable did! We, as the poorly behaved, short-sighted younger siblings, every one, find ourselves wandering off to riotous living to one degree or another, and ending up in the slop with the pigs. Christ, the birthright Son, our liaison with the Father, watches for us on the road, welcomes us back when we have only partly made the journey, walks with us the rest of the way, gives us a ring, and a robe, and a fatted calf, and forgives and even exalts us through His Atonement. We don't deserve a bit of it, and yet He gives it willingly, just as Joseph gave his brothers the life-saving grain! "Yea, [Christ] saith: Come unto me and ye shall partake of the fruit of the tree of life; yea, ye shall eat and drink of the bread and the waters of life freely" (Alma 5:34).

JOSEPH AS A TYPE OF CHRIST

(Teaching tip:  Print up the following statements about Joseph and Jesus Christ and cut them apart.  Pass all the papers out among the class members.  Have any class member who has a statement about Joseph read it aloud.  Those who have statements about Christ determine whether theirs is a match.  The matching statement is then read aloud.  This continues, in any order, until all statements have been read.)

Joseph was the favored son, the birthright son.
Jesus was the Only Begotten Son, the Birthright Son.

Joseph announced his prophecied position as leader of his family to his brothers, and they despised him for it.
Jesus announced himself as the prophecied King of the Jews, and they despised him for it.

Joseph was rejected by his brothers, the Israelites, and sold into the hands of the Gentiles.
Jesus was rejected by his "brothers," the Israelites, and sold into the hands of the Romans, the "Gentiles."

Judah proposed the sale of Joseph.  Judah became the head of the tribe of Judah, later known as the "Jews."
Leaders of the Jews turned Jesus over to the Romans.  Judas (the Greek form of the name "Judah") Proposed the sale.

Joseph was sold for 20 pieces of silver, the price of a slave his age.
Jesus was sold for 30 pieces of silver, the price of a slave his age.

Joseph began his mission of preparing salvation for Israel at age 30.
Jesus began His ministry of preparing salvation for the world at age 30.

In their very attempt to destroy Joseph, his brothers actually set up the conditions that would bring about their eventual temporal salvation--that is, Joseph, by virtue of being sold, would become their deliverer.
In their very attempt to destroy Jesus, the Jews actually set up the conditions that would bring about their spiritual salvation--that is, Jesus, by virtue of being crucified, completed the atoning sacrifice, becoming the Deliverer for all mankind, even those who sold Him and killed Him.

When Joseph was finally raised to his exalted position in Egypt, all bowed the knee to him.
When Jesus is finally raised to his exalted position as King of all creation, all will bow the knee to Him.

Joseph provided bread for Israel and saved them from death, all without cost to them.
Jesus, the Bread of Life, saved all men from death, all without cost to them.

Judah and the brothers of Joseph, even twenty years after selling him as a slave, were racked with guilt.
After the crucifixion, Judas was tortured by guilt.

When Joseph was reunited with his brethren, after determining whether they had truly repented, he forgave them, embraced them and wept.
When Jesus welcomes us back into His presence, after determining whether we have repented, He will forgive us, and embrace us.

The brothers of Joseph were saved from famine because they came to Joseph in Egypt and begged his mercy.
Christ saves all those who will come to Him and beg His mercy.

Joseph acted as mediator between his brothers and Pharoah, pleading their cause.
Jesus will plead our cause as Mediator between us and our Father in Heaven.

Pharoah provided a royal inheritance for the Israelites because they were the family of Joseph.
Heavenly Father will provide a royal inheritance for those who have become the children of Christ.

Joseph was in a position to save his family because of his righteousness, his reliance upon God, and his great personal effort in Egypt.
Jesus is in a position to save us because of His righteousness, His godliness, and His tremendous personal effort in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Joseph's brothers had a difficult time believing that he had really forgiven them of their great sin, but Joseph said, "'Fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones.' And he comforted them and spake kindly unto them" (Gen. 50:21).  At their father's death, those worries returned and they once again begged his forgiveness.  He was saddened that they had not believed they were forgiven seventeen years before (Gen. 50:15-17).
Many of us have a difficult time believing that Christ will really forgive us of our sins; we think they are too great, or too many times repeated.  But Christ said, "Will ye not now return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you?  Yea, verily, if ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life.  Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive; and blessed are those who come unto me" (3 Nephi 9:13-14).

Old Testament Lesson #11 "How Can I Do This Great Wickedness?"

