Bible Class – Study #18 (Gen 43-45) – Notes and Discussion questions

Genesis Study #18: The examination of and revelation to Joseph’s brothers

Main passage of study: Gen 43:1 – 45:28

Related passages: Pt

A: Ge 17:1; 28:3; 35:11; 42:37; Est 4:16; Phm 1:18-19; Heb 7:22

B: Gen 37:9; 42:24, 28

C: Lev 19:26; Dt 13:3

D : Gen 42:21; 43:9; 50:18

E: Gen 50:20; Zec 12:10; Ac 7:13-14; 9:5; Ro 8:28; 11:33

F: Ge 27:28; 47:6; Isa 60:1-3; Mic 4:1-2; Eph 4:32; Col 3:13

Outline & Notes

  1. The brothers reluctantly released– Gen 43:1-14
    1. Jacob’s pressure – Gen 43:1-2
    2. Joseph’s prohibition – Gen 43:3-7
    3. Judah’s promise – Gen 43:8-14
  2. The brothers graciously guested– Gen 43:15-34
    1. A prepared feast – Gen 43:15-17
    2. A presumed fear – Gen 43:18-23
    3. A partial fellowship – Gen 43:24-31
    4. Purposeful features – Gen 43:32-34
  3. The brothers furtively framed – Gen 44:1-13
    1. The planted cup – Gen 44:1-3
    2. The prosecuted charges – Gen 44:4-6
    3. The proposed consequences – Gen 44:7-10
    4. The pointed confirmation – Gen 44:11-13
  1. Judah’s unrestrained intercession– Gen 44:14-34
    1. The brothers’ responsibility recognized – Gen 44:14-17
    2. Joseph’s restrictions repeated – Gen 44:18-23
    3. Jacob’s resistance related – Gen 44:24-29
    4. Judah’s readiness revealed – Gen 44:30-34
  2. Joseph’s unveiled identity– Gen 45:1-15
    1. Joseph’s passions – Gen 45:1-3
    2. Joseph’s perspective – Gen 45:4-8
    3. Joseph’s provision – Gen 45:9-15
  3. Pharoah’s unconditional invitation– Gen 45:16-28
    1. Pharaoh’s full support – Gen 45:16-20
    2. The brothers’ full supplies – Gen 45:21-24
    3. Jacob’s full spirit – Gen 45:25-28

The famine has proved not to be just the anomaly of a single bad year and Jacob’s family has almost exhausted the supplies obtained on the first visit to Egypt. Jacob has great reservations but Judah speaks up to remind him that a return trip will be in vain if Benjamin is not with them and even offers to be surety himself for Jacob’s beloved son. The brothers arrive with trepidation but are both surprised and bewildered by the Egyptian ruler’s special interest in them. Joseph longs for reconciliation but he has some final tests to execute to ascertain the readiness of his brothers. Benjamin is specifically targeted, accused and sentenced to be a slave in Egypt in order to determine whether the brothers have truly changed. Judah rises as the spokesman and makes an impassioned plea to deliver Benjamin from bondage and his father from an overwhelmingly broken heart, sacrificially offering himself to serve in Benjamin’s place. Joseph is satisfied and can restrain himself no longer from revealing himself to his brothers whom God has brought to repentance. They will return home with irrefutable proof of what God has been doing through Joseph through what Jacob assumed were lost years. Jacob will bring his family down into Egypt from whence God will further His purposes and fulfill His promises to the patriarchs to make of their descendants a great nation that He would redeem for Himself and bring out of Egypt by a mighty hand.

Textual notes

● Benjamin is referred to as a ‘lad’ in Ge 43:8 but the Hebrew word (naar) can have a wide range of meanings from ‘babe’, ‘boy’, ‘youth’, ‘young man’ or ‘servant’. Given that we read of Benjamin’s 10 sons in Ge 46:21 among those who came into Egypt, Benjamin must have been a man in his 30s at least.

● Jacob sends his sons with “double money” in their hands with which to buy more grain (Ge 43:12). The word used for ‘money’ is the same word as for ‘silver’ and since Simeon was in captivity in Egypt, there were 10 brothers who took ‘double money’ which would answer exactly to the 20 pieces of silver for which the brothers had sold Joseph years before.

● ‘God Almighty’ in Gen 43:14 is El Shaddai in Hebrew and the term more accurately symbolizes the life-sustaining provision of a mother for her young children. So in this name of God, we see a picture of the tender love of the mighty God who sustains and nourishes His own.

● Joseph’s silver cup (Gen 44:2) was evidently a cup like those used in Egypt for divination. Some commentators suggest that Joseph was playing the role of the Egyptian ruler before his brothers and that we should not assume that he actually engaged in the heathen ritual. Others say that if Joseph did practise divination, that we should not pronounce judgment on him as the law of Moses which outlawed it, had not yet been given.

● In Judah’s appeal to Joseph in Gen 44:18-34, the word ‘father’ is mentioned 15 times in reference to Jacob. Judah’s pleas were clearly as much if not more for Jacob’s sake as they were for Benjamin’s. Clearly there had been a great change in the brothers’ attitude and affections towards their father since they covered up their deeds against Joseph.

● When Joseph sends his brothers back to Canaan, he tells them not to ‘become troubled’ along the way. Some translations have this as not to ‘quarrel’ along the way as the word can describe being troubled with anger.

Discussion questions

1. Gen 43:9 is the first mention of the word “surety” in Scripture. Look up the other uses of the word and suggest its importance in connection with salvation.

2. Jacob is very reluctant to allow Benjamin to go to Egypt for fear of what might happen but in the end, he seems to leave things in the Lord’s hands (Gen 43:14). What lessons can we learn here about trusting God in the face of uncertainty?

3. We read of Joseph weeping for a second time in Gen 43:30 following his interaction with Benjamin. What spiritual lesson can we learn from Joseph’s tears here?

4. What are some examples of how Joseph’s interactions with his brothers are restricted in ch. 43? What spiritual truth does this demonstrate?

5. Why do you suppose that Joseph had his brothers ordered by birth around the table and why did he have Benjamin given 5 times the portion of his brothers?

6. Why was Benjamin the target of the planted cup and what can we learn about how God uses specific trials in our own lives?

7. God had obviously been working in Judah’s life since the brothers sold Joseph at his suggestion. What are some evidences of this?

8. How does Joseph’s final test reveal the hearts of his brothers?

9. What do we learn about true repentance in this episode with Joseph and his brothers?

10. How can we avoid bitterness and cultivate a spirit like Joseph’s, recognizing God’s sovereign hand even through long, painful trials?

11. Jacob initially struggled to believe that Joseph was really alive. How can we strengthen our faith when we might not always see the evidence of the blessings of God?

12. What parallels can we draw between Joseph and the Lord Jesus in Joseph’s reconciliation with his brothers?