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ACCORDING AS JOSEPH HAD SAID
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5
Genesis 41:46-57

Psalm 31:1-12

 

“In thee, O LORD,

do I put my trust…”

 

ACCORDING AS JOSEPH HAD SAID
 
What a stupendous and wide-ranging national effort it was, with the whole of Egypt mobilised under a Hebrew! Credit had to go to Pharaoh for his implicit trust in Joseph and Joseph’s God! With his authorisation, Joseph put into action his bold plan to stock up food grain during the seven fruitful years. As Joseph had predicted, “seven fat cows” and “seven full ears of corn” filled the land with super abundance. In every city and neighbourhood, Pharaoh’s officers gathered into grain stores for seven years.
 
After seven years, the famine set in, even as Joseph had said. The famine was “…over all the face of the earth… the famine was so sore in all lands” (Gen 41:56-57). As their food stocks were exhausted, the hungry people came and bought from Pharaoh’s stores, not only Egyptians but people from neighbouring countries.
 
As the story unfolds, we see how God’s man, Joseph, turned out to be deliverer of the Egyptians as well as others affected by the famine. As we follow the story enacted by Jacob’s sons in the land of Egypt, let us turn our minds back to the great promises made by God to the father of the race, Abraham. “And I will make of thee a great nation... in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed… all the land… to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever... I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven…” (Gen 12:2-3; 13:15; 22:17).
 
This prophecy was fulfilled in stages over many years: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jacob’s twelve sons. As we saw earlier, carnality and immorality had invaded the family, seriously threatening its spiritual vitality. Now their physical survival was also in question because of the famine. Could such a family become a blessing to all the earth? Could this worldly and carnal lot become the forerunner of the Saviour of mankind? Truly, they were sorely in need of both spiritual and physical salvation before they could fulfil God’s great purpose.
 
THOUGHT: “Famine” will come upon the earth before our Lord returns.
PRAYER: I believe, O Father, that Thy every Word will come to pass.

 

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