(Genesis 34; 37-39)

THE IMPORTANCE OF JOSEPH

As near as we can guess, the Book of Genesis covers approximately 2,500 years. During this 2,500-year time period, a remarkable man lived whose name was Joseph. The very last verse of the very last chapter of Genesis tells us how long he lived: 110 years. 110 years is 4.4% of the time span of the Book of Genesis, yet the story of Joseph's life begins at Genesis 30:24 and ends at Genesis 50:26--40% of the book of Genesis is used to cover the 110-year history of Joseph! Obviously, the story of Joseph is very important (Russell M. Nelson, "Remnants, Gathered, Covenants Fulfilled, Voices of Old Testament Prophets, p. 4).

WATER VS. ROCK

How would you describe water to an alien from Mars? What does it look like? What color is it? What shape is it? The answer is that it depends upon the situation it is in: what is behind it, what is in it, what is underneath it, what is above it. The water of Bear Lake, Utah is a stunning turquoise blue in sunny weather. The water in the Black Sea of Russia is black in stormy weather. Yet the water in both has the same chemical composition: H2O. If you put water in a box, the water is square. If you put water in a vase, it's a cylinder. If you spill it on the floor, it's flat. If it evaporates into the air, it becomes invisible. If it gets too cold, it becomes solid.

A rock would be much easier to describe. Each individual rock is slightly different from another. You could say what shape it is, what size it is, what color it is. A rock does not change to match its environment. If you drop it on the ground, it's still the same shape, size and color. If you put it in a box, it's still the same shape, size and color. If it is larger than a vase, it will not change in order to fit, and you won't be able to put it in there. A rock is solid and stable.

This lesson is about water and rock.

THE FAMILY OF ISRAEL

To understand the story of the family of Jacob, renamed Israel, we need to know the characters.  Here are Jacob's sons, listed in order of birth.

1) Reuben, son of Leah
2) Simeon, son of Leah
3) Levi, son of Leah
4) Judah, son of Leah
5) Dan, son of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid
6) Naphtali, son of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid
7) Gad, son of Zilpah, Leah's handmaid
8) Asher, son of Zilpah, Leah's handmaid
9) Issacher, son of Leah
10) Zebulun, son of Leah
11) Joseph, son of Rachel
12) Benjamin, son of Rachel

THE MEANING OF THE BIRTHRIGHT

In Old Testament times, the father was the patriarch of the entire family.  His rule was nearly absolute, as was his responsibility for the welfare of his family.  He decided upon the marriage partners of his children.  He provided training, employment, and land for all his sons.  Any single women or orphaned children within the family had claim upon his care.  When he died, the right and responsibility of the patriarchy of the clan fell to the son who was born first, hence the term birthright.  Each of the sons would receive an equal inheritance at the father's death, except the birthright son.  He would receive double in order to carry out his responsibilities.

It was clear to see who was the birthright son when there was only one wife.  But with multiple wives, the question became confusing.  In addition, if the birthright son did not prove himself worthy in terms of righteousness and ability, he could lose the privilege to another son, as in the case of Jacob and Esau.

BYU Professor Victor Ludlow considers Joseph to have been second in line for the birthright:  "As the firstborn son of the first wife, Reuben was the birthright son. When Reuben proved to be unworthy by committing adultery...the birthright went to the firstborn son of Rachel (see 1 Chr. 5:1). Although Joseph was the eleventh-born son in order of birth, he was second in line for the birthright because he was the firstborn son of the second wife. Jacob had a special coat made for Joseph so that the other brothers would recognize Joseph’s right to preside over the family upon his father’s death" ("Question and Answer," Daniel H. Ludlow, Liahona, Sept. 1981, p. 33).

The writers of the Old Testament Student Manual for the Religion 310 Institute class, however, see most of the brothers as possible birthright candidates. The oldest child of Leah would be the obvious choice, she being the first wife. If he failed to earn it, it could fall to the oldest biological child of the second wife, which would be Joseph, but it also could likely fall to each of the remaining sons of the first wife, because they were all older than Joseph. The first sons of the concubines could also qualify, since their mothers were handmaids or property of the first and second wives. Each of them was older than Joseph (p. 93).

Israel, however, chose Joseph to be his birthright son.  Many Bible experts agree that the special "coat of many colors" likely was an expression of this pending privilege.  On his deathbed, Israel officially pronounced Joseph as the birthright son.

OPPOSITES

The Old Testament often teaches great principles by juxtaposing severely opposite stories.  Genesis 34 tells a ghastly tale.  Jacob's and Leah's daughter, Dinah, is raped by a local prince, Shechem, who then decides he wants to marry her (v. 2-3).  He's important enough that the area was probably named for him (33:18).  His father asks Jacob to let his son marry Dinah, offering any dowry they might ask (v. 6-12).  Apparently, she is being held at their city.  Jacob's response is not recorded, but her brothers, Simeon and Levi, tell these Canaanites that they will agree to the marriage if the Canaanites will all be circumcised.  Shechem did not delay (v. 19).  He and his men trusted the little fledgling clan of Israelites (v. 21).  Every man that "went out of the gate of his city," in other words, every man who was fit to go out in battle in defense of the city, was circumcised (Harper-Collins Study Bible).  When they were all in the worst pain, three days after the procedure, Simeon and Levi (probably with a band of their servants, their own fighting men), marched into the city and killed every one of the men (v. 25), including the king and his son (v. 26).  They grabbed Dinah, all the women and children of the city, and every bit of property (v. 27-29).  Jacob, who apparently was not privvy to these goings-on, chastised them and said, "Now we have to move.  Everyone here is going to be repulsed by us, and we are just a little band.  We'll be wiped out if we stay here" (v. 30).  And the sons reply, "Well?  He started it!" (v. 31).  They justify a premeditated, horrific massacre because of a crime against a single person, committed in passion, which the perpetrator was trying to rectify.

The next two chapters detail their move and their genealogy. 

Sandwiched in between these factual recitations, we find another appalling event:  Reuben, who is Leah's oldest son, and would normally be the birthright son, goes in and lays with his father's wife, Bilhah!  Bilhah is a concubine, or a servant-wife, and may not have had much say in the matter (35:22).  (See "Abraham's Wives" in a previous post for more about concubines.)  So now three of the possible top contenders for the birthright have committed heinous crimes, and their father knows they are all unworthy.  Later in the story (Gen. 38), Judah, the fourth, commits adultery with his daughter-in-law Tamar, who was masquerading as a prostitute.  The double standard of the day is clearly evident as he is prepared to burn her at the stake when he finds out she's pregnant, until she proves he's the father.  The reason she committed this grossly immoral deception was that Judah and his sons had cheated her out of progeny, sent her back to her father's house, and consigned her to life as a childless widow, a state that would undoubtedly lead to devastating poverty in her old age. 

And all of Joseph's brothers, as we know, were willing to either kill their younger brother or sell him into slavery because of jealousy, and then tell their father the heartbreaking lie that he had been killed.  Their jealousy was over the birthright, doubly emphasized by Joseph's dreams in which his family bowed in obeisance to him.  Ironically, the harm they did to Joseph was the exact opposite of the way a birthright son should treat a younger brother.  Clearly, they were each totally unfit to be the family patriarch.

So, all of the older brothers of Joseph gave up blessings because they yielded to temptations, emotions, and circumstances.  In the traditional deathbed blessing from his father Israel, the oldest son Reuben received the chastisement, "Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel" (Gen. 49:4).

JOSEPH'S INTEGRITY

We are all very familiar with the story of Joseph's kidnapping, enslavement, labor, and imprisonment in Egypt (Gen. 37, 39-40).  Its position in the Book of Genesis directly following the stories of his brothers' lack of integrity and of their heinous crimes clearly shows that Joseph was their polar opposite.  It did not matter in which land he lived, which woman he was with, whether he was a best-loved birthright son, a prosperous servant in an Egyptian's household, or a prisoner in a dungeon: Joseph was always the same.  He was kidnapped, beaten, nearly murdered, enslaved, lied about, tempted, framed, and forgotten, yet his integrity remained unchanged.  Joseph was a rock.  Because of his integrity and his unwavering faith in God, he excelled at home in his father's household, in Potipher's home as his chief servant, in prison as the guard's assistant, and in all of Egypt as Pharoah's right-hand man.

On his deathbed, Father Israel said of Joseph: "Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall: The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; from thence is the shepherd, the stone [or rock] of Israel" (Gen. 49:22-24).  (See the comment from reader Steve below this post for an explanation of this scripture.)

Joseph was always faithful to his God, Jehovah, and Jehovah was therefore always with Him.  As Chapter 39 details the rags to riches to rags to riches story of Joseph in Egypt, four times we read one significant phrase:  "The Lord was with Joseph" (v. 2, 3, 21, and 23).  Joseph always qualified for the companionship of the Holy Spirit, and always followed the direction he knew was right, regardless of what the consequences would be to himself.  Why?  Because he trusted in the Rock.  "Wherefore, I am in your midst, and I am the good shepherd, and the stone of Israel. He that buildeth upon this rock shall never fall" (D&C 50:44).

"And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall" (Helaman 5:12)