I spent the day with my family today at my cousin’s daughter’s
first birthday party. There is no doubt
that these are some of my favorite people in the world. Happily, we do not have the family drama that
say- Jacob’s family does. I don’t need
to tell you that the more you love a person, the deeper they can hurt you. So it’s no surprise Joseph weeps five times
in as many chapters over his brothers.
Several years have passed, Joseph is Bill Gates successful, and
seemingly moved beyond his painful past and then his brothers show up.
“He turned
away from them and began to weep…” (42:24)“…Joseph hurried out and looked for a place to weep…” (43:30)
“…And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him…” (45:2)
“Then he
threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept…” (45:14)
“And he
kissed all his brothers and wept over them…” (45:15)
Between this
story and Jacob’s reunion with Esau, I’m getting the message loud and clear:
forgive. When I was a rotten little
tween, somebody pointed out that so often we’re most unkind to the people that
love us most in the world and it really resonated. Someone should have mentioned this to the
Israel brothers ten plus years ago, right?
Here’s the
other thing I can’t not mention. How
funny is Joseph to send his brothers on their way and jokingly (???) remind
them, “’Don’t quarrel on the way!’” (45:24).
In other words, “Don’t throw Ben down a well just because he’s obviously
my favorite and I gave him a donkeyload more stuff than you!” I mean if you can’t rib your sibs, who can
you rib?
